Kalispel "Camas People," from the name of an important plant food. They are also known as the Pend d’Oreilles, French for "ear drops," a term referring to the Indians’ personal adornment. These people were grouped aboriginally into two divisions, lower (Kalispel proper) and upper.
Location In the eighteenth century, the Kalispel lived around Pend d’Oreille Lake and River. Today, most live on their reservation in Pend Oreille County, Washington. Kalispels also live on the Colville and Flathead Reservations.
Population The eighteenth-century Kalispel population was approximately 1,600. In 1990, some 250 Kalispels lived on reservations and in regional cities and towns.
Language Kalispels spoke a dialect of Interior Salish.
Historical Information
History Like other Salish peoples, the Kalispel probably came from British Columbia. The upper division may have moved east and south onto the plains of Montana before the Blackfeet pushed them back, in the eighteenth century, to the Pend d’Oreille Lake region. They especially joined with other Plateau groups to hunt buffalo and organize war and raiding parties after the introduction of the horse.
The North West Trading Company opened a trading post in Kalispel country in 1809. The first Catholic mission opened in 1846 and relocated in 1854 with the Upper Kalispels to the Lake Flathead area. Kalispels were forced into a major land cession in 1855, and the upper division was assigned to the Flathead Reservation, in Montana, but the lower division refused to relocate, asking instead for a reservation of their own. They remained relatively isolated until 1863, when the British Columbia gold rush brought many miners through their territory.
In 1887, one of the two Lower Kalispel bands moved to the Flathead Reservation. The other, under Marcella, remained in the Pend d’Oreille Valley. Their reservation was created by executive order in 1914: It consisted of 4,629 acres, of which only 150 acres of tribal land remained after individual allotments and white encroachments. The tribe was awarded $3 million in land claims settlements in 1960, and another $114,000 in 1981.
Religion Individuals obtained guardian spirits in dreams and visions to provide them with luck and success. Boys began vision quests around the onset of puberty with fasting and praying. Shamans’ powerful spirits let them cure illness, see the future, and influence hunting. To honor their spirits, men sang their spirit songs and danced during a midwinter festival. The Kalispel also celebrated other, food-related festivals.
Government In the eighteenth century there were two geographical divisions, Upper Pend d’Oreilles and Lower Pend d’Oreilles, or Kalispelem. The latter were further divided into Lower Kalispel (Kalispel proper), Upper Kalispel, and Chewelah (perhaps a separate tribe). Each division was composed of related families and was led by a chief selected on the basis of merit. Later, a tribal chief presided over a council made up of the band chiefs.
Customs Games almost always included gambling. Marriage was usually monogamous. People cultivated some tobacco. The dead were dressed in robes, sewn in blankets, temporarily placed on a platform, and then buried. Their possessions were given away, and their names were never spoken again.
Dwellings The basic structure was semiexcavated and cone shaped, built of mat and earth covering a wood frame. A larger one was used for communal and ceremonial use, and smaller ones, holding one to three families, for living. Kalispels also built cedar-bark lodges and temporary brush shelters. Decorated hide tipis replaced mat dwellings during the eighteenth century.
Diet Fish was the staple, especially trout, salmon, and whitefish. Important plant foods included camas (from which the Indians made a distinctive bread), bitterroot, other roots, and berries. Some buffalo hunting took place on the Plains after the eighteenth century; other important animal foods included antelope, deer, elk, and small game. Most food was boiled with hot stones in baskets.
Key Technology In addition to the usual Plateau technological items, Kalispels specialized in making white pine canoes, birch-bark baskets, and woven skin bags.
Trade Kalispels traded for smoked salmon and other items with people from the west.
Notable Arts Artistic expression was found mainly in basketry.
Transportation The Kalispel were masters of their white pine canoes. The lower division had distinctive low-riding canoes to meet the winds on Pend d’Oreille Lake. Although they were excellent horsemen, they had relatively few horses, even in the mid-nineteenth century.
Dress Most clothes were made from rabbit or deer skins. Men wore breechclouts and shirts, and women wore dresses. Both wore moccasins, caps, robes, leggings, and shell earrings.
War and Weapons The Kalispel were generally peaceful, although they were occasionally allied with the Spokan against the Kootenai.
Contemporary Information
Government/Reservations The Kalispel Reservation (1914) is located in Pend Oreille County, Washington. It contains 4,557 acres; the 1990 Indian population was 91. The tribal charter and constitution were approved in 1938. The Kalispel Indian Community is descended from Lower Kalispels.
Some Kalispel also live on the Salish-Kootenai Reservation, Montana, as well as on the Colville Reservation, Washington (see Colville; Salish).
Economy Tribal businesses include Kalispel Caseline, Kalispel Agricultural Enterprise, and Kalispel Tribal Bingo. Grazing also provides some income. Other projects, such as a tribal store and a fish and game business, are under consideration. The Kalispel are also attempting to reacquire several thousand acres of land. Income levels on the reservation are chronically low.
Legal Status The Kalispel Indian Community is a federally recognized tribal entity.
Daily Life Kalispels are trying to remain economically competitive into the twenty-first century while retaining their tribal identity. Kalispel Powwow Days are held in August.
