The Dry Creek area, in what is now the Alexander Valley, was and still is prime agricultural land. In 1915, the federal government purchased and held in fee, land for the 'Dry Creek Rancheria', Dry Creek Valley being the name of the area, for use by both the 'Dry Creek' Indians and the Geyserville Indians. They were followed in the 19th century by American gold prospectors and settlers, who quickly outnumbered the native populations. Sustained European contact began with the Russian fur trappers in the 18th century. The Dry Creek Band are Southern Pomo, descended from the Mihilakawna and Makahmo bands. The Pomo people are indigenous to northern California and formed about 21 autonomous communities, speaking seven Pomoan languages. It has a reservation near Geyserville, California, in Sonoma County, where it operates the River Rock Casino Resort. The Dry Creek Rancheria Band of Pomo Indians is a federally recognized tribe of Pomo people, an indigenous people of California.
