Yakima War
The Yakima War was a conflict that took place in the mid-1850s in the Columbia River valley of south-central Washington, primarily between the Yakama people and European American settlers. Tensions escalated following a gold rush in north-central Washington, leading to increased hostilities and mutual distrust between Indigenous tribes and white settlers. The war was ignited by a series of disagreements over land treaties, particularly the 1855 Walla Walla Council, where many tribes, including the Yakama, were pressured to cede their lands.
The conflict saw significant battles, beginning with an early defeat for U.S. forces at Toppenish Creek. Over the course of the war, several Indigenous tribes allied with the Yakama to resist encroachment by settlers. U.S. military responses escalated, culminating in further skirmishes and the establishment of military control over the region. By late 1856, a truce was reached, though tensions remained high, and the conflict effectively ended during a second Walla Walla Council. The Yakima War exemplifies the broader struggles faced by Indigenous peoples during periods of westward expansion in the United States.
Yakima War
Date: 1855-1856
Place: South-central Washington State
Tribes affected: Cayuse, Umatilla, Walla Walla, Yakima
Significance: A gold strike in north-central Washington caused a major influx of European gold seekers to encroach on the isolated territories of the Yakima tribe, leading to the Yakima War
The Yakimas lived in an area that was relatively isolated until the mid-nineteenth century—the Columbia River valley in south-central Washington. Conditions changed suddenly, however, when a gold strike in north-central Washington created an influx of white gold seekers. In general, relations between Indians and European-descended residents in the Northwest in the 1850’s were characterized by mutual suspicion and dislike, and the latest arrivals made things worse as isolated attacks and retaliations increased.
Isaac I. Stevens, the newly appointed governor of the new Northwest Territory, arrived in Olympia in 1853 to take over his duties. Stevens was determined to persuade all the tribes in the territory to give up their lands and accept being moved to reservations. He ordered his treaty commission secretary, James Doty, to organize a grand treaty council in the Walla Walla area. It was attended by about a thousand Yakimas, including Chief Kamiakin, and members of other area tribes and bands. There was a disagreement among the tribes as to whether to agree to the treaty, but most tribes finally did. Kamiakin was among those leaders who refused. A treaty was signed on June 9, 1855 at the Walla Walla Council. An Indian agent, Andrew Bolon, was killed by a band of Indians in Yakima country, however, and Major Granville O. Haller was sent to Yakima country from The Dalles. The purpose of his 102-man expedition was to avenge Bolon’s death.
The first major battle of the Yakima War occurred at the foot of Eel Trail on Toppenish Creek, where Haller and his forces suffered a substantial defeat. Following this skirmish a full-scale war erupted when several tribes joined with the Yakimas in order to drive the European Americans from their country. Major Gabriel Rains was ordered to avenge Haller’s defeat in Yakima country.
Rains’s forces pursued the Native Americans to Union Gap (near present-day Yakima). After the Yakimas escaped across the Yakima River, the Union forces proceeded to a nearby Catholic mission and razed it, believing that the mission’s Father Pandum had aided and abetted the Yakimas. During the spring of 1856 the fighting resumed with a Yakima attack at a blockade in the Cascades.
Colonel George Wright was in command of the Northwest forces at the time. Wright intensified the campaign against the Yakimas, and a truce was agreed upon in 1856. The volunteers who had participated in the Yakima campaign were dismissed, and with the construction of Fort Simcoe, the U.S. military established control of the Yakima Valley.
By September, 1856, Wright’s forces had established control of the area west of the Cascades. Since the original truce was not completely successful, a second Walla Walla Council was organized by Governor Stevens; he demanded unconditional surrender by the Native Americans. In spite of the fact that Chief Kamiakin and other band leaders did not participate, the 1855-1856 Yakima War was essentially terminated at the end of the second Walla Walla Council.