Salmon and Spokane Falls

For thousands of years, American Indians gathered at the base of Spokane Falls to fish for salmon. Every June, giant Chinooks weighing 60 to 80 pounds arrive in the Spokane River. Although the falls are in Spokane Indian Territory, it was a unique bounty and tribes from all over the Columbia Plateau would travel to Spokane. In fact, when Lewis and Clark were traveling through Nez Perce County hundreds of miles south of Spokane in 1805, they asked where were all the Nez Perce? They were told that most of the Nez Perce fish in the Spokane River.

Locals use many methods to catch salmon. One method used by locals in Spokane Falls is to fish from the platform above the falls. They would stand there and spear these giants. Another method of fishing used by locals on Spokane Island is a trap. A barrier made of wood and other natural materials will span the Spokane tributary. Obstacles trap fish. Then they will be assassinated. Thousands of fish would be caught this way.

Mass gatherings of people require careful social organization. The chief is chosen from among those gathered. Foremost among these was the Salmon Chief, often from the local Spokane tribe. He fished the fish and distributed the salmon equitably to everyone there.

The men fished, while the women were responsible for processing the salmon throughout the year. Processing is labor intensive and requires high skills, especially in the drying and smoking processes. They had to make sure the salmon didn't rot and last through the harsh winter months, or people would starve.

When Europeans founded the town of Spokane; the early settlers relied heavily on the Chinook for food and business. Spokane has even become a tourist attraction because of these giant Chinook. As Spokane's timber industry expanded, releasing wood chips and other pollutants, people complained and wanted them to stop because they were killing salmon.

In 1915, with the construction of the Long Lake Dam, the giant Chinook no longer followed the river to Spokane Falls.

There were still salmon below the dams, but that stopped completely with the construction of Grand Cooley Dam on the Columbia River in 1939, one of the largest dams in the world