18
S moke S ignals
april 15, 2014
‘This tells a pretty complete story’
EXHIBIT continued
from front page
on the Clackamas and Multnomah,
who occupied significant areas on
the river that are now part of the
Portland metropolitan area and
often traveled into the Columbia
River.
Artifacts included in the exhibit,
curated by Tribal Land and Culture
Department staff members, include
a stone anchor that was recovered
from Sauvie Island.
Tribal members Brian Krehbiel
and Travis Stewart contributed
their wood carving talents. Canoe
paddles by Krehbiel rest inside a
carved-out canoe and miniature
replica Kalapuyan river canoes
created by Stewart and Krehbiel
are displayed.
The exhibit gives attendees in-
sight into the Willamette Valley
Treaty signed in 1855, origin sto-
ries from the Chinook Tribe and
an introduction to Tribal historical
figures, such as Cascades Chief
Tamaquin, Chinook Chief Ciassno
and Clackamas Chief Wacheno.
Tribal Historian David Lewis
said the exhibit aims to highlight
the Tribes that lived on the north
Willamette River.
“This tells a pretty complete story
of where they were, who they were
and what kind of culture they had,”
Lewis said. “This is more about the
cultures and societies of the people,
and the trade economy. We really
wanted to highlight the unique
aspects of these people.”
The approximately 150 people
who attended the Tribal opening
ceremony were greeted by the Tribal
Canoe Family, some 25 people
strong, playing drums and singing.
Tribal Council members Cheryle
A. Kennedy, Kathleen Tom and Jon
A. George attended while Tribal At-
torney Rob Greene, Health Services
Executive Director Jeff Lorenz and
Cultural Education and Outreach
Program Manager Kathy Cole
mingled with guests.
Tribal Elders Betty Bly, Violet
Folden, Kathryn Harrison, Val
Grout, Gladys Hobbs, Chip Tom
and Alan Ham, among many oth-
ers, also attended the opening. Har-
rison gave the event’s invocation.
The Tribe’s Public Affairs De-
partment, headed by Public Af-
fairs Director Siobhan Taylor and
Administrative Assistant Chelsea
Clark, provided the buffet dinner
that offered a choice of salmon or
chicken entrees, scalloped potatoes,
green beans, salad and bread.
The Tribe’s Natural Resources
Department sent appetizer samples
of smoked salmon and lamprey, tra-
ditional foods harvested from the
Willamette River and the falls.
After the buffet was served and
the Canoe Family performed tra-
ditional songs and dances, Willa-
mette Heritage Center Executive
Director Sam Wegner thanked the
Tribe for the “enduring partner-
ship” that has blossomed.
Willamette Heritage Center Cu-
rator Kylie Pine echoed Wegner’s
sentiments, saying that the Tribe
and Heritage Center have formed
a “good partnership.”
Photos by Michelle Alaimo
The Grand Ronde Canoe Family performs during the Tribal opening for the “kuri-tsfqw tilixam: River People of the
Willamette” exhibit at the Willamette Heritage Center at The Mill in Salem on Thursday, April, 10.
If you go
‘kuri-tsfqw tilixam: River
People of the Willamette’
Where: Willamette Heritage
Center at The Mill, 1313 Mill
St. S.E., Salem
When: Through Saturday,
May 26
Cost: $6 for adults, $5 for
seniors 55 and older, $4 for
students with ID and $3 for
youth 6 to 17 years of age.
More info: 503-585-7012 or
www.willametteheritage.org
Tribal Council member Cheryle
A. Kennedy acknowledged Land
and Culture staff members who
worked on the exhibit – Lewis,
Cultural Exhibits Supervisor Julie
Brown, Cultural Specialist Ve-
ronica Montano and Tribal cultural
consultant Greg Archuleta.
“We are here to celebrate the
people of the Willamette Valley
and the river. We do have a treaty
that spans this entire region, the
Willamette Valley Treaty,” Ken-
nedy said.
“The chiefs of our Tribe were
skilled negotiators, skilled strat-
egists and skilled warriors. To
defend the area and the commerce
that was going on here, our chiefs
had to devise ways to make sure
that this area remained in the
hands of the people who lived here
since time immemorial.”
Kennedy said the “River People”
exhibit should encourage those who
see it to seek out more information
about the peoples who lived in
western Oregon before the arrival
of white settlers.
“There is no history that is taught
on the Indians of Oregon,” Kennedy
said. “What you will see today is
cutting edge education and infor-
mation. … I believe it fosters more
acceptance and camaraderie in
people.”
Kennedy said that although the
Tribe has an oral history that comes
from the lips of its ancestors, it is
also attempting to ensure that the
Tribe’s message gets out there in a
more modern way so that the Tribe
can be involved in the economic de-
velopment of its ceded lands.
She added that some might think
current Tribal interests skew toward
the environmental, but people need
to remember that Willamette Falls
and the rivers of Oregon were a place
of commerce for Tribal ancestors.
“Commerce is something we are
very interested in,” Kennedy said.
“However, we know that (the envi-
ronment) has to be taken care of, it
has to be managed and we certainly
don’t want to see it polluted.”
“Our aspirations are to be good
partners,” Kennedy added. “The
importance of this exhibit is para-
mount to the Confederated Tribes
of Grand Ronde and what we hope
to achieve.”
Tribal Council member Kathleen
Tom, who also sits on the Willa-
mette Heritage Center Board of
Directors, thanked the center for
“the friendship and camaraderie
they have for this Tribe. It is un-
surpassed.”
“Our hope is that we continue this
relationship for as long as we can,”
Tom said.
Lewis, the Tribe’s historian, said
he and the Cultural Exhibits and
Archives Program staff wanted to
continue to tell the Tribe’s story
through this fourth exhibit.
“This is the place that the Tribe
comes from,” Lewis said about the
Willamette River. “We are descen-
dants of those people. … We really
are still here. All of our exhibits
have been working to understand
the various areas of Tribal history
and culture that we feel really have
been glossed over or are missing.”
“The life of trade 150 to 200 years
ago and more was such a significant
way of life for all of the Tribes,”
Brown said about working on the
exhibit. “We want people to recog-
nize that we have Tribal members
here who lived all up and down the
Willamette and that Oregon City
and the falls was the main hub
for trade. … Much of the exhibit is
representative of that.”
The Grand Ronde Tribe first staged
an exhibit at the Willamette Heritage
Center in 2011 with the award-win-
ning “Grand Ronde Canoe Journey.”
It followed in 2012 with “Grand
Ronde Women – Our Story” and in
2013 with “We Were Here First …
and We Are Here to Stay.”
“kuri-tsfqw tilixam: River People
of the Willamette” will be on display
through May 26. n
A river canoe, fishing net and traditional regalia are part of the “kuri-tsfqw
tilixam: River People of the Willamette” exhibit.