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Nez Perce History Timeline

(Before 1700s–Present)

This timeline traces the history of the Nez Perce, or Nimiipuu, including their ancestral traditions, encounters with settlers, treaty changes, the 1877 war, and continuing cultural resilience. Less

Go to: Event List | Key Facts | Directory

Origins and culture

Nimíipuu dominate the Columbia Plateau

1700

Members of the Sahaptin language group, the Nimíipuu were the dominant people of the Columbia Plateau for much of the documented period.

Nimíipuu acquire horses and develop the Appaloosa

1700 - 1799

After acquiring horses in the 18th century, the Nimíipuu developed breeding practices that led to the Appaloosa horse.

French traders apply the name Nez Percé

1790 - 1799

French Canadian fur traders who regularly visited the region in the late 18th century used the exonym Nez Percé, meaning “pierced nose.” The designation was inaccurate because nose piercing was not practiced by the tribe.

Nez Perce maintain more than 70 villages

1800

In 1800, the Nez Perce had more than 70 permanent villages. Villages generally ranged from 30 to 200 people depending on the season and social grouping.

Nez Perce territory reaches 17 million acres

1804 - 1806

At the time of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, Nez Perce territory covered approximately 17 million acres across parts of present-day Washington, Oregon, Montana, and Idaho, surrounding the Snake, Grande Ronde, Salmon, and Clearwater rivers.

Cayuse adopt a Nez Perce dialect

1805

By 1805, many Cayuse people west of the Nez Perce had abandoned their mother tongue and adopted Weyíiletpuu, a variety of the Lower Nez Perce or Lower Nimiipuutímt dialect.

Nez Perce population reaches about 6,000

1805

In 1805, the Nez Perce were the largest tribe on the Columbia River Plateau, with a population of about 6,000.

Modern continuity

Horse-culture losses reshape Nez Perce life

1800 - 1900

Reservation life and assimilationist pressure imposed by Americans and the government contributed to the destruction of Nez Perce horse culture during the 19th century.

Helen Hunt Jackson praises the Nez Perce

1881

In A Century of Dishonor, Helen Hunt Jackson described the Nez Perce as among the richest, noblest, gentlest, and most industrious of Indigenous peoples.

Image source: Helen Hunt Jackson

Helen Hunt Jackson praises the Nez Perce

Nez Perce reservation lands are allotted

1887

The Dawes Act brought individual land allotments to the Nez Perce and contributed to the loss and fragmentation of reservation lands.

Image source: Dawes Act

Nez Perce reservation lands are allotted

Alice Fletcher explains the mistaken name

1889

Anthropologist Alice Fletcher, whom the U.S. government sent to Idaho to allot the Nez Perce Reservation, explained the mistaken naming of the people and recorded recollections of the Lewis and Clark encounter.

Nez Perce reservation opens to settlement

Nov 18, 1895

The U.S. government opened the Nez Perce reservation for general settlement, allowing non-Natives to acquire surplus lands after households received allotments.

Nez Perce population declines to about 1,800

1900

By the beginning of the 20th century, the Nez Perce population had declined to about 1,800 because of epidemics, conflicts with non-Indians, and other factors.

Celilo Falls is flooded by The Dalles Dam

1957

Construction of The Dalles Dam flooded Celilo Falls, or Silayloo, a favored Columbia River location for salmon fishing.

The Nez Perce identify as Nimíipuu

1970

Since the late 20th century, the Nez Perce have most often identified themselves as Nimíipuu in the Sahaptin language.

Nez Perce reservation demographics are documented

1988 - 2000

The reservation has a total area of about 1,195 square miles. Its population was 17,959 in the 2000 census, while the population on the reservation was reported as nearly 90 percent white in 1988 because of tribal land loss.

Wallowa Homeland welcomes the Nez Perce home

1991

The Wallowa Homeland initiative began in 1991 to welcome the Nez Perce back to the Wallowa Valley.

The Nez Perce Horse breeding program begins

1994

The Nez Perce began a breeding program crossing the Appaloosa with the Central Asian Akhal-Teke to produce the Nez Perce Horse.

The Nez Perce Horse program receives support

1994 - 2021

The 20th-century breeding program was financed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Nez Perce Tribe, and the First Nations Development Institute.

The Wallowa Homeland acquires land

2000

The Homeland acquired 320 acres and a visitor center in 2000 to enrich relationships among Indigenous descendants and contemporary inhabitants of the Wallowa Valley and to preserve Indigenous customs and culture.

Cryptaulax nezperceorum honors the tribe

2004

The Triassic gastropod Cryptaulax nezperceorum, found on Nez Perce tribal land, was named in honor of the Nez Perce.

Methodist church property returns to the tribe

2021

In 2021, the United Methodist Church returned a small parcel of land and a church building in Wallowa to the Nez Perce Tribe.

Nez Perce population exceeds 3,500 members

2021

The tribe reported more than 3,500 members in 2021.

Exploration and treaties

William Clark meets the Nez Perce

1805

William Clark was the first known Euro-American to meet members of the Nez Perce, excluding the French Canadian traders who had previously visited the area.

Image source: Lewis and Clark Expedition

William Clark meets the Nez Perce

Twisted Hair welcomes Lewis and Clark

1805

Twisted Hair, a Nez Perce leader and father of Chief Lawyer, welcomed and befriended the exhausted Lewis and Clark Expedition in September 1805.

Sacagawea and Charbonneau misidentify the tribe

1805

The interpreters Sacagawea and Toussaint Charbonneau mistakenly identified the people encountered by the expedition as the Nez Perce.

Nez Perce assist the Lewis and Clark Expedition

Sep 1805

The Nez Perce welcomed and assisted the exhausted Lewis and Clark party. Alice Fletcher later wrote that the people were kind to the tired and hungry explorers, whom many had never seen before.

Lewis and Clark reach Weippe Prairie

Sep 20, 1805

Near the western end of the Lolo Trail, William Clark found a small Nez Perce camp at the edge of a camas-digging ground, now called Weippe Prairie.

The Nez Perce sign the Treaty of Walla Walla

1855

The Nez Perce participated in the Walla Walla Council alongside the Cayuse, Umatilla, Walla Walla, and Yakama, and signed the Treaty of Walla Walla.

Eagle from the Light rejects new treaties

1855 - 1875

Eagle from the Light, chief of the non-treaty Lam'tama band, supported the non-treaty faction, refused to sign the treaties of 1855 and 1866, and moved part of his band away from the Salmon River in 1875.

Chief Lawyer leads the treaty faction

1863 - 1877

Chief Lawyer, son of Twisted Hair, became a prominent leader of the treaty faction and defended the controversial 1863 treaty, believing resistance to U.S. power was futile.

The 1863 treaty reduces Nez Perce lands

1863

A treaty in 1863 cut the Nez Perce off from most of their horticultural sites throughout the Camas Prairie and removed nearly 90 percent of their lands. Nimíipuu later called it the “Thief Treaty” or “Steal Treaty.”

Nez Perce divide over reservation relocation

1870 - 1877

Under pressure from European Americans, the Nez Perce split between those who accepted coerced relocation to a reservation and those who refused to surrender fertile lands in Washington and Oregon.

Image source: Nez Perce War

Nez Perce divide over reservation relocation

Treaty faction accepts a reservation

1877

Nez Perce people willing to move to a reservation made a treaty in 1877, deepening the division with non-treaty bands.

Nez Perce War

Alpowai war leader Eelekt becomes a casualty

1877

Eelekt, leader of the non-treaty Alpowai band and a war leader whose following did not exceed 40 men, was killed during the tribe’s final battle with the U.S. Army.

Chief Joseph leads the Wallowa band

1877

Chief Joseph, also known as Young Joseph or Hinmatóoyalahtq'it, led the Wallowa band and became the best-known leader of the non-treaty Nez Perce during their struggle to retain their identity.

Non-treaty Nez Perce begin their flight

Jun 15, 1877

Chief Joseph, Looking Glass, White Bird, Ollokot, Lean Elk, and Toohoolhoolzote led about 750 men, women, and children in an attempt to reach a peaceful sanctuary.

Ollokot is killed at Snake Creek

Oct 4, 1877

Ollokot, Chief Joseph’s younger brother and war chief of the Wallowa band, was killed while fighting at the final battle on Snake Creek near the Bear Paw Mountains.

Image source: Battle of Bear Paw

Ollokot is killed at Snake Creek

Nez Perce surrender at Bear Paw

Oct 5, 1877

A majority of the surviving non-treaty Nez Perce were forced to surrender after the Battle of the Bear Paw Mountains in Montana, about 40 miles from the Canada–United States border.

Chief Joseph addresses Washington officials

Jan 1879

Chief Joseph traveled to Washington, D.C., to meet with the president and Congress. His account of the Nez Perce struggle was subsequently published in the North American Review.

Key Facts

  1. The Nez Perce call themselves Nimiipuu, meaning "the people," and have ancestral homelands across parts of present-day Idaho, Oregon, and Washington.
  2. The Nimiipuu assisted the Lewis and Clark Expedition during its winter stay among them in 1805–1806.
  3. The 1855 Treaty of Walla Walla established a large Nez Perce reservation, but the 1863 treaty greatly reduced its size and intensified disagreements over land.
  4. In 1877, conflict between some Nez Perce bands and the United States Army led to the Nez Perce War and a difficult 1,170-mile retreat toward Canada.
  5. Chief Joseph became widely known for his leadership during the 1877 conflict, while the Nez Perce continue to preserve their language, traditions, sovereignty, and cultural identity.

Source

This Nez Perce History timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

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