American Indians of the Pacific Northwest

The earliest explorers of the Pacific Northwest came to its coasts in the 18th century. Spanish, English, French, Portuguese, Russian, and American explorers sought to claim land and establish trade routes in the New World.

In 1803, U.S. President Thomas Jefferson commissioned Captain Meriwether Lewis to lead an overland expedition to the western territories. In his letter to Lewis, Jefferson instructed that information should be gathered on the indigenous peoples they would encounter. The letter is excerpted in Pearsall's "Contributions of Early Explorers and Traders to the Ethnography of the Northwest".

Except for the Lewis and Clark expedition, however, all of the early exploration was done on behalf of the fur trade. The Northwest Company, the Hudson’s Bay Company, and others commissioned explorers to search for new hunting grounds and establish trading posts, resulting in fierce commercial competition for control over the Pacific Northwest. Search on fur trade to learn more about the business that shaped the future of the Pacific Northwest.

Pearsall's article describes the expeditions of the earliest explorers and their interactions with Native Americans who supplied furs and provided information about the region. The Subject Index heading, Indians of North America--First contact with Europeans, provides access to other scholarly articles that often excerpt primary source materials. For example, "Nootka Sound in 1789: Joseph Ingraham's Account" includes Ingraham's letter in its entirety. In it, he recounts the Nootka Indians' story about the first European ship to arrive at the Nootka Sound. Ingraham, an American, identifies the ship as belonging to Spain, a rival in the fur trade:

They said she was a larger ship than they had ever seen since, that she was coppered . . . (this I suppose to have been gilt or painted yellow), that she had a great many guns and men, that the officers wore blue laced coats, and that most of the men wore handkerchiefs about their heads. They made them presents of large pearl shells . . . knives with crooked blades and black handles. The natives sold them fish and their garments but no furs. When they first saw this ship, they said they were exceedingly terrified and but few of them ever ventured alongside.

(Page 163, "Nootka Sound in 1789: Joseph Ingraham's Account")

Once the fur companies made inroads into the region, missionaries were eager to bring Christianity to the indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest. The Subject Index heading, Christianity, and a search on missionaries provide many images, primary texts by Indian agents and missionaries, and secondary texts such as "Anglicanism Among the Indians of Washington Territory," which includes excerpts from the Church of England Missionary Society Proceedings, 1819-1820:

It has been suggested ... that the western parts of British America, lying between the high ridge called the Rocky Mountains and the North Pacific Ocean, and extending from about the 42d to the 57th degree of North Latitude, offer a more promising and practicable field for Missionary Labours than any other in that quarter of the Globe. The people are not savage, ferocious, and wandering; but settled in villages, and in several respects somewhat civilized, though still in the hunter state; with few arts, no letters, no general knowledge, but a great desire to be taught by White Men, whose superiority they clearly discern... .

(Pages 224-25, "Anglicanism Among the Indians of Washington Territory")

• Why would the Church of England want to establish missions among Native Americans of the Pacific Northwest? What attracts them to this particular region?


• Why do you think that the Missionary Society described the people of the Northwest as having a "great desire to be taught by White Men, whose superiority they clearly discern"?


• What attitudes did missionaries have towards Native Americans? Can you identify differences among missionaries' attitudes?

In the first half of the 19th century, several denominations established missions throughout the Northwest. Protestant missions were established in 1834 and 1836 in the Oregon Territory. Jesuit missions were established in Oregon in 1840. Catholics established missions at Fort Vancouver in 1838, and on Idaho's St. Joe River around 1842. Subject Index headings such as Catholic, Catechists, church, nuns, Jesuit, Methodist, Presbyterian, and priests provide narrower selections of materials such as this 1859 photograph of Jesuit Pierre-Jean de Smet with a delegation of chiefs on a peace mission in Vancouver.

• What does the photograph of Father De Smet and the Indian delegation suggest about the success of his efforts?
• What else can you learn about missionary work from this photograph?

Missionary work was supported by the U.S. government as a means of assimilating, or "civilizing," Native Americans and has been seen as something forced upon indigenous people. However, in her article, "Christianity, a Matter of Choice: The Historic Role of Indian Catechists in Oregon Territory and British Columbia," Margaret Whitehead makes the point that Native Americans of the Pacific Northwest "displayed . . . selectivity when proffered white culture. They could and did deal intelligently and profitably with the intrusive society." Her article focuses on the free choice many Native Americans made to accept Christianity, while "Lawyer of the Nez Perces" describes how in 1831, the Nez Perces and Flatheads sent a delegation to St. Louis seeking information about Christianity.

Missionaries were not always successful in converting Indians. "The Spokane Indian Mission at Tshimakain, 1838-1848" and "Lawyer of the Nez Perces" describe the problems of a group of Presbyterian missionaries in the Northwest, culminating in the 1847 massacre of Marcus Whitman, a medical doctor at the Waiilatpu Mission. The massacre ultimately led to the Cayuse War, which set back missionary work in the region for a decade.

• What was the relationship between the fur trade and missionary work? What interactions occurred between individuals of each group?
• What did missionaries hope to accomplish in the Pacific Northwest? Did their goals change over time?
• What techniques and activities did they use to achieve their goals? How successful were they?
• How did Native Americans respond to missionaries and to Christianity?
• According to their reports, what did Indian agents and superintendents think of missionary work? What value did they see in it? What problems did they see?
• What roles did missionaries play in establishing and enforcing government policies towards Native Americans?
• How did the introduction of Christianity impact Native-American cultures and the way history unfolded in the Pacific Northwest?
• What other missionary work was going on in North America during the 19th century, and how did it compare to the work in the Pacific Northwest?

The Subject Index heading, Indians of North America--First contact with Europeans, provides articles such as "Captain James Colnett and the Tsimshian Indians, 1787," that describe some of the earliest conflicts. Materials found under the Subject Index heading, Frontier and pioneer life, pertain to 19th century conflicts. The article, "American and British Treatment of the Indians in the Pacific Northwest," describes and analyzes the atmosphere of violence and racial hatred that prevailed in certain quarters:

"The exasperation of the southern Idaho communities, under continual Indian harassment, became extreme. This was especially true in Owyhee. A meeting of citizens offered rewards for scalps; one hundred dollars for that of a buck, fifty dollars for that of a squaw and twenty-five dollars for 'everything in the shape of an Indian under ten.' When fifty-five Indians were reported killed in Humboldt, the local paper in Owyhee rejoiced that these were made 'permanently friendly'..."

(Page 36, "American and British Treatment of the Indians in the Pacific Northwest")

• According to Superintendent Palmer, why are normally peaceful Native Americans in Oregon supporting warring Native Americans?
• What problems does Palmer identify in the strategy of "armed parties?"
• According to Superintendent Cain, what caused the outbreak among the Yakimas and Clickatats?
• What events at the Wai-i-lat-pu mission led up to the Whitman massacre?
• What were the feared and actual consequences of the massacre?
• What attempts were made to ease tension and avoid conflict? Who made these efforts? Were they successful? Why or why not?
• Why do you think that single incidents of violence posed such a threat to incite more violence?
• How do you think that news was conveyed in the region in the 19th century?

A newspaper reporter identified simply as correspondent "B" used several letters of combatants to report on the fight with Native Americans near the Pelouse River south of Spokane in eastern Washington.

"...Towards evening our ammunition began to give out, and our men suffering so much from thirst and fatigue required all our attention to keep them up. To move from one point to another, we had to crawl on our hands and knees amid the howling of the Indians, the groans of the dying, and the whistling of balls and arrows. We were kept in this position until 8 o'clock p.m.; when as night came on, it became apparent that on the morrow we must "go under," and that not one of us would escape. ...Therefore it was determined to run the gauntlet, so that if possible some might escape..."

(Pages 273-74, "No. 98: Copy of newspaper correspondent 'B'")

The Modoc War of 1873 is discussed in the correspondence of Indian agents. Search on Modoc for these reports as well as photographs of Modocs in the post-war period, including those who sided with the military in the war against Captain Jack (Chief Kintpuash).

In 1877, the Nez Perces engaged in what would become the most celebrated of the conflicts between Euro Americans and Native Americans in the Pacific Northwest. Search on Nez Perce war for images and articles such as "The Nez Perce and Their War," synopsizing the conflict and reevaluating Chief Joseph's fame as a military strategist. "The Last Stand of the Nez Perces" and "The Nez Perces in Exile" provide insight into the aftermath of the war. The collection also includes the reminiscences of Francis Redfield, a sub-agent on the Nez Perce Reservation in 1876. For more on the Nez Perce war, refer to the Critical Thinking section.

In 1816, the American Colonization Society was founded to help relocate free African Americans to a colony in Liberia, Africa. For, while some felt that African Americans should be integrated into Euro-American society, even some abolitionists doubted the transition could be made.

"The Indian Problem" entailed a similar ambivalence. Francis Haines defines "The Indian Problem" in her article, "Problems of Indian Policy":

"The Indian Problem of the Pacific Northwest is an integral part of a national problem inherited from the colonial period. From the landing of the first colonists on the Atlantic Coast, the dominant white invaders have debated over the handling of the primitive native people who occupied the country... Some groups have worked to exterminate the Indian people, while others have tried to assimilate them. Some say we should teach them to be like white men; others want to keep the remnants of the tribes as separate cultural entities. Much confusion has resulted from the clash of these two fundamentally different schools of thought regarding the Indian."

(Page 203, "Problems of Indian Policy")

Other secondary as well as primary sources pertaining to “The Indian Problem” can be found by searching on race relations or by using Subject Index headings, Indians of North America--Colonization, Indians of North America--Cultural assimilation, and Indians of North America--Legal status.

" ... the large amount of iron which was used by former agents to make handcuffs to iron prisoners with has been used by me in the manufacture of plows and wagons. The guard-house likewise has fallen, and is in ruins. The Bible and the plow are the great causes of all this. Compare the cost that this agency has been to the cost of one month's extermination policy, and no other argument need be produced in favor of the humane and Christian policy of our President. I am confident that a like result may be obtained with any tribe of Indians, by a kind and patient treatment. They should be regarded and treated as children -- with firmness and kindness."

(Page 320, "No. 72: Annual report of Warm Springs agency")

Native Americans' attitudes and opinions are more difficult to determine because they are generally recorded second-hand by agents, missionaries, and other Euro Americans.

Some first-person statements are available in minutes from treaty councils and other meetings with government officials. Minutes are included in items found by searching on council as well as in the article, "The Indian Treaty of Point No Point." Minutes were often recorded by a clerk who sat by an interpreter. As Native Americans became more savvy about official meetings, they demanded the right to chose their own interpreters and recorders. In a council held in 1871 at the Warm Spring Reservation, Ta-se-nick of the Wascoe tribe is recorded as saying:

"How can you expect the children to learn if they go to school in blankets, and if girls are naked, how can you teach them to knit. They are still like Indians. Your coming is like the rising of the sun, it brings daylight to us. I think now my children will grow up like white people."

(Page 126, Appendix A d., No. 1: Warm Spring Reservation: Minutes of a council held at Warm Spring Reservation, Oregon Territory)

• Is there evidence of what Native Americans thought were the best ways to deal with the presence of Euro-American people and culture?
• What objections did Native Americans have to a reservation policy?
• What sorts of attitudes did Native Americans have towards Euro Americans? Were they as varied as Euro-American attitudes towards Native Americans?
• Do you think that Native Americans' debate over what to do about Euro Americans was as fierce as the debate over "The Indian Problem?" Why or why not?
• Were Native Americans receptive to any aspects of Euro-American culture? If so, which ones?
• Is there any reason to question the authenticity of statements recorded in council minutes?

Various opinions about how to deal with "The Indian Problem" resulted in the violence that decimated native populations. In the end, the United States' official strategy for dealing with "The Indian Problem" was to create reservations through treaties.

The collection provides a unique opportunity to closely examine treaties. A search on treaty provides seven examples, one of which is included in the article, "The Indian Treaty of Point No Point." All but one of the treaties were negotiated by Washington Territory's Governor Isaac I. Stevens in 1855. Articles such as "Lawyer of the Nez Perces," and "American and British Treatment of the Indians in the Pacific Northwest" provide a context for Stevens's "campaign of treaty-making."

Documents found under the Subject Index heading, Indians of North America – Legal status, laws, such as "Rights of the Puget Sound Indians to Game and Fish" indicate that further legislation was made to clarify the meaning and implementation of treaties. Changes and adjustments continued well into the 20th century. In 1934, the Indian Reorganization Act was passed, providing for self-government on reservations. In his introductory essay in the Special Presentation, David M. Buerge discusses the Indian Reorganization Act:

The most obvious consequence of the treaties negotiated with Native Americans was the creation of reservations. A careful reading of the treaties in this collection indicates that reservations were areas that Native Americans reserved for themselves out of the land they ceded to the United States government. This collection provides a rare opportunity to understand what life has been like on reservations of the Pacific Northwest since their establishment in the second half of the 19th century.

The Subject Index heading, Indian reservations, provides access to over 500 items, including legislation, scholarly articles, and reports by Indian agents and other reservation staff. A search on reservation yields similar items as well as photographs.

The article, "American and British Treatment of the Indians in the Pacific Northwest," compares the U.S. reservation system to the policy implemented in British Columbia. Indian Agents' reports describe the day-to-day workings of reservations. Agent Charles Medary reported in 1876 from the Flathead agency:

One of the first Indian boarding schools, in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, was founded on the principle, "kill the Indian and save the man." In her essay, "Assimilation Through Education: Indian Boarding Schools in the Pacific Northwest," Carolyn J. Marr explains:

"The goal of Indian education from the 1880s through the 1920s was to assimilate Indian people into the melting pot of America by placing them in institutions where traditional ways could be replaced by those sanctioned by the government."

Treaties made in the Pacific Northwest stipulated that the U.S. government would provide education to Native Americans living on reservations. Though it took several years, day schools and boarding schools were eventually established on reservations. In addition, boarding schools such as the Carlisle school were established off reservations. Students were required to live at boarding schools most of the year, thereby removing them from the influence of their families and traditional cultures.

Reports to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs reflect the reformist attitudes of Indian school teachers, administrators, and staff. Along with photographs, they also provide a detailed picture of the practices and effects of Americanization upon young Native Americans:

"Since my last annual report I have visited nearly all the reservations on this coast and found many of the scholars that had gone out from this school now in the employ of the Government, filling various positions of trust at their several agencies, and others engaged in the different pursuits of life, where they were exerting a good and healthful influence among their people, proving most conclusively that the money expended by the Government is not wasted, but is bringing forth fruit that will ripen into a rich harvest of peace, prosperity, and happiness to these poor, unfortunate, and misguided children of the forest. The only way to save the fragment of this once numerous and powerful race of people is for the good work recently inaugurated by the Government to go on and educate and train their children in the better ways of advanced civilization."

(Page 272-273, "Reports of Superintendents of Indian Schools: Report of school at Chemawa, Oregon")

Marr's essay in the Special Presentation describes the rigid daily schedule and strict discipline of Indian schools. Documents such as the "Report of school principal at Puyallup agency" indicate that students were expected to speak English and punished for speaking their own languages. Strict policies were also devised for compelling attendance. In his report to the Commissioner of Indian Affairs, Agent Jackson describes the policy imposed to insure that boys were in attendance at the Sitka, Alaska Indian school:

"Captain Glass . . . caused the houses to be numbered, and an accurate census taken of the inmates--adults and children. He then caused a label to be made of tin for each child, which was tied around the neck of the child, with his or her number and the number of the house on it, so that if a child was found on the street during school hours the Indian policeman was under orders to take the numbers on the labels and report them, or the teacher each day would report that such numbers from such houses were absent that day. The following morning the head Indian of the house to which the absentee belonged was summoned to appear and answer for the absence of the child. If the child was willfully absent, the head man was fined or imprisoned. A few cases of fines were sufficient. As soon as they found the captain in earnest, the children were all in school. . . .”

(Page 257, "Report of Sitka School")