The Clackamas Indians are a band of

Chinook Chinook may refer to: Chinook peoples The name derives from a settlement of Indigenous people in Oregon and Washington State. * Chinookan peoples, several groups of Indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest ** Chinook Indian Nation, an organiza ...

of Native Americans who historically lived along the

Clackamas River The Clackamas River is an approximately tributary of the Willamette River in northwestern Oregon, in the United States. Draining an area of about , the Clackamas flows through mostly forested and rugged mountainous terrain in its upper reaches, a ...

in the

Willamette Valley The Willamette Valley ( ) is a valley in Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. The Willamette River flows the entire length of the valley and is surrounded by mountains on three sides: the Cascade Range to the east, the ...

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

. Today, Clackamas people are enrolled in the

Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon The Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon (CTGR) is a federally recognized tribe of Indigenous peoples of the Northwest Plateau. They consist of at least 27 Native American tribes with long historical ties to present-day wes ...

. In 1806, Lewis and Clark estimated their population to be 1,800. At the time the tribe lived in 12 villages located from the lower

Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook language, Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin language, Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river headwater ...

to an area what is now called Oregon City. They resided towards the east side of the

Willamette River The Willamette River ( ) is a major tributary of the Columbia River, accounting for 12 to 15 percent of the Columbia's flow. The Willamette's main stem is long, lying entirely in northwestern Oregon in the United States. Flowing northward ...

. In February 1841, Reverend

François Norbert Blanchet François Norbert Blanchet (September 30, 1795 – June 18, 1883) was a French Canadian-born missionary priest and prelate of the Catholic Church who was instrumental in establishing the Catholic Church presence in the Pacific Northwest. He was ...

and Reverend Alvin F. Waller converted Clackamas Chief Popoh. The Clackamas signed a treaty in the fall of 1851, which Oregon Superintendent

Anson Dart Anson Dart (1797–1879) was the Superintendent for Indian Affairs in the Oregon Territory from 1850 to 1852. Dart negotiated treaties with the tribes in the territory (now the states of Oregon and Washington), thirteen of which were negotiated Au ...

failed to ratify. They signed another treaty on January 10, 1855, which was ratified on March 3, 1855. The Clackamas were promised $2,500 worth of resources, but the United States only paid a fifth of what was owed.

Lifestyle

Indians-Fish-Willamette-Falls-FSDM2-Oregon-Historical-Society

The tribe subsisted on fish and root vegetables, and constructed large cedar platforms to dip their nets in over

Willamette Falls The Willamette Falls is a natural waterfall in the Northwestern United States, northwestern United States, located on the Willamette River between Oregon City, Oregon, Oregon City and West Linn, Oregon. The largest waterfall in the Northwest ...

to harvest salmon. The Clackamas women dried and smoked the salmon, which they then combined with mixtures of berries and nuts, preserving it in woven baskets for winter. The Clackamas traded salmon with other tribes, and also harvested and traded ''wapato'', broad-leafed arrowhead or "Indian potato" (''

Sagittaria latifolia ''Sagittaria latifolia'' is a plant found in shallow wetlands and is sometimes known as broadleaf arrowhead, duck-potato, Indian potato, or wapato. This plant produces edible tubers that have traditionally been extensively used by Native Ameri ...

'' and ''

Sagittaria cuneata ''Sagittaria cuneata'' is a North American species of flowering plant in the water plantain family known by the common name arumleaf arrowhead or duck potato. Like some other ''Sagittaria'' species, it may be called wapato. Description ''Sagi ...

''). Adult Clackamas historically wore leather leggings and tunics, and made skirts and bedding from cedar bark. An indication of high status in the tribe was intricate beadwork,

quillwork Quillwork is a form of textile embellishment traditionally practiced by Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples of North America that employs the Spine (zoology), quills of porcupines as an aesthetic element. Quills from bird feathe ...

, feather, and shell decorations. Certain shells served as currency. Like others of the

Chinookan peoples Chinookan peoples include several groups of Indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest in the United States who speak the Chinookan languages. Since at least 11,500 BCE, Chinookan peoples and their ancestors have resided along the upper and ...

, Clackamas practiced

head flattening Artificial cranial deformation or modification, head flattening, or head binding is a form of body alteration in which the skull of a human being is deformed intentionally. It is done by distorting the normal growth of a child's skull by applyi ...

. From infancy, one's head was compressed between boards thus sloping the forehead backward. This was a way to indicate that a person was free rather than a slave. The Clackamas were expert woodworkers, and crafted canoes and plank lodges. A typical canoe was 20 to 30 feet long, which they used to travel along the rivers, transporting trade goods and people. With deep knowledge of the Clackamas river systems, the Clackamas were often hired by pioneers as guides to navigate the river systems.

Tomanowos

The

Willamette Meteorite The Willamette Meteorite, officially named WillametteMeteoritical Bulleti ...

is culturally significant to Clackamas people. The meteorite is called ''Tomanowos'', which translates to "the visitor of heaven". The meteorite was believed to be given from the Sky People and is the unity between sky, earth, and water. Other tribes around the area thought that the meteorite possessed magical powers.

History

19th century

By 1855, the 88 surviving members of the tribe were relocated to

Grand Ronde, Oregon Grand Ronde is a census-designated place (CDP) and unincorporated community in Polk and Yamhill counties, Oregon, United States. Historically noted as a village in Polk County, the sphere of influence and community is in both Polk and Yamhill c ...

, first to the

Grand Ronde Indian Reservation The Grand Ronde Community is an Indian reservation located on several non-contiguous sections of land in southwestern Yamhill County and northwestern Polk County, Oregon, United States, about east of Lincoln City, near the community of Gran ...

. They eventually blended in the general population of the Grand Ronde. Soosap, likely born in 1841, is considered to be the last full-blooded tribal member. His mother was full-blooded Clackamas, his father was Klickitat. Soosap lived off the Grand Ronde reservation in Oregon City, where he was a day laborer. His English name was Joseph Andrews as non-Native people couldn't pronounce his Native name. He was also a known baseball player in the Pacific Northwest.

Notable Clackamas

Victoria Wishikin Howard Victoria Howard, also Victoria (Wishikin) Wacheno Howard (c. 1865–1930), was a Clackamas Chinook storyteller from Oregon, USA. She was a Molala, Clackamas, and Tualatin citizen of the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Orego ...

(c. 1865–1930), storyteller

References

External links

On the Clackamas people

{{authority control Chinookan tribes Native American tribes in Oregon Indigenous peoples of the Northwest Plateau Clackamas County, Oregon Willamette Valley