Smoke signals., April 15, 1999, Page 6 and 7, Image 11

6
Smoke Signals april 15, 1999
1 :-.
i
.r!if;; ... IS uii .
1
t
c
,1
!,,,V
' -A,
41 ti ji
m 11
5 if
1
6
y
WM,EaK(B
o
Q
LEFT: A glimpse of reservation
land where tribal people
traditionally traveled between
the coast and the valley.
RIGHT: This map approximates
the native trails of the Grand
Ronde region.
By Oscar Johnson
"The well known Tillamook Pass over the precipitous Coast Mountains
contains the steepest grades in Oregon and is surmounted by very bold,
but still 6r-clad peaks. So steep are the hills over which the road is carried
, that one of the party characterized it as 'uphill both ways.,
I Thus wrote Rev. Robert Summers
about his 1853 trek along Indian
trails likely to have passed through
the Grand Ronde area.
1 Reminiscing about his arrival in
Tillamook Country twenty years
later, he lamented the decline of the
Indian population noting, "here and
i there, in nooks still unappropriated
by whites, (they) are seen for a mo
; ment hunting in their ancient for
: ests, or fishing in their ancient fish
ing grounds."
Summer's observations show the
remaining Tillamook villagers follow
, ing in the footsteps of their ancestors
as he followed the literal footsteps of
these and countless other Indians
along ancient coast-bound trails.
The chance for Grand Ronde tribal
members to walk in the footsteps of
their ancestors along these ancient
trails still exists.
Trails linking the Willamette Val
ley and Oregon's coast snaked
throughout the original 60,000 acre
Grand Ronde Reservation. The res
ervation once stretched from the
northern most boundary of the cur
rent reserve to four miles south, of
Highway 18, encompassing both
Valley Junction and the Van Duzer
Corridor.
Local Tillamook, Yamhill Kalapuya
and Clatsop tribes traversed the nar
row foot trails in search of game, fish
and as part of an elaborate trade net
work that flourished between coastal
and Willamette Valley tribes before
the arrival of European settlers. ;
Federal surveyors mapped some of
the trails when laying out the reser
vation boundaries and after arriv
ing in the mid-1800s, Grand Ronde
tribes continued to use them
throughout the turn of the century.
Grand Ronde oral histories such
as those of Elder Hubert Mercier,
and his 92-year-old mother, Agriess
(documented in 1981) refer to the
role the trails played in the Tribe's
early traditions. Both spoke of tra
versing the trails for annual treks
to Burnt Ridge where they would
pick and dry berries.
This tradition survives today in the
form of annual outings by the
Elder's great-niece, Marion Mercier,.
.. her family and friends to areas near
the old trails which she describes as
"the last remnants of our ancestors
and how they lived."
Several non-Indian accounts dat
ing back to the 1850s, also refer to
Grand Ronde 'Indian guides' ca
pable of leading newcomers on trails
from the reservation to Mount Hebo,
the coast and other locales in the
state's northwestern corner.
. Today,, following 29 years of ter-
mination3he Old Killamuk (Tilla
mook) Trail, Upper Nestucca Trail,
Coast Creek Trail and Hebo Moun
tain Trail are the only known Indian
, trails left on the Reservation, accord
ing to June Olson, the Tribe's cul
tural resource specialist.
The head of Grand Ronde's Cul
tural Protection program has a
vested interest in preserving this
treasured heritage.
"For me, as a tribal member and
other tribal members like me, these
trails are very important as there are
very few documented Indian trails
left in Oregon," says Olson. "These
continued on page 9
(T11) (CS ( "3'
srmrrt -my.o , v "ysti m 'm 1 1' yt "7-
Three '.
noon s. n
CimpO 2i M
WMtwmd 1
If you are interested in the trails project call the Cultural
Resources program at (503) 879-2249 or 1-800-422-0232.
TT7T
7
Ml