Homeland Return

For the Nevada City Rancheria Nisenan TRibe

Homeland Return

In the fall of 2023, CHIRP and the NCR Nisenan Tribe were presented with the opportunity to purchase 232 acres of land near Nevada City, California. This land was once part of the thriving Nisenan community and town called Yulića. After a tremendously successful grassroots campaign, CHIRP fundraised over $2.5 million dollars and escrow finally closed in September 2024 following a lengthy negotiation with local government, the sellers, and county code enforcement

As with many Indigenous traditions, the Tribe’s health and its culture are symbiotic with the Land - neither People nor Land can thrive without relationship to the other. As such, the purchase and rematriation of Yulića provides a tremendous potential for stability and healing for the Tribe, the environment, and the fabric of the Sierra Nevada foothills community

Yulića escrow has closed and title has transferred!

The California Heritage: Indigenous Research Project (CHIRP) and the College Park Friends Educational Association (CPFEA) AKA Woolman are deeply proud to announce their successful endeavor to transfer 232 acres and the site of the John Woolman School into the hands of CHIRP and the Nevada City Rancheria (NCR) Nisenan Tribe. The escrow completed on September 27, 2024 and was the result of significant and inspired effort of all parties.

In an era of increasing support for Native land return, this story is an important example of partnership and working together to return what was stolen. Exciting next steps include moving Tribal Elders into safe housing together on the Land, opportunities for Indigenous-led environmental healing and stewardship, celebration of the completed transition, and continued land-based Cultural revitalization for the Nevada City Rancheria Nisenan Tribe.

“I’m inspired by the dedication and commitment of everyone who donated to this campaign that will restore a small portion of our Ancestral Homelands. It makes me hopeful and confident that this is just the beginning in an awesome movement for Indigenous peoples everywhere.”
— Shelly Covert, Tribal Spokesperson

The Nisenan (pronounced nee-see-nan or nee-she-nan) are the Indigenous people of the Sierra Nevada foothills, their territory extending from the crest of the Sierra Nevada Mountains and the north fork of the Yuba River, to the west side of the Sacramento River and the northern banks of the Consumnes River. 

For over 10,000 years, the Nisenan People lived in prosperous harmony with the land and its animal kin. The earth was laden with clean water, delicious food, strong medicine, pure spirit, sacred grounds, and vast-interconnected species of animals - deer, elk, wolves, bear - and the waterways brimmed with crayfish, eel, trout, and seasonal salmon. The Nisenan stewarded forests of pine, cedar and sacred oak trees, and valleys rich in willow, wildflowers and native grasses. 

Through deep relationship with the land, the Nisenan people prospered in great wealth, rich culture, and stable social fabric. For the Nisenan, this land was a true Paradise.  

Tragically, the Nisenan People and their Ancestral Homelands were the epicenter of the environmental and humanitarian disaster in the wake of the discovery of gold in 1848. 

Today, the Nisenan continue to struggle under the devastating legacy of the gold rush, forced assimilation, the unlawful termination of the Nevada City Rancheria (reservation) in 1964 and resulting landlessness. Although they have gained significant progress in building visibility, support and recognition by the State, local government, and the public in recent years, they remain without access to their Ancestral Homelands. 

In this unprecedented moment, we have the opportunity to support the return of Ancestral Homelands to the Nisenan Tribe, and in turn offer opportunities for Tribal health and stability, cultural and spiritual preservation and revitalization, and community and environmental healing.   

Nevada City Rancheria Nisenan Tribe

Rancheria History

And the struggle for the Nisenan Homeland

In the wake of the discovery of gold in the Yuba River watershed in 1848, the Nisenan People experienced the near annihilation of their population, devastation of their environment and culture, and all but total loss of their land. 

In 1913, this tribal land was converted into the Nevada City Rancheria by Executive Order of President Woodrow Wilson. Through this order, the Tribe, though living in extreme poverty, was also granted federal recognition as a Native American reservation and the right to self-govern. 

Following the U.S. Congressional enactment of the Rancheria Act of 1958, which disbanded the Rancheria System in California, the United States illegally “terminated” the Nevada City Rancheria in 1964, revoking individual rights and status afforded to “Indians.” The U.S government sold the reservation land at auction, and left the Nisenan homeless. 

Of the 40+ Tribes throughout California that were terminated under that Act, today only three of those congressionally terminated Rancherias have not been restored. Despite significant legal efforts by the Nisenan Tribe, the Nevada City Rancheria remains one of the tribes in a “terminated” state. It is therefore barred from accessing Federal Indian programs and funding for housing, education, health, and economic sustainability. 

In 2014, the Tribe created a nonprofit – the California Heritage: Indigenous Research Project (CHIRP). As a Tribally-guided 501(c)(3), its mission is to Preserve, Protect, and Perpetuate Nisenan Culture. As a California non-profit corporation, CHIRP has legal status to serve the Tribe and its approximately 140 members.

In 1851, eighteen treaties were signed with California Tribes to protect Native land and provide resources to support their “civilization”. Leaders of the Nisenan Tribe signed the Camp Union Treaty in good faith, though tragically these treaties were never ratified. Instead, they were hidden away during a secret session of the United States Senate, and only rediscovered in 1904.

In 1887, Tribal Chief Charley Cully obtained a land allotment of 75 acres, located on Cement Hill, about 1.5 miles from downtown Nevada City, to be put into trust of the Nisenan Tribe. 

Homeland Return

An Unprecedented Opportunity

In the fall of 2023, CHIRP was presented with an extraordinary opportunity to reclaim a portion of the Nisenan Ancestral Homelands through the purchase of 232 acres of land and accompanying buildings on behalf of the Nevada City Rancheria Nisenan Tribe. The land is located on the historic Nisenan village site called Yulića near Nevada City. 

The land, currently known as Woolman and owned by the College Park Friends Educational Association, has acted primarily as a Quaker boarding and experiential-education school, summer camp, and Friends meeting house, founded on the principles of peace, social justice, and sustainability. Transitioning the land back to the Tribe embodies Woolman’s values and fulfills a spiritual endeavor to promote right relationship between its recent stewards and the land’s original inhabitants.

As of January 8, 2024, CHIRP deposited $75,000 into an escrow account to acquire Woolman as a land base for the Tribe. 

CHIRP has until April 4th, 2024 to raise the additional $1.5 million to purchase the property, with a total fundraising goal of $2.4 million for the purchase price, government required improvements, and an operating endowment. 

Homeland Return of Yulića

Healing and Revitalization

Through Homeland Return

The purchase and rematriation of Yulića provides a tremendous potential for stability and healing for the Nisenan people, the environment, and the fabric of the Nevada City community. 

In addition to the momentous opportunity of returning Ancestral Homelands to the Nevada City Rancheria Nisenan Tribe, acquisition of the Woolman property allows the Tribe to reclaim their ceremonial and cultural practices, provide much needed Elder housing, and to renew their relationship with the land and its more-than-human kin.   

The property consists of 20+ buildings, including a meeting center, offices, classrooms, homes, A-frame cabins, a dining hall, commercial kitchen, a pottery studio with a unique Japanese climbing kiln, and maintenance buildings, a creek, medicine and grinding rocks, and hiking trails. 

Vision for Yulića

Reimagining “Conservation” at Yulića

For centuries, the Western concept of environmental “conservation” has asserted that the natural world is healthiest when it is “untouched,” in “pristine” condition, and therefore void of human interaction. What this perspective fails to understand is that for millennia, throughout Indigenous cultures across Turtle Island and globally, human interaction, stewardship, and cultivation are vital to the health of the Earth and the people. From a tribal lens, humans are nature, and True Conservation involves humans returning to the land and creatively reimagining a future in which ancient wisdom and modern society are merged. 

The Nevada City Rancheria (NCR) Nisenan Tribe and California Heritage: Indigenous Research Project (CHIRP) want to honor the fear and discomfort at the root of many of the questions the community have posed in relation to the purchase of Woolman - mainly in the form of concerns about future “development” and insistence on conservation easements. We understand that these concerns stem from the community’s desire to protect the natural environmental and cultural values of the broader Sierra Nevada foothills. 

To help quell these concerns, the Tribe and CHIRP feel it is important to share their vision for Yulića, informed by the value of True Conservation, and guided by the principles of Remembrance, Reimagination, and Revitalization. 

Remembrance, Reimagination, Revitalization

For the Tribe, True Conservation is not limited by Western understandings of a land untouched by human hands, but instead returns humans to their natural place living on and with the Earth as stewards, protectors, cultivators and kin to the natural world. From the perspective of the NCR Nisenan Tribe, True Conservation is attained through the process of Remembrance, Reimagination, and Revitalization. Together, through the acts of remembering the ways of the past and bringing tribal wisdom into the future, reimagining what is possible in light of this tribal knowledge and modern technologies, and revitalizing both cultural and environmental practices, the Tribe hopes that the land at Yulića may one day be a model of Indigenous innovation and reciprocal healing.  

Remembrance:

The Nisenan People have lived on this land since time immemorial. While they experienced a near total annihilation of their people, devastation of their environment and culture, and all but total loss of their land, memories of the land, its spirit and personality, and the knowledge of human’s relationship to animal and plant kin have been passed through generations and live on in Tribal memory. Although some things will be forever lost, the Tribe hopes to bring these tangible memories into the future through revitalization of the land and Nisenan culture. 

Reimagination: 

So much of the modern imagination is limited by Western visions of what is possible. Through reimagining the potentials of the land at Yulića (and the broader Sierra Foothill community) and informed True Conservation, the Nevada City Rancheria Nisenan Tribe envisions a world in which remembered wisdom of the past is merged with modern, environmentally-friendly technology that actively heals the Earth and human communities, rather than harming or extracting from it. 

Revitalization:

Revitalization of the Nisenan people and their cultural practices go hand-in-hand with restoration and healing of the land - the health of one is a direct reflection of the other. Through revitalizing ancient Nisenan practices - whether they be cultural practices, including language restoration, ceremonial practices, and cultural arts and crafts, or Indigenous environmental practices, such as prescribed burning, habitat restoration, and waterway rehabilitation - both the Earth and the people experience profound healing. 

Immediate Priorities for Yulića

Should CHIRP and the Nevada City Rancheria acquire and rematriate Yulića, the immediate concerns are two-fold: healing the land and bringing the existing infrastructure up to code and compliance. While the most recent stewards of the land created an organization that provided joyful and meaningful experiences for its community and hosted programs that supported environmental education and connection, the land itself is still in deep need of healing, tending, and restoration from the Tribal perspective. 

The land at Yulića remains impacted by mining destruction. Roadways cut through meadows. Non-native grasses cover the flatscapes. Trees are overcrowded and native species are squeezed out. Buildings are placed according to viewscape, and are actively harming seasonal creeks. Similar to our ongoing work and stewardship of Deer Creek, True Conservation at Yulića involves understanding the potential of this land through the Tribal perspective, and restoring the natural environment with these values at the forefront of stewardship efforts. 

Beyond addressing the needs of the natural landscape and bringing the existing infrastructure up to code, the Tribe’s most pressing priority for Yulića involves creating safe, stable housing and support for Tribal Elders to live in community. For the Nisenan, the Elders are the culture. Protecting Tribal Elders and providing an opportunity for them to be together on the land is one of the most significant outcomes of this land purchase. 

Future Vision for Yulića

Once the most immediate environmental concerns of the land and the bureaucratic requirements are successfully navigated, the Tribe will need time to settle into relationship with the land, to begin to repair connections that have been lost over the last century and to let the land and people reattune to one another. While the purchase process and fundraising have moved at lightning speed, the Nisenan Tribe values slow, intentional movement, and their dreams for the future of this land must be informed from living on and with the land and the animal and plant kin that inhabit it. 

The Nevada City Rancheria Nisenan Tribe assures the broader Sierra Foothill community that their vision for the future of Yulića will be informed by True Conservation. Given the space and resources to make this dream a reality, the Tribe hopes first and foremost to demonstrate how wisdom from the past can be merged with modern technologies to model True Conservation, informed by stewardship, interdependence, and mutual thriving of the natural world and humankind. 

Humans have lived in harmonious balance with the Earth for millenia, and the Tribe believes we can return to mutual thriving without abandoning the comforts of the modern world. Rather, the Tribe believes that through collaboration of Tribal traditionalists, environmental restoration crews, innovative architects, energy experts and technology visionaries, we can create hi-tech, energy-efficient, comfortable and cozy homes for our Elders, without negative impact to the land and animal kin. A thriving Earth includes humans living in mutual reciprocity on the land. Through uniting Tribal wisdom with modern advancements, we hope to model and demonstrate True Conservation potentials at Yulića to inspire the broader community. 

The potential for Yulića is so much greater than Western perspective can imagine. The NCR Tribe asks that the Sierra Foothill community join them in this vision of True Conservation, to continue to be open to healing possibilities beyond the limited scope of what is known and comfortable, and to support our efforts to make this dream a reality - for the benefit of the Nisenan, for the Earth, and for the fabric of the Sierra Nevada foothills community. 

The Tribe’s vision for these Lands

Tribal Support and Stability 

  • Elder and Tribal Member housing

  • Wellness Center for collaborative healing

  • Youth Media Center

  • Economic opportunities


Cultural Revitalization and Preservation

  • Ceremonial spaces

  • Cultural arts and crafts

  • Performance pavilion

Community Education and Collaboration

  • Cultural and Interpretive Center

  • Community education

  • Collaborative work and classroom spaces

  • Cultural events hub for community sharing

Environmental Healing and Rematriation

  • Reconnection with local environment and spirits of the land

  • Indigenous food, medicinal plants and gardens

  • Preservation and protection of cultural resources on the land

Phase 1 Success

As of April 4th, CHIRP successfully reached the first milestone of the Homeland Return Campaign! Through the generous contributions of supporters worldwide, the total funds raised stand just above an impressive $2,034,000. 

CHIRP and the Nevada City Rancheria Nisenan Tribe would like to offer deep gratitude and thanks to our supporters, allies, and community who have come together within the span of less than 10 weeks to showcase the collective power of individuals and community in uniting behind a meaningful cause. This remarkable achievement and ongoing support clearly illustrates our community’s commitment to healing historical injustices, Indigenous land rematriation, and cultural revitalization.

"This milestone is a testament to the dedication and solidarity of our supporters in championing justice and cultural preservation," said Shelly Covert, Executive Director at CHIRP. "Exceeding the $1.5 million mark signifies not just a financial achievement but a profound commitment to the success of Phase 2 and the long-term goals of restoring the Nisenan Tribe's Ancestral Homeland.”

As with any large land acquisition, the discovery process related to the purchase of Woolman has proved to be more complex and required significantly more fact-finding and negotiations than originally anticipated. 

In many cases, “you don’t know what you don’t know” when going under contract with a property, and unfortunately the discovery process has uncovered substantial complications in relation to road, septic and wells at Woolman. Nevertheless, CHIRP is in on-going discussions with the state and county governments to clarify what is currently in place - or lacking - regarding permits, codes, and compliances, and is working diligently to find creative solutions to these issues. 

Yulića Update

The discordance arising from the ongoing bureaucratic compliance negotiations regarding the Woolman property represent a microcosm for the general tensions between Tribal protocols and Western government paradigms. 

In moments where Tribal Cultural protocols, wisdom, and values meet resistance from rigid systematic policy, rules, and regulations, there is a profound opportunity for potential healing, collaboration, and systemic change. These encounters, though laden with historical complexities and power differentials, present an opportunity for meaningful dialogue and understanding. 

By recognizing and respecting Tribal protocols and prioritization the Earth, the plants, and our animal-kin, colonial systems are invited to evolve and incorporate diverse perspectives and values through fostering genuine collaboration between Indigenous communities and Western conventions. Through this process, not only can past injustices be acknowledged and addressed, but new pathways for equitable governance and coexistence can be forged, leading to a more inclusive, sustainable, and healthy world. 

CHIRP and the Tribe are confident that with respect, community advocacy, enthusiastic “think tanks,” and tenacious loving pressure, the rematriation and stewardship of Yulića can model True Conservation and innovative approaches to collaborative healing. 

Yulića as a Microcosm

TIME AND SPACE FOR NAVIGATING CULTURAL DIFFERENCES

As CHIRP navigates these ongoing negotiations with the state and local governmental agencies, the escrow closing date for the purchase of Woolman has been pushed out 30 days, to June 7, 2024. 

As such, CHIRP will continue to balance our commitment to the land rematriation of Yulića, while advocating for the changes necessary to ensure that this land meets the practical, environmental, spiritual, and cultural needs of the Nevada City Rancheria Nisenan Tribe.  

We will continue to update our supporting community as the process unfolds, and are grateful for the ongoing encouragement and understanding as we bring this vision to life.  

With the incredible success of Phase 1 in raising the funds for the purchase price of Woolman, CHIRP is excited to continue the momentum into Phase 2, in which funds raised will ensure that the necessary improvements to the land and property infrastructure are in alignment with both the Tribe’s needs and vision, as well as the health and stewardship of the land. 

During the discovery period, the necessary updates identified for the road and building infrastructure, septic, and well system were markedly more substantial than anticipated, and will require significant funds. The land itself is also in deep need of tending and stewardship, which will involve a great deal of on-going labor and financial support. 

Phase 2 objectives also aim to establish an operating endowment to ensure the long-term success of this rematriation effort and the safety and stability of the Nevada City Rancheria Nisenan Tribe. Beyond establishing stable housing for Tribal Elders, CHIRP and the Tribe’s long-term vision for Yulića involves environmental healing, community education and collaboration, and cultural revitalization and preservation. 

With the purchase of Yulića, our work is only just beginning. The healing potential for this Homeland Return effort cannot be overstated, and CHIRP is more confident than ever in our community’s shared excitement at this tremendous opportunity for addressing historical injustices while simultaneously offering immense potential for stability and healing for the Nisenan people, the environment, and the fabric of the Sierra Foothill community.

Activating Phase 2

Frequently Asked Questions

  • No. The current use permit that Woolman works within will follow the title of the land when it changes ownership. The current land use permit goes well beyond the needs of the Tribe and CHIRP, and nothing greater will be sought. We do not envision any kind of future “development” that would require augmentation of the current use permit.

    Any structures lost to the Jones Bar fire may be rebuilt under the current use permit. We envision these structures being rebuilt as Elder housing.

  • No. The current shape of the use permit has mandated significant improvements of a secondary fire access road, as well as bringing septic, wells, and numerous structures up to code. Should the sale of Woolman to CHIRP be successful, these required improvements will be CHIRP’s responsibility.

  • Past conversations between Woolman and Bear Yuba Land Trust revealed that the land is already too heavily encumbered with buildings and other developed space to warrant or fit well with a conservation easement.

  • No. It is legally impossible for a non-federally recognized Tribe to build a casino. Further, to alleviate the fears and assumptions associated with the casino question, NCR and CHIRP asked Woolman to encumber the title of the property expressly prohibiting any class of Indian gaming on that land. This deed restriction will follow the land in perpetuity.

    Moreover, the Woolman property is very poorly suited to any kind of commercial development - casino or otherwise - for a host of reasons including county zoning as agricultural land, limited water, limited sewage disposal, limited road access, and valuable cultural and environmental resources located on the land - which make it a perfect Tribal Homeland.

    Having the deed restriction in place creates a special moment to invite our communities to reexamine stereotypes that surround Indian gaming and move toward education and a deepening sense of understanding of the gold rush legacy and the lingering impacts it still has on the Tribe today.

  • Yes. Since 2018, the NCR Nisenan Tribe and CHIRP have co-managed 32 acres of land on angkula seo (Deer Creek), called the Nisenan Cultural Reclamation Corridor. In collaboration with The Sierra Fund, Bear Yuba Land Trust and other long term partners, the land has been treated for fire safety, cleaned of debris left by years of neglect, and a new segment of the Deer Creek Tribute Trail is being constructed that will bring together two sections of existing trail, These efforts have resulted in environmental healing and pollution mitigation, creek and wildlife restoration, and the creation of a native plant garden.

  • Questions regarding the sale price of Woolman, whether it be interpreted as too high or too low, should be directed to the College Park Friends Educational Association (Woolman).

  • As we understand, should CHIRP’s purchase of Woolman fall through, the College Park Friends Educational Alliance will sell the property on the open market.

  • All Homeland Return funds raised will be applied exclusively for the purchase of a property that fits the needs already identified by the Tribe.

Tribal attorney and UUCM member Frank Lawrence speaks about CHIRP's Homeland Return campaign to purchase the Woolman at Sierra Friends Center property, and answer questions from the community. This event was hosted by Unitarian Universalist Community of the Mountains (UUCM) on Saturday, March 9, 2024.

Support Homeland Return

Your Support Matters!

We cannot emphasize enough what a monumental healing opportunity this Homeland Return provides to the Nevada City Rancheria Nisenan Tribe. 

While the Nisenan Tribe and CHIRP continue to strive for health and revitalization - of their people, the environment, and the broader Sierra Foothill community - their visions for healing cannot become a reality while they remain without access to their homelands. 

We need your urgent support - as allies - to make this land rematriation a reality.  

You CAn Support the Tribe’s Homeland Return efforts by donating

✦ Contribute to our GoFundMe

✦ Checks can be made to CHIRP (memo line: “Homeland Return”) and mailed to: CHIRP, P.O. Box 2624, Nevada City, CA 95959

✦ Email us for bank account information for ACH transfers

✦ Donations are tax deductible. Any donation of $250 or more will receive a tax letter at the start of 2025. Email us to request one for other amounts or in different timing.

✦ Contact Shelly Covert, Tribal Spokesperson, Nevada City Rancheria and Executive Director, CHIRP, info@chirpca.org, 530-237-0707

Community resourceS

The Nevada City Rancheria Nisenan Tribe and CHIRP are so grateful for the tremendous outpouring of support and community engagement with the Homeland Return campaign. 

Below you can find resources and documents to help spread the word within your community!

Homeland Support Slide Deck

Homeland Return Poster

Homeland Return Press Release

COmmunity Fundraiser Guidelines

Many community members have reached out wanting to hold their own fundraisers, events, and auctions to support Homeland Return, and have asked for guidance and participation from the Tribe/CHIRP.

Here’s a quick guideline primer as you begin planning these events!

  1. Identify your fundraiser as “Community Support for Homeland Return”

  2. If your fundraiser is an event, offer a land acknowledgement

  3. Invite Tribal participation (without expectation)

  4. Share what you’ve learned in your own voice

  5. Avoid cultural symbols in fundraising visuals and art

We’re so grateful for your efforts and ongoing support! Together, we will make this dream a reality.

Amplify on Social Media

Please tag us in your Facebook and Instagram posts!

Facebook: @NevadaCityNisenan // Instagram @nevadacityrancherianisenan

In The News

Press Articles

Nihizhi, Our Voices: An Indigenous Solutions Podcast

In this episode host Lyla June talks with Shelly Covert, spokesperson of the Nevada City Rancheria Nisenan Tribe, and Ember Amador to discuss CHIRP’s $2.4M GoFundMe campaign to recover sacred lands stolen during the California gold rush.

CapRadio Insight with Vicki Gonzalez

Nevada City Rancheria Nisenan Tribal Spokesperson the Executive Director of the California Heritage: Indigenous Research Project (CHIRP) Shelly Covert joins Vicki Gonzalez on Capital Public Radio’s Insight to discuss what the Homeland Return venture means for their Tribal community, as well as the cultural and revitalization practices the Tribe hope to bring back.

KNCO Insight Interview

Nevada City Rancheria Nisenan Tribal Spokesperson and California Heritage Indigenous Research Project (CHIRP) Shelly Covert talks with host Tom Fitzsimmons about the Wolman Land acquisition opportunity.

KVMR Soundings Interview

Shelly Covert, Nevada City Rancheria Tribal Spokesperson being interviewed on KVMR's Soundings with Al Stahler. Shelly and Al talk about Yulića, the Nisenan village site now known as Woolman and the current campaign the California Heritage: Indigenous Research Project (CHIRP) is running to purchase this land and return it to the Tribe.

Art Fundraiser

The Homeland Return Art Fundraiser showcases the generous contributions of CHIRP’s Visibility Through Art initiative artists and local artists alike, in which all proceeds benefit the Homeland Return campaign’s efforts to rematriate Yulića

Join us in this meaningful cause by acquiring a beautiful piece of art that directly aids the Nevada City Rancheria Nisenan Tribe and our efforts to rematriate the Ancestral Homelands of Yulića.