1957: Celilo Falls fishery, village destroyed by Dalles Dam
Five years earlier, the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers began building the Dalles Dam spanning the Columbia River. At 10 a.m. on March 10, 1957, its inch-thick reinforced steel gates crash shut, forcing a ferocious back flow that in 4½ hours floods everything in its way, including the site of the ancient village Celilo and the rocks from which tribal fishermen netted salmon. Yakama and Warm Springs fishing families are forced to relocate, away from the now-submerged river banks. A way of life is lost.
- Theme
- Federal-Tribal Relations, Land and Water
- Region
- Plateau
Native American catching a salmon at Celilo Falls on the Columbia River, ca. 1940s
Courtesy Washington State Historical Society
Native Americans dip net fishing for salmon at Celilo Falls on the Columbia River, ca. 1930s. The Oregon Trunk Railway Bridge from Wishram, Washington is visible in the background.
Courtesy Washington State Historical Society