Summit Lake Paiute Tribe

Tribal Name: Agaipaninadökadö
Tribal Language Group: Paiute
Population: 200 est.
US State Inhabited: Nevada

Official Website & Social Media
https://www.summitlaketribe.org/

History

https://kids.kiddle.co/Summit_Lake_Paiute_Tribe_of_Nevada#History_of_the_Summit_Lake_Paiute_Tribe

The history of the Summit Lake Paiute Tribe, traditionally known as the Agai Panina Ticutta (Fish Lake Eaters), begins with their ancestral homeland spanning approximately 2,800 square miles across the present-day borders of Nevada, California, and Oregon. This vast territory was unilaterally seized by the United States government following the American Civil War, leading to a portion of their land becoming the military post Camp McGarry in 1867, though the site was abandoned by 1871. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, tribal members faced the immense challenge of forced assimilation when the federal government mandated that Paiute children attend distant boarding schools, prompting many families to relocate to urban colonies—some of which, like the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony, eventually gained federal recognition—to prevent the separation of their children. The current, much smaller Summit Lake Indian Reservation was officially created by Executive Order on January 14, 1913, though the tribe did not abandon its traditional governance structure until October 24, 1964, when they voted to adopt a new, elected government under the Indian Reorganization Act. This governmental change secured their formal federal recognition as the Summit Lake Paiute Tribe on January 8, 1965. Today, the tribe is governed by an elected Tribal Council of five members, operates its headquarters in Sparks, Nevada, and maintains a critical focus on protecting its natural resources and environment.

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Relatives

They are closely related to other Northern Paiute tribes in the Great Basin region, including:

  1. Lovelock Paiute Tribe
  2. Fallon Paiute Shoshone Tribe
  3. Fort McDermitt Paiute-Shoshone Tribe
  4. Reno-Sparks Indian Colony (a modern collective tribe that many Summit Lake Paiute members joined historically).

They are also culturally and geographically related to the neighboring Shoshone and Bannock peoples.

Media Gallery

Reservation Map

Resources

Summit Lake Paiute Tribe Official Website

  • Description: This is the primary site for the tribe, offering information on their government, natural resource protection efforts, and contact information for their headquarters in Sparks, Nevada.
  • Link: https://www.summitlaketribe.org/

Nevada Department of Native American Affairs Tribal Directory

  • Description: Provides governmental and demographic quick facts about the Summit Lake Paiute Tribe and other federally recognized tribes in Nevada.
  • Link: https://dnaa.nv.gov/tribal-nations/tribal-directory/

Northern Paiute People (Wikipedia/Educational Sources)

  • Description: Provides broad historical and cultural context on the larger Northern Paiute Nation, of which the Summit Lake Paiute Tribe is a band (traditionally the Agai Panina Ticutta).
  • Link: (A common educational source is) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Paiute_people

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