Long before there was a company named Terra-Gen, an electrical grid or climate crisis threatening the planet, the Humboldt Bay region was inhabited by Wiyot people — as many as 3,000 of them, by some estimates — who lived in some 20 villages scattered around the bay. It’s where their ancestors lived, and their ancestors’ […]
Wiyot Tribe
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Overflow Crowd Again Turns Out for Public Hearing on Controversial Wind Farm Proposal
The debate over the proposed Terra-Gen wind energy project seemed no closer to resolution after a second heated five-and-a-half-hour public hearing at the County Planning Commission on Thursday. Once again, the Supervisors Chamber was packed with people standing in the aisles. About 40 people who could not fit into the crowded room stood outside in […]
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Green Versus Green
Two public forums held earlier this month on the proposed Terra-Gen Wind Generation Project covered the same topics but the moods were radically different. The first meeting, a Nov. 6 panel discussion sponsored by the Schatz Energy Research Center at Humboldt State University, was calm and rational in tone, attracting nearly a thousand people to […]
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Following Eureka’s Lead
When researching our Jan. 24 cover story “We’re Coming Home” about the city of Eureka returning Duluwat Island to the Wiyot Tribe 159 years after it was stolen, we came across a beautiful quote in a 1988 Humboldt Historian article about the island and the egret rookery on its western shore. “The egrets, in graceful […]
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The Island’s Return
There was a time not long ago when this was unthinkable. After all, when Wiyot tribal officials first called Eureka City Hall to request the return of Duluwat Island in the 1970s, they got laughter in response. When tribal elder Cheryl Seidner tried again a couple of decades later, she heard mostly stutters and stammers […]
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Duluwat Island is Returned to the Wiyot Tribe in Historic Ceremony
With five words, it became official — Duluwat Island is being returned to the Wiyot people, for whom it is the physical and cultural center of the universe, a sacred piece of land with the power to bring balance to all else. “Unanimous yes vote. Motion carries,” said Eureka City Clerk Pam Powell, drawing a […]
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Eureka Schedules Ceremony for Return of Duluwat Island to the Wiyot Tribe
After 160 years — and some unforeseen delays — it looks like the city of Eureka is prepared to finally and officially return Duluwat Island to the Wiyot Tribe later this month. While details are still being worked out, the city of Eureka is planning a special council meeting to formally approve the island’s return […]
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Deadline Looms for Comments on Controversial Wind Power Project
With the deadline to comment on the draft environmental impact report fast approaching, debate over a proposed wind farm on a ridgeline to the south of the Eel River Valley is heating up. The project, developed by Terra-Gen, a large, San Diego-based renewable energy company owned by the private equity firm Energy Capital Partners, would […]
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Indian Island Likely to Return to Wiyot Tribe Next Month
After an unexpected delay, the unprecedented repatriation of Indian Island to the Wiyot Tribe is poised to come before the Eureka City Council for final approval next month. City Manager Greg Sparks said the return of the tribe’s sacred ancestral land — approved in principal by the council in principle Dec. 4 — was delayed […]
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Eureka Considers Moving Forward with Indian Island Transfer
The Eureka City Council is slated tonight to decide whether to move forward with transferring ownership of Indian Island back to the Wiyot Tribe. The city’s planning commission voted unanimously last month to find that the 202 acres of land the city owns on Indian Island are not required for “current or future public use” […]
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Arcata Council to Consider McKinley’s Fate
The Arcata City Council is set Wednesday to consider the fate of President William McKinley’s statue with a series of potential options ranging from taking down the 1906 tribute to putting the issue before voters. Momentum has been building in recent months to remove the bronze, the first major work by renowned Armenian sculptor Haig […]
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Wiyot Tribe Votes to Remove McKinley Statue
Referring to U.S. President William McKinley’s legacy of annexing indigenous lands within the continental United States and Hawaii, the Wiyot Tribe sent out a press release today in support of removing the McKinley statue from the Arcata Plaza. According to the release, the Wiyot Tribal Council voted unanimously Feb. 12 to support its removal, as […]