Posted on Dec 3, 2023
Beyond settler history: New book explores the story of Willamette Valley’s Indigenous tribes
1.46K
9
1
5
5
0
When students learn about Oregon’s history, the narrative of the land’s Native people often takes a backseat to the stories of the European settlers on the Oregon Trail or the Gold Rush. A new book aims to add perspective to that narrative. “Tribal Histories of the Willamette Valley” is a detailed account of the numerous tribes that ended up confederated at the Grand Ronde Indian Reservation in the mid-1850s. The author, Dr. David Lewis, is an assistant professor of anthropology and Indigenous studies at Oregon State University and a member of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde.
The book weaves together the first encounters between settlers and tribes, the painful dispossession of tribal lands, and the lasting impact of assimilation efforts. Lewis paints a vivid picture of resilience in the face of colonization.
The book weaves together the first encounters between settlers and tribes, the painful dispossession of tribal lands, and the lasting impact of assimilation efforts. Lewis paints a vivid picture of resilience in the face of colonization.
Beyond settler history: New book explores the story of Willamette Valley’s Indigenous tribes
Posted from opb.orgPosted in these groups: State of Oregon
American History
Native Americans
Reading
Oregon State University
American History Native Americans Reading Oregon State University
Posted 5 mo ago
Responses: 1
3
3
0
PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."Karabaic: So what do you hope comes out of this book? Where do you hope to see it used?
Lewis: One reason why we are in the situation we are today is because many people thought that we disappeared and they’re not taught about Native peoples at all in our public school.
So I’m hoping that the book is used as text in high school, and in college to show a different way of writing history from the perspective of people who lived through it.
I only did this for the Willamette Valley, so I would like to do more with the Umpqua Valley, and the Rogue River Valley and the coast. I’d like to look at other histories, too.
I think it’s a general problem. I have been teaching class here for five years at OSU, and I’ve been teaching for 20 years up and down the I-5 corridor and 99% of the people that come to my classes know nothing about Native peoples.
Karabaic: That was Dr. David G. Lewis. His new book is Tribal Histories of the Willamette Valley, and it’s available now.
Dr. Lewis will be signing books at the Oregon Historical Society’s 54th Annual Celebration of Oregon Authors on Sunday, Dec. 3, 2023. Lewis’s blog, The Quartax Journal, contains even more deep research into Kalapuyans and other Western Oregon tribes."
..."Karabaic: So what do you hope comes out of this book? Where do you hope to see it used?
Lewis: One reason why we are in the situation we are today is because many people thought that we disappeared and they’re not taught about Native peoples at all in our public school.
So I’m hoping that the book is used as text in high school, and in college to show a different way of writing history from the perspective of people who lived through it.
I only did this for the Willamette Valley, so I would like to do more with the Umpqua Valley, and the Rogue River Valley and the coast. I’d like to look at other histories, too.
I think it’s a general problem. I have been teaching class here for five years at OSU, and I’ve been teaching for 20 years up and down the I-5 corridor and 99% of the people that come to my classes know nothing about Native peoples.
Karabaic: That was Dr. David G. Lewis. His new book is Tribal Histories of the Willamette Valley, and it’s available now.
Dr. Lewis will be signing books at the Oregon Historical Society’s 54th Annual Celebration of Oregon Authors on Sunday, Dec. 3, 2023. Lewis’s blog, The Quartax Journal, contains even more deep research into Kalapuyans and other Western Oregon tribes."
(3)
(0)
Read This Next
Continue with Facebook 
Continue with Google