Anticipating the Columbia from Nez Perce Country

A Cautious Encounter

On September 20th, 1805, Captain William Clark first met a camp of Nez Perce after their harrowing trip over the Bitterroot Mountains:

…at 12 miles decended the mountain to a leavel pine Countrey proceeded on through a butifull Countrey for three miles to a Small Plain in which I found maney Indian lodges, at the distance of 1 mile from the lodges I met Indian boys, when they Saw me ran and hid them-selves in the grass I dismounted gave my gun & horse to one of the men, searched in the grass and found 2 of the boys gave them Small pieces of ribin & Sent them forward to the village Soon after a man Came out to meet me with great Caution & Conducted me to a large Spacious Lodge which he told me (by Signs) was the Lodge of his great Chief who had Set out days previous with all the Warriers of the nation to war on a South West derection & would return in 15 or 18 days. (Clark, from Moulton V.5, 222)

Collecting Clues

The next day, September 21st, 1805, Clark gets a map of the river ahead from one of the Chiefs:

A Fine morning Sent out all the hunters in different directions to hunt deer, I myself delayd with the Chief to prevent Suspission and to Collect by Signs as much information as possible about the river and Countrey in advance. The Chief drew me a kind of chart of the river, and informed me that a greater Chief than himself was fishing at the river half a days march from his village called the twisted hare, and that the river forked a little below his Camp and at a long distance below & below 2 large forks one from the left & one from the right the river passed thro’gh the mountains at which place was a great fall of the water passing through the rocks, at those falls white people lived from whome they preceured the white Beeds & Brass &c. which the womin wore… (Clark, from Moulton V.5, 226-7)

How Many “Sleeps” Away?

On September 22nd, 1805, another Chief provided an elk skin map of the region for Clark:

…we attempted to have Some talk with those people but Could not for the want of an Interpreter thro’ which we Could Speake, we were Compelled to converse alltogether by Signs— I got the Twisted hare to draw the river from his Camp down which he did with great cherfullness on a white Elk Skin, from the 1s fork which is a few seven miles below, to the large fork on which the So So ne or Snake Indians fish, is South 2 Sleeps; to a large river which falls in on the N W. Side and into which The Clarks river empties itself is 5 Sleeps from the mouth of that river to the falls is 5 Sleeps at the falls he places Establishments of white people. and informs that great numbers of Indians reside on all those foks as well as the main river; … (Clark, from Moulton V.5, 230)

The explorers travel quickly down the Columbia, accompanied by Nez Perce guides as far as Celilo Falls.

Once they build their winter quarters at Fort Clatsop and settle in, they begin to collect information about their hosts, the Clatsops, and other tribes of the neighborhood. These tribes speak a trade language, “Chinook Wawa,” some of which Lewis and Clark learn over the months. Prior to that time, they do their best to overcome the language barriers.

WMV 56k 256k Quicktime 256k Transcript Tony Johnson Language Specialist talking about L&C learning the Chinookan language.

Related pages:

Anticipating the Columbia from Nez Perce Country  |  Where We Live, How We Live
Learning about People of the Mid-Columbia Villages