Treaty of 1855 (WASC)

Treaty of 1855 (WASC)
Name	Treaty of 1855 (WASC)
Date signed	1855
Location	Walla Walla, Washington Territory
Parties	United States of America; Yakama Nation; Walla Walla; Umatilla; Cayuse; Nez Perce; Palouse; Umatilla River; Yakima River
Language	English language
Related	Treaty of Point Elliott, Treaty of Medicine Creek, Treaty of Neah Bay, Oregon Treaty, Treaty of 1854 (Colville)

Treaty of 1855 (WASC) was a compact negotiated in 1855 between representatives of the United States of America and several Indigenous nations of the Columbia Plateau, often associated with the Walla Walla Council. It established reservation boundaries, fishing rights, annuities, and land cessions that shaped relations among the Yakama Nation, Nez Perce, Umatilla, Walla Walla, Cayuse, and other Plateau peoples. The treaty's provisions influenced subsequent legal disputes in the Supreme Court of the United States and administrative policy by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, while affecting regional development in the Washington Territory and later State of Washington.

Background

In the early 1850s, influxes of Oregon Trail migrants, Hudson's Bay Company trading patterns, and directives from the War Department prompted the United States of America to pursue treaties across the Columbia River basin. The Walla Walla Council convened leaders from the Yakama Nation, Nez Perce, Umatilla, Walla Walla, Cayuse, Palouse, and other bands after contact events involving Marcus Whitman, Elijah White, and Isaac Stevens. Federal negotiators including Isaac Stevens and agents from the Bureau of Indian Affairs sought cessions comparable to the Treaty of Point Elliott and Treaty of Medicine Creek to secure routes for the Pacific Railroad Surveys and settlers tied to Oregon Donation Land Claim Act patterns.

Negotiation and Signing

Negotiations occurred during the Walla Walla Council where commissioners such as Isaac Stevens and representatives of the United States of America met with chiefs including Yakama Chief Kamiakin, Nez Perce Chief Hin-mah-too-yah-lat-kekt (Young Chief), and leaders from the Umatilla and Walla Walla. Interpreters, Catholic and Protestant missionaries from Roman Catholic Church and Presbyterian Church missions, and employees of the Hudson's Bay Company influenced dialogues alongside military officers from Fort Walla Walla and Fort Dalles. Signatories formalized cessions similar to contemporaneous accords such as the Treaty of Medicine Creek while invoking fishing and hunting practices tied to the Columbia River and Yakima River.

Terms and Provisions

The treaty delineated reservation allocations for the Yakama Nation and others, guaranteed annuities administered by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and included clauses on fishing at usual and accustomed places along the Columbia River and tributaries. Provisions addressed land cession areas, boundaries near Walla Walla, Washington Territory and Fort Walla Walla, and commitments for agricultural supplies, blacksmithing tools, and education by agents linked to Indian agents and missionary schools. The document's language paralleled that of the Treaty of Point Elliott and affected rights later adjudicated in cases before the United States Supreme Court.

Impact on Wanapum, Yakama, and Other Tribes

The treaty's implementation affected the Yakama Nation and neighboring peoples including the Wanapum, Palouse, Nez Perce, Umatilla, Walla Walla, and Cayuse. Reservation establishment altered traditional use of salmon runs central to Columbia River cultures, shifting subsistence tied to seasonal camps near Celilo Falls, The Dalles, and lower river fisheries. Leaders such as Kamiakin resisted some terms, contributing to tensions that fed into the Yakima War (1855–1858), while other chiefs pursued adaptation through agricultural projects inspired by Isaac Stevens proposals and missionary agronomy.

Legal and Political Aftermath

Disputes over treaty interpretation led to litigation before the United States Court of Claims and the United States Supreme Court, engaging doctrines from decisions like those in later fisheries cases and trust obligations. Federal policies implemented by the Bureau of Indian Affairs and executive actions by presidents interacting with the United States Senate's advice and consent influenced annuity payments and reservation management. Political consequences touched on precedents cited in cases involving the Boldt Decision era jurisprudence and enforcement of reserved fishing rights in the Pacific Northwest.

Land and Resource Changes

The treaty precipitated rapid alteration of land tenure patterns across the Pacific Northwest, propelling settler colonialism trends, expansion of railroad corridors surveyed by the Pacific Railroad Surveys, and agricultural development under frameworks like the Oregon Donation Land Claim Act. Fisheries and hydrology were reshaped by later projects such as the Bonneville Dam, Grand Coulee Dam, and other Columbia Basin developments, affecting traditional salmon pathways through locations such as Celilo Falls and the Hanford Site area. Timber extraction near Blue Mountains and river navigation improvements further transformed resource regimes referenced in treaty boundaries.

Contemporary Significance and Commemoration

Today the treaty remains central to Indigenous activism, tribal sovereignty assertions by the Yakama Nation, Umatilla, Nez Perce, Wanapum, and others, and to legal advocacy before bodies like the United States Supreme Court and regional institutions such as the Washington State Department of Ecology. Commemorations at sites including Walla Walla and educational initiatives by tribal museums, cultural centers, and universities like Washington State University and University of Washington interpret the 1855 accords alongside histories of the Yakima War (1855–1858), the Walla Walla Council, and enduring fishing practices. Contemporary treaties and agreements, tribal enterprises, and intergovernmental compacts continue to reference principles traced to the 1855 negotiations.

Category:Treaties of the United States Category:Yakama Nation Category:Nez Perce