Solomon Bibo
Encyclopedia
Solomon Bibo was a Jewish trader in the American Old West
who became governor of Acoma Pueblo
, equivalent of the tribal chief
. He was the only non-Indian ever to serve as a governor of an Indian Pueblo.
, Westphalia
, then part of the Kingdom of Prussia
, to Isak and Blümchen Bibo; his father was a cantor
. He was the sixth of eleven children. After the suppression of the liberal government
in the mid-19th century, his older brothers Nathan and Simon left for the United States
in 1866; he eventually joined them, moving on October 16, 1869 at age 16. He arrived in New York City
and, after spending some time learning English on the East Coast, he moved out to meet his brothers in Santa Fe
, then part of the New Mexico Territory
. His brothers had established themselves as traders, initially using capital provided by the Spiegelberg family, a pioneer Jewish family that arrived with Stephen W. Kearny
's army during the Mexican-American War. The Bibo brothers were able to establish stores at Laguna
, Fort Wingate
, Cebolleta, Bernalillo, and Grants
. The brothers learned several Native American languages in addition to their German
, Yiddish, and English.
The Bibo brothers developed reputations for fairness in their dealings with the local Native Americans: they would sell the tribes' produce through their stores and supply US Army forts under contracts; in turn the Native Americans received fair prices and improved their farming techniques. The brothers also mediated land disputes between the tribes and the Mexican residents, and also tried to prevent Anglo-Americans from purchasing Indian land at below market prices; such stances did not endear them to these groups.
over a federal survey of the Acoma Pueblo Grant in 1876 and 1877. The survey resulted in a treaty that granted 94000 acres (380.4 km²) of land, far less than the Acoma thought they were entitled to according to historical evidence. To help the Acoma people, he learned their Keresan language
and he and his brother Simon wrote letters to the Department of Interior which resulted in a review of the survey in 1881. The government surveyors, Walter and Robert Marmon, were Presbyterian missionaries and traders who had married into the rival Laguna Pueblo
. However, after the investigation the government ruled against the Acoma and granted most of the disputed land to the Laguna.
On December 12, 1882, Bibo applied to the Commissioner of the Bureau of Indian Affairs
for a license to trade with the Acoma Pueblo and established the first trading post at Old Acoma high atop its protective mesa
. In order to protect their remaining land, on April 7, 1884, the Acoma signed a 30 year lease to all their land to Solomon Bibo, in exchange for which he would pay them $12,000, protect their cattle, keep squatters away and mine the coal under the Acoma lands with a royalty of ten cents per ton for each ton extracted paid to the tribe. The lease got the attention of Pedro Sanchez, the U.S. Indian agent from Santa Fe, who tried to get the federal government to void the lease. A complicated fight over the lease ensured, and the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, Hiram Price
, eventually negated the lease but also removed Sanchez.
Bibo married into the Acoma tribe. His wife, Juana Valle, was the granddaughter of a former Acoma governor and, though raised Catholic
, she converted to Judaism
and the couple was married twice: As there was no rabbi
available in the territory, "Solomon Bibo de Cubero & Johanna (Juana) Valle del Acoma" had an Indian ceremony before a Catholic priest on May 1, 1885 at Acoma Pueblo and a civil one before a Justice of the Peace
on August 30. The marriage made Solomon a member of the Acoma tribe.
In 1885, the Acomas elected Solomon Bibo as their new governor, the equivalent of the tribal chief. "Don
Solomono", as he was known by the tribe, served as governor four times. The Acoma asked the United States to recognize Bibo as their leader and, in 1888, he was recognized as such by an agent of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. As governor, he helped install a modern education system and supervised the installation of first schoolteacher at Acoma and allowed a house of his to be used as the school for the first year before a government school opened in a building he owned; some students were sent to the Carlisle Indian Industrial School
in Pennsylvania
.
The Indian schools
proved to be very controversial, and caused unrest between the different generations. Bibo sided against advocates of preserving traditional tribal ways. In 1889, after his term as governor, he aided in having the Bureau of Indian Affairs arrest and replace a governor who supported tribal members that had used aggressive methods in punishing younger members for following the "progressive" ways taught in the schools. Because of rising tensions surrounding these changes, and because he wanted his children to receive a Jewish education, Bibo and his family moved to San Francisco, California
in 1898. In San Francisco he was an active partner in a fine quality grocery store until 1906. Bibo traveled back and forth between New Mexico and California to manage his business there, he sold his interest in his older Acoma store to his brother Emil in 1904, and opened a new store in San Rafael, New Mexico in 1906. He also made substantial investments in San Francisco real estate.
The Great Depression
and disastrous weather ruined many of the Bibo brothers stores and investments in New Mexico during the early 1930s. Solomon Bibo's stock investments were also hit hard, leaving him mainly with his San Francisco properties.
Solomon Bibo died on May 4, 1934; his wife died in March 1941. They were cremated and interred in the cemetery of Temple Emanu-El in Colma, California
. Some of their six children, four girls and two boys, returned in later years to New Mexico and many of the descendants of Solomon Bibo and his brothers still reside in New Mexico, and include Jews, Hispanics, and Native Americans.
American Old West
The American Old West, or the Wild West, comprises the history, geography, people, lore, and cultural expression of life in the Western United States, most often referring to the latter half of the 19th century, between the American Civil War and the end of the century...
who became governor of Acoma Pueblo
Acoma Pueblo
Acoma Pueblo is a Native American pueblo approximately 60 miles west of Albuquerque, New Mexico in the United States. Three reservations make up Acoma Pueblo: Sky City , Acomita, and McCartys. The Acoma Pueblo tribe is a federally recognized tribal entity...
, equivalent of the tribal chief
Tribal chief
A tribal chief is the leader of a tribal society or chiefdom. Tribal societies with social stratification under a single leader emerged in the Neolithic period out of earlier tribal structures with little stratification, and they remained prevalent throughout the Iron Age.In the case of ...
. He was the only non-Indian ever to serve as a governor of an Indian Pueblo.
Early life
Bibo was born in BrakelBrakel, Germany
Brakel is a town in the district of Höxter in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.- Location :Brakel lies at the midpoint of the district of Höxter between the Eggegebirge and the Weser in the Oberwälder Land nature area in the old Saxon region of Nethegau....
, Westphalia
Westphalia
Westphalia is a region in Germany, centred on the cities of Arnsberg, Bielefeld, Dortmund, Minden and Münster.Westphalia is roughly the region between the rivers Rhine and Weser, located north and south of the Ruhr River. No exact definition of borders can be given, because the name "Westphalia"...
, then part of the Kingdom of Prussia
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
, to Isak and Blümchen Bibo; his father was a cantor
Hazzan
A hazzan or chazzan is a Jewish cantor, a musician trained in the vocal arts who helps lead the congregation in songful prayer.There are many rules relating to how a cantor should lead services, but the idea of a cantor as a paid professional does not exist in classical rabbinic sources...
. He was the sixth of eleven children. After the suppression of the liberal government
Revolutions of 1848 in the German states
The Revolutions of 1848 in the German states, also called the March Revolution – part of the Revolutions of 1848 that broke out in many countries of Europe – were a series of loosely coordinated protests and rebellions in the states of the German Confederation, including the Austrian Empire...
in the mid-19th century, his older brothers Nathan and Simon left for the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 1866; he eventually joined them, moving on October 16, 1869 at age 16. He arrived in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
and, after spending some time learning English on the East Coast, he moved out to meet his brothers in Santa Fe
Santa Fe, New Mexico
Santa Fe is the capital of the U.S. state of New Mexico. It is the fourth-largest city in the state and is the seat of . Santa Fe had a population of 67,947 in the 2010 census...
, then part of the New Mexico Territory
New Mexico Territory
thumb|right|240px|Proposed boundaries for State of New Mexico, 1850The Territory of New Mexico was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from September 9, 1850, until January 6, 1912, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of...
. His brothers had established themselves as traders, initially using capital provided by the Spiegelberg family, a pioneer Jewish family that arrived with Stephen W. Kearny
Stephen W. Kearny
Stephen Watts Kearny surname also appears as Kearney in some historic sources; August 30, 1794 October 31, 1848), was one of the foremost antebellum frontier officers of the United States Army. He is remembered for his significant contributions in the Mexican-American War, especially the conquest...
's army during the Mexican-American War. The Bibo brothers were able to establish stores at Laguna
Laguna, New Mexico
Laguna is a census-designated place in Cibola County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 423 at the 2000 census. Located west of Albuquerque, Laguna is a former Indian Pueblo village...
, Fort Wingate
Fort Wingate
Fort Wingate is near Gallup, New Mexico. There were two locations in New Mexico that had this name. The first one was located near San Rafael. The current fort was established on the southern edge of the Navajo territory in 1862. The initial purpose of the fort was to control the large Navajo...
, Cebolleta, Bernalillo, and Grants
Grants, New Mexico
Grants is a city in Cibola County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 9,182 at the 2010 Census. It is the county seat of Cibola County....
. The brothers learned several Native American languages in addition to their German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, Yiddish, and English.
The Bibo brothers developed reputations for fairness in their dealings with the local Native Americans: they would sell the tribes' produce through their stores and supply US Army forts under contracts; in turn the Native Americans received fair prices and improved their farming techniques. The brothers also mediated land disputes between the tribes and the Mexican residents, and also tried to prevent Anglo-Americans from purchasing Indian land at below market prices; such stances did not endear them to these groups.
Involvement with Acoma Pueblo
Solomon Bibo became particularly involved in a dispute between the people of Acoma Pueblo and the Department of InteriorUnited States Department of the Interior
The United States Department of the Interior is the United States federal executive department of the U.S. government responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land and natural resources, and the administration of programs relating to Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Native...
over a federal survey of the Acoma Pueblo Grant in 1876 and 1877. The survey resulted in a treaty that granted 94000 acres (380.4 km²) of land, far less than the Acoma thought they were entitled to according to historical evidence. To help the Acoma people, he learned their Keresan language
Keresan languages
Keresan , also Keres , is a group of seven related languages spoken by Keres Pueblo peoples in New Mexico, U.S.A.. Each is mutually intelligible with its closest neighbors...
and he and his brother Simon wrote letters to the Department of Interior which resulted in a review of the survey in 1881. The government surveyors, Walter and Robert Marmon, were Presbyterian missionaries and traders who had married into the rival Laguna Pueblo
Laguna Pueblo
Laguna is a Native American tribe of the Pueblo people in west-central New Mexico, USA. The name, Laguna, is Spanish and derives from the lake located on their reservation. The real Keresan name of the tribe is Kawaik. The population of the tribe exceeds 7,000 , making it the largest Keresan...
. However, after the investigation the government ruled against the Acoma and granted most of the disputed land to the Laguna.
On December 12, 1882, Bibo applied to the Commissioner of the Bureau of Indian Affairs
Bureau of Indian Affairs
The Bureau of Indian Affairs is an agency of the federal government of the United States within the US Department of the Interior. It is responsible for the administration and management of of land held in trust by the United States for Native Americans in the United States, Native American...
for a license to trade with the Acoma Pueblo and established the first trading post at Old Acoma high atop its protective mesa
Mesa
A mesa or table mountain is an elevated area of land with a flat top and sides that are usually steep cliffs. It takes its name from its characteristic table-top shape....
. In order to protect their remaining land, on April 7, 1884, the Acoma signed a 30 year lease to all their land to Solomon Bibo, in exchange for which he would pay them $12,000, protect their cattle, keep squatters away and mine the coal under the Acoma lands with a royalty of ten cents per ton for each ton extracted paid to the tribe. The lease got the attention of Pedro Sanchez, the U.S. Indian agent from Santa Fe, who tried to get the federal government to void the lease. A complicated fight over the lease ensured, and the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, Hiram Price
Hiram Price
Hiram Price was a nineteenth-century banker, merchant, bookkeeper, bank president, railroad president, and five-term Republican congressman from Iowa's 2nd congressional district....
, eventually negated the lease but also removed Sanchez.
Bibo married into the Acoma tribe. His wife, Juana Valle, was the granddaughter of a former Acoma governor and, though raised Catholic
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
, she converted to Judaism
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
and the couple was married twice: As there was no rabbi
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
available in the territory, "Solomon Bibo de Cubero & Johanna (Juana) Valle del Acoma" had an Indian ceremony before a Catholic priest on May 1, 1885 at Acoma Pueblo and a civil one before a Justice of the Peace
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...
on August 30. The marriage made Solomon a member of the Acoma tribe.
In 1885, the Acomas elected Solomon Bibo as their new governor, the equivalent of the tribal chief. "Don
Don (honorific)
Don, from Latin dominus, is an honorific in Spanish , Portuguese , and Italian . The female equivalent is Doña , Dona , and Donna , abbreviated "Dª" or simply "D."-Usage:...
Solomono", as he was known by the tribe, served as governor four times. The Acoma asked the United States to recognize Bibo as their leader and, in 1888, he was recognized as such by an agent of the Bureau of Indian Affairs. As governor, he helped install a modern education system and supervised the installation of first schoolteacher at Acoma and allowed a house of his to be used as the school for the first year before a government school opened in a building he owned; some students were sent to the Carlisle Indian Industrial School
Carlisle Indian Industrial School
Carlisle Indian Industrial School was an Indian boarding school in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. Founded in 1879 at Carlisle, Pennsylvania by Captain Richard Henry Pratt, the school was the first off-reservation boarding school, and it became a model for Indian boarding schools in other locations...
in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
.
The Indian schools
Americanization (of Native Americans)
The Americanization of Native Americans was an assimilation effort by the United States to transform Native American culture to European-American culture between the years of 1790–1920. George Washington and Henry Knox were first to propose, in an American context, the cultural transformation of...
proved to be very controversial, and caused unrest between the different generations. Bibo sided against advocates of preserving traditional tribal ways. In 1889, after his term as governor, he aided in having the Bureau of Indian Affairs arrest and replace a governor who supported tribal members that had used aggressive methods in punishing younger members for following the "progressive" ways taught in the schools. Because of rising tensions surrounding these changes, and because he wanted his children to receive a Jewish education, Bibo and his family moved to San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
in 1898. In San Francisco he was an active partner in a fine quality grocery store until 1906. Bibo traveled back and forth between New Mexico and California to manage his business there, he sold his interest in his older Acoma store to his brother Emil in 1904, and opened a new store in San Rafael, New Mexico in 1906. He also made substantial investments in San Francisco real estate.
The Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
and disastrous weather ruined many of the Bibo brothers stores and investments in New Mexico during the early 1930s. Solomon Bibo's stock investments were also hit hard, leaving him mainly with his San Francisco properties.
Solomon Bibo died on May 4, 1934; his wife died in March 1941. They were cremated and interred in the cemetery of Temple Emanu-El in Colma, California
Colma, California
Colma is a small incorporated town in San Mateo County, California, at the northern end of the San Francisco Peninsula in the San Francisco Bay Area. The population was 1,792 at the 2010 census. The town was founded as a necropolis in 1924....
. Some of their six children, four girls and two boys, returned in later years to New Mexico and many of the descendants of Solomon Bibo and his brothers still reside in New Mexico, and include Jews, Hispanics, and Native Americans.