“Removal” of Salish from Bitterroot Valley, 1855-1891 - Montana Historical Markers on Waymarking.com

Interpretive sign about the Salish Indians and the Bitterroot Valley.
Text of Sign:
In the Hellgate Treaty negotiations (1855). Xwetxicln (Plenty Horses or chief Victor) and the Selis people rebuffed efforts of US officials to get them to abandon the choice lands of their ancestral Bitterroot Valley. After Xwetxicln died, settlers successfully lobbied President Grant to declare the Flathead Reservation “better adapted to the wants of the Flathead tribe,” in 1872. Congress sent future President Garfield to arrange for the “removal” of the Selis. Stmxe Qwoxgeys (Claw of Small Grizzly or Chief Charlot) said the Bitterroot was where the bones of his ancestors were buried, and he would not leave, but his “x” mark was forged onto the Garfield agreement. More whites moved illegally onto Selis lands, and pressures intensified with construction of the Missoula & Bitter Root Valley Railroad in 1888. In November 1889, faced with the worsening conditions for his people, Stmxe Qwoxgeys finally agreed to leave. The Selis therefore planted no crops, but Congress delayed funding for removal for two years, pushing many people to the brink of starvation. Finally, in October 1891, General Henry Carrington and troops from Fort Missoula roughly pushed the tribe on the sad march north to the Reservation. The Government reneged on promised aid for relocation, but the Selis nevertheless managed to rebuild their lives in the Jocko Valley.

Describe the area and history: Sign is located in the Bitterroot Valley along U.S. Hwy. 93 near Stevensville, Montana.

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Date Logged Log User Rating   10/08/2010 Volcanoguy visited it