Our Culture and History
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Our Culture and History The Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians By Don Whereat with Patty Whereat Phillips, Melody Caldera, Ron Thomas, Reg Pullan and Stephen Dow Beckham The Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians Our Culture and History He’ihl Tamahlis ta Laqauwiyat’as Our History and Culture~Hanis Language Namhliitnhl Nishchima’muu Customs, History ~ Siuslaw Language Laqauwiyat’as Culture ~ Milluk Language By Don Whereat with contributing articles by Patty Whereat Phillips, Melody Caldera, Ron Thomas, Reg Pullan and Stephen Dow Beckham Copyright © 2010 by Don Whereat. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from Don Whereat. None of the articles written by Dr. Stephen Dow Beckham, Patty Whereat Phillips, Reg Pullman, Rob Thomas, and Melody Caldera may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the authors. This book is printed by ii ABOUT THE BOOK COVER The cover painting is based on the “Five Bears” story (page 315) and painted by Pam Stoehsler for this book. This story, which is at least many hundreds of years old, is important to the Siuslaw People. The cover for this book was inspired by an experience Don Whereat had many years ago while driving south on Highway 101. This experience had a lasting and profound impression on him. “One time I was coming home from a meeting at Otter Crest. It was a late winter afternoon, dark sky with a cold rain and sleet coming down. On approaching the bridge over Cape Creek (at Heceta), I pulled off the road and parked. Then I walked out on the bridge. It was eerie; only one or two cars came by. I felt the presence of those five bears watching me, and ever since that time, I have had an image of five Grizzly heads in wintry clouds, looking down on the scene of their murders.” Pam Stoehsler, a member of the Lower Umpqua Tribe, was commissioned by the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Tribes to create the cover for this book. Ms. Stoehsler was raised in a small town, Adin, California where wildlife was abundant. The out of doors became her classroom as she spent countless hours observing and studying the birds and animals that surrounded her. Her love for the wildlife became the subjects for her art. Largely self-taught, Ms. Stoehsler primarily works in watercolor and acrylic, creating a detailed realism that captures the personality of the wildlife she paints. Now living in the Klamath Basin near the Pacific Flyway marshes, Ms. Stoehsler has abundant subject matter from which to create her magnificent wildlife portraits. Among Ms. Stoehsler’s many inspiring works is the creation of three historically accurate paintings of Coastal native life commissioned by the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians. Pam worked with tribal anthropology specialists to paint a living scene from archived photos and written historical description. Ms. Stoehsler has won numerous awards including five California and Oregon upland game bird stamps. She was featured on PBS’s Oregon Art Beat. Her works of art are featured in galleries throughout the west coast. Ms. Stoehsler has graciously donated this painting for the book cover. To learn more about Ms. Stoehsler and her work, go to www.pamstoehsler.com i Table of Contents Introduction .................................................................................................................................. 1 History ............................................................................................................................................ 3 WHERE WE CAME FROM ...................................................................................................... 4 OVERVIEW OF TRIBAL HISTORY – 1850-1984 ................................................................ 8 ABORIGINAL BOUNDARIES OF THE COOS ................................................................... 11 LIFE IN THE SIUSLAW VALLEY PRIOR TO EUROPEAN SETTLEMENT .................. 14 VILLAGES: PART I ................................................................................................................. 18 VILLAGES: PART II ................................................................................................................ 23 NATIVE NAMES ...................................................................................................................... 29 DICK JOHNSON ..................................................................................................................... 34 HAUSER SITE ......................................................................................................................... 42 JEDIDIAH STRONG SMITH - 1798-1831 ........................................................................... 45 REPORT OF ROSS BROWN - 1857 ................................................................................... 80 ALSEA SUBAGENCY: The Prison Camp of our Ancestors and our Survival ............... 91 REPORTS FROM THE SILETZ AGENCY ON THE DEPLORABLE CONDITIONS KILLING INDIAN CHILDREN .............................................................................................. 102 DISCOVERY-HEATHENS-SLAVERY-RELIGIOUS FREEDOM ................................... 104 JOHNSON V. MCINTOSH ................................................................................................... 107 UNDERSTANDING THE OPINIONS ................................................................................. 114 “HIGH STANDARDS OF FAIR DEALING” ........................................................................ 116 THE ROGUE RIVER WAR AND JAMES W. NESMITH ................................................. 119 C. H. MOTT LETTER BEGGING FOR TREATY RATIFICTION - 1859 ....................... 127 JOHN BEESON: DEFENDER OF INDIANS’ SOVEREIGNTY ...................................... 135 CROW DOG ........................................................................................................................... 139 CHRONOLOGICAL OVERVIEW (PART I) ....................................................................... 146 CHRONOLOGICAL OVERVIEW (PART II) ...................................................................... 154 CHRONOLOGICAL OVERVIEW (PART III) ..................................................................... 165 THE CHETCO’S .................................................................................................................... 174 MASSACRE ON THE COQUILLE ...................................................................................... 192 ii THE PALMER TREATIES ................................................................................................... 196 KA-MAS-DA-TUN .................................................................................................................. 210 Language and Ethnology ...................................................................................................... 215 LINGUISTS AND ETHNOLOGISTS................................................................................... 216 COOS LANGUAGE AND ETHNOLOGY ........................................................................... 231 LINGUISTICS ........................................................................................................................ 235 TRIBAL TERRITORY AND LANGUAGE ........................................................................... 237 ETHNOLOGISTS .................................................................................................................. 239 REPORT BY JOHN P. HARRINGTON .............................................................................. 240 THE WHITE PEOPLE’S JOURNAL ACCOUNTS OF OUR PEOPLE .......................... 246 Cultural Practices ................................................................................................................... 251 MARRIAGE AND CHILDBIRTH .......................................................................................... 252 CHILDREN ............................................................................................................................. 256 SHAMANS .............................................................................................................................. 261 SUBSISTENCE ..................................................................................................................... 267 RED OCHRE AND OTHER PAINTS ................................................................................. 272 VILLAGE CHIEFS AND MARRIAGE CUSTOMS ............................................................ 274 CHIEFS ................................................................................................................................... 279 Myths and Spiritual Practices .............................................................................................. 285 MYTHS PART I...................................................................................................................... 286 COOS MYTHS: PART II ...................................................................................................... 288 MYTHS AND FIRST MENSES: PART III .........................................................................