Starting from the arrival of Spanish missionaries in the 1700s, under the charge of Father Junipero Serra, Spanish clergy consolidated villages and tribes into missions. [23] The land that is now Palo Alto and Stanford University was annexed into part of Mission Santa Clara. [24] The outlines of counties and cities from the Missions still remain intact today. [25]

Within these missions, the Muwekma and other Ohlone tribes people were faced with foreign European diseases, rape and forced to assimilate through religious conversions, suppression of language and other means of Indigenous cultural suppression. [26] Between 1802 and 1833 at least 6,565 Ohlone died at Mission Santa Clara from measles, smallpox, and other diseases. [27] Many Ohlone fought colonial suppression through violent revolts, and fleeing missions, but also through the preservation of native customs. [28] Even at the missions, many parents gave their newborn children Ohlone names, continued to speak their languages, and preserved myths and ceremonies. [29] However, those who objected to Spanish rule faced severe backlash such as destroying settlements through burning down rancherias (the Spanish name for native settlements), or physical punishments. [30] Catholic priests and friars were often agents of physical violence such as horsewhipping, or worse. [31] In 1831, at the Mission Santa Clara, an Ohlone man named Yoscolo rebelled and raided the Franciscan supplies. [32] However, he was captured and his head was nailed to the church door as a lesson for other Indigenous people. [33]

While at the missions, the Ohlone people were also forced to take on jobs deemed “fitted for their sex” by Spanish missionaries. [34] Men worked under the friars’ immediate direction, in agriculture, and as vaqueros (cowhands). [35] Women were viewed as fit for work as domestic servants or wives. [36] While working in missions, Indigenous people were not given wages, but rather “rewarded” with food and clothing. [37] Although it is not often acknowledged, this was slavery.

In 1821, Mexico gained independence from Spain, and the new Mexican President Valentin Gomez Faria announced shortly after that missions would become secularized, meaning that Franciscan lands would be broken down into parishes. [38] Additionally, the Mexican government also emphasized that native people could become equal citizens. [39] However, despite the liberal rhetoric, property and resources were generally not granted to native inhabitants. [40] While most Ohlone were not allowed to own property, some, like the Inigo family, were able to acquire their own ranch. [41] Most other Ohlone worked for Mexican ranch owners or sought work in cities. [42]

On the land that eventually became Stanford University, Ohlone workers labored as ranch hands under ranch owner Antonio Buelna. [43] Buelna eventually sold the land to Leland Stanford Sr. and it is unknown if any Ohlone remained on the Stanford farm afterwards. [44] Leland Stanford Jr. was known to collect native arrowheads throughout the Stanford farm, and in 1890, the University hired a campus archaeologist. [45]

Additionally, human remains have been found throughout Stanford and the city of Palo Alto. In 1922, a Stanford student, Bruce Seymore ‘24 discovered the oldest human remains from the San Francisco peninsula, which was named “Stanford Man I”. [46] In 1989, the Stanford Faculty Senate returned all Ohlone remains to the Ohlone tribal council, acting as a precedent for the 1990 Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA), mandating the return of Native American remains throughout the country. [47]

In 1925, anthropologist Alfred Kroeber declared the Ohlone people “extinct for all practical purposes”. [48] However, as discussed in the section “The Museification of the Ohlone”, Indigenous cultures and the Ohlone people is far from extinct.

Today, the City of East Palo Alto recognizes both the Muwekma and Ramaytush Ohlone on their city website. [49] The City of Palo Alto does not have a formal land acknowledgement; however, the City of Palo Alto Library recognizes the Muwekma and Ramaytush Ohlone as well. [50] Stanford University recognizes the Muwekma and Puichon Ohlone, works closely with the Muwekma Ohlone tribe, and has named a residential life house the Muwekma-Tah-Ruk house. [50]