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The Pahvant or Pahvants (''Pavant, Parant, Pahva-nits'') were a band of
Ute people Ute () are an Indigenous peoples of the Great Basin, Indigenous people of the Great Basin and Colorado Plateau in present-day Utah, western Colorado, and northern New Mexico.Pritkzer''A Native American Encyclopedia'' p. 242 Historically, their t ...
that lived in present-day Utah. Called the "Water People", they fished and hunted waterfowl. They were also farmers and
hunter-gatherer A hunter-gatherer or forager is a human living in a community, or according to an ancestrally derived Lifestyle, lifestyle, in which most or all food is obtained by foraging, that is, by gathering food from local naturally occurring sources, esp ...
s. In the 18th century they were known to be friendly and attentive, but after a chief's father was killed by emigrating white settlers, a group of Pahvant Utes killed John Williams Gunnison and seven of his men during his exploration of the area. The bodies of water of their homeland were dried up after
Mormons Mormons are a Religious denomination, religious and ethnocultural group, cultural group related to Mormonism, the principal branch of the Latter Day Saint movement started by Joseph Smith in upstate New York during the 1820s. After Smith's d ...
had diverted the water for irrigation. Having intermarried with the
Paiute Paiute (; also Piute) refers to three non-contiguous groups of Indigenous peoples of the Great Basin. Although their languages are related within the Numic group of Uto-Aztecan languages, these three languages do not form a single subgroup and th ...
s, they were absorbed into the Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah and relocated to reservations.


Ancestral domain and lifestyle

Pahvants lived west of the Wasatch Range in the Pavant Range towards the Nevada border along the Sevier River in the desert around Sevier Lake and Fish Lake, therefore they called themselves ''Pahvant'', meaning "living near the water", or "water people". The Moanunts, another Ute band, lived on the other side of Sevier River. The two bands had the same dialect, but were two distinct groups of people. In their way of living they resembled their neighbors, the Kaibab Paiute, and intermarried with neighboring Goshute and
Southern Paiute The Southern Paiute people () are a tribe of Native Americans who have lived in the Colorado River basin of southern Nevada, northern Arizona, and southern Utah. Bands of Southern Paiute live in scattered locations throughout this territory an ...
. Their hunting and gathering grounds extended west to the present-day border of Utah and Nevada. They camped in six villages during the winter season. The hunted waterfowl and fished along the Sevier River and hunted deer in the mountains. They gathered roots, berries, and pine nuts. They also farmed for many years along Corn Creek. They had horses by the mid-19th century.


Domínguez–Escalante expedition

The Pahvants and the Moanunts were visited in 1776 by the Domínguez–Escalante expedition. The Pahvants were called "Bearded Indians" and were considered friendly and attentive.


Contact with European-Americans

About 1850, Mormons began to move into San Pete and Millard counties, taking the "most valuable lands" of the Pahvant and other tribes and plowing native plants, which resulted in periods of starvation and survival strategies that included begging for food and taking crops and livestock.
Brigham Young Brigham Young ( ; June 1, 1801August 29, 1877) was an American religious leader and politician. He was the second President of the Church (LDS Church), president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) from 1847 until h ...
's response to Holeman's charge was to deny it and advise Mormons that it was "cheaper to feed Indians than fight them." Young established three farm reserves for local tribes, which became more like feeding stations after the Utes worked the farms for disappointing harvests and because it kept them from hunting, which they needed to sustain themselves. In the fall of 1853, there were a number of conflicts between emigrants to the area and the Pahvant Utes. The Utes raided several towns, killed some settlers, and stole cattle. About October 1853, some pioneers had passed through Pahvant land and were having peaceful communication until they tried to take bows and arrows away from the Utes. A scuffle ensured and the settlers killed the father of Chief Moshoquop and wounded or killed other members of the band. Captain John Williams Gunnison had come to the area to survey the land for a transcontinental railroad. He heard of the conflict, but believed the issues had been resolved and set up camp on Sevier Lake to explore and survey the area. On the morning of October 26, 1853, a group of Pahvant Utes attacked the camp. They killed Gunnison and seven men with bows and arrows and rifles. Following negotiations with U.S. military and the Mormons, in February 1855 Kanosh arranged for one woman and six men to stand trial for the murder of Gunnison and his men. They were found guilt of Murder in the Second Degree, with three of the tried to be sentenced to three years hard labor and a fine. They were brought to a penitentiary near
Salt Lake City Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in the state. The city is the core of the Salt Lake Ci ...
, but escaped five days later. It was reported that Mormons played a part in their release.


Effect of European-American settlement

Mormon settlement had reduced access to Ute hunting and gathering grounds. Fish, wildfowl, and native plants were reduced in number. The Mormons brought diseases to which Utes had no immunity and their population was significantly depleted. Grasshoppers and drought destroyed the Mormon's crops, so they did not have extra food to share. River water had been diverted for irrigation by the Mormons, resulting in reduced water levels at Lake Sevier and the rivers. The Pahvants and the Moanunts were absorbed into the Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah, some of whom lived at the Kanosh reservation, a community of a few houses located north of Kanosh, Utah, or lived off-reservation near Kanosh. Others relocated to the Uintah and Ouray Indian Reservation and were classified as members of the Uintah tribe by the U.S. government.


Notable people

*
Kanosh (chief) Kanosh (1821 – December 24, 1884) was a nineteenth-century leader of the Pahvant band of the Ute Indians of what is now central Utah having succeeded the more belligerent Chuick as principal chief. His band had "a major camp at Corn Creek." ...
, leader of the Pahvant band


See also

* Walker War, resulting from tension between the Mormon settlers and the Ute Indians


References


External links


Paiute Indian Tribe of Utah
official website {{Ute people Paiute Ute (ethnic group) Uto-Aztecan peoples