I love introducing fresh voices...I think you enjoy reading them too. I'm trying to catch up on the Tea and Tour presentations which have been absent, but the one you get to hear today is one of the Harbor History Museum interns. When he first asked questions about the Native Americans on the greater Gig Harbor Peninsula it was easy to a new talent to share with you. Most of you attended the dedication of the Donkey Creek Restoration project and were witness to the history as shared by the Puyallup Tribe of their time living and fishing Donkey Creek, listened to their prayers and enjoyed their dances. Brandon's blog this morning is a tribute to another part of the history of the Native Americans in our community.
Minter Creek Native American History
Hello, my name is Brandon McCormick, and I am a new author for the Harbor History Museum (HHM) blog. I am an intern at HHM and a 17 year old Tacoma Community College student. My father and several history teachers have instilled a deep value for learning history in me which made working for HHM a natural move. I decided to focus this blog entry on Minter Creek after a gentleman looking through the museum exhibits asked me in depth questions about the ancient history surrounding the native inhabitants of Gig Harbor; Minter Creek is one the most notable local archaeological sites containing a portal to ancient Native American history. Before delving too deep into the subject, we should make sure we have an accurate picture of where Minter Creek is. This map below details Minter Creek’s location:
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| http://www.nwfsc.noaa.gov/research/divisions/cb/genetics/minter_creek.cfm |
Minter Creek Map from Northwest Fisheries Science Center1 Center1
Coastal Salish tribes inhabited Minter Creek consisting mainly of Nisqually, Puyallup, and Steilacoom people. There are various theories on these tribes’ origins such as crossing the Siberian-Alaskan land bridge, coming as other northwestern tribes did in ocean canoes along the Aleutian chain until discovering a gentler climate, or from Central America, where intense and prolonged drought drove them north in search of more temperate weather and lush resources.2
Continuous layers of artifacts and midden (refuse) from sites at Minter Creek can definitively deduce that the area has been continuously occupied by humans for 1,400 years, although coastal sites could be in upwards of 3,000 years old and sites farther inland around 9,000 years. Dale McGinnis, an anthropologist who worked at Minter Creek in 1977, remarked that “it was probably a winter encampment. The tribe would apparently arrive in the fall when the salmon began to run, and they would leave to hunt in the spring.”3 A later archaeologist to inspect Minter Creek was Michael Avey in 1986, along with a student team from Fort Steilacoom Community College.4 Part of Avey’s research entailed confirming fears that many archaeological sites had been destroyed by development: an oyster harvesting company sits on the site of an indigenous village and real estate companies advertise cedar homes where cedar slab lodges of natives once stood at Minter Creek.
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| The Smythe's Cabin |
Cabin built by European settlers at Minter Creek from HHM collection.
According to Jerry Meeker’s account, there were six identifiable Puyallup houses at Minter Creek, the largest of which was 100 feet long and 50 feet wide: it was used to train children on tribal history and where a secret fraternity conducted initiations on young adults. Houses were intended to be shared and used by every member to promote the welfare of all by ensuring shelter to anyone in the village.
According to Jerry Meeker’s account, there were six identifiable Puyallup houses at Minter Creek, the largest of which was 100 feet long and 50 feet wide: it was used to train children on tribal history and where a secret fraternity conducted initiations on young adults. Houses were intended to be shared and used by every member to promote the welfare of all by ensuring shelter to anyone in the village.
Photo of Jerry Meeker from Browns Point Improvement Club.6
Portrait of Chief Leschi from the city of Tumwater, WA.8
Chief Leschi is best known for being wrongly executed after individuals he purportedly killed during combat in the Puget Sound War, a conflict instigated by protests of terms in the Medicine Creek Treaty, were instead charged as murders against him; Leschi was exonerated of murder charges in 2004 by the Washington State legislature. On a humorous side note, because Governor Stevens thought American settlers were helping Chief Leschi evade capture, he imposed martial law on Pierce County, was held in contempt of court for doing so, and used his executive power to pardon himself of the legal penalties.
As of now, Nisqually, Puyallup, and Squaxin tribes maintain tradition by fishing the Coho salmon which exit Minter Creek. This year, those three tribes set up buoys along the mouth of Minter Creek creating a closure zone in order to enhance protection of marine wildlife to promote sustainable commercial and sport fishing.9
This overview of Minter Creek has hopefully shown how innumerable stories may exist completely unseen in places taken for granted to remain preserved and will hopefully inspire some to propose or advocate for historic preservation in the future. As Michael Avey, an archaeologist mentioned earlier in the blog, explains this dynamic, “It is everyone’s responsibility to preserve the records of their past. You can’t save all of it. That’s reality. But I cite myself as an example of what an individual can do”.4 If you think you know or own a site that could yield historical significance than I would implore you to consult the Pierce County Historic Preservation Office.10 Visit the Harbor History Museum and read a blog written earlier this year entitled Early Settlers on the Gig Harbor Peninsula (http://www.harborhistorymuseum.blogspot.com/2013/02/early-settlers-on-gig-harbor-peninsula.html) to learn more about our local Native American history.
References
1Northwest Fisheries Science Center. (Cartographer). Minter Creek map. Retrieved
from http://www.nwfsc.noaa.gov/research/divisions/cb/genetics/minter_creek.cfm
2 Kluger, R. (2011). A Credit to His Race. The Bitter Waters of Medicine Creek (p.59).
Retrieved from http://www.richardkluger.com/ExcerptsBWCredit.htm
3Webster, K. (1977, April 21). CC diggers unearth new evidence of Indian life. The
News Tribune.
4Lane, B. (1986, February 9). Backyard history. Loss of Indian sites worries
archeologists. The News Tribune. B-2
5 Puyallup Tribal News (2008, February 21). Deposition of Jerry Meeker for claimant
taken at Puyallup Indian Reservation, Wash., March 25, 1927. Puyallup Tribal News. Retrieved from http://www.puyalluptribalnews.net/news/view/deposition_of_jerry_meeker_for_claimant_taken_at_puyallup_indian_reser/
6Browns Point Improvement Club. (Photographer). Early History of Browns Point
Improvement Club. Jerry Meeker. Retrieved from http://www.brownspoint.org/history.php?idx=1
7Carpenter, C. S. (1976). Washington biography: Leschi, last chief of the Nisquallies.
The Pacific Northwest Forum. Vol. 1 (1) (para. 6). Retrieved from http://www.narhist.ewu.edu/pnf/articles/s1/i-1/leschi/leschi.html
8MSCUA. (Artist). Nisqually Chief Leschi. City of Tumwater, WA. South Puget Sound
Indians. University of Washington Libraries. Retrieved from http://www.ci.tumwater.wa.us/research_indianphotos.htm
9Squaxin Island Tribe. (2013). Salmon. Retrieved from
http://squaxinisland.org/government/departments/natural-resources/salmon/
10 Pierce County Department of Planning and Land Services. Historic Preservation. Retrieved from http://www.co.pierce.wa.us/index.aspx?NID=954
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