Since there are no other historical data pertaining to the lake region, it is necessary to utilize the village lists of Kroeber (1925) and Latta (1949). These investigators, through their informants, have located 3 villages for the Hometowoli, 1 for the Tuhohi, 3 for the Tulamni, and 2 for the Yauelmani of the lower Kern River, making 9 in all. As suggested with respect to other areas the number of villages was undoubtedly as great in 1806 as in 1840 or 1850. Hence we can be assured of at least 9 in 1806. For size it is proper to use Zalvidea's average of 191 inhabitants, thus giving as the population of the Buenavista basin 1,720.
For the southern foothills we must rely upon the diary of Garcés. Gifford and Schenck (1926) discuss this document at length, concluding (p. 21) that the population actually seen by Garcés north of the slopes of the Tehachapi was 750 and that the total population "south of the Tule River" was 1,000 to 1,500. Since the present writer must differ from these authors, it is worth while to review once more the evidence furnished by the Garcés account. In so doing the exact route of the explorer must be made plain.
On May 1, 1776, having previously descended the southern mountains to the valley floor, Garcés broke camp:
Having gone one league northwest I came upon a large river which made much noise, at the outlet (al salir) of the Sierra de San Marcos and whose waters ... flowed on a course from the east through a straitened channel.
(Coues, ed., 1900, pp. 280-281). The river of course was the Kern and the spot was without question the point at which the river suddenly breaks out onto the plain from its canyon. The water was here swift ("made much noise"). It literally "sallied forth" from the mountains, and its course from the east was through a narrow channel. This place is about 14 miles east-northeast of Bakersfield on California State Highway 178.
Garcés then went downstream "a little way" and found a rancheria (no. 1) on the right bank. After going a little way farther he saw a rancheria (no. 2) on the left bank and another (no. 3) "to the west." He went downstream no more than 2 or 3 miles, otherwise, as was his invariable custom, he would have specified his distances in leagues. Three rancherias can therefore be located on the Kern between the last abrupt slope of the eastward hills and just below the mouth of Cottonwood Creek. These correspond on the map to Kroeber's villages Altau and Shoko of the Paleuyami and Konoilkin of the Yauelmani, although the actual identity is by no means assured.
After crossing the river with difficulty Garcés struck northwest "and a little north" for 3 leagues. This brought him to a stream where there was a rancheria (no. 4). From a point 3 or 4 miles below the entrance of the Kern River canyon a line running northwest by north extends diagonally about 7 miles across T28S, R29E to reach Poso Creek near the northern boundary of the township.
After passing the night at the rancheria mentioned (no. 4), Garcés went straight north for 4½ leagues. On the way he went by some deserted rancherias. These villages were not temporarily deserted, with the inhabitants in hiding. They were "rancherias despobladas," that is, permanently depopulated or abandoned. It is interesting to speculate on the cause of this phenomenon, for the depopulation can have been due only to intertribal warfare or disease. We know nothing of any native wars of sufficient magnitude to have destroyed several whole villages. On the other hand, as Garcés himself later points out, Spaniards had already penetrated the region. Pedro Fages was in the southern valley in 1772 on his way to the Colorado and Garcés found at least one deserting soldier living with the Indians. It is quite possible that decline of population had already begun as early as 1776.
After traveling 4½ leagues Garcés found another rancheria (no. 5), at which he spent the night of May 2-3. This must have been somewhere near the hamlet of Woody at the southern boundary of T25S, R29E. On May 3 he moved another 2½ leagues, still north, to reach the White River near or slightly to the west of the village of White River in T24S, R29E. Here he camped at a rancheria (no. 6) of 150 souls. On May 4, having reached his farthest point north, he visited another rancheria (no. 7) half a league east. At rancheria no. 6 he found an Indian who was a fugitive from the coast and also heard that two Spanish soldiers had been killed for molesting Indian women. The contact with the whites was therefore clearly established. Stephen Powers (1877), who was in the San Joaquin Valley in the decade of 1850 says that "on White River there are no Indians, neither have there been any for many years." Here again is an indication of depopulation at a very early date.
On May 5 Garcés started to retrace his steps southward, reaching at 2½ leagues the previous rancheria (i.e., no. 5). From here he must have diverged somewhat eastward of his northbound trail for at 2 leagues he saw another rancheria (no. 8) "to the east" which he had not seen on the way up. This probably was toward the eastern side of T26S, R20E. Then, he says, he went southeast 3 leagues to Poso Creek. This would put him on Poso Creek near the center of township T27S, R30E, a point about 9 miles airline above his place of crossing on May 2. Here he found a rancheria (no. 9), the chief of which told him about another rancheria (no. 10) to the east where a Spanish renegade lived with an Indian wife. The following day, May 6, he started out again south or southwest and got lost in the hills of upper Poso Creek. In these hills between Poso Creek and the Kern River he found another rancheria (no. 11) of "more than 100 souls." This was probably in the northern part of township T28S, R30E. Finally on May 7 he reached the Kern 1 league above his first crossing. His first crossing had been accomplished 2 or 3 miles below the mouth of the canyon hence he must have come out very close to the mouth. He then went downstream to the rancheria where he had crossed (no. 1) but he did not stop here. He continued down the river for 2 leagues to a rancheria he had not seen before (no. 12) and which had "some 150 souls."