Vigilante Attack on Reservation Fishermen
A group of armed men harassed Indigenous fishers and opened fire on the reservation below Union Gap.
Some bad whites have been in the habit of raiding the Indians’ fish traps on the reservation below the gap. They made another raid last Sunday and, not finding any fish, insisted that the Indians should get them some. The latter disclaimed having any, and the whites, after threatening, finally pulled their revolvers and commenced shooting. It is claimed fifteen shots were fired, one of which took effect in the fleshy part of an Indian’s arm. All of the shooting was done by the whites. Warrants are out for the arrest of the shooters.
“The whites, after threatening, finally pulled their revolvers and commenced shooting.”
This violent incident highlights the ongoing dispossession and lawlessness faced by the Yakama people during the late 19th century, when settlers frequently treated reservation land and resources as their own. It underscores the racial tension that defined the frontier, where vigilante violence against Indigenous individuals often went unpunished or faced indifference from local courts.
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