Where the Spokane River Flows: Unearthing the Enduring Legacy of the Spokane Tribe’s Ancestral Lands
The Spokane River, a serpentine vein of clear, cold water, carves its way through the landscape of Eastern Washington, a constant murmur against the urban hum of the city that bears its name. For millennia before the first European footsteps trod these lands, this river, and the vast, bountiful territory it nourished, was the heartland of the Spokane Tribe of Indians. Known in their own Salishan language as the Schitsu’umsh, or "Children of the Sun," the Spokane people lived a life deeply interwoven with the rhythms of their ancestral lands, a connection that endures powerfully despite centuries of displacement, broken promises, and profound change.
Their traditional territory was immense, stretching from the Bitterroot Mountains in the east to the Columbia River in the west, and from the northern reaches of Lake Roosevelt down to the Palouse Hills in the south. This vast expanse encompassed not just the Spokane River itself, but also its numerous tributaries, the Little Spokane River, and critical stretches of the mighty Columbia. It was a landscape of diverse ecosystems: rolling grasslands, dense pine forests, rugged canyons, and fertile river valleys, each playing a vital role in the tribe’s seasonal rounds and cultural practices.
A Life Woven into the Land
Before contact with European settlers, the Spokane people lived a sophisticated and sustainable life, organized around the abundance of their environment. Their economy was based on hunting, fishing, and gathering, with distinct seasons dictating their movements and activities. Salmon, in particular, was the lifeblood of the tribe. The annual salmon runs up the Columbia and Spokane Rivers provided a critical protein source, caught using intricate weirs, nets, and spears. Kettle Falls, a natural cascade on the Columbia River upstream from the confluence with the Spokane, was a particularly sacred and productive fishing ground, shared and revered by numerous tribes.
Beyond salmon, deer, elk, and various smaller game provided sustenance and materials for clothing and tools. The land also yielded an incredible array of plant foods. Camas root, a staple carbohydrate, was harvested in vast quantities from moist meadows, baked in earthen ovens, and stored for winter. Berries, roots, nuts, and medicinal plants were gathered meticulously, reflecting a deep botanical knowledge passed down through generations. This seasonal migration, following the availability of resources, fostered a profound understanding and respect for the land’s delicate balance. "For generations," explains a Spokane elder, echoing a sentiment common among Indigenous peoples, "we understood our world not as a collection of resources to be exploited, but as a living relative, a sacred trust."
Spiritual life was intrinsically tied to the land. Sacred sites, vision quest locations, burial grounds, and places of power were scattered throughout their territory, each imbued with meaning and history. The rivers were not just waterways but arteries of life, carrying the spirits of the ancestors and providing guidance. The mountains offered protection and solitude, while the plains provided hunting grounds and a sense of open freedom. Identity itself was rooted in the landscape; to be Spokane was to be of this land, to understand its whispers and its bounty.
The Inexorable Tide of Change
The arrival of European and American explorers, traders, and settlers in the early 19th century heralded an era of irreversible change. While Lewis and Clark skirted their territory, indirect contact through neighboring tribes brought new goods, and tragically, new diseases that decimated populations. Fur traders, primarily from the Hudson’s Bay Company, established posts in the region, bringing with them a nascent market economy that began to alter traditional lifeways. Missionaries followed, introducing Christianity and, often, a concerted effort to dismantle traditional spiritual practices and social structures.
However, the most significant upheaval came with the gold rushes of the 1850s and 60s. The discovery of gold in California and later in British Columbia and Idaho sent waves of prospectors flooding into the Pacific Northwest. These newcomers, driven by economic ambition, paid little heed to existing Indigenous land claims or sovereignty. They trespassed, hunted game indiscriminately, disrupted traditional fishing sites, and introduced a culture of exploitation fundamentally at odds with the Spokane’s sustainable practices. Conflicts inevitably arose as the tribal people sought to protect their lands and resources.
The United States government, spurred by the influx of settlers and the desire for "manifest destiny," began to assert its authority over the region. Unlike many other tribes in the Pacific Northwest who were forced to sign treaties ceding vast swaths of land, the Spokane Tribe never formally signed a treaty relinquishing their aboriginal territory. This is a crucial, often overlooked, historical fact. Despite this, the federal government unilaterally began to designate reservations for various tribes, shrinking their territories and forcing them onto confined parcels of land.
Displacement and the Diminishing Homeland
In 1881, by executive order, the Spokane people were effectively dispossessed of their ancestral lands and ordered to relocate to the Colville Indian Reservation, established for a confederation of tribes. This was a devastating blow. It meant abandoning sacred sites, vital fishing grounds, and the graves of their ancestors. It forced them into close proximity with other tribes, many of whom were traditional rivals, and severed their deep connection to the Spokane River, which by then was increasingly becoming the property of non-Native settlers.
A small, separate Spokane Indian Reservation was eventually established in 1887, located about 30 miles northwest of the modern city of Spokane, but it represented only a tiny fraction of their original vast homeland. This parcel of land, hemmed in by the Spokane River to the south and the Columbia to the west, became the new, albeit drastically reduced, center of their universe. Even within this reservation, the Dawes Act of 1887 further fragmented tribal lands by allotting individual parcels to tribal members and opening up "surplus" lands to non-Native settlement, further diminishing the collective land base.
The Grand Coulee Dam: A River Silenced
Perhaps no single event symbolized the profound loss and transformation of the Spokane Tribe’s ancestral lands more dramatically than the construction of the Grand Coulee Dam. Built between 1933 and 1942 as part of the Columbia Basin Project, this monumental hydroelectric dam, one of the largest in the world, forever altered the Columbia River and its tributaries, including the Spokane.
While lauded as an engineering marvel and a source of power and irrigation for the burgeoning region, the dam was an ecological and cultural catastrophe for the Spokane and other Columbia River tribes. The massive dam blocked the upstream migration of salmon, effectively ending the millennia-old salmon runs that had sustained the people. Kettle Falls, the sacred fishing ground, was submerged beneath the dam’s reservoir, Lake Roosevelt, silencing the roar of the falls and burying countless ancestral sites, burial grounds, and traditional fishing camps.
The Spokane people received minimal compensation for the immense losses they suffered. Their traditional food source was gone, their sacred sites inundated, and a vital part of their cultural identity erased. As one elder lamented, "The river was our lifeblood, and they cut off its heart." The economic and cultural devastation was profound, forcing the tribe to rely more heavily on federal assistance and adapt to a world utterly transformed from that of their ancestors.
Resilience and Reclamation
Despite the immense pressures and losses, the Spokane Tribe of Indians has demonstrated remarkable resilience. They have held fast to their identity, language, and cultural traditions, even as they navigate the complexities of the modern world. The reservation, though small, remains their sovereign home, a place where tribal governance and self-determination flourish.
In recent decades, the tribe has focused on economic development, cultural revitalization, and the stewardship of their remaining lands. The Spokane Tribe Casino and Resort, located on their reservation, provides essential revenue for tribal services, education, and health programs. They have engaged in sustainable forestry, natural resource management, and other ventures aimed at building a stronger, self-sufficient community.
Culturally, there is a renewed emphasis on language preservation, with programs aimed at teaching Salishan to younger generations. Traditional ceremonies, powwows, and storytelling continue to connect the Spokane people to their heritage and to the land that defines them. While the physical landscape of their aboriginal territory has been irrevocably altered, the spiritual and historical connection remains vibrant.
The Spokane Tribe continues to advocate for their rights, for environmental protection, and for recognition of their historical injustices. Their story is not just one of loss, but of enduring strength, adaptation, and an unwavering bond to a land that, regardless of ownership maps or dammed rivers, will always be the homeland of the "Children of the Sun." The Spokane River still flows, a testament to the enduring presence and spirit of the Spokane Tribe, its waters carrying the echoes of millennia of history, resilience, and an unbreakable connection to the earth.
