Flathead Tribes

Alternate Names: Bitter Root Salish Ancestral homeland: Western Montana and parts of northern Idaho, British Columbia, and Wyoming

Brief History
The first recorded contact between the Flathead or Salish Tribe and non-Indian explorers occurred in 1806 when the Lewis and Clark Expedition passed through what was later to become Montana.

After several requests were made made delegations from the tribe, the Catholics established a mission among the Flatheads in the Bitter Root Valley in the 1840s. That mission, called St. Mary's, closed in 1849, but another mission known as St. Ignatius was established in 1854.

Although Victor, the head chief of the Flathead, signed the Hellgate Treaty in 1855, the Flathead Tribe was allowed to remain in Bitter Root Valley until further surveys were made to determine if there was a better place for a reservation for the tribe, rather than assigning them to the Jocko Reservation.

In 1890, members of the Flathead Tribe were removed from the Bitter Root Valley to the Jocko Reservation, now known as the Flathead Reservation.

The allotment of land to members of the Flathead Tribe was begun in 1904. Following that allotment, nearly 1/2 million acres passed out of tribal ownership as surplus land.

Brief Timeline


 * 1806: Lewis and Clark Expedition made contact with the tribe
 * 1840-1846: Jesuit missionary - Father Pierre Jean de Smet - lived in the area
 * 1841: St. Mary's Mission established by Catholics in Bitter Root Valley
 * 1854: St. Ignatius Mission established on the Jocko River
 * 1855: Hell Gate Treaty ceded land in Montana and Idaho
 * 1872: Ceded additional land
 * 1890-1891: Removed from Bitter Root Valley to Jocko Reservation
 * 1980: population of Flathead Reservation 3,771

Reservations
The principle reservation occupied by the Flathead Indians is currently called the Flathead Reservation, formerly known as the Jocko Reservation, because of its location on the Jocko River in northern Montana.

The reservation includes land in Flathead, Lake, Missoula, and Sanders Counties in Montana

Additional References to the History of the Tribe and/or Band

 * Frederick Webb Hodge, in his Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico, gave a more complete history of the Flathead tribe, with estimations of the population of the tribe at various time periods.
 * The New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia online also includes some history of the Flatheads.
 * An interesting timeline of tribal history of the Flathead Tribe is also available online.

Tribal Headquarters
Confederated Salish &amp; Kootenai Tribes 42487 Complex Blvd. PO Box 278 Pablo, MT 59855 Ph. 406-675-2700 Toll free 888-835-8766 Fax 406-675-2806 Email - info@cskt.org

Agency Records
The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) Agency primarily responsible for this tribe is the Flathead Agency. The records kept by this agency include such things as correspondence, census records, land records, etc.

Land Records
Flathead Allotment Records, 1889 -- List of those signing consents for land transfer.

Montana Flathead Land Patents, 1908 -- Abstracts of names beginning A-D

Removal Records

Those who signed consents to be removed from the Bitter Root Valley to the Jocko Reservation in 1890 are included in a list taken from the book entitled Flathead Indians of Bitter Root Valley. An abstract of the list is also available online.

Treaties


 * 1855 October 17, Territory of Nebraska, Treaty with the Blackfeet
 * 1855 July 16, at Hell Gate in Bitter Root Valley,Treaty with Flatheads Etc.,

Vital Records


 * Flathead Agency, M595, births and deaths, 1924-1934, FHL Film: 576469 and births and deaths, 1927-1937, FHL Film: 576471. FHL Film: 576468 also includes supplemental rolls of the Flathead (Montana) Agency

Important Web Sites

 * Flathead Indian Reservation Wikipedia