Leschi (Nisqually) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Leschi
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Chief Leschi
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| Nisqually leader | |
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| Born | 1808 near present day Eatonville, Washington |
| Died | February 19, 1858 (aged 49-50) Lake Steilacoom, present-day Lakewood, Washington 47°10′43″N 122°32′31″W / 47.178575°N 122.542065°W |
| Cause of death | Execution by hanging |
| Resting place | Puyallup Tribal Cemetery – Tacoma, Washington 47°14′19″N 122°23′56″W / 47.2386°N 122.3989°W |
Chief Leschi (/ˈlɛʃaɪ/; 1808 – February 19, 1858) was a chief of the Nisqually Indian Tribe of southern Puget Sound, Washington, primarily in the area of the Nisqually River.
Following outbreaks of violence and the Yakima Wars (1855–1858), as a leader Leschi was charged with the killings of two Washington Territorial Volunteers. He was hanged for murder on February 19, 1858, although supporters argued that he could not be charged with murder in the death of a combatant in a recognized war. Leschi was informally exonerated in a non-legally binding ruling in 2004 by a Historical Court of Inquiry of Washington State, following a resolution by both houses of the legislature asking the State Supreme Court to vacate his conviction.
Life
Leschi was born 1808 into the Mishalpam (″Mashel River people″) or Mica'l Band of Upper (Mountain) Nisqually to a Nisqually chief and a Klickitat (X̣ʷáɬx̣ʷaypam - "Prairie People") woman of the Yakama (Mámachatpam). Their primary village site was Basha'labsh on Mashel River near present La Grande, Washington in what is today southern Pierce County, Washington. He also had an older brother, Quiemuth, and a sister. The Nisqually people (Squalli-Absch - "people of the grass") traditionally occupied a large area along the Nisqually River and its delta at the foot of Puget Sound, an area rich in fish and game. Leschi was respected by his people. The origin of Leschi's name is unknown. Leschi more than likely adopted it, and it may have been influenced by a distant relative, or he may have just enjoyed the sound of it.
Isaac Stevens, first governor of Washington Territory, appointed Leschi as chief in 1854 to represent the Nisqually and Puyallup tribes at the Medicine Creek Treaty council of December 26 of that year. Under pressure, the tribes ceded to the United States all or part of present-day King, Pierce, Lewis, Grays Harbor, Mason, and Thurston counties, agreeing to the requirement that the American Indians inhabiting the area move to reservations.
Some historians say that Leschi either refused to sign (and his "X" was forged by another) or signed under protest. The historical record is unclear on this point. He was reported as arguing that the territory designated as the reservation for the Nisqually tribe was a rocky piece of high ground unsuited to growing food and cut off from access to the Nisqually River, which had provided the salmon that was the mainstay of their diets and culture.
Legacy
In the late 1880s, developer Frederick J. Grant named the Leschi neighborhood in Seattle after the chief. Other places commemorate the chief by name: Leschi Park; schools in Seattle and Puyallup; and streets in Seattle, Lakewood, Steilacoom, Anderson Island, and Olympia, all bear his name. Additionally, the MOUT site at Joint Base Lewis-McChord is named Leschi Town in his honor. A fireboat of the Seattle Fire Department, Leschi, also bears his name.
In March 2004, both houses of the Washington state legislature passed resolutions stating that Leschi was wrongly convicted and executed, and asking the state supreme court to vacate Leschi's conviction. The court's chief justice, however, said that this was unlikely to happen. It was not clear that the state court had jurisdiction in a matter decided 146 years earlier in a territorial court. On December 10, 2004, Chief Leschi was informally exonerated by a unanimous vote by a Historical Court of Inquiry following a definitive trial in absentia. The exoneration was not legally binding.
Category
See also
In Spanish: Jefe Leschi para niños
