It is easy to forget that long before Europeans arrived, the Concho Valley was filled with people. It was a key hub in a vast trading empire of which the Jumano nation was a part.
Long before Texas was here, what is now San Angelo was a vital crossroads. It sits astride a long-defined East-West highway extending deep into Mexico. Going the other direction, it connected to the Caddo and Wichita nations of East Texas.
That same corridor fills the same role in our economy today. The Texas-Pacifico railroad follows the same route.
Most Ideas About Historic Native Americans Are All Wrong
For many Americans, the traditional view of historic native peoples was invented by pulp novels and 20th century Hollywood out of whole cloth.
Indigenous peoples are portrayed as either the noble “Red Man” living in complete harmony with nature, or brutal, murderous warriors, hell-bent on destroying colonial settlers.
Both of these are fiction. The truth, as always, is much more complex and dynamic.
The Apache and Comanche peoples are probably the two most well-known nations in Texas, mostly because frontier settlers wrote about them.
But the Jumanos were part of a thriving trade empire in this area long before.
If there is one person in the Concho Valley who appreciates this fact it’s Bill Campbell, the owner and familiar host of the Painted Rocks historical site in Concho County.
“The Comanches were Johnny-come-lately Shoshones,” Campbell said. “People should be very curious abut the Jumano and what happened to them.”
Campbell estimates there must have been as many as 60,000 Jumanos at one time.
That may not sound like a lot today. Bur consider this, if you exclude El Paso County the population of the entire Trans-Pecos region is only about 80,000 people.
The Jumanos were here long before the Comanche, living as two or three major groups. In the San Angelo area, there were the Plains Band of Jumanos. There were also Jumano peoples who lived along the southern Rio Conchos (not to be confused with our Concho River) in Mexico near present day Presidio, Texas and Ojinaga, Chihuahua. Another group dominated the area around modern El Paso.
Ancient Peoples
Of course people lived in this area long before that.
Recent discoveries, including ancient footprints discovered at White Sands in New Mexico, along with burial sites in deep South America, have pushed our understanding of how long humans have been in this hemisphere, which is currently understood to be somewhere between 25,000 to 30,000 years.
This is long before the much theorized land bridge between Alaska and Asia many of us were taught about in school.
The traditional histories of many indigenous people tell them they have always been in this land — it turns out they may be right.
The Scope of the Jumano Range
“They were the long-haul truckers of their day,” Dr. Jason Pierce PhD at Angelo State University explained, “The Concho was a main trade route across Texas.”
Trade moved through this region from as far west as Mexico, New Mexico and Arizona, and from as far east as the famed native city of Cahokia on the Mississippi, near present day St. Louis..
“They [Jumanos] played a big role pre-contact.” Pierce said.
We do not know what the trade inventory consisted of, but food stuffs was a signifcant part. Grain and other crops for bison meat and hides. Arrow heads and arrow shafts were also a significant item of trade. Shells from the coast and even luxury items from Central Mexico were also traded.
While the Jumano did not leave a lot of archaeological evidence in the area, Pierce explained that is to be expected.
The Jumanos were predominately traders and middlemen. San Angelo was a central hub for this constant movement of goods and food between east and west.
Traders on the move don’t often leave permanent structures or settlements as they are constantly moving through a region.
“They were heavily involved in trade, and welcome among all tribes,” Pierce said.
Jumanos also shaped the land to their advantage. They used fire along the rivers to encourage the growth of pecan groves, and grass for deer and other game.
Where Did They Go?
The Jumanos drop out of the historical record in the early 1700s. The great question is where did they go?
The disruption of the growing European contacts undoubtedly had an impact.
The Apaches, enemies of the Jumano, moved in and conquered the South Plains and West Texas around this time. The Comanches arrived soon after and a war for domination of the region began. This disruption changed trade, the economy and the cultures of native peoples all over the region.
Most historians today think the Jumanos did not simply disappear. Most likely they were absorbed within bands of Lipan Apache or Comanches during this period. This was typical behavior of large powerful nations at the time as a means to replace lost population.
There are still people identifying as Jumano and Jumano-Apache in Texas. The Jumano were acknowledged by the Texas legislature in 2019. They were recognized for their historic importance and for their efforts to obtain Federal recognition. The Jumano Nation of Texas Council is working for full recognition by the U.S. Government. It is involved in educating the public about the Jumano and advocating for the Jumano people.
