Everything Everywhere Daily · Tuesday, July 14, 2026
In 1851, the Mariposa Battalion, sanctioned by the state of California, forcibly removed the Ahwahnechee people from Yosemite Valley, burning their villages and supplies. Following this conquest, settlers claimed the land, and a member of the battalion, Lafayette Brunell, renamed the valley 'Yosemite,' likely based on a misinterpretation of the tribe's name or a term referring to 'killers'.
“In 1851, a band of volunteers formed the Mariposa Battalion, sanctioned by the state of California, to rid the area of perceived threats of Indians.”
“When they entered Yosemite Valley, they systematically burned villages and food supplies and forced men, women, and children away from their homes. When the Indians returned, Yosemite was no longer theirs. New settlers had claimed it as their own.”
“However, Brunell's origin of the word was completely wrong. The word he probably heard was Yohemeti, meaning 'they are the killers,' which likely referred to the bears that inhabited the region or to the ferocity of the chief that protected the valley.”