FORT BRAGG, CA., 3/31/25 – A nonprofit dedicated to educating Mendocino County residents about the history of the town’s name, formerly Change Our Name Fort Bragg, recently announced it is changing its name to The Noyo Bida Truth Project.
“Change Our Name Fort Bragg has changed its name to The Noyo Bida Truth Project (TNBTP) to align with its vision in educating the Mendocino Coast of the resilient First Nations of the region,” the group said in a statement.
Philip Zwerling, organizer of the nonprofit, said the change reflects a broader mission beyond renaming the town.
“We talked about the fact that ‘Change Our Name’ is too much of a single issue, too much of an in-your-face, take-it-or-leave-it kind of thing. And we decided we needed a better name that encompasses the kinds of educational things we have in mind,” Zwerling said.
Nikcole Whipple, a tribal member of the Round Valley Indian Tribes with ancestral ties to the Mendocino Coast and board member of The Noyo Bida Truth Project, emphasized that the name change is important because it encompasses the broader spectrum of what the organization does.
She said the Fort Bragg name change is ultimately in the hands of the voters and that TNBTP is “dedicated to educating the public in culture and environmental justice beyond the reservation system.”
The group named itself after the historical Northern Pomo name for the area, meaning “The Fishing Place.” According to the group, this name was used for over 10,000 years before the establishment of Fort Bragg in 1857.
“The use of Indigenous language is extremely important to me,” said Whipple. “We are revitalizing the language every time our organization is spoken of and our Northern Pomo language is being spoken by all people in the space where it originated.”
When asked if the group’s name change might cause confusion for locals interested in the cause, Zwerling said there might be an initial learning curve, but he didn’t think it would cause any long-term confusion as the group has a significant online presence to get the word out.
Whipple said, “The organization has been present for over five years, so yes, there will be confusion. The reality is this organization is an educational organization that has been providing educational learning opportunities on Native American history and culture. This is the vision and purpose of the organization – to provide education, restorative and environmental justice to the Mendocino coastal communities.”
The group also added a new logo designed by Whipple’s daughter, Natyia Whipple, 15, of the Round Valley Indian Tribes. According to The Noyo Bida Truth Project’s website, Whipple’s work has received recognition – she was showcased on the cover of California Water Justice News, was the first student to create a mural on her high school’s campus, and has participated in public murals in Mendocino, Sonoma, and Yolo counties, among other achievements.
Zwerling said that one of the things he’s learned from talking to locals, including graduates of Fort Bragg High School, is that a large number of people don’t know the history of the name of the town.
“If you just change the name, it’s like putting lipstick on a pig. There has to be a bigger change,” he said.
In addition to advocating for a name change to the town of Fort Bragg and focusing on education, the group has other goals.
“A memorial to the Indigenous people who starved to death at the reservation that was here. Repurposing the fort building, maybe as a cultural center,” Zwerling said. “Installing historical plaques that tell the true story. Right now, there’s a historical plaque in front of the Guest House Museum from 1957 that whitewashes what happened here – that needs to change.”
Zwerling also said that a goal of the group is to give public land back to Indigenous people. When asked what that would look like, he said it wouldn’t impact residents—that people could still use it – and that it doesn’t cost taxpayers anything when public land changes hands, but it would give stewardship back to Indigenous groups so they could use it for ceremonial purposes.
Fort Bragg was founded in 1857 by Lt. Horatio Gibson as a military base to relocate Indigenous groups, disregarding their ancestral lands. The Round Valley Indian Reservation was established to consolidate displaced tribes, leading to loss of culture, resources and trade. Gibson likely named the base after Braxton Bragg, a Confederate general and slave owner, due to his military prominence and Southern loyalty.
So interesting! Thanks for sharing this info!
There are some historically correct information plaques/signs on the Noyo Trail. Personally, I’ve read them more than once. What I enjoy seeing is visitors from out of the area read them and discuss the information amongst themselves.
I can think of three times that I have witnessed adults reading and explaining these historical markers to children. It is through education that we can find the compassion we need to embrace people and their concerns and manifest respect.
Fort Bragg was a classic concentration camp, set up to contain local Indigenous people rounded up from the coast region. A concentration camp is a place where people from a larger area are concentrated and confined. Let’s call it what it was. As for the name, Bragg was Lt. Gibson’s commander in the U.S. war against Mexico. The Mexican-American War was fought from April 1846 to February 1848, just a few years before Fort Bragg was named in 1857. Bragg was hardly a distinguished commander as a Confederate general, but was known as a drunkard and incompetant.
Fort Bragg was part of the genocide of the indigenous people at the hands of the invading whites who stole their lands. Hardly an honorable name or place. It should be called by the indigenous Pomo name, Noyo. Certainly not the name of the drunkard traitor Bragg.
Yes, this is just what we need! Not only should we change the name but we should return ALL if the land to the people it was stolen from, the Bida People! If your house is on stolen land you may still be able to live in it of course, provided you make payments in the currency of the Bida People. Also, the language was spoken for 100,000 years and we should return to speaking that language. The name means fishing place, so we all gonna fish, all day we fish.
I don’t believe the area was named “the fishing place” 10,000 years before the area was settled. I also question indigenous people starving on the Noyo reservation. How? There was an ocean and woodlands to the east to hunt & gather food from. Just because a tribal member says something doesn’t mean it is true. Going blindly along with this just allows someone to make up their
‘history’. There is also tendency to play the victim card too often. I’m NOT denying native peoples were mistreated and displaced from this area and I’m sure it wasn’t done in a nice manner. This history should be known, taught and not forgotten nor repeated. But I will not be carrying any ‘white guilt’ nor thinking that tribal people living today are victims of what happened over 150 years ago. But I will be questioning this organization’s take on history because I know it is meant to push an agenda.
Read a book. They didn’t go gather there food anymore for the same reason we all don’t anymore. Think about it
We should never forget history as we are likely to repeat it if we do. I am not a fan to changing names of places just because it may or may not hold a negative connotation for someone. It reminds me of the statues that were taken down across the country. Teach, discuss, learn and embrace our history. You talk about learning our history but you want to erase the name of our history- Ft Bragg. ? Seems effort and money could be spent better in Ft. BRAGG on things such as food, shelter and outreach for the many, many homeless and less fortunate.
We already mustve forgotten cause I never knew Bragg was a person and I’m 52 lol