Indians of the Feather River

Tales and Legends of Concow Maidu of California

Over a number of years in the 1960s, anthropologist Don Jewell got to know the Concow elders, accompanying them on foot or by automobile through a landscape that for them was pregnant with meaning. He listened to and taped the stories they told and the tribal wisdom they shared, and has now compiled a book that will have equal appeal for scholars and laymen alike. The elder’s stories are now especially valuable as preserved oral history of the Native American view of California’s mid-nineteenth century past, which is well documented as far as the Euro-American and pioneer’s side goes. Jewell’s account of the Maidu is proving popular for classroom use and for sales to the general public and was rated highly by the Los Angeles Unified School District, which evaluates textbooks relative to American Indian content.