The Steilacoom Tribe, also Steilacoom Tribe of Indians, is an

unrecognized tribe Unrecognized tribes in the United States are organizations of people who claim to be historically, culturally, and/or genetically related to historic Native American Indian tribes but who are not officially recognized as Indigenous nations by the ...

based in Steilacoom,

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...

which claims descent from the historic

Steilacoom people The Steilacoom were a Native American tribe who lived in the Puget Sound area of Washington state in the United States. They were a Coast Salish people. Other tribes in the Puget Sound region include the Nisqually and Puyallup peoples. Name ...

. They are neither a

federally recognized tribe This is a list of federally recognized tribes in the contiguous United States of America. There are also federally recognized Alaska Native tribes. , 574 Indian tribes were legally recognized by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) of the United ...

, nor a

state-recognized tribe State-recognized tribes in the United States are organizations that identify as Native American tribes or heritage groups that do not meet the criteria for federally recognized Indian tribes but have been recognized by a process established under ...

History

Beginning in 1929, members embarked on an unsuccessful process of official recognition by the United States government, when they filed a petition in the Court of Claims, which they eventually dropped. In 1937, the Bureau of Indian Affairs suggested their members merge with the

Nisqually Indian Tribe The Nisqually Indian Tribe of the Nisqually Reservation is a federally recognized tribe of Nisqually people. They are a Coast Salish people of indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest. Their tribe is located in Washington (state), Washington. ...

. However, the Nisqually protested the deal, fearing the loss of their self-determination, as, at the time, the Nisqually were smaller in number. In 1951, the tribe was run by chairman Lewis Layton, an enrolled member of the

Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation The Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation is the federally recognized tribe that controls the Colville Indian Reservation, which is located in northeastern Washington, United States. It is the government for its people. The Confederate Tr ...

. In 1956, the tribe once again filed a claim under the Indian Claims Commission for the lands ceded during the treaty and won $9,246.32, however, they never accepted the money. They also filed for intervenor status during ''

United States v. Washington ''United States v. Washington'', 384 F. Supp. 312 (W.D. Wash. 1974), aff'd, 520 F.2d 676 (9th Cir. 1975), commonly known as the Boldt Decision (from the name of the trial court judge, George Hugo Boldt), was a legal case in 1974 heard in t ...

'' (a landmark fishing rights case) but were denied.

Leadership

The organization is run by a nine-member council, led by a chairperson. From 1975 until her death in 2006, Joan Ortez served as chairperson following the resignation of Lewis Layton.

Membership

According to their own claims, 90 percent of the membership descends from Steilacoom people during treaty times. However, a 2008 investigation by the

Bureau of Indian Affairs The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), also known as Indian Affairs (IA), is a United States federal agency within the Department of the Interior. It is responsible for implementing federal laws and policies related to American Indians and A ...

(BIA) found that "only three of them are documented descendants of persons described in 19th and early 20th century documents as Steilacoom Indians" with the remainder having Native ancestry from other sources. As of 1986, the group claimed about 615 members. As of 2003 there were 665 members, and as of 2008 there were 800 members.

Steilacoom Tribal Museum Association

The group formed the Steilacoom Tribal Museum Association,

501(c)(3) nonprofit organization A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of the 29 types of 50 ...

in 2019. They operate a museum, which contains a snack bar and café, and business office, both in Steilacoom.

Notes

References

Bibliography

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{{Lushootseed navbox Unrecognized tribes in the United States Cultural organizations based in Washington (state)