Whitman Massacre

The Whitman Massacre

On November 29, 1847 Dr. Marcus Whitman, his wife Narcissa, and 15 other were killed by by Cayuse and Umatilla Indians that had previously lived at Waiilatpu, the mission founded by the Whitmans. Chief "Beardy" tried vainly to stop the massacre, but did not succeed. He was found crying while riding towards the Waiilatpu Mission.

Causes

The primary causes of this massacre were

• Many indians had died from outbreaks of cholera and measles.
• The indians disliked Mrs. Narcissa Whitman because she showed contempt for the Indians and their way of life.
• The missionaries were trying to permanently change the Indians' way of life.
• The killing of a Walla Walla chief's son.

In 1836, Marcus Whitman, Henry Spalding, and their wives crossed the Rockies. With the help of Dr. John McLoughlin (but against his advice), they set up at Waiilatpu, near Fort Walla Walla, and only six miles from the present day city of Walla Walla, Washington.

Among the many new arrivals at Waiilatpu in 1847 was Joe Lewis. Bitter from his what he perceived to be maltreatment that he had received in the East, he attempted to spread discontentment among the local Cayuse, hoping to create a situation in which he could ransack the Whitman Mission. He told the Cayuse that Dr. Whitman, who was attempting to save them from a measles epidemic (for which they lacked immunity) was, in fact, not trying to save them but instead was deliberately poisoning them. Indians often killed their medicine man, or shaman, if patients died. It is probable that the Cayuse and Umatilla held Dr. Whitman responsible for the numerous deaths.

On November 19, Tilaukait, Tomahas, Kiamsumpkin, Iaiachalakis, and Klokomas, enraged by the talk of Joe Lewis, attacked Waiilatpu. Elizabeth Spalding's daughter was staying at Waiilatpu when the massacre occurred. Luckily, Eliza was returned to her parents by Peter Skein Ogden, an official of Hudson's Bay Company. Dr. Whitman was dismembered and mangled beyond recognition. Although fatally wounded, he lived for several hours after the attack, mostly unconscious.

Those killed that day include Dr. Marcus Whitman, Narcissa Whitman, Andrew Rogers, Jacob Hoffman, L. W. Sanders, Mr. Marsh, John Sager, Nathan Kimball, Isaac Gilliland, James Young, Frank Sager, Crockett Blewley and Amos Sales.

Another 54 women and children were captured and held for ransom, including the daughter of Jim Bridger and the Sager orphans. Peter Ogden arranged for an exchange of sixty-two blankets, sixty-three cotton shirts, twelve Hudson Bay rifles, six hundred loads of ammunition, seven pounds of tobacco and twelve flints for the return of the prisoners. The Hudson's Bay Company never billed the American settlers for the ransom, nor was payment ever offered.

On June 3, 1850, Tilaukait, Tomahas, Kiamasumpkin, Iaiachalakis, and Klokomas were hanged for their roles in the massacre after a lengthy trial by newly appointed Territorial Marshall Joseph Meek.

Many people think of the Whitmans as an inspirational legacy; another view is that they lacked respect for the Cayuse and Umatilla, held fanatical veiws on Indian religion, and made no efforts to understand the Indians.

This massacre shocked the U.S. Congress into action concerning the future territorial status of Oregon. The Oregon Territory was finally established on August 14, 1848.

Elizabeth Spalding and Narcissa Whitman were the first American women in Oregon Country.