Tag: war

General HistoryLeave a comment

Red Caps Murder Patora

David G. Lewis, PhD

In March 1855, Patora a chief of the Yurok tribe was murdered by volunteers on the Klamath River in California. The Yurok at this time were peaceful and trusted the military and distrusted a band of volunteers called the Red Caps. The Military under Capt. Judah was organizing to arrest the Red Caps with the help of the Yuroks who knew the territory well. The following is an account of how Patora was murdered, and account which is remarkably similar to other genocides in California and Oregon. Capt. Judah and Mr. Whipple arrived in the Indian Country March 22nd. They … Continue reading Red Caps Murder Patora

California Natives, colonization, General History, Oregon Coast, Oregon indians, Rogue Valley, treatiesLeave a comment

Causes of the 1853 Rogue River War

David G. Lewis, PhD

The first Rogue River War was a series of skirmishes and battles between mainly gold miners and the tribes. The miners had no regard for the tribes and tended to treat them badly. Some miners, the worst of the bunch, would murder native men on sight and take native women to rape them. It’s very hard to find the ultimate beginning of the conflicts, but it likely resides in the treatment of the tribes, and the histories from the 1840s of white encroachment into the region seeking gold riches. Other white men established settlements on the coast in both California … Continue reading Causes of the 1853 Rogue River War

General History, Oregon indians, trade, Willamette Valley2 Comments

The Battle of Abiqua, Second Battle of the Willamette Valley

David G. Lewis, PhD

The Battle of Abiqua In February 1848, six months after the Whitman Massacre, the settlers in the Willamette valley were very tense, concerned that the tribes would gather together and attack.  Many of the men had volunteered for a militia and were in eastern Oregon for the Cayuse War, so additional citizen militia were established in the valley. Ralph C. Geer was the captain of one company, while Don Waldo was the captain of another. The situation became much more tense when 80 Klamath Indians, friends of the Molallas, came into the Molalla area, to Dickie Prairie, and began harassing … Continue reading The Battle of Abiqua, Second Battle of the Willamette Valley

General History, Native Issues, Oregon indians, UncategorizedLeave a comment

Fighting from the Corner: Reports of Invasion of Rogue River Country

David G. Lewis, PhD

The Rogue River War – a series of conflicts between a confederation of tribes – loosely around the Rogue River Valley- and the American Ranger Militias and United States Army, is addressed historically (by many) as a single war. However, the Rogue River area had two periods of war separated by barely a year of relative peace. The first Rogue River War erupted early in the 1850s when the Oregon Gold Rush caused thousands of Americans to invade the Rogue River region to mine for the precious metal. The tribes did not appreciate the invasion of the rude Americans and … Continue reading Fighting from the Corner: Reports of Invasion of Rogue River Country

General History, Native Issues, Oregon indians, Rogue Valley, Uncategorized1 Comment

Priming the Powderkeg: Table Rock area in 1855

David G. Lewis, PhD

In 1853 there had occurred the Rogue River War. That war was likely caused by continued encroachment into tribal lands by settlers, and the failure of the federal government to ratify the first Oregon treaties. Joel Palmer arrives at work in 1853 and immediately begins in southern Oregon because of the active war happening there between the tribes and the Ranger militia volunteers.  In 1854 and 1855 the whole country is waiting for Congress to ratify the treaties so the tribes can be removed to the reservation. But the reservation, in the summer of 1855, proves to be not a … Continue reading Priming the Powderkeg: Table Rock area in 1855