Wasco-Wishram

Wasco-Wishram
Group	Wasco-Wishram
Population	Approximate historic and contemporary estimates
Regions	Columbia River Plateau, Oregon, Washington
Languages	Upper Chinookan (Kiksht), English
Religions	Traditional spirituality, Christianity

Wasco-Wishram The Wasco-Wishram are Indigenous peoples of the Columbia River Plateau associated with the Columbia River basin near The Dalles, Oregon and Celilo Falls, noted for interactions with explorers, traders, and settlers such as Lewis and Clark Expedition, John Jacob Astor, and agents of the Hudson's Bay Company. Their territory and communities figure prominently in disputes and agreements involving the Treaty of 1855 (United States), the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and litigation before the United States Supreme Court and United States District Court for the District of Oregon. Their history connects to events and institutions including the Oregon Trail, Columbia River Treaty, and the inundation caused by Bonneville Dam and The Dalles Dam.

Introduction

The groups historically known by neighboring peoples and traders were concentrated at fishing sites such as Celilo Falls, The Dalles (Oregon), and along the Columbia River. Their cultural region overlaps with other Plateau nations including the Umatilla Indian Reservation communities, the Warm Springs Indian Reservation, and the Yakama Nation, and their members today are enrolled with tribal governments like the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs and the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation. Contact with explorers such as David Thompson, missionaries like Samuel Parker, and military figures including General George Wright altered trade networks that involved the Northwest Company and later the Oregon Trail settlers.

History

Pre-contact occupation by the groups in the Columbia River basin involved seasonal movements to fishing and trade centers documented by explorers such as Robert Gray and fur traders associated with the North West Company. In the 19th century encounters with the Lewis and Clark Expedition and subsequent treaties like the Treaty of 1855 (United States) and negotiations involving representatives of the United States Congress and the Office of Indian Affairs resulted in land cessions and reservation policies affecting communities at Celilo and The Dalles. The influx of settlers along the Oregon Trail and conflicts exemplified by engagements with General George Wright and pressures from Hudson's Bay Company economic shifts led to demographic change exacerbated by diseases such as smallpox introduced via contact with maritime explorers including Captain George Vancouver. The 20th-century construction projects undertaken by the Bonneville Power Administration and dams such as Bonneville Dam and The Dalles Dam flooded ancestral fishing sites including Celilo Falls, prompting litigation in forums including the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and advocacy through organizations like the National Congress of American Indians.

Language and Culture

The traditional language, Kiksht, is an Upper Chinookan tongue related to languages documented by linguists working on families such as the Chinookan languages and compared with specimens collected by ethnographers influenced by the Bureau of American Ethnology and scholars like Franz Boas. Cultural practices centered on salmon fishing at places like Celilo and The Dalles, weaving traditions comparable to those recorded among the Nez Perce, Kalapuya, and Coeur d'Alene people, as well as seasonal rounds documented by anthropologists associated with the American Anthropological Association. Oral histories preserved through community elders have been recorded in collaborations with institutions such as University of Oregon, Oregon Historical Society, and Smithsonian Institution projects, while revitalization efforts involve partnerships with National Endowment for the Humanities and programs supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services.

Society and Governance

Traditional social organization included kinship networks and leaders recognized during fishing and trade assemblies at Celilo Falls and trading sites frequented by maritime traders from Boston and the Hudson's Bay Company. Modern governance and enrollment link many Wasco and Wishram members to federally recognized bodies such as the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs and the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, with representation in intertribal entities like the Intertribal Fish Commission (Columbia River). Legal advocacy has engaged institutions including the Department of the Interior (United States), the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, and tribal legal teams in cases before the Supreme Court of the United States and regional courts addressing treaty rights, fishing rights affirmed in cases like those that reference precedents from United States v. Winans and other Columbia River adjudications.

Traditional Economy and Subsistence

Economy and subsistence centered on salmon runs at Columbia River fishing sites such as Celilo Falls, with seasonal trade connecting to inland and coastal networks involving groups like the Coast Salish, Warm Springs, and Yakama Nation. Trade goods moved through contacts with Hudson's Bay Company posts, maritime commerce connected via explorers like Robert Gray and later commercial fisheries regulated by agencies such as the National Marine Fisheries Service. Cultural technologies included fishing platforms, dip nets, and willow basketry paralleling material culture items studied in collections at the American Museum of Natural History and the Oregon Historical Society Museum.

Contemporary Issues and Legal Status

Contemporary issues include protection of fishing rights, cultural resource preservation at inundated sites like Celilo, language revitalization of Kiksht, economic development on reservations, and health and education initiatives coordinated with entities such as the Indian Health Service, Bureau of Indian Affairs, and state governments of Oregon and Washington (state). Litigation and policy advocacy have involved the United States Department of Justice, regional courts including the United States District Court for the District of Oregon, and intergovernmental negotiations related to hydropower projects operated by the Bonneville Power Administration and regulated under statutes including the National Historic Preservation Act and consulted through processes guided by the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation. Cultural resurgence draws on collaborations with universities such as Portland State University, museums including the Smithsonian Institution National Museum of the American Indian, and nonprofits like the Native American Rights Fund.

Category:Native American tribes in Oregon