The Jumano People

The Jumano Indians were present in the Southwest when the first Europeans arrived in the 1500s.

Some Jumanos—if not all—were originally people of the eastern focus of the Jornada-Mogollon pithouse dwellers. Relatives of the Jornada-Mogollon created the great city of Paquimé (Casas Grandes) in present-day Mexico and developed the Mimbres phase, which includes the cliff dwellings in the Gila Wilderness. Part farmers and part hunters, the Jornada-Mogollon peoples spread across northern Mexico, Texas, and New Mexico and pushed onto the Llano Estacado on several occasions.

Pithouses are found along the Mescalero Escarpment just east of the sand dunes between the Pecos River and the Llano Estacado in Texas, with a few found on the Llano itself. The Jornada-Mogollon are believed to have adopted Mesoamerican myths and to have formed the early foundations of what later became the kachina religion, now associated with the Pueblo peoples of northern New Mexico.

By the 1500s, the Jumanos appear to have formed several population centers. One was at Ojinaga, Chihuahua, Mexico, where they farmed along the river and lived in above-ground, one-story pueblos alongside other pueblo-dwelling peoples. Another center was at Gran Quivira, New Mexico, near present-day Mountainair. Yet another was located where the three headwater streams of the Río de los Conchos converge.

There appear to have been two major groups of Jumanos who traveled extensively:

1. Buffalo hunters, who visited the Llano Estacado and transported dried meat to other locations using travois pulled by dogs.
2. Traders, who traveled on foot annually between Ojinaga, Mountainair, Palo Duro, sometimes as far as Austin, and then back to Ojinaga.

Conflict and Survival (1500–1700)

Between 1500 and 1700, the Jumanos were caught between two powerful forces: the Spanish and the Apache. Spanish expeditions often raided pueblos for slaves and forcibly requisitioned supplies. Meanwhile, Apaches moved south from the north, seeking territory, raiding for food, and taking captives.

In 1623, the Jumanos along the Río de los Conchos reported being helped by a woman dressed in blue robes carrying a cross—the famous “Blue Nun,” also known as Sor María de Ágreda—in an effort to attract Spanish support. After the Pueblo Revolt of 1680, the Jumanos became wealthy in horses.

In 1684, the most well-known Jumano leader, Sabeata (Don Juan Sabeata in Spanish records), negotiated treaties with the Spanish in Parral and El Paso, where Spanish refugees had fled after the Pueblo Revolt. Sabeata, a trader, informed the Spanish of La Salle’s French presence on the Texas coast and heightened Spanish fears of French invasion.

After reporting a vision of a burning cross on the mountains near Ojinaga, Sabeata built a simple church and requested Spanish priests—knowing soldiers would accompany them. He later led Captain Juan Mendoza on an expedition to the Conchos River, ostensibly for hunting but in reality to confront Apaches near Coyame, Chihuahua.

By 1690, Sabeata disappeared from historical records. Some historians believe he traveled north distributing horses, becoming one of the earliest suppliers of horses to Plains tribes. By 1800, the Kiowa migrated south into Texas, and some historians believe the Kiowa may have had Jumano ancestry.

Sabeata traveled with mixed native groups through Parral, Rosales, Delicias, Julimes, and La Junta, trading with tribes in East Texas. One stop was at the junction of rivers near present-day San Angelo, where Fort Concho now stands.

Several traditions exist regarding the appearance of the Blue Nun. Some say she appeared near San Angelo, others at Gran Quivira or Abo, while many from La Junta believe she appeared south of La Junta along the Río de los Conchos in Chihuahua. It is possible she appeared at all these locations.

The writings of Father Benavides, the priest who communicated with Sor María, are reportedly archived in Rome and are not publicly accessible. Understanding how the Jumanos approached religion is difficult through modern Western logic.

Jumanos in the Beginning

The Jumanos were neither singular nor uniform; they were a diverse group of Native peoples who survived extraordinary challenges. Many authors outside the Jumano culture have claimed that the Jumanos no longer exist—this is untrue.

Many Jumano families still live in the United States and in Chihuahua, Mexico. Some families are directly connected by bloodline, while others are distant cousins tied across eight to ten generations. Strong family ties remain in New Mexico, West Texas, and central Chihuahua.

The loss of cultural identity is largely due to the invasions of the Spanish, French, and later settlers. Spanish colonization, supported by Jesuit and Franciscan missionaries, was especially destructive to native culture. Conversion to Christianity and the imposition of written doctrine undermined indigenous belief systems.

The early Jumanos believed all life came from the Earth. The sun provided energy, rain sustained growth, wind carried seeds and breath, the moon allowed rest, and the Earth provided all resources. Life began with the Earth and returned to it in time.

Some Jumanos questioned the Christian God, noting there was no evidence beyond written texts created by men. They believed instead in natural forces that governed life daily. Even today, some native people continue to honor the Earth, sun, moon, wind, and rain.

Homeland and Trade

Jumano lands once stretched across what is now New Mexico, West Texas, and Chihuahua. Before European invasion, land was shared among tribes rather than rigidly divided.

Gran Quivira and Abo were long-established Jumano communities. La Junta served as a major trading center—an early “flea market.” Chihuahua, especially along the Río de los Conchos, was another important area. Most Jumano settlements were located near rivers or springs.

Contrary to myths, the Jumanos were not extinct. Many adopted Mexican or Hispanic identities as a means of survival after Spanish and later Anglo domination. Over generations, this led to confusion about identity and ancestry.

Spanish-speaking natives were often labeled “Mexican,” a designation many accepted to survive discrimination. Even today, many people do not know their true native roots.

Cultural Transition and Challenges

Education has been the greatest challenge in adapting to modern American culture. Many Hispanics and Native descendants grew up bilingual without formal education in either language, making academic progress difficult. While conditions have improved since the 1960s, access to higher education remains limited by cost.

Economic hardship, early parenthood, and limited opportunity continue to affect native communities. Advancement requires persistence, education, and time.

Bandolier bags were often large in size and decorated with a wide array of colorful beads and ribbons, or in the earlier days they were made of deer hides or rabbit furs .  They are worn as a cross-body bag, with a thick strap crossing a person’s chest to allow it to rest on the hip. porcupine quills were acquired (carefully!), softened and dyed. Once they were malleable enough to bend, the quills were woven onto the surfaces of objects (especially clothing or other cloth goods like bags).

silk ribbons offered a new material with a greater variety of color choices. Looking at a bag, we can see that attached strips of yellow, blue, red, and green ribbons, like tassels, to the ends of the straps, as well as longer light blue ribbons that fall below the bottom of the bag. Before the introduction of ribbons, women would paint the bags.

Cultural Change Over Time

I have lived through nearly nine decades and witnessed dramatic cultural shifts. Growing up in the 1940s and 1950s, segregation was common. Neighborhoods were divided by race and ethnicity, and minorities faced severe restrictions in housing, education, and employment.

Food, housing, labor, and survival were communal efforts. Many traditions—food preparation, hunting, and craftsmanship—were passed down through generations.

Julimes, Chihuahua

Julimes, once a Jumano settlement, remains centered around the Río de los Conchos. Agriculture sustained life there. Children were raised learning skills necessary for adulthood through rites of passage.

Girls learned household, agricultural, and craft skills and were recognized ceremonially as women. Boys underwent extended training in hunting, cooking, toolmaking, and survival skills, often lasting several years.

Traditional cooking methods included underground ovens—what we now call barbacoa. Hunting, fishing, farming, 

tanning hides, and trading were seasonal activities essential to survival.

Trade and Settlement

The Jumanos were renowned traders, interacting with more tribes than most Native peoples. While families were settled, select men traveled long distances for trade. Jumano presence has been documented in areas such as Ojinaga, La Junta, El Polvo (Redford), Candelaria, Sierra Blanca, Fort Davis, Abo, Gran Quivira, and Socorro.

Leadership was based on influence and trust rather than formal titles. Figures like Sabeata and the mysterious leader known as Tuerto served as representatives rather than chiefs.

Jumano Historical Timeline and Geographic Movement

Pre-1200 CE — Jornada-Mogollon Foundations

• Jornada-Mogollon peoples establish pithouse villages across present-day southern New Mexico, West Texas, and northern Chihuahua.
• Semi-agricultural economy based on corn, squash, beans, hunting, and gathering.
• Early trade routes begin forming between river valleys and plains.

Core Regions:

• Mescalero Escarpment
• Pecos River basin
• Northern Chihuahua

1200–1450 — Expansion and Cultural Development

• Relatives of the Jornada-Mogollon construct Paquimé (Casas Grandes) in Chihuahua.
• Mimbres cultural phase develops in southern New Mexico.
• Above-ground pueblos replace many pithouses.
• Early religious concepts emerge that later influence Pueblo kachina traditions.

Key Sites:

• Paquimé (Casas Grandes)
• Mimbres region
• Gila Wilderness

1450–1550 — Emergence of the Jumano Identity

• Distinct Jumano trading groups appear.
• Seasonal movement between plains, river valleys, and pueblos becomes well established.
• Buffalo hunting expands onto the Llano Estacado.

Trade Corridor:

• Ojinaga ↔ La Junta ↔ Gran Quivira ↔ Palo Duro Canyon, Abo,

1550–1620 — First European Contact

• Spanish explorers encounter Jumano traders and farming communities.
• Jumano act as intermediaries between pueblos, plains tribes, and Spaniards.
• Spanish begin slave raids and forced requisitioning.

Population Centers:

• Ojinaga (Río Grande / Río de los Conchos)
• Gran Quivira (New Mexico)
• Abo Pueblo
• La Junta
• San Salomon Springs Balmorea Tx.

1623 — The Blue Nun Accounts

• Jumanos along the Río de los Conchos report visions of a woman in blue robes (Sor María de Ágreda).
• Reports used to attract Spanish military protection against Apache raids.

Associated Locations:

• Río de los Conchos
• La Junta
• Gran Quivira
• Abo

1680 — Pueblo Revolt

• Spanish driven from northern New Mexico.
• Horses spread rapidly among native groups, including the Jumanos.
• Jumano mobility and trade power increase significantly.

1684–1690 — Leadership of Sabeata

• Don Juan Sabeata negotiates with Spanish officials in Parral and El Paso.
• Warns of French activity along the Texas coast.
• Leads expeditions against Apache groups.
• Disappears from records around 1690.

Movement Route:

• Parral>Rosales >Delicias > Julimes > La Junta > East Texas >Abo>Gran Quivira> Socorro>Palo Duro Canyon

1700–1800 — Dispersal and Assimilation

• Apache expansion and Spanish colonization weaken Jumano settlements.
• Many Jumanos merge with Pueblo, Apache, and Plains tribes.
• Others adopt Spanish/Mexican identities for survival.

1800–Present — Survival Through Identity Change

• Jumano descendants remain across Texas, New Mexico, Chihuahua, and the United States.
• Many families are misclassified as Mexican or Hispanic.
• Oral history and bloodlines preserve Jumano continuity despite lack of federal recognition.

Northern Boundary:

• Central New Mexico (Gran Quivira, Abo, Socorro)

Western Boundary:

• Gila region and Jornada del Muerto

Southern Boundary:

• Chihuahua (Paquimé, Julimes, Río de los Conchos)

Eastern Boundary:

• Llano Estacado, Palo Duro Canyon, Central Texas

Primary Trade Arteries:

• Río Grande
• Río de los Conchos
• Pecos River
• Plains routes across the Llano Estacadmo
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Jumano Nation – Historical Territory (Texas, New Mexico, Chihuahua)

The Jumano were a mobile Indigenous people active primarily during the 16th and 17th centuries, occupying a broad region that included West Texas, eastern and central New Mexico, and northern Chihuahua, Mexico. Rather than a single fixed homeland, the Jumano maintained seasonal settlements and extensive trade networks that linked the Southern Plains with Pueblo and Mesoamerican regions.

Core Areas of Occupation

1. La Junta de los Ríos (Texas–Chihuahua border)

• Located at the confluence of the Rio Grande and Rio Conchos (modern Presidio, TX / Ojinaga, Chihuahua).
• This was the most consistently documented Jumano settlement area.
• Contained semi-permanent villages with agriculture (corn, beans, squash).
• First recorded European contact occurred here in 1535 (Cabeza de Vaca).

2. West Texas & Big Bend Region

• Seasonal hunting and habitation across the Big Bend, Trans-Pecos, and Edwards Plateau margins.
• Jumano bands hunted buffalo and antelope and moved between river valleys and plains.
• Rivers used included the Pecos, Concho, Colorado, and Brazos.

3. Eastern & Central New Mexico

• Strong presence among the Salinas Pueblo / Tompiro region.
• Spanish records (1598) reference Jumano villages and camps east of the Rio Grande.
• The area known as Mesa de los Jumanos reflects their prominence.
• They traded extensively with Pueblo communities and likely shared linguistic ties.

4. Chihuahua (Northern Mexico)

• Southern anchor of Jumano territory through La Junta and trade routes leading toward Casas Grandes (Paquimé).
• Connected Jumano trade to Mesoamerican networks and Spanish colonial routes.

Mobility & Trade Networks

• The Jumano were renowned interregional traders.
• They acted as middlemen between:
  • Pueblo peoples (New Mexico)
  • Plains tribes (buffalo economy)
  • Caddoan groups of East Texas
• Trade routes followed major river systems:
  • Rio Grande–Conchos corridor
  • Pecos and Canadian Rivers
  • Brazos and Colorado Rivers
• Goods included buffalo hides, meat, salt, pottery, corn, feathers, and later horses.

Culture & Identity

• Often referred to by the Spanish as “Indios Rayados” (“painted or striped people”) due to distinctive facial and body paint, commonly horizontal stripes.
• Subsistence combined agriculture, hunting, and trade.
• Housing ranged from river-valley villages to portable shelters on the Plains.

Decline

• From the mid–late 1600s, increasing pressure from Apache and later Comanche expansion, disease, and colonial disruption fractured Jumano networks.
• By the early 1700s, the Jumano ceased to exist as a distinct political entity.
• Survivors were absorbed into Apache, Comanche, Pueblo, or Hispanic communities.
• Many Jumanos went into Chihuahua and lived in Parral, Delicias, Rosales and Julimes, for many years.
• Many Jumanos spread out in West Texas and stayed in their own territorial areas.

References (Selected)

• Bolton, H. E. (1914). Spanish Exploration in the Southwest, 1542–1706. New York: Scribner.
• Cabeza de Vaca, A. N. (1999). The Narrative of Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca (1542). Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.
• Di Peso, C. C. (1974). Casas Grandes: A Fallen Trading Center of the Gran Chichimeca. Dragoon, AZ: Amerind Foundation.
• Hammond, G. P., & Rey, A. (1953). Don Juan de Oñate: Colonizer of New Mexico, 1595–1628. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press.
• Hammond, G. P., & Rey, A. (1966). The Rediscovery of New Mexico, 1580–1594. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press.
• Kenmotsu, N. A. (2001). Jumano Indians. Texas State Historical Association, Handbook of Texas Online.
• Wade, M. R. (2003). The Native Americans of the Texas Plains. Austin: University of Texas Press.