Twana Narratives

The Twana speech community of Coast Salish Indians lived, before 1860, in nine villages in western Washington. Twana Narratives presents first-person, insider accounts of Twana history, society, and religion, as told by natives Frank and Henry Allen to anthropologist William Elmendorf between 1934 and 1940. The Allens were born in the Hood Canal area in the mid-nineteenth century and were fluent in both English and Twana. The vigorous language of the eighty narratives, while predominantly in English, is freely interspersed with key native terms denoting personal names, genealogical connections, and spirit powers and rituals. The texts, unique for the region and the period, reveal a strong sense of the local diversity within the larger Salish area and of the intricate interrelationships between village communities.

The nine Native tribes of Washington State’s Olympic Peninsula—the Hoh, Skokomish, Squaxin Island, Lower Elwha Klallam, Jamestown S’Klallam, Port Gamble S’Klallam, Quinault, Quileute, and Makah—share complex histories of trade, religion, warfare, and kinship, as well as reverence for the teaching of elders. However, each indigenous nation’s relationship to the Olympic Peninsula is unique. Native Peoples of the Olympic Peninsula: Who We Are traces the nine tribes’ common history and each tribe’s individual story. This second edition is updated to include new developments since the volume’s initial publication—especially the removal of the Elwha River dams—thus reflecting the ever-changing environment for the Native peoples of the Olympic Peninsula. Nine essays, researched and written by members of the subject tribes, cover cultural history, contemporary affairs, heritage programs, and tourism information. Edited by anthropologist Jacilee Wray, who also provides the book’s introduction, this collection relates the Native peoples’ history in their own words and addresses each tribe’s current cultural and political issues, from the establishment of community centers to mass canoe journeys. The volume’s updated content expands its findings to new audiences. More than 70 photographs and other illustrations, many of which are new to this edition, give further insight into the unique legacy of these groups, moving beyond popular romanticized views of American Indians to portray their lived experiences. Providing a foundation for outsiders to learn about the Olympic Peninsula tribes’ unique history with one another and their land, this volume demonstrates a cross-tribal commitment to education, adaptation, and cultural preservation. Furthering these goals, this updated edition offers fresh understanding of Native peoples often seen from an outside perspective only.

Framing Chief Leschi: Narratives and the Politics of Historical Justice

Published through the Recovering Languages and Literacies of the Americas initiative, supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation In Chehalis Stories Jolynn Amrine Goertz and the Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation in Western Washington have assembled a collaborative volume of traditional stories collected by the anthropologist Franz Boas from tribal knowledge keepers in the early twentieth century. Both Boas and Amrine Goertz worked with past and present elders, including Robert Choke, Marion Davis, Peter Heck, Blanche Pete Dawson, and Jonas Secena, in collecting and contextualizing traditional knowledge of the Chehalis people. The elders shared stories with Boas at a critical juncture in Chehalis history, when assimilation efforts during the 1920s affected almost every aspect of Chehalis life. These are stories of transformation, going away, and coming back. The interwoven adventures of tricksters and transformers in Coast Salish narratives recall the time when people and animals lived together in the Chehalis River Valley. Catastrophic floods, stolen children, and heroic rescues poignantly evoke the resiliency of the people who have carried these stories for generations. Working with contemporary Chehalis peoples, Amrine Goertz has extensively reviewed the work of anthropologists in Western Washington. This important collection examines the methodologies, shortcomings, and limitations of anthropologists’ relationship with Chehalis people and presents complementary approaches to field work and its contextualization.

"A compelling survey history of Pacific Northwest Indians as well as a book that brings considerable theoretical sophistication to Native American history. Harmon tells an absorbing, clearly written, and moving story."—Peggy Pascoe, University of Oregon "This book fills a terribly important niche in the wider field of ethnic studies by attempting to define Indian identity in an interactive way."—George Sánchez, University of Southern California

The rich storytelling traditions of Salish-speaking peoples in the Pacific Northwest of North America are showcased in this anthology of story, legend, song, and oratory. From the Bitterroot Mountains to the Pacific Ocean, Salish-speaking communities such as the Bella Coola, Shuswap, Tillamook, Quinault, Colville-Okanagan, Coeur d'Alene, and Flathead have always been guided and inspired by the stories of previous generations. Many of the most influential and powerful of those tales appear in this volume.øSalish Myths and Legends features an array of Trickster stories centered on Coyote, Mink, and other memorable characters, as well as stories of the frightening Basket Ogress, accounts of otherworldly journeys, classic epic cycles such as South Wind?s Journeys and the Bluejay Cycle, tales of such legendary animals as Beaver and Lady Louse from the beginning of time, and stories that explain why things are the way they are. The anthology also includes humorous traditional tales, speeches, and fascinating stories of encounters with whites, including ?Circling Raven and the Jesuits.?øøTranslated by leading scholars working in close collaboration with Salish storytellers, these stories are certain to entertain and provoke, vividly testifying to the enduring power of storytelling in Native communities.

Over the years, Chief Seattle's famous speech has been embellished, popularized, and carved into many a monument, but its origins have remained inadequately explained. Understood as a symbolic encounter between indigenous America, represented by Chief Seattle, and industrialized or imperialist America, represented by Isaac L Stevens, the first governor of Washington Territory, it was first published in a Seattle newspaper in 1887 by a pioneer who claimed he had heard Seattle (or Sealth) deliver it in the 1850s. No other record of the speech has been found, and Isaac Stevens's writings do not mention it Yet it has long been taken seriously as evidence of a voice crying out of the wilderness of the American past. Answering Chief Seattle presents the full and accurate text of the 1887 version and traces the distortions of later versions in order to explain the many layers of its mystery. This book also asks how the speech could be heard and answered, by reviewing its many contexts. Mid-century ideas about land, newcomers, ancestors, and future generations informed the ways Stevens and his contemporaries understood Chief Seattle and recreated him as a legendary figure.