Qualchan

Qualchan (d. September 24, 1858) was a 19th century Yakama chieftain who participated in the Yakima War with his uncle Kamiakin and other chieftains. Shortly after the Walla Walla council in 1855, in which Yakama leaders warned the United States against further settlement of the area, Qualchan and five others killed six settlers on the Yakima River. On September 23, U.S. Indian Agent A.J. Bolon was murdered by a band of Yakama while traveling along The Dalles to discuss the incident with Kamiakin. Qualchan was accused of leading the group which attacked him, although historians such as A.J. Splawn insist Bolon's murder was carried out by Me-cheil, a nephew of Kamiakin. [Splawn, A.J. "Ka-mi-akin, last hero of the Yakimas", Portland, Or. : Kilham Stationery & Printing Co., 1917 (OCLC 1086645) p. 42]

Becoming a wanted fugitive by U.S. authorities, he and his father Owhi participated in guerilla warfare against the US Army for over three years. Qualchan would frequently attack prospectors, miners and others and selling their supplies to The Dalles and other settlements in exchange for weapons and calicos. [Ruby, Robert H. and John Arthur Brown. "Indians of the Pacific Northwest: A History". Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1981. (pg. 140-141) ISBN 0-8061-2113-0]

In mid-March 1856, he and Chief Leschi led an attack against Connell's Prairie but were driven back by militiamen under Gilmore Hays. [Lang, William L. "Confederacy of Ambition: William Winlock Miller and the Making of Washington Territory". Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1996. (pg. 95) ISBN 0-295-97502-4]

According to Assistant Adjutant General W.W. Mackall, "Kamiakin and Qualchan, cannot longer be permitted to remain at large or in the country, they must be surrendered or driven away, and no accommodation should be made with any who will harbor them; let all know that asylum given to either of these troublesome Indians, will be considered in future as evidence of a hostile intention on the part of the tribe". in a letter addressed to the Department of the Pacific at Fort Vancouver on June 18, 1858. [United States Congress. "The Executive Documents Printed by the Order of the House of Representatives During the Second Session of the Thirty-Fifth Congress, 1858-59". Washington: James P. Stedman, 1859. (pg. 365)]

Following the Horse Camp Slaughter, Owhi visited Colonel George Wright at his camp on Latah Creek intending to negotiate peace. During this meeting, he was apparently coerced into disclosing the location of his son's camp, then seized and put in irons. Wright then sent a message to Qualchan's camp threatening to hang his father in four days if he did not surrender.

What happened after this point is unclear, however Qualchan did eventually arrive at Wright's encampment. There are conflicting accounts: that he rode into camp alone, that he was with his father at the time of the his capture, [Egan, Timothy. "Breaking Blue". Seattle: Sasquatch Books, 2004. (pg. 43) ISBN 1-57061-429-6] or that he was accompanied by his wife Whist-alks and brother Lo-Kout. Some say he was captured in a brief gun battle while his wife and brother managed to escape. [Potucek, Martin. "Idaho's Historic Trails: From Lewis & Clark to Railroads". Caldwell, Indiana: Caxton Press, 2003. (pg. 69-70) ISBN 0-87004-432-X] [Hein, Teri. "Atomic Farmgirl: Growing Up Right in the Wrong Place". New York: Houghton Mifflin Books, 2003. (pg. 32-33) ISBN 0-618-30241-7] Qualchan's sister Mary Moses said Lo-kout and Qualchan's wife were captured, but released when the Spokane Indians assured the soldiers that they were no relation of Qualchan.

It has been speculated that Qualchan may have been unaware that his father had been taken prisoner and instead had been sent by Kamiakin to determine from Wright the treatment the Yakima would receive if they surrendered. The only record of the meeting exists in a report made by Colonel Wright who wrote "Qualchan came to see me at 9 o'clock, at 9:15 he was hung". His father was shot several days later attempting to escape from the camp. [Potomac Corral of the Westerners. "Great Western Indian Fights". Lincoln: University of Nebraska, 1966. (pg. 70) ISBN 0-8032-5186-6] [Winthrop, Theodore. "The Canoe and the Saddle: A Critical Edition". Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2006. (pg. 215) ISBN 0-8032-9863-3]

Legacy

* Qualchan had two younger brothers, Lo-kout (Quo-to-we-not) and Les-high-hite (Pe-noh), and several sisters: Wah-yah-kon, Quo-mollah, Sah-mah-yas, Si-en-wat, San-clow (Mary Moses) and Yam-kumkt. Chief Moses married Quo-mollah and, after her death, San-clow; the latter (surviving until 1939!) gave an account of these things in "Mary Moses's Statement."cite book
author=various
title=Mary Moses's Statement
publisher=Ye Galleon Press
year=1988|id=ISBN 0-87770-453-8]
* Latah Creek was known for several years as Hangman Creek as a result of Qualchan's execution, however an act from the Oregon state legislature changed the name back to Latah Creek. [Federal Writers' Project. "Washington: A Guide to the Evergreen State". Portland: Metropolitan Press, 1941. (pg. 420)]
* A popular golf course was built in the area where he was hanged, and named in his honor.
* Qualchan is featured in a short story by author Sherman Alexie.

References