Sarah Winnemucca Hopkins (1844-1891)
by Erica A., age 9 and John M., age 9

Sarah Winnemucca wrote these words in her book, Life Among the Paiutes,

"I was born somewhere near 1844 but I am not sure of the precise time. I was a very small child when the first white people came into our country. They came like a lion, yes, like a roaring lion, and have continued so ever since, and I have never forgotten their first coming."
At age 6 Sarah was first introduced to many white settlers rushing to California.

Sarah was born near Humbolt Sink, Nevada. She was a member of the Paiute tribe. Her Paiute name is Thoc-me-tony which means shell flower. Sarah's grandfather was the chief of all Paiutes.
When she was a small child she saw many white settlers.

At age 14 Sarah was speaking 5 languages: 3 Indian dialects, Spanish, and English. She was a translater at Fort McDermitt when she was 27.

The white settlers kept on taking land from her people. When the Paiutes were moved to a reservation in Oregon, Sarah went to Washington D.C. and made over 400 speeches to support the Paiutes. She wrote a book called Life Among the Paiutes.

Sarah died from tuberculosis in 1891.

We got our information from
Women of the West by Rick Steber
Chief Sarah, Sarah Winnemucca's Fight for Indian Rights by Dorthy N. Morrison
and from this web site and also from this web site.