The Molala (Mollala, Molalla, Molele, La’tiwi) are a tribe of Western Oregon. They lived on the eastern periphery of the Willamette and Umpqua Valleys. There were at least five concentrations of them: The Northern Molalla were situated in Dickie Prairie on the other side of the ridge from the contemporary town of Molalla, their village … [Read more…]
For years, I have stated that the tribes did not have bison in Oregon, so they would not have made tipis. This is why the tribes have plankhouses and longhouses made from woven mats. Tipis require a large animal to cover the tipi with their hides. This has made sense to most people. We … [Read more…]
Horatio Hale’s created what may be one of the earliest ethnographies of the tribes of the Pacific Coast. Remarkable as it is, Hale’s ethnography is both interesting and disappointing. Much of his analysis of the Native peoples of Oregon shows his western bias and he does not hide it at all in his analysis. A … [Read more…]
*Note- these speeches were transcribed from reports in the M234 microfilms for the Washington Superintendency. They occur near the end of the Cayuse War when it appears that the Army assumed that The Nez Perce were hiding members of the Cayuses, relatives of the Nez Perces. What the transcriptions do not detail is that the … [Read more…]
In 1845, before the waves of settlers had come to the Oregon Territory, a confederation of six Oregon tribes worked together to begin to expand their resources and wealth. The “Kayuse, Wallawalla, Spokans, Nes Perces, Ponderays and Snakes” sought to create vast cattle ranches in their territories. Dr. Elijah White (Indian agent) reported the happenings … [Read more…]