David G. Lewis

Tribal Histories of the Willamette Valley

WAF welcomes Professor David G. Lewis for the first time with his new book, Tribal Histories of the Willamette Valley, that includes photos, maps, historical documents, and oral stories all of which highlight Native perspectives. From the Ooligan Press, “In these stories…Oregon indigenous historian David G. Lewis combines years of the rich, unexplored history of the Willamette — riverbanks, forests, mountains, home to the tribes of Kalapuya, Chinook, Molalla, and more for thousands of years. THIS HISTORY HAS BEEN LARGELY UNRECORDED, incomplete, poorly researched, or partially told.” The book covers the first years of contact between settlers and tribes, the takeover of tribal lands, and creation of reserves by the U.S. government as well as boarding school assimilation efforts. It highlights the resiliency of Native peoples in the face of conquest and colonization — a true American story. David is a member of the Grand Ronde Tribe, Takelma, Chinook, Molalla, and Santiago Kalapuya who, besides being an educator at OSU, lives in Chemeketa (Salem). He also works as a consultant with experience in archival organization, museum development, exhibit curation, tribal ethno-historical research, tribal maps, and traditional ecological knowledge. You can learn more about and from him at The Quartux Journal: ndnhistoryresearch.com. WAF will welcome him on Saturday, December 7th. Please check the official signing schedule published by Bird Alliance of Oregon in case of change before you head out.