THE LAND OF WOVOKA
Throughout Pioneer
Territory, ancient petroglyphs testify to the presence throughout the eons of
Nevada's native peoples. The shores of Walker Lake, once part of massive Lake
Lahontan, were home to members of the Northern Paiute tribe. Portions of the
lake and the community of Schurz are located within the Walker Lake Indian
Reservation.
Yerington is home to a
Paiute colony and reservation, which well remembers and annually pays tribute
to Wovoka, one of the most important Native American figures in Nevada history
-- indeed, the history of the West.
Born as Jack Wilson near
Yerington in the 1850s, Wovoka, according to the Nevada Historical Society,
sparked a spiritual and cultural revival in many Native American tribes both in
Nevada and far away from his roots here.
The society notes that,
"On New Year's Day 1889, Wovoka had a religious revelation wherein he
‘died’ and went to heaven. God gave him a dance and a message of peace to share
with all people. He was to stress brotherhood among all Indian people, and
between the Indian and White. Wovoka proclaimed his stirring message and taught
his people the Ghost Dance,
a round dance that lasted
for five nights...
“Wovoka's teachings spread
like prairie fire first among the Bannocks, the Shoshones and then to the Great
Plains Indians and many other tribes. By 1890 delegations from tribes of the
Arapahoes and the Cheyennes on the east, and from as far as the Pacific Ocean
in Southern California, were visiting him in Mason Valley, all seeking to learn
about the new religion.”
Each August, Yerington celebrates this towering Native American and his vision with the "Spirit of Wovoka Days" powwow, where traditional dance, food, and arts and crafts combine to keep Wovoka's message alive for future generations.