The original Yumans

The local Native American tribes have contributed a large part to the area's economic growth, noted Quechan tribal member Vernon Smith.

“I know for a fact, the Quechan Tribe helps the economy in Yuma. We shop there for everything. All our needs are in Yuma, food, gas, our basic, everyday needs,” Smith, 73, said.

“We've put in a lot of money over there,” he added.

And it's not a seasonal contribution. “For years and years, it's been year round.”

While he pointed out that winter visitors have only been here for some time, the Quechan has been here “for ages.”

The Quechan (pronounced Kw'tsan) also contribute to the economy through its workforce. “A lot work in Yuma,” he said.

But he noted that the tribe still maintains its own culture and lifestyle.

“The river divides us,” he said. “We don't sit down and share things. Culture and traditions are kept on this side.”

The Fort Yuma-Quechan Reservation is located along both sides of the Colorado River near. Encompassing 44,000 acres, the reservation is bisected on the south by Interstate 8.

The Yuma, as they were known in earlier times, have been known as fighters. They battled the Papago, Apache and other tribes for control of the fertile flood plains of the Colorado River, according to Quechan history.

Today the tribe leases several hundred acres to non-Indian farmers. It also counts on tourism, mainly through its casinos, and winter visitors to augment its economy.

The tribe manages several trailer and RV parks, a grocery store and museum as well as a fish and game department.

The other neighbors, Cocopah Indians descended from the Yuman-speaking people who arrived some 3,000 years ago.

According to Cocopah history, ancestors began to live along the Lower Colorado river between present-day Yuma and the delta and the Gulf of California. Thus, they are also known as the River People.

When thousands poured into the Yuma Valley on their way to the California gold rush in thmid-19th century, “significant changes to the Cocopah way of life were brought about by the steamboat business which brought supplies from ships in the Gulf up to Yuma and beyond,” the history states.

“Cocopah men became valued steamboat pilots with their knowledge of the river's currents and shifting sandbars.”

The construction of dams in the river brought an end to that way of life. However, the Cocopah today are considered an “important partner” in the region's economy.

The tribe also relies on tourism and winter visitors. It operates casinos, an RV and golf resort, a gas station and store, demonstrating he tribe's “entrepreneurial spirit.” The Cocopah have three reservations near the Somerton area.

Mara Knaub can be reached at mknaub@yumasun.com or (928) 539-6856. Find her on Facebook at Facebook.com/YSMaraKnaub or on Twitter at @YSMaraKnaub.