Catherine Herrold Troeh (January 5, 1911 – June 28, 2007) was an American historian, artist, activist and advocate for Native American rights and culture, especially in the
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though ...
. She was a member and elder of the Chinook tribe and a direct descendant of the great chief, or tyee, of the Chinook people, Comcomly.
Early life
Troeh was born in Ilwaco, Pacific County, Washington, 24 minutes after her identical twin sister, Charlotte. Both sisters went on to attend school at St. Vincent's Hospital in
Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populou ...
, sometime around the year 1933. Catherine Troeh later enrolled at the
University of Washington
The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington.
Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seat ...
and received a bachelor's degree in public health.
Troeh worked as a nurse for several
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...
Chinook Indian Tribe
Chinookan peoples include several groups of Indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest in the United States who speak the Chinookan languages. Since at least 4000 BCE Chinookan peoples have resided along the Lower and Middle Columbia River (Wi ...
. She was the only woman to join the newly formed Chinook Tribal Council in 1952. She wrote a Native American-focused newsletter, which was distributed at least once a month during her lifetime.
Troeh was a major advocate for
federal recognition
This is a list of federally recognized tribes in the contiguous United States of America. There are also federally recognized Alaska Native tribes. , 574 Indian tribes were legally recognized by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) of the Unite ...
of her Chinook tribe. In addition, she worked closely with Washington's
Duwamish tribe
The Duwamish ( lut, Dxʷdəwʔabš, ) are a Lushootseed-speaking Native American tribe in western Washington, and the indigenous people of metropolitan Seattle, where they have been living since the end of the last glacial period (c. 8000 BC ...
. She attended the opening and celebration of the Duwamish's new tribal
cultural center
A cultural center or cultural centre is an organization, building or complex that promotes culture and arts. Cultural centers can be neighborhood community arts organizations, private facilities, government-sponsored, or activist-run.
Asia
* ...
and
longhouse
A longhouse or long house is a type of long, proportionately narrow, single-room building for communal dwelling. It has been built in various parts of the world including Asia, Europe, and North America.
Many were built from timber and often rep ...
on June 23, 2007, just days before her death.
Troeh collaborated with a number of important Native American activists in Washington, including her older sister, Betsy Trick, Pearl Warren, and University of Washington
anthropology
Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including past human species. Social anthropology studies patterns of be ...
professor
Erna Gunther
Erna Gunther (1896–1982) was an American anthropologist who taught for many years at the University of Washington in Seattle. Gunther's work on ethnobotany is still extensively consulted today.
Biography
Gunther graduated from Barnard College ...
. Together the women founded an organization called the American Indian Women's Service League (AIWSL) in 1958. The American Indian Women's Service League was created in response to a growing trend of Native Americans moving from reservations and to large cities beginning in the 1950s. The main purpose of the league was to help counsel newly arrived Native Americans on the cultural differences and new challenges of modern American urban life that were not faced in their reservations.
The AIWSL gradually evolved into several other Native American organizations, including the
Seattle Indian Health Board
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest region of N ...
Seattle Indian Center
Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...
. Troeh served on the board of the Seattle Indian Center until her death.
In addition to her work as an activist, Troeh was a strong promoter of Native American culture. She collected Native American artifacts. Troeh often signed her letters "member of the Chinook Tribe Allottee 1865
Quinault reservation
The Quinault Indian Nation ( or ; QIN), formerly known as the Quinault Tribe of the Quinault Reservation, is a federally recognized tribe of Quinault, Queets, Quileute, Hoh, Chehalis, Chinook, and Cowlitz peoples. Her unusual way of signing letters referred to the which were granted to her by the U.S. federal government.
Death
In 2007, Troeh died in Burien, Washington at the age of 96. She was survived by her twin sister, Charlotte, and two children, Charlotte Killien and Arnold. Her twin sister died three years later in 2010.