George Catlin (1796 –1872) A Yuma Chief, his Daughter, & a Warrior

George Catlin (1796 –1872) A Yuma Chief, his Daughter, and a Warrior.   Catlin wrote, "From St. Diego, on horseback, crossing the Colorado of the West at La Paz, and Rocky Mountains to St. Diego on the Rio Grande del Norte, and from that point, in a 'dug-out,' steering with my own paddle, descended that river to El Paso, and to Matamoras, 800 miles, seeing Cochemtees, Mohaves, Yumas, Yumayas, and several bands of the Apachees." See: George Catlin. North and South American Indians: Catalogue Descriptive and Instructive of Catlin's Indian Cartoons.Baker & Godwin, 1871

The historic Yuman-speaking people were skilled warriors & active traders, maintaining exchange networks with the Pima in southern Arizona & with peoples of the Pacific coast.  The 1st written contact of the Quechan with Europeans was with the Spanish explorer Juan Bautista de Anza & his party in the winter of 1774. Relations were friendly. On Anza's return from his 2nd trip to Alta California in 1776, the chief of the tribe & 3 of his men journeyed to Mexico City to petition the Viceroy of New Spain for the establishment of a mission. The chief Palma & his three companions were baptized in Mexico City on February 13, 1777. Palma was given the Spanish baptismal name Salvador Carlos Antonio.  Spanish settlement among the Quechan did not go smoothly; the tribe rebelled from July 17–19, 1781 & killed 4 priests & 30 soldiers. They also attacked & damaged the Spanish mission settlements of San Pedro y San Pablo de Bicuñer & Puerto de Purísima Concepción, killing many. The following year, the Spanish retaliated with military action against the tribe. After the United States annexed the territories after winning the Mexican–American War, it engaged in the Yuma War from 1850 to 1853. During which, the historic Fort Yuma was built across the Colorado River from the present day Yuma, Arizona.