"The eloquent leader of the Nez Perce tribe led his people with unparalleled grace and dignity in the face of the permanent loss of their homeland.
Chief Joseph was born in 1840 in the Wallowa Valley of northeast Oregon. His birth name, Hin-mah-too-yah-lat-kekt, means Thunder Rolling Down the Mountain.
He was known as Joseph the Younger, sharing the name Joseph with his father, who was known as Joseph the Elder.
The Nez Perce, under the leadership of Joseph the Elder, had maintained a peaceful relationship with whites, but that peace was about to end.
Joseph the Elder was one of the first Nez Perce to convert to Christianity. He helped the federal government set up reservation boundaries. But after gold was found on reservation land, the government took millions of acres that had been promised to the Nez Perce.
Angry at the betrayal, Joseph the Elder denounced the government, refusing to sign the new “treaty” and refusing to move. Upon his death in 1871, he told his son to never give up their ancestral land. As the new leader of the Nez Perce the 31 year-old Joseph inherited a situation that went from bad to worse."
Get the Story:CHIEF JOSEPH - THE PEACEMAKER (The New York Post 5/30) Relevant Links:
Nez Perce Tribe - http://www.nezperce.org Related Stories:
Nez Perce Chair: Responding to rumors about Oregon (05/04)
Man pulls deal over Old Chief Joseph gravesite (03/23)
State to buy land near Old Chief Joseph gravesite (3/13)
Editorial: Save Nez Perce burial site from desecration (09/14)
Tribes blast development at sacred site in Oregon (9/9)
Nez Perce Tribe buys nearly 1,000 acres in Oregon (08/05)
Nez Perce Tribe vows to stop housing near cemetery (02/19)
Housing approved near Nez Perce cemetery (02/13)
Commentary: Unthinkable desecration of grave (2/12)
Debate continues on housing near Nez Perce gravesite (02/05)
Nez Perce gravesite threatened by development (2/2)
Appeals seek to protect Old Chief Joseph's grave (01/08)
Developer wants to build near Old Chief Joseph's grave (12/12)
