The Duckwater Shoshone Tribe of the Duckwater Reservation is a federally recognized tribe of Western Shoshone , based in central Nevada in the high desert Railroad Valley, in northern Nye County. Their autonym is Tsaidüka in their Shoshoni language , meaning "Eaters of tule ."
57-543: In October 2016, under the Nevada Native Nations Land Act, they were one of six federally recognized tribes in Nevada to have additional lands put into trust for their reservations. The Duckwater Shoshone Tribe is to receive approximately 31,269 acres (127 km) of Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land. Gaming is prohibited on the new lands. The Duckwater Shoshone Tribe has a federal reservation,
114-416: A Great Basin tribe , hunted near Railroad Valley in the summer and lived in conical-shaped houses in the mountains in the winter. They hunted ducks, sage grouse , prairie dogs, rabbits, ground squirrels , deer, and other big game. They cultivated chenopodium and Mentzelia . European-American settlers enter their lands in the late 19th century. The 1863 Treaty of Ruby Valley called for peace between
171-451: A threatened species . Each June, the tribe celebrates its annual Duckwater Festival, with a powwow , barbecue, handgames , and other events. This is a continuation of the traditional summer festivals held by the tribe, when the round dance was danced. A K-8 school , Duckwater Shoshone School, funded by the Bureau of Indian Education (BIE), is in a building that previously functioned as
228-622: A church. The school was established circa 1973 by tribal members who were not satisfied with their children's course in the Nye County School District . The school board was established on July 26 of that year, and it opened on November 26 of that year after the United States Office of Education granted $ 35,000. In 1975 its student count was 21. In 1982 the school got a renovation. It maintains its own zoological garden. The Nye County district school, also K-8,
285-567: A draw on the southern end of Diamond Valley, between Antelope and Newark valleys. At the 2018 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, the population of the census-designated place of Eureka was 480, while the total population of Eureka and the surrounding area (Eureka CCD, Eureka County, Nevada) was 1,313. The town is located along the Lincoln Highway / U.S. Route 50 , nicknamed "The Loneliest Road in America": aptly named, as
342-402: A more unified bureau mission and recognized the value of the remaining public lands by declaring that these lands would remain in public ownership. The law directed that these lands be managed with a view toward "multiple use" defined as "management of the public lands and their various resource values so that they are utilized in the combination that will best meet the present and future needs of
399-614: A pilot project on the Pryor Mountains Wild Horse Range known as the Adopt-A-Horse initiative. The program took advantage of provisions in the WFRHBA to allow private "qualified" individuals to "adopt" as many horses as they wanted if they could show that they could provide adequate care for the animals. At the time, title to the horses remained permanently with the federal government. The pilot project
456-487: A prospector exclaimed " Eureka !" when he discovered deposits of silver ore. The town became the county seat in 1873, when Eureka County was carved out of adjacent Lander, Elko, and White Pine counties. Mining , especially for lead , was the town's economic mainstay, as the nearby hillsides ranked as Nevada's second-richest mineral producer, behind western Nevada's Comstock Lode . Two of the largest concerns in Eureka were
513-513: A regular and recurring presence on a vast amount of public lands, roads and recreation sites. They focus on the protection of natural and cultural resources, other BLM employees and visitors. Given the many locations of BLM public lands, these rangers use canines, helicopters, snowmobiles, dirt bikes and boats to perform their duties. By contrast BLM special agents are criminal investigators who plan and conduct investigations concerning possible violations of criminal and administrative provisions of
570-433: Is Virginia Sanchez, who succeeded Jerry Millet. The tribe has an environmental health office, a health clinic, Police Department, and senior center. Duckwater-Shoshone Nursery is a tribal venture. The nurseries raise native plants in two greenhouses. These are used in phytoremediation projects by mining operations. The US Fish and Wildlife Service has awarded the tribe three grants to restore Railroad Valley springfish ,
627-563: Is known as the Duckwater School. In 1975 this school, with one teacher, had an enrollment count of six as students had withdrawn with the opening of the reservation school. Prior to loss of Native American students, the school district provided heated lunches, and there were two teachers instead of one. By 1986 enrollment was up to 13 and the relationship between the Duckwater School and Duckwater Shoshone School community had mended. The teacher by then had an aide for assistance, and used
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#1732772887921684-602: Is not protected by a national park or monument designation. The BLM's May 30, 2019 statement proposed an additional 183,668 acres on "lands managed by the Canyon Country, Color Country, Green River, and West Desert districts" that would be listed for the quarterly oil and gas lease sale on September 10, 2019. In their May 2019, September lease offerings, the BLM said that they had "245 million acres of public land located primarily in 12 Western states, including Alaska" and across
741-500: Is served by an all-volunteer fire department, which provides fire protection, rescue, and vehicle rescue services for Eureka and the surrounding areas. In 2009 a new brick and steel fire house was built on Main Street in Eureka. At the time of its building it was the second largest fire house in the state. In addition to being a modern fire fighting facility, it contains a museum of Eureka fire department equipment and vehicles dating back to
798-637: Is the SIG Sauer P320 chambered in 9mm which is replacing the SIG Sauer P226 /P229 both chambered in .40 S&W. The BLM manages free-roaming horses and burros on public lands in ten western states. Though they are feral , the agency is obligated to protect them under the Wild and Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971 (WFRHBA). As the horses have few natural predators, populations have grown substantially. WFRHBA as enacted provides for
855-596: Is the agency's largest ever purchase in the state. In 2024 the Department of the Interior has begun to advance a new rule according to which the Bureau of Land Management can distribute restoration leases and mitigation leases exactly in the same way as it distributes new leases for oil and gas drilling. The designed land will be used for nature conservation including use of indigenous knowledge. Established in 2000,
912-472: The Department of the Interior . It took several years for this new agency to integrate and reorganize. In the end, the Bureau of Land Management became less focused on land disposal and more focused on the long term management and preservation of the land. The agency achieved its current form by combining offices in the western states and creating a corresponding office for lands both east of and alongside
969-540: The Duckwater Reservation ( 38°55′49″N 115°42′37″W / 38.93028°N 115.71028°W / 38.93028; -115.71028 ), in Nye County, Nevada . The reservation was established in 1940, when the tribe purchased the 3,272-acre (13.24 km) Florio Ranch and 21 families moved onto the land. Today, it is approximately 3,815 acres (15.44 km). In 1990, 288 tribal members lived on
1026-794: The Eureka Opera House (built in 1880 and restored in 1993), Raine’s Market and Wildlife Museum (built 1887), the Jackson House Hotel (built 1877), and the Eureka Sentinel Museum (housed in the 1879 Eureka Sentinel Newspaper Building). Eureka is part of the Elko Micropolitan Statistical Area . Eureka is located in the southern part of Eureka County, at 6,481 feet (1,975 m) in the Diamond Mountains , in
1083-708: The Grand Staircase–Escalante National Monument in southern Utah, the first of now 20 national monuments established on BLM lands and managed by the agency. The establishment of Grand Staircase–Escalante foreshadowed later creation of the BLM's National Landscape Conservation System in 2000. Use of the Antiquities Act authority, to the extent it effectively scuttled a coal mine to have been operated by Andalex Resources , delighted recreation and conservation enthusiasts but set up larger confrontations with state and local authorities. Under
1140-565: The Homestead Act of 1862 . Most BLM public lands are located in these 12 western states: Alaska , Arizona , California , Colorado , Idaho , Montana , Nevada , New Mexico , Oregon , Utah , Washington and Wyoming . The mission of the BLM is "to sustain the health, diversity, and productivity of the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations." Originally BLM holdings were described as "land nobody wanted" because homesteaders had passed them by. All
1197-788: The Land Ordinance of 1785 and the Northwest Ordinance of 1787. These laws provided for the survey and settlement of the lands that the original Thirteen Colonies ceded to the federal government after the American Revolution . As additional lands were acquired by the United States from Spain , France and other countries, the United States Congress directed that they be explored, surveyed, and made available for settlement. During
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#17327728879211254-702: The Mississippi River . As a matter of course, the BLM's emphasis fell on activities in the western states as most of the mining, land sales, and federally owned areas are located west of the Mississippi. BLM personnel on the ground have typically been oriented toward local interests, while bureau management in Washington are led by presidential guidance. By means of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, Congress created
1311-603: The National Landscape Conservation System is overseen by the BLM. The National Landscape Conservation System lands constitute just about 12% of the lands managed by the BLM. Congress passed Title II of the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-11) to make the system a permanent part of the public lands protection system in the United States. By designating these areas for conservation,
1368-729: The United States General Land Office as part of the Department of the Treasury to oversee the disposition of these federal lands. By the early 1800s, promised bounty land claims were finally fulfilled. In the 19th century, other bounty land and homestead laws were enacted to dispose of federal land. Several different types of patents existed. These include cash entry, credit, homestead, Indian, military warrants, mineral certificates, private land claims, railroads, state selections, swamps, town sites, and town lots. A system of local land offices spread throughout
1425-694: The White Pine County School District . As of 1986 local residents in Ely and Eureka often take in high school students from Duckwater who live with them while they attend high school. Bureau of Land Management The Bureau of Land Management ( BLM ) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering U.S. federal lands . Headquartered in Washington, D.C. ,
1482-414: The 1870s. The fire-museum may be viewed through the large glass windows, or a tour may be taken by contacting a local fireman. Eureka boasts three parks, a modern enclosed swimming facility, two baseball fields, a track, and football field. The 1880s Eureka Opera House was re-modeled in recent times and regularly schedules performers. The 1876 Eureka Court House is both historic and modern. It stands as
1539-571: The American people." Since the Reagan administration in the 1980s, Republicans have often given priority to local control and to grazing, mining and petroleum production, while Democrats have more often emphasized environmental concerns even when granting mining and drilling leases. In September 1996, then President Bill Clinton used his authority under the Antiquities Act to establish
1596-503: The BLM and other statutes under the United States Code. Special agents are normally plain clothes officers who carry concealed firearms and other defensive equipment, make arrests, carry out complex criminal investigations, present cases for prosecution to local United States Attorneys and prepare investigative reports. Criminal investigators occasionally conduct internal and civil claim investigations. The current sidearm
1653-605: The BLM oversees more than 247.3 million acres (1,001,000 km ) of land, or one-eighth of the United States's total landmass. The Bureau was created by Congress during the presidency of Harry S. Truman in 1946 by combining two existing agencies: the United States General Land Office and the Grazing Service . The agency manages the federal government's nearly 700 million acres (2,800,000 km ) of subsurface mineral estate located beneath federal, state and private lands severed from their surface rights by
1710-633: The Biden administration, the BLM is working on a pilot project called "outcomes-based grazing", to see if cattle grazing can help achieve conservation, agency director Tracy Stone-Manning said in an interview published in April 2022. In June 2022, the BLM finalized two acquisitions in Colorado and Wyoming, acquiring over 40,000 acres of previously inaccessible land. The acquisition in Wyoming for 35,670 acres
1767-536: The National Conservation Lands include nearly 2,400 miles of Wild and Scenic Rivers , and nearly 6,000 miles of National Scenic and Historic Trails . There are more than 63,000 oil and gas wells on BLM public lands. Total energy leases generated approximately $ 5.4 billion in 2013, an amount divided among the Treasury , the states, and Native American groups. The BLM's roots go back to
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1824-568: The National Parks and Public Land Legacy Restoration Fund each year for five years for needed maintenance for critical facilities and infrastructure in national parks, forests, wildlife refuges, recreation areas and American Indian schools. The Act also committed $ 900 million a year in royalties from offshore oil and natural gas to permanently fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund investments in conservation and recreation opportunities across
1881-570: The Revolutionary War, military bounty land was promised to soldiers who fought for the colonies. After the war, the Treaty of Paris of 1783 , signed by the United States, the UK , France , and Spain , ceded territory to the United States. In the 1780s, other states relinquished their own claims to land in modern-day Ohio . By this time, the United States needed revenue to function and land
1938-575: The Richmond Mining Company and the Eureka Mining Company. These two companies often collided, and in one instance, their litigation reached the U.S Supreme Court. The population boomed, reaching a high of 10,000 by 1878, but shrank as decreasing mine production and changing market conditions led to the closing of mines. The town was serviced by the narrow gauge Eureka and Palisade Railroad from 1873 to 1938. Eureka
1995-609: The Trump administration, the BLM offered millions of acres of available Federal lands for 10-year leases for commercial development, potentially in oil and gas and mining, with the stated goal of "promoting American energy security". The BLM holds quarterly oil and gas lease sales. According to a June 18, 2018 article in The Atlantic , under the tenure of then- United States Secretary of the Interior , Ryan Zinke "practically gave away hundreds of thousands of acres of open land across
2052-561: The United States another "700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate" is under their management. The statement also said that these "diverse activities authorized on these lands generated $ 96 billion in sales of goods and services throughout the American economy in fiscal year 2017" while supporting over 468,000 jobs". On August 4, 2020, President Trump signed the Great American Outdoors Act into law, committing up to $ 1.9 billion from energy development revenues to
2109-803: The United States. There are several herds of horses and burros roaming free on 26.9 million acres of range spread out in ten western states. It is essential to maintain a balance that keeps herd management land and animal population healthy. Some programs and partnerships include the Mustang Heritage Foundation, U.S. Border Patrol, Idaho 4H, Napa Mustang Days and Little Book Cliffs Darting Team. These partnerships help with adoption and animal population as well as education and raising awareness about wild horses and burros. In 2009, BLM opened Renewable Energy Coordination Offices in order to approve and oversee wind, solar, biomass, and geothermal projects on BLM-managed lands. The offices were located in
2166-799: The West, leasing it to energy companies for pennies on the dollar." The Salt Lake Tribune reported that in March 2019, the price per acre for leases near the Golden Spike National Historical Park , in Utah were "$ 1.50 an acre for the next two years". By September 11, 2018, the Department of Interior was offering 2.9 million acres to be leased to commercial operations including drilling for oil and gas and mining in New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona, and other states where public land
2223-629: The Western Shoshone and settlers, stipulated that no further white settlement would occur, and did not surrender any Western Shoshone land. Members of the tribe found employment as ranch hands. The tribe formed a new government under the 1934 Indian Reorganization Act . The Duckwater Shoshone Tribe is headquartered in Duckwater, Nevada . They are governed by a democratically elected, five-member tribal council. Elections are held annually and members serve staggered terms. Their tribal chairman
2280-709: The aide and older students to have all students of all ages be on task. Of the 13 students, nine had at least one sibling also in their classes. Students came from ranching and mining families. As of 1999 the students on the reservation go to a high school in Eureka , Eureka County High School of the Eureka County School District. Other high schools taking Duckwater area students, as of 1986, are Lund High School in Lund and White Pine High School in Ely , both of
2337-454: The country. Also in August 2020, the BLM headquarters was relocated to Grand Junction, Colorado , by an order signed by Interior Secretary David Bernhardt . The relocation was praised by Republican Western politicians but criticized by Democrats as a move to weaken the agency through the loss of experienced staffers, who opted to stay in Washington, D.C. Some ranchers were concerned about
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2394-508: The early successes of the adoption program, the BLM has struggled to maintain acceptable herd levels, as without natural predators, herd sizes can double every four years. As of 2014, there were more than 49,000 horses and burros on BLM-managed land, exceeding the BLM's estimated "appropriate management level" (AML) by almost 22,500. The Bureau of Land Management has implemented several programs and has developed partnerships as part of their management plan for preserving wild burros and horses in
2451-524: The four states where energy companies had shown the greatest interest in renewable energy development: Arizona , California , Nevada , and Wyoming . Eureka, Nevada Eureka is an unincorporated town and census-designated place in and the county seat of Eureka County , Nevada , United States. With a population of 414 as of the 2020 United States census, it is the second-largest community in Eureka County. Attractions include
2508-484: The hottest temperature was 110 °F or 43.3 °C on July 22, 1904. Snow accumulations vary from 10 to 30 inches (0.25 to 0.76 m) in mild winters to in excess of 80 inches (2.03 m) in more severe years; in the winter of 1906/1907, more than 150 inches or 3.81 metres of snow fell. The wettest calendar year has been 1941 with 23.86 inches (606.0 mm) and the driest 2020 with 4.18 inches (106.2 mm), whilst May 1917 with 5.73 inches (145.5 mm) has been
2565-440: The isolation of Grand Junction compared to other Western cities, having limited flights and road access. After the announcement, 87% of D.C.-based employees left, prompting former lead career BLM official Steve Ellis to state "the bureau lost a tremendous amount of expertise...[of] very seasoned people." On September 17, 2021, Secretary Deb Haaland announced that the headquarters would be moved back to Washington, D.C. Under
2622-869: The law directed the BLM to ensure these places are protected for future generations, similar to national parks and wildlife refuges . Source: BLM Resources and Statistics The BLM, through its Office of Law Enforcement & Security, functions as a federal law enforcement agency of the United States Government. BLM law enforcement rangers and special agents receive their training through Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers (FLETC). Full-time staffing for these positions approaches 300. Uniformed rangers enforce laws and regulations governing BLM lands and resources. As part of that mission, these BLM rangers carry firearms and defensive equipment, make arrests, execute search warrants, complete reports and testify in court. They seek to establish
2679-543: The nearest towns along the highway are Austin (70 mi or 110 km west) and Ely (77 mi or 124 km east). The nearest town is Duckwater , 46 mi (74 km) south. The climate is typical of the Great Basin : hot and dry with cool mornings in the summer with occasional monsoonal thunderstorms from late July through August; cold and relatively dry in the winter. Temperatures drop to 0 °F or −17.8 °C or lower on an average 3.2 mornings during
2736-467: The public rangelands by establishment of advisory boards that set grazing fees. The Oregon and California Revested Lands Sustained Yield Management Act of 1937, commonly referred as the O&C Act, required sustained yield management of the timberlands in western Oregon. In 1946, the Grazing Service was merged with the United States General Land Office to form the Bureau of Land Management within
2793-610: The removal of excess animals; the killing of lame, old, or sick animals; the private placement or adoption of excess animals; and even the killing of healthy animals if range management required it. The killing of healthy or unhealthy horses has almost never occurred. Pursuant to the Public Rangelands Improvement Act of 1978 , the BLM has established 179 "herd management areas" (HMAs) covering 31.6 million acres (128,000 km ) acres where feral horses can be found on federal lands. In 1973, BLM began
2850-414: The reservation. In October 2016 the federal government put into trust for the tribe approximately 31,269 acres (127 km) acres of Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land in Nevada, in order to expand their reservation and give them a more sustainable base. Gaming is prohibited on these new lands. This was done under the Nevada Native Nations Land Act (PL No: 114-232). Traditionally, this band of Shoshone,
2907-602: The same, ranchers hold nearly 18,000 permits and leases for livestock grazing on 155 million acres (630,000 km ) of BLM public lands. The agency manages 221 wilderness areas , 29 national monuments and some 636 other protected areas as part of the National Conservation Lands (formerly known as the National Landscape Conservation System), totaling about 36 million acres (150,000 km ). In addition
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#17327728879212964-638: The territories, patenting land that was surveyed via the corresponding Office of the Surveyor General of a particular territory. This pattern gradually spread across the entire United States. The laws that spurred this system with the exception of the General Mining Law of 1872 and the Desert Land Act of 1877 have since been repealed or superseded. In the early 20th century, Congress took additional steps toward recognizing
3021-548: The value of the assets on public lands and directed the Executive Branch to manage activities on the remaining public lands. The Mineral Leasing Act of 1920 allowed leasing, exploration, and production of selected commodities, such as coal , oil , gas , and sodium to take place on public lands. The Taylor Grazing Act of 1934 established the United States Grazing Service to manage
3078-480: The wettest single month. The snowiest month has been March 1902 with 54.0 inches or 1.37 metres of fresh snowfall. Under the Köppen climate classification , Eureka has a cold semi-arid ( BSk ). The town was first settled in 1864 by a group of silver prospectors from nearby Austin, who discovered rock containing a silver-lead ore on nearby Prospect Peak. According to tradition, the town was named from an incident when
3135-405: The winter, though in the severe winter of 1916/1917 this happened twenty-five times. They drop to 32 °F or 0 °C on an average 185.5 mornings, though maximum temperatures top freezing on all but 30.8 days during an average winter. During the summer temperatures rise to 90 °F or 32.2 °C or hotter on 12.5 afternoons, though 100 °F or 37.8 °C does not occur annually. However,
3192-457: Was so successful that BLM allowed it to go nationwide in 1976. The Adopt-a-Horse program quickly became the primary method of removing excess feral horses from BLM land given the lack of other viable methods. The BLM also uses limited amounts of contraceptives in the herd, in the form of PZP vaccinations; advocates say that additional use of these vaccines would help to diminish the excess number of horses currently under BLM management. Despite
3249-420: Was sold as a source of income for the government. In order to sell the land, surveys needed to be conducted. The Land Ordinance of 1785 instructed a geographer to oversee this work as undertaken by a group of surveyors. The first years of surveying were completed by trial and error; once the territory of Ohio had been surveyed, a modern public land survey system had been developed. In 1812, Congress established
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