• CAYUSE
• "The Cayuse lived mostly on the upper courses of rivers draining into the Columbia as far as the Grande Ronde River, and upper sections of the Tucannon and Touchet Rivers. All three [Cayuse, Umatilla and Walla Walla] tribes hunted east of the Columbia in the Blue Mountains. Bands camped at favorite spots during the year, but all shared the same area." Source
  • Cayuse
  • The Cayuse occupied the area between the more closely related Nez Perce and Umatillas.
  • The Cayuse, like their Nez Perce neighbors, were noted horsemen and today a sturdy breed of horses bears the name of 'Cayuse.' Horses were used extensively by the Cayuse as a sign of wealth, power, and prestige. Described by early Americans as an "imperial tribe," the Cayuse would use their horses to intimidate neighboring tribes and force them into submission. Source
    • Cayuse Indians - HIstory from the Whitman Mission National Historic Site
    • Cayuse from the  U of O Linguistics site
    • Walla Walla, Umatilla, & Cayuse from the Curtis Collection
    • RESERVATION: The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation Official tribal site includes history and culture pages. Also has information about and for the Oregon tribe today. Includes Cayuse and Walla Walla

• SAHAPTIN
  • Umatilla
  • " The Umatilla and Walla Walla tribes frequented the Columbia River, the lower regions of its tributaries (Umatilla River and Willow Creek for the Umatillas and the Walla Walla and Snake Rivers for the Walla Wallas). All three [Cayuse, Umatilla and Walla Walla] hunted east of the Columbia in the Blue Mountains. Bands camped at favorite spots during the year, but all shared the same area." Source
    • History & Culture of the Cayuse, Umatilla and Walla Walla Indians
    • Walla Walla, Umatilla, & Cayuse from the Curtis Collection
    • Sahaptin Speakers from the  U of O Linguistics site
    • RESERVATION: The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation Official tribal site includes history and culture pages. Also has information about and for the Oregon tribe today. Includes Cayuse and Walla Walla
  • Warm Springs (Walla Walla)
  • "The Warm Springs bands who lived along the Columbia's tributaries spoke Sahaptin. Unlike the Wascoes, the Warm Springs bands moved between winter and summer villages, and depended more on game, roots and berries. However, salmon was also an important staple for the Warm Springs bands and, like the Wascoes, they built elaborate scaffolding over waterfalls which allowed them to harvest fish with long-handled dip nets. Contact between the Warm Springs bands and the Wascoes was frequent, and, although they spoke different languages and observed different customs, they could converse and traded heavily." Source
    • History of the Wasco, Warm Springs Walla Walla, and Northern Paiute
    • The Museum at Warm Springs
    • RESERVATION: Warm Springs Confederated Tribes which also includes Wasco (Wascopam Chinook) and Northern Paiute.
  • Nez Perce
  • The Nez Perce, the largest ethnic group in the Columbia Plateau, were closely related to the Cayuse, Tenino and Umatilla tribes to their west.
  • The Nez Perce were also heavily influenced by their Plains neighbors to the east. They acquired horses in the mid 1700's and quickly became known for outstanding horsemanship. They maintained a traditional friendship with the Americans, and allied themselves closely with the other Penutian speakers, trading and hunting with them on generally good terms. They were much less friendly with the tribes to the south and east, especially the Shoshonis, Bannocks and Blackfeet.
  • The relatively peaceful relations with the white people came to an end in the 1870's when the United States withdrew the reservation status of the Wallowa valley in northeastern Oregon in 1875. Chief Joseph (Hin-ma-toe-yah-laht-khit) led his band in the Nez Perce War. In 1877, his band was forced to retreat from the Wallowas, traveling 1,800 miles with U.S. Army in pursuit. The army caught up with the band in Montana, and Chief Joseph surrendered. In a speech that has become famous, he concludes with "Hear me, my chiefs. I am tired; my heart is sick and sad. From where the sun now stands I will fight no more, forever." Source
  • At the conclusion of the war, Joseph and others were sent to malarial lands in Kansas and then to Indian Territory, were most of them died. Joseph pleaded -- even to Presidents -- for a return to the Northwest. And, according to historian Alvin Josephy, "In 1885, after ... massive campaign by eastern humanitarians, Joseph and the other exiles were allowed to return to the Northwest. But Idahos settlers and politicians still considered the 150 surviving Nez Perces 'dangerous troublemakers,, 'crim- inals,, and murderers,' and even threatened Chief Joseph with death. Unable to join the other Nez Perces on the Idaho reserva- tion, or return to their homeland in Oregon's Wallowa Valley, they were taken under military escort and dumped among the non-Nez Perce Indians on the Colville reservation in Washington Territory. Source
    • Nez Perce Educationa and Information
    • Sahaptin Speakers from the  U of O Linguistics site
    • NEE-MEE-POO - Nez Perce Tribe of Idaho unofficial page by tribal member Leigh Pond, including information about the repatriation of the Spalding-Allen Collection from the Ohio Historical Society.
    • Nez Perce from Curtis Collection
    • Wallowa Band Nez Perce Trail Interpretive Center site 1
    • Wallowa Band Nez Perce Trail Interpretive Center site 2
    • 1800's Nez Perce Photos from National Archives
    • Nez Perce from the PBS Lewis & Clark Site
    • Nez Perce from the U of O Linguistics site
    • Nez Perce at Yahoo!
    • RESERVATION PAGES
    • Colville Indian Reservation, Washington state.
    • Colville Reservation

The Colville people are the descendants of eleven bands of Indians that were settled on the Colville Reservation. These bands are the Methow, Okanogan, San Poil, Arrow Lakes, Nespelem, Nez Perce, Palouse, Moses, Entiat, and Wenatchee.