Neerchokikoo is a revitalized Native American village near

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

. Neerchokikoo is culturally significant, is an ancient Native encampment in what is now Northeast Portland, and is a gathering site close to the

confluence In geography, a confluence (also ''conflux'') occurs where two or more watercourses join to form a single channel (geography), channel. A confluence can occur in several configurations: at the point where a tributary joins a larger river (main ...

of the Columbia and

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 ...

Grants Grant or Grants may refer to: People * Grant (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Grant (surname), including a list of people and fictional characters ** Ulysses S. Grant (1822–1885), the 18th president of the U ...

and donors were helpful in giving money, to revitalize the site. It is in the

Cully Cully may refer to: Places *Cully, Calvados, a former commune in the Allier department, France *Cully, Switzerland, a municipality in the canton of Vaud *Cully, Portland, Oregon, United States, a neighborhood in northeast Portland People Given na ...

neighborhood of Portland, Oregon. The Native American Youth and Family Center, a

501(c)3 A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, Trust (business), trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of ...

non-profit, relocated to Neerchokikoo in 2006. The organization offers services to the Native community of Portland. The annual

powwow A powwow (also pow wow or pow-wow) is a gathering with dances held by many Native Americans in the United States, Native American and First Nations in Canada, First Nations communities. Inaugurated in 1923, powwows today are an opportunity fo ...

is named for the village of Neerchokikoo.

History

Near the

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 ...

, the Columbia Slough watershed is the traditional homelands of peoples of the Upper Chinook. Of the Clackamas, Cascade, and Multnomah bands of Chinook and the Tualatin band of the

Kalapuya The Kalapuya are a Native American people, which had eight independent groups speaking three mutually intelligible dialects. The Kalapuya tribes' traditional homelands were the Willamette Valley of present-day western Oregon in the United Sta ...

, the area is on traditional village sites. They and many others are a vibrant part of the region and community today. Since before being mentioned in Lewis and Clark's journals, Native people gathered there for community building and trade, but the land was taken from them during

colonization 475px, Map of the year each country achieved List of sovereign states by date of formation, independence. Colonization (British English: colonisation) is a process of establishing occupation of or control over foreign territories or peoples f ...

. As of summer 2023, was returned to the Natives. The Native American Youth and Family Center's community center, gardens, and offices are there, and the goal is to create a permanent home for the urban Native community. The plan is for this home to reflect the land's history. The "Return to Neerchokikoo" campaign cost $4.6 million. It raised funds for upgrades that were much needed, for property repairs, and addressed the mortgage debt.

References

External links and references

Neerchokikoo's homepage

Naya Family Center on their annual Powwow

Learn more about Portland's vital Native American community

A YouTube walk-through

A YouTube, Neerchokikoo Powwow 9/16/2023 Portland, Oregon
Native American history of Oregon Cully, Portland, Oregon Pow wows Native American populated places {{MultnomahCountyOR-geo-stub

History

See also

References

External links and references