Native American history in the NW

The Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Tribal Legacy Project The mission of this digital archive is to assist educators nationwide to integrate Native American culture and history from the tribes' perspectives into the study of the Lewis and Clark expedition and legacy. This site includes hundreds of taped presentations and interviews with tribal elders and educators.

Plateau Peoples' Web Portal This portal is a gateway to the cultural materials of Plateau peoples that are held in Washington State University's Libraries, Manuscripts, Archives and Special Collections (MASC), the Museum of Anthropology and by national donors. The collections represented here have been chosen and curated by tribal consultants working in cooperation with University and Museum staff. The tribes represented here include the Coeur d'Alene, Colville, Spokane, Umatilla, and Yakama.

University of Washington Libraries' Digital Collection - Native Americans of the Pacific Northwest: An Introduction A digital collection of some 2,300 photographs and 7,700 pages of text pages relating to the American Indians in two cultural areas of the Pacific Northwest, the Northwest Coast and Plateau. These resources illustrate many aspects of life and work, including housing, clothing, crafts, transportation, education, and employment.

Wisdom of the Elders An organization committed to “Native American cultural sustainability, multimedia education and race reconciliation." Wisdom records, preserves and shares oral history, cultural arts, and traditional ecological knowledge of exemplary indigenous elders, storytellers, and scientists in collaboration with diverse cultural organizations and educational institutions. Wisdom has developed a curriculum for Oregon’s schools, including social studies, language arts, environmental science and arts (storytelling, traditional arts and music) lesson plans, aligned to Oregon’s Educational Standards. It honors tribes of the Northwest and is available at no charge online. Wisdom has also produced a series of radio shows which includes oral history and cultural arts of thirteen nations along the western side, and thirteen nations along the eastern side of the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail.

List of Oregon's Tribes with links to their websites containing the tribes' histories and current information.

List of Washington Tribes with links to their websites containing the tribal nations' histories and current information.

List of Idaho Tribes with links to their websites containing histories and current information.

List of British Columbia's First Nations Contact information for the First Nations and Bands of British Columbia. Because of the diversity of the Pacific coast - mild to cold climate, seashore to mountains - the First Nations who settled in this area developed many different cultures and languages. The coastal inhabitants were experts at wood sculpture, as their totem poles attest even today. They were also famous for their skill and courage in whaling. As for their social system, it was marked by occasions such as the "potlatch" - a ceremony in which important gifts were given to guests - and by theatrical displays. British Columbia joined the Confederation in 1871. The Aboriginal population of British Columbia, which began to decline with the arrival of the first European settlers, is enjoying new strength. The population is growing in numbers (more than 139 000 people in 1996) and has developed strong Aboriginal organizations. This new energy coincides with a renaissance in Aboriginal cultural and artistic expression.

Image credit: Plateau Peoples' Web Portal - Vera Spokane and Susi Kop-Lops, ca 1900