Walla Walla Council
The Walla Walla Council, held in 1855, was a significant event in the context of the westward expansion of settlers and the impact it had on Native American tribes in the Northwest region of the United States. Initiated by Isaac I. Stevens, the governor and superintendent of Indian affairs for Washington Territory, the council aimed to negotiate treaties that would acquire Native lands for white settlers while attempting to prevent conflicts with the increasingly anxious Indigenous populations. This gathering was notable for being one of the largest tribal meetings in U.S. history and was characterized by a complex atmosphere of mistrust and fear among the participants.
During the council, tribes were pressured to sign treaties that ceded approximately 30,000 square miles of territory in eastern Oregon and east-central Washington. In exchange, they were promised certain benefits, including reservations and financial compensation. However, many tribes, feeling coerced and betrayed, resisted the terms, fearing that the government would not uphold its commitments. The aftermath of the council and the subsequent treaties led to significant turmoil and conflict, as many tribes struggled to adapt to the changes imposed on their traditional way of life. This period was marked by over two decades of strife as various tribes faced the consequences of the treaties and the encroachment of settlers.
Walla Walla Council
Date: May 24-June 11, 1855
Place: Ancient Indian council grounds at modern Mill Creek, Walla Walla, Washington
Tribes affected: Cayuse, Nez Perce, Umatilla, Walla Walla, Yakima (observers)
Significance: The resulting treaty drastically reduced the area of Indian lands, marking the end of a centuries-old era and forcing Native Americans to make a radical adjustment to white civilization
The westward migration of settlers and immigrants reached the Northwest by the mid-1800’s. In 1848 about five thousand immigrants and one thousand wagons arrived in Oregon, more than the combined population of the Nez Perce, Cayuse, and Walla Walla.
In 1855 Isaac I. Stevens, governor and superintendent of Indian affairs of the Washington Territory, took steps to implement treaties with the Indians to acquire their land (to provide room for white settlers) and preclude hostilities with the increasingly anxious and angry Indians. He also sought to clear the way for a northern route for the Pacific Railroad. The resulting council was one of the largest tribal gatherings in the United States. Negotiations were carried on in an atmosphere of suspicion, fear, and mistrust of the white negotiators, acrimony between factions of Indians, and even an aborted plan by the Cayuse to massacre all the whites. It was not until between June 9 and 11 that three treaties were finally agreed upon and signed by the Indians, under considerable duress and pressure as well as recognition of the inevitable.
Under the treaties the Indians ceded about 30,000 square miles of land in eastern Oregon and east-central Washington. In return they were given two reservations and promised up to $200,000 per tribe. Emphasis was placed on “civilizing” the Indians by having the government supply personnel and build mills, shops, schools, and hospitals.
The majority of the Nez Perce remained faithful to the treaty. Other tribes, however, felt coerced and betrayed; moreover, they were convinced that whites would never live up to the terms of the treaty. They refused to accept the end of their traditional way of life. Almost immediately turmoil and war began; strife was to continue for more than twenty years before some tribes were finally subdued.