Document: WIL-3-68-5

Indians and fire in the U.S. Rocky Mountains.

BAKER, W.L.*

University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82071 U.S.A. ¹

Abstract:
How we interpret the abundance and geography of pre-EuroAmerican Indian-set fires may be fundamental to the direction and meaning of our land management practices, particularly our use of fire. I identify four models of burning by Indians in the U.S. as argued in previous literature: (1) pervasive and significant, (2) spatially varying and significant, (3) varying significance, and (4) enhancing. I critically review information relevant to these models in the Rockies. Sources include early accounts by non-native scientists, explorers, and early settlers, oral history from Indians, and tree-ring and pollen/charcoal studies. Early accounts by EuroAmericans may suffer from observer bias, but more fundamental limitations that I show are that: (1) reliable first-hand accounts of ignition are a small percentage of total accounts, and (2) even informed observers in the late 1800's did not appear to know that fires could be started by lightning. More reliable oral histories from Indians are very limited, but do suggest that Indians burned to some extent, and had a variety of reasons for doing so. Tree-ring studies are free of potential biases inherent in accounts and oral histories. Spatial comparisons of known high-use areas and remote areas suggest burning by Indians elevated fire frequency in used areas. I argue that pollen and charcoal analyses are inconclusive because the purported signal of burning by Indians can also result from weather-related increases in fire. Reliable evidence of burning by Indians is much less than reported previously. The limited evidence best supports the "varying significance" model. We know primarily that some Indians did burn intentionally and accidentally, at least in some dry ecosystems where their uses were concentrated, but there is no evidence of burning in some other areas. While strong conclusions may never be warranted, the burden of proof should shift to those who would counter the hypothesis most suggested by the limited evidence: Indians were a small part of a large Rocky Mountain wilderness, with a fire regime, in much of the mountains, essentially free of human influence for millenia.

Keywords: Indians, fire history, Rocky Mountains

This abstract is being presented at: 9:45 AM in session:
Oral Session #22: Multiple Disturbance Effects, Including Fire.