Clackamas Indians

The Clackamas Indians are a band of Chinook of Native Americans who historically lived along the Clackamas River in the Willamette Valley, Oregon. Today, Clackamas people are enrolled in the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde Community of Oregon. In 1806, Lewis and Clark estimated their population to be 1,800. At the time the tribe lived in 12 villages located from the lower Columbia River to an area what is now called Oregon City. They resided towards the east side of the Willamette River. In February 1841, Reverend François Norbert Blanchet and Reverend Alvin F. Waller converted Clackamas Chief Popoh. The Clackamas signed a treaty in the fall of 1851, which Oregon Superintendent Anson Dart failed to ratify. They signed another treaty on January 10, 1855, which was ratified on March 3, 1855. The Clackamas were promised $2,500 worth of resources, but the United States only paid a fifth of what was owed.