6 MAY 15, 2004
Smoke Signals
Celilo Today And Yesterday
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Popular fishing spot was once the "Wall Street of the Indian World."
By Toby McClary
Celilo Falls, which was once one
of the most famous trade sites in
North America, has become still and
silent waters.
Despite protests from the local
Native Tribes, the U.S. Army Corps
of Engineers (USACE) built the
Dalles Dam in 1957, flooding Celilo
Falls, now known as Lake Celilo.
But some will say that it washed
away many memories.
Like the memories that still stick
with Tribal Elder, Dean Mercier,
who fished Celilo Falls from 1948,
"until the water ran me off of the
scaffold."
Mercier recalls one memory of
fishing Celilo Falls at night. He said
he wondered why everyone always
headed for home at dusk. When he
asked around, he was told that the
salmon don't run in the dark. But
Mercier tried anyway. "We caught
1,800 pounds of salmon that night,"
said Mercier. "They didn't know it
was dark out."
Fishermen built scaffolds as high
as 18 ft. tall to fish Celilo. There
were about 480 scaffolds surround
ing the falls. They would use set
nets, dip nets, spears and gaff hooks
to pull the salmon in. The surface
of the scaffolds would become slip
pery, so the fishermen would tie one
end of rope around their waist and
the other to the scaffolds to secure
them from falling into the falls.
When Celilo Falls was inundated,
the scaffolds were left standing and
many people also left their nets,
claiming that these items belonged
to Celilo.
Celilo Falls gathered many people
together to fish, trade and socialize
with the local Indians. Indians from
all directions and many Tribes would
come to share their obsidian, shells,
buffalo meat, blankets and beads
and trade these items for salmon.
This was a tradition that went on
for thousands of years, suggesting
that Celilo is one of Oregon's oldest
towns.
The Wyam Indi
ans were the perma
nent residents, and
primary fishermen
of Celilo. According
to Elizabeth
Woody's "Recalling
Celilo" internet site,
Wyam means,
"Sound of Water
upon the Rocks," or
"Echo of Falling
Water." The salmon
were the primary
source of trade, in
come and food for
the Wyams. So
when the falls were
flooded it left these
people having to
give up what they
knew, and try to
learn other sources
of income.
The flooding of the
falls wasn't a nega
tive experience for all
who fished there.
Eddy Edmo, a
Shoshone-Bannock
Tribal Elder, said it was a good op
portunity for him. "I learned to fish
from my father and uncles when I
was 12, and relied on the fish I caught
as my source of income and food,"
said Edmo.
"After the falls were flooded, I
found another job that had benefits
and a retirement plan," said Edmo.
" It was different for everyone, but
for me it was beneficial."
Many Grand Ronde Indians also
made the 170-mile trip to Celilo
Falls for the salmon harvest.
"In my mind, I didn't think they
could ever dam up the Columbia,"
said Mercier. "If someone would
have told me that the falls would
have been flooded, I would have
called them a damn liar."
According to Matt Rabe, Public
Affairs Specialist for the USACE,
fish counts are up from the ten-year
- mm ff JfW-? : c - T
Shopping For Salmon A look back in time shows that Celilo Falls was not just a place to fish,
but also a place to socialize. The falls attracted many people for many different reasons. Some came to
learn the traditions of the Wyam Indians , while others wanted to trade their precious items for salmon.
average. This year the salmon run
is at 98,844 while the ten year av
erage is 66,262. These numbers are
still low compared to the 15-17 mil
lion that ran annually in the mid
1800's.
"There are always consequences
when we develop a river and
change the landscape," said Rabe.
"I know it affects the fish run, but
we are working hard to minimize
the impact and reverse the conse
quences." "Celilo Falls was so populated with
fisherman, (in the early 1900's), that
one in 20 salmon that passed were
caught," said Jeremy FiveCrows,
Nez Perce Tribal member and Pub
lication Editor for the Columbia
River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission.
"Celilo was the Wall Street of the
Indian world," said FiveCrows.
"Now it has become very run down,
and it represents poverty."
In 1947, the USACE purchased 31
acres to build houses and relocate
Celilo Village. The property was then
turned over to the Bureau of Indian
Affairs. Without funding for opera
tions and maintenance Celilo Village
has become poverty-stricken.
On March 2, 2004, President
Bush signed the Native American
Technical Amendments bill. This
bill authorizes the USACE to spend
existing funds on the redevelopment
of housing in Celilo, fulfilling a
promise made almost 50 years ago.
Construction on the new housing
should begin in 2006 and is ex
pected to be completed in 2007.
Despite recent events that may
hold promise for the impoverished
area, the ancient site of the Celilo
Falls will never be the same. And
the waters will always remain silent.
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No Longer Traditional In the shadow of Mt. Hood, the Dalles Dam was built as a source of hydroelectric power for the surrounding communities. The
establishment of the dam submerged Celilo Falls, an important Indian fishing site and it has caused untold devastation to fish runs on the Columbia River.