Cal Poly is located on the traditional lands of the yak titʸu titʸu yak tiłhini Northern Chumash Tribe of San Luis Obispo County and Region. The yak titʸu titʸu yak tiłhini have a documented presence in this area for over 10,000 years. The tiłhini peoples have stewarded their ancestral and unceded homelands which includes Cal Poly and all of the cities, communities, federal and state open spaces within the San Luis Obispo County region. These homelands extend east into the Carrizo Plains toward Kern County, south to the Santa Maria River, north to Ragged Point, and west beyond the ocean’s shoreline in an unbroken chain of lineage, kinship, and culture.
The land was taken from the yak titʸu titʸu yak tiłhini in the 1700s without agreement or compensation.
Materials in University Archives
Poly Canyon History
The first 281 acres of land that were purchased for the California Polytechnic School were located at the base of the foothills, purchased from Dawson Lowe in 1901. In 1918, Cal Poly purchased an adjacent 625 acres of land from the Johnson family, which included the road to the canyon, the land halfway up the canyon, and the surrounding foothills.
In 1950 Cal Poly purchased land that was part of the Peterson Ranch, which dated back to the Rancho Potrero de San Luis Obispo land grant held by Maria Concepcion Boronda. The Peterson property extended Cal Poly land further into the Canyon.
The canyon had many purposes, including grazing for cattle, student events, landfill and quarry, and a botanical garden. The site also includes the nine-acre Experimental Structures Facility and the annual Design Village weekend.
Web map representing indigenous lands throughout the world. This map is created to foster conversation about the history of colonialism and Indigenous ways of knowing. Map data represent areas of territories, languages and treaties can be viewed online or accessed via API.