and geographic boundaries shared by Coastal Indians. ... Indians of the plateau
region obtained a living in a variety of ways. Salmon ... enemies, native or white.
Long before Washington became a state, many different indigenous groups lived here.
Evidence suggests humans migrated to North America thousands of years ago by crossing a land bridge that once connected North America to Asia during the Ice Age.
According to our origin stories, we’ve been here, well, since the beginning of time. Junior from Sherman Alexie’s The Absolutely True Diary of a Part‐Time Indian
Over time, unique cultures emerged, each having a distinct history.
So you’re saying not all American Indians are alike. Duh!
Indians living along the coast thrived off the sea. The natural environment was so rich, people didn’t need to cultivate crops. Abundant food supplies offered opportunities to develop elaborate goods and art. Coastal peoples were sophisticated traders who accumulated considerable wealth. During potlatch festivals, wealthy families demonstrated status by conspicuously giving away all they owned. The more lavish the giving, the more honor the family gained.
Washington’s present borders do not reflect the cultural and geographic boundaries shared by Coastal Indians. Tlingit Haida Makah
Ancestral and cultural ties linked people as far north as Alaska to northern California. For example, the Tinglits, were known for their intricate art and wealth. The Haida were considered formidable warriors who often raided goods and captured slaves from Coast Salish peoples. The Makah were renowned for their seamanship and whale hunting skills.
Indians of the plateau region obtained a living in a variety of ways. Salmon fishing provided a major source of food. After adopting horses, which were introduced to the Americas by Spanish explorers, buffalo, elk, and deer hunting became more common.
Like Coastal Indians, Washington’s present borders do not reflect the cultural River basins bordered by mountains and geographic boundaries of Plateau Indians. provided ample fishing and hunting, and yielded a variety of plants to harvest. In addition the landscape served as a natural barrier against enemies, native or white.
“Words do not pay for my dead people. They do not pay for my country, now overrun by white men. They do not protect my father’s grave.”
Modoc However, by the late 1800s, fertile farmland and the discovery of gold and other mineral deposits attracted white settlers to the region, which often sparked war between Plateau Indians and the United States government. Tribes, such as the Yakima, Nez Perce and Modoc were among the last to resist the 400 year process of colonization that began shortly after 1492.
Chief Joseph, Nez Perce
Speaking of 1492, that’s the year Columbus sailed the ocean blue… China
Guess again!
Indians! China must be nearby.
After Columbus’ voyage, Spain claimed much of the “New World”, including the Pacific Northwest. However, Spanish explorers did not arrive until 1775. They were looking for the “Northwest Passage” to Asia. Sorry to break the news to you: there is no shortcut.
Emperor Qianlong
Apparently, global trade has been important to the Pacific Northwest for a long time.
Oh well. We’ll claim this King Charles III land anyway.
Next came the British who threatened to go to war with Spain over the territory. In 1790, Spain agreed to open the region to explorers from other countries.
Obviously you want to trade, but what do you have to offer us? Sea otters – lots of them! King George
Uh oh!
By 1800, the United States was trying to establish a presence in the area.
We just purchased the Louisiana Territory from France. Let’s try an overland route.
We’ll bring Sacagawea to show we intend peace.
Business is good. And to translate.
Lewis and Clarke’s 1803 expedition would pave the way for westward expansion.
Thomas Jefferson
Between 1790 and 1846, British and American trading companies along the coast competed over the fur trade. Both depended on trade with American Indians. Furs are in high demand in China. We need product.
We have steel and copper tools, and other novelties.
Supply is good. What do you have to trade?
This can’t last forever.
Meanwhile, encounters between Plateau Indians and “mountain men”, then later missionaries, increased following the Lewis and Clark expedition.
Savages! I don’t like where this story is going.
Savages! I’m here to make money. Want to trade?
Whitman Mission (1836)
I’m here to spread civilization and Christianity. Want to convert?
The fur trade brought American Indians from the Pacific Northwest into contact with people from all over the world. Many fur traders were Scottish, French Canadian, Iroquois, Cree, Chippewa, Hawaiian, and free African Americans like George Washington Bush, one of the first Americans to settle in the Puget Sound region. I wanted to move to Oregon, but until 1868 (3 years after the Civil War), it was illegal for blacks to live there.
Fort Fort Colville Okanogan (1825) (1811)
Fort Spokane (1812) George Washington Bush Fort Nisqually Spokane House (1833) (1810) Cowlitz Farm (1839) Fort Nez Perce or Fort Walla Walla (1818) Fort Vancouver (1824) Whitman Mission (1836)
Before the 1830s, non‐natives and American Indians coexisted on relatively equal terms. Trade helped create mutually beneficial relationships. The common use of Chinook jargon (a mixture of words blended together from various languages) and intermarriage helped forge ties between non‐natives and Indians.
What happened?
“The West” was meant to be. God says so…
Manifest Destiny!
If “civilization” and Christianity are so good, why are we running away?
Because “progress” is often ugly. As the white population grew, American Indians faced several disadvantages.
1) Disposability As whites became economically independent of American Indians, the relationship between the groups became less cooperative and more competitive. Consequently, conflict increased.
We’re rugged individuals who work the land.
Indians just occupy it.
We farm the land, therefore, we own it.
Hmm… I don’t get the logic. Seems like stealing.
2) Disunity Despite the diversity, tribes seemed to share a similar fate.
Although tribes often formed alliances to resist white encroachment, each tribe generally considered itself distinct. In some cases, historical rivalries between tribes made it easier for the United States to conquer American Indians as a whole.
3) Disease
European diseases, like small pox, had the most devastating impact on American Indians. Reports of mass graves appear to this day. Not only did disease significantly reduce the population, those who survived struggled to cope with the disruption caused by massive deaths.
There’s got to be a meaningful reason for this tragedy. Perhaps Manifest Destiny was meant to be.
Nope, it was mainly happenstance. By raising livestock, over time Europeans became immune to various diseases.
Fewer people meant less resistance to white settlement. Meanwhile, trying to understand why whites were multiplying while American Indians were mysteriously dying generated psychological distress among native populations. Sometimes distress sparked violent reprisals against white settlers, like the “Whitman Tragedy” that occurred in 1847.
Whitman Mission (1836)
While the United States took over French, Spanish, and Mexican territories, the American population in the Pacific Northwest grew. The United States and Britain disputed over the exact boundary between the Oregon Territory and British Columbia. Eventually both governments agreed to avoid war by establishing the 49th parallel as the border. I < B.C. I < OR.
Were the locals consulted at all?
When the Washington Territory was established in 1853, the first priority of Governor Isaac Stevens was to secure the land and the cooperation of the local native tribes through treaties.
I come to negotiate through friendship and good will.
Isaac Stevens Ever wonder why Indians are often portrayed as mascots? Some say it’s an attempt to show respect. But my ancestors were fisherman not Warriors, Raiders, Red Skins, Chiefs, Braves…
Then came the Treaty of Medicine Creek in 1854. My people are many.
Oregon trail or bust!
And the Treaty of Point Elliott in 1854. Soon they will fill the land.
“The white man's God cannot love his red children or he would protect them.”
Chief Sealth, Duwamish
And the Treaty of Point No Point in 1854. Thus, we claim the right to overspread…
And the Yakima Treaty of Camp Stevens in 1855. and to possess the whole continent…
And the Walla Walla Treaty of Camp Stevens in 1855. for the development of liberty…
And the Nez Perce Treaty of Camp Stevens in 1855. and self‐government…
And the Quinault River Treaty in 1855. for our growing population.
Then by executive order during the Civil War (1864). Two years earlier I helped redistribute millions of acres of tribal land to farmers by authorizing the Homestead Act.
President Lincoln Despite all that land taken from American Indians, the government wouldn’t give freed slaves “40 acres and a mule”?
Even more land was taken by the acquired in 1872.
"Wars of extermination . . . are demoralizing and wicked." Lets promote peace. President Grant Donehogawa, Commissioner of Native American Affairs
And again in 1873. In exchange for land, we’ll feed you during winter.
Then fight to remove you during summer.
In 1889, Washington became a state.
I wonder if anyone ever considered using White Skins as a mascot for Washington?
By 1893, most Indians were relegated to reservations where they were encouraged to live in isolation from whites and to continue a traditional lifestyle. Many Americans assumed Indians would simply vanish over time. This certainly did not happen.
1853
1893
In an effort to make deals as quickly as possible, the treaties created by Isaac Stevens promised to protect the right of Indians to fish and hunt “in common with all citizens of the Territory.”
Federally Recognized Tribes
By making treaties, the United States government was essentially treating tribes as independent nations that possessed sovereignty (authority) over their land, including the right to make their own laws.
For many years, enforcement of these rights was a non‐issue. The first groups of white settlers were preoccupied with farming, logging, mining, and shipbuilding. It was not until the early twentieth‐century that serious conflict arose regarding the rights that had been reserved for Native Americans by treaties. However, the United States did not always follow through on its agreements to American Indians.
This was the case in 1887 when the government passed the Dawes Act. Between 1887 and 1934, Indian policy aimed to “kill the Indian and save the man” by encouraging people to abandon traditional tribal customs and assimilate into white society by becoming “responsible farmers”.
Reservations were divided into 160 acre parcels and given to individuals . The remaining land was often sold to white settlers. Consequently, reservation land grew even smaller.
During this time, many children were removed from their families and sent to schools where they were stripped of their culture, religion, and language.
FYI…
Although government policies “encouraged” Indians to become more like whites, American Indians were not granted citizenship until 1924.
Was citizenship meant to help American Indians become part of the mainstream or a means for the government to minimize its treaty obligations?
By the Great Depression, life on reservations was tough. As a group, American Indians were among the poorest in America. However, in 1934, they got a “new deal” from President Roosevelt.
The Indian Reorganization Act developed reservation‐centered relief programs and promoted tribal governments. Tribes were encouraged to revive their cultural traditions and received help to buy back land loss as a result of the Dawes Act. President Roosevelt
In the Puget Sound region, the requirement of being attached to a reservation in order to receive assistance posed some challenges . First, it was common for people to belong to multiple tribes. Secondly, many people made a living from fishing, logging, and day labor rather than farming on reservations. Landless tribes, such as the Duwamish, had governing organizations, but no reservation, and this left them in legal limbo.
Chief Sealth
For example, the Port of Seattle sits on Duwamish land, and the city is named after its former chief, Chief Sealth, however, the Duwamish do not have a reservation.
In 1953, federal policy advocated for the "termination" of the special legal relationship between Native peoples and the federal government. The goal was to encourage Indians to become independent from government assistance. In some instances, entire tribes were terminated.
Give a man a fish, he’ll eat for a day. Teach a man to fish he’ll eat for a lifetime. President Eisenhower
What do you think my ancestors were doing before they were put on the rez?
The termination policies of the 1950s attempted to eliminate the special relationship the government created when it made treaties with various tribes. However, during the 1960s and 1970s, American Indians across the country made treaty rights and tribal sovereignty (authority) a major civil rights issue.
In Washington State, conservation laws had restricted treaty agreements that had been in effect for over 100 years. The campaign to reassert American Indian fishing rights began in 1964 with "fish‐ins" on the Puyallup River. Protestors would deliberately defy fishing laws in order to challenge state regulations. Many whites resented the protestors for engaging in what they considered to be illegal fishing practices. For American Indians, the protest brought attention to American Indian sovereignty .
The main issue was whether states, like Washington, had the power to impose regulations on other nations. According to treaties that had been made in 1854 and 1855, tribes are nations. With this in mind, tribes went to court to block efforts of states to regulate tribal sovereignty. In 1973, after years of legal challenges, Judge Boldt ruled that it was not up to the state to tell tribes how to manage something that had always belonged to them.
Marlon Brando, The Godfather
Robert Satiacum, Puyallup
My ancestors could have used your help 100 years ago.
Judge Boldt
Better late than never.
The principles established by the Boldt Decision have since been applied to other resources. Since treaties are agreements between nations, states , like Washington, are limited in the ways they can regulate American Indian tribes.
Billy Frank, Nisqually
The Boldt decision is a significant victory for tribal sovereignty. Nevertheless, the controversy between the state and tribes over land and resources continues.
For example…
Cultural Practices The right of whaling at usual and accustomed grounds is a Makah tradition secured by the 1855 Treaty of Neah Bay. Makah whaling dates back at least 1,500 years, but was halted in the 1920s because the gray whale population was severely reduced by non‐native commercial whaling.
Under what circumstances can the state prohibit tribes from engaging in cultural and economic practices guaranteed by treaty?
Economic Self‐Reliance
As a result of treaties, tribes are exempt from many state taxes and laws that regulate businesses. Consequently, many tribes have developed casinos as a way to stimulate the economy and create jobs. Historically, American Indians have been the most impoverished ethnic group in America. Nevertheless, non‐ natives claim tribes have an unfair economic advantage.
In exchange for land, the United State government agreed to guarantee certain privileges to American Indian tribes. To what degree is the United States obligated to extend certain privileges to American Indian tribes?
Environmental Regulation
Travis, Nick and Cody, Producers of March Point, Swinomish
You should check out this documentary.
American Indians contend with some of the worst pollution in the United States. In Washington state, several reservations are located near coal and oil‐fired power plants, steel mills, refineries, pulp and paper mills, and smelters. All of these industries produce significant amounts of industrial pollution. While these industries traditionally provide middle class jobs, nearby tribal land tends to be adversely impacted.
How much authority should tribes be given to regulate natural resources land use on or near reservations?
The fact that these questions remain is a testament to the endurance of American Indian communities and their ability to address the struggles of the past and adapt to present conditions in an effort to create a better future.
Citations Arnaldo Schwantes, Carlos. The Pacific Northwest : An Interpretive History. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1996. Center for the Study of the Pacific Northwest Ed. John F. Findlay. University of Washington, 1998. Web. 26 Nov. 2009. . Edward Curtis's North American Indian. Library of Congress, 13 July 2007. Web. 28 Dec. 2009. . Gabriel, Chrisman. "The Fish‐in Protests at Franks Landing ." Seattle Civil Rights and Labor History Project Ed. James Gregory. University of Washington, 2006. Web. 28 Dec. 2009. .
Gabriel, Galanda S. "Indian law is crucial to this state." Through Indian Eyes: The Untold Story of Native American Peoples. Seattle Times, 2004. Web. 7 Oct. 2003. . “Native Americans and Supporters Stage Fish‐in to Protest Denial of Treaty rights on March 2, 1964.” HistoryLink.org Online Encyclopedia of Washington. Web. 28 Dec. 2009. . Through Indian Eyes: The Untold Story of Native American Peoples. New York: Reader's Digest, 2005. Turnbull, Lornet. "Indian policy comes under fire." Seattle Times, 2004. Web. 19 Dec. 2004. .