Q is for quell

For a few months in 1877 and 1,170 miles throughout Idaho, Oregon and Montana, the United States Army pursued and fought several bands of Nez Perce as they fought a brilliant move across much of Idaho. The object of the US Army's campaign was to quell one of the last Indian uprisings in the still young United States. The route of this 1877 Nez Perce rebellion, went through Middle Fork country and crossed some of the same paths that Lewis and Clark had used 70+ years earlier. The Nez Perce came through Lemhi Pass and asked Sacajawea's tribe for help. It was not given and the Nez Perce moved on through the Lemhi Valley and into history, following several battles and ending just short of the Canadian border, where Chief Joseph is said to have made his speech ending in "..from where the sun now stands I will fight no more forever.."

A sad tale and many would say shameful, viewed through the prism of today's sensibilities. For me, it is yet one more example of cultures not understanding each other. The differences are phenomenal. One content to survive, the other culture aggressive and hard charging, believing in manifest destiny and having no respect for those already occupying the land in question.

Clearly the USA's current notion of democracy building started early, right here on this continent, with our ancestors clearly expecting everyone to obey the 1800's version of "..my way or the highway..". Lots of wrong in what was done to Native America. No do-overs either. Nothing to be proud of, yet most would say that the end justifies the means. I guess that depends on who you ask.

L is for Lolo and Lost Trail

Lolo Pass and Lost Trail Pass are two more of the many places and spaces in the fictional world inhabited by Cale and Lane and Dana as River and Ranch morphs into New Grass Growing.

They are real world spots as well. The Lewis and Clark expedition is the easy spot to start. They first climbed Lemhi Pass and looked down into Idaho. They then followed the Lemhi river/valley to its confluence with the Salmon. From there they went downstream on the Salmon, a bit excited thinking they had found a northwest passage. Disappointed in that, they ultimately climbed the Idaho side of Lost Trail Pass and looked north into Montana's Bitterroot Valley. Ultimately, they moved north down the valley to what is now known as Lolo and again turned west ascending to Lolo Pass and then down the Lochsa and onto history.

I can only imagine what this expedition faced on a daily basis. The wild tangles they encountered, the blowdowns and understory, must have been immense. At times they likely were able to stay on trails somewhat established by the natives and/or animals, but still relative to the highways of today, traveling the area back in 1805 was not for the faint of heart, not for those wanting lots of daily mileage.

This part of the world remains my favorite part of flyover country to this day, well worth visiting and moving through by any means available.

J is for Japanese Internment Camp

The existence of a WWII era Japanese Internment Camp near Kooskia, Idaho was one of the big surprises unearthed in researching River and Ranch. This is reality not fiction. While little remains to mark the camp's footprint near Canyon Creek's entry into the Lochsa River, there remains an historical record of this camp, the men that were detained and the work they did on a stretch of Highway 12 leading up to Lolo Pass.

The University of Idaho has done work both on the site as well as in written archives putting together a story of this unfortunate piece of U.S. history. This camp near Kooskia and the men that worked there, were somewhat unique amongst all of the internment camps. They were aware of their rights according to the 1929 Geneva Convention. They organized themselves a bit and file a grievance and surprisingly the INS responded.

From most accounts the camp warden, Merrill Scott was a just man, maybe even a bit on the kind side. He acknowledged their grievances and fixed them. The result was a group of men, mostly non-citizen residents of the U.S. who were mostly happy to work. Records show that some of the men had even volunteered to come to this camp, because unlike Minidoka and other internment camps, there was work to be done here, building Highway 12 up the length of the Lochsa. The men were paid about 50 dollars each month and had something to do besides while away the hours in a confined setting.

The Densho Encyclopedia has the most complete record of this internment camp that I found while researching this bit of WWII-era Lochsa history.