Four tribes sharing the river

By Ty Beaver

H&N's Staff Writer

February 15, 2008

   They’ve shared the same water system and share some traits, but the four tribes along the Klamath River — from above Upper Klamath Lake to the North California Coast — descended from different groups, had different languages, and developed unique cultures. 

   “They are very culturally distinct people who’ve been neighbors for a long time,” said Craig Tucker of the Karuk Tribe. 

   Unlike the tribes of the Plains, the tribes of the Klamath River established permanent settlements, allowing them to develop sophisticated societies and economies, Tucker said.

   More than one of the tribes used a currency system and interaction was common. Tucker said members of the Karuk Tribe could be bi- or tri-lingual to communicate with their neighbors. 

   The Klamath River system was their common link. Part of their diets consisted of the several species of salmon and lamprey that migrated up the river to spawn, and suckers.
   
The Klamath Tribes (consisting of the Klamath, Modoc and Yahooskin people) lived in the upper reaches of the watershed, from above Upper Klamath Lake and along the Link River and upper portion of the Klamath River . 

Klamath Tribes

Membership: 3,500 enrolled members Web site: klamathtribes.org Headquarters: Chiloquin.

Klamath Indian women with a string of suckers before 1911.
   
The Karuks had about 100 villages along the Klamath River and the Salmon River , one of the Klamath’s tributaries far below Iron Gate Dam. 

Karuk Tribe

Membership: 4,200 enrolled members Web site: karuk.us Headquarters: Happy Camp, Calif.

   
The Yuroks lived along the last 45 miles of the Klamath River and along the Pacific Coast . They fished the coast and, along with the other California tribes, subsisted on the nuts of hardwood trees that grew in the forests. 

Yurok Tribe

Membership: 5,000 enrolled members

Web site: yuroktribe.org

Headquarters: Klamath, Calif.

   The Hoopa lived along the Trinity River , the last tributary to connect with the Klamath River before it reached the ocean. 

Hoopa Tribe

Membership: 1,893 enrolled members

Web site: hoopa-nsn.gov

Headquarters: Hoopa, Calif.

   The arrival of European explorers and then settlers brought competition for land. Exposure to new diseases sickened many natives, and resources they depended on — fish and forest products — were depleted 

   Conflicts arose. The Modoc War of 1873, for instance, occurred when the U.S. government tried to force the Modocs onto a reservation. 

   All four tribes are federally recognized, but the Klamath Tribes are the only ones to have a treaty with the U.S. government. 

   The Klamaths also have a unique history in that they lost federal recognition for 30 years, bringing economic hardship and cultural stigma. 

   The federal government terminated the Klamath Tribes in the late 1950s. As a result, it compensated tribal members for loss of recognition and all tribal lands were sold. Tribal members also lost access to the various government services offered to them through tribal status. 

   Congress restored the Tribes in 1986. The Klamaths don’t have a reservation, but have common land holdings, including their tribal government center near Chiloquin and Kla-Mo-Ya Casino, north of Klamath Falls along Highway 97. 

   The other tribes involved in the agreement also have land holdings. The Yuroks reside on the stretch of the Klamath River between the confluence with the Trinity River and the coast. 

   The Karuks do not have a reservation but do have several tracts of land in Northern California on which some of their tribal members reside. The Hoopa continue to have the reservation originally reserved for Northern California tribes in Hoopa Valley . 

   All were involved in crafting the proposed Klamath Basin Restoration Agreement. All have interests in the watershed and in the fish that live in it. 

   The Hoopa do not support the agreement, saying it does not provide enough protection for fish, but the other tribes support it, saying it will help restore links to their past culture and make them economically and socially stable. 

   The Klamath Tribes would receive more than $20 million to purchase 90,000 acres of private forestland as part of the agreement.

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