Native Americans

Native Americans inhabited this area as early as 12,000 years ago. Over centuries, indigenous people formed tribal bands, the most noted of them the Shoshone. The Shoshone camped along the banks of the Weber River, sometimes in groups as large as 1,500 people. They fished with spears, gill nets, and basket traps, and they were skilled at snaring and hunting abundant local wild game. Animals including grouse, owls, muskrats, squirrels, beaver, elk, porcupines, bobcats, rabbits, badgers, and bear provided food and other necessities for daily living. Native plants such as thistle stems, sagebrush seeds, sego lilies, cattails, and pine seeds were also critical to Shoshone survival. They followed a yearly cycle, traveling a well-specified route from the desert valleys to this mountainous area, and they held the land, water, and animals in reverence, viewing all things as holy.

Henefer, Utah · United States