Richmond Powwow Honors Laguna and Acoma Pueblo Families’ Railroad History
The 15th Annual Richmond Powwow, held yesterday at the Richmond Auditorium, honored Laguna and Acoma Pueblo families who migrated from New Mexico in the 1920s to work for the Santa Fe Railroad, a history largely unacknowledged in local records.
Under the theme “Richmond Santa Fe Indian Village,” the powwow featured Grand Entry with an eagle staff, performances by All Nations drum group, and a hand drum competition won by Michael Bellinger, who is Kickapoo, Sac and Fox, and Anishinaabe. The event commemorated a “handshake agreement” between the railroad and the Pueblo tribes in the late 1880s, where jobs, housing, running water, and train passes were promised in exchange for allowing the railroad to build through tribal territory. Adrian Whitecloud, Laguna Pueblo, recalled a time when families relied on those train passes to stay connected, stating, “The whole family could get on the train if there was room.”
The history of these “boxcar villages,” as they were sometimes called, remains largely absent from the city’s official documentation, despite being preserved in oral histories at institutions like UC Berkeley’s Bancroft Library. Elizabeth Madril, a seventh grader from the Pascua Yaqui Tribe, was crowned the 2025–2026 Richmond Powwow Princess, emphasizing the importance of cultural representation, saying, “At my school, we don’t have Native American Heritage Month or dive deep into it, so representing it and showing it to my peers is nice.” This year’s powwow also saw the Alameda County Library distribute over 300 books by Indigenous authors, furthering efforts to promote Indigenous literature.
Emcee Eddie Madril addressed the Laguna and Acoma Pueblo families during an intertribal dance, simply saying, “Welcome home.” Organizers stated they hope to continue raising awareness of this vital, yet often overlooked, chapter of Richmond’s history and ensure its inclusion in the city’s public record.
