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Puyallup Tribe - Washington (U.S.)

Native American

image by Jaume Ollé, 18 June 2001

The band
The flag

See also:

The Band

map image by Peter Orenski based on input from Don Healy

Puyallup Tribe - Washington

The original reservation was established by the Medicine Creek Treaty of 1854 and consisted of 1,280 acres. On 20 January 1856 the reservation was enlarged to 18,062 acres. The people raised wheat, oats and hay on natural meadows near tidal flats. The Puyallup's had a trade school for Indians of all tribes in 1906. The allotment of the reservation was finished in 1886.

The growing population of Tacoma caused citizens to seek removal of restrictions on allotted reservation lands. The first result by Congress was on August 19, 1890 authorized the sale of Puyallup Reservation tracts. Then on 3 March 3 1893 an act provided the commission to select and appraise portions of allotments that were not required for Indian homes and part of an agency tract that wasn't needed for school purposes. The land selected and appraised was arranged for their sale by public auction.

The 1893 statute provided the reservation land not sold would remain in Indian hands and not sold for ten years. After the ten years non-Indians could deal directly with the Indians. Half of the reservation was sold during this time.

The Tribe's constitution was approved by the secretary of the interior on 13 May 1936. The governing body is the Puyallup Tribal Council. In a suit on 20 February 20 1984 the United States Supreme Court upheld a U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that 12 acres taken over by the Port of Tacoma in 1950 belonged to the Puyallups. In February President George Bush signed a bill settling Puyallup tribal claims against federal government. The Tribe was paid $77.25 million.

The Flag

To show their sovereignty, the Puyallups use a white flag bearing their tribal seal in the center. The main element of that seal is the eagle, a recurring theme in the flags and seals of Tribes in the Northwest. On the seal of the Puyallups, the eagle, whose wings are outspread and pointing upward, is white with beak and talons shown in yellow. The talons rest on a base that represents either a branch or rock that is also depicted in white. Behind the eagle can be seen mountain of the Cascade Range towering above a landscape of conifer forests and a blue river. Surrounding the central device is a ring bearing the official name "Puyallup Tribe of Indians" in black. In addition to being used on flags, the seal has been reproduced on many other forms including blanket-like throws, one of which was displayed at a conference of the Associated Tribes of Northwest Indians in Portland, Oregon.

Information provided by: A Guide to the Indian Tribes of the Pacific Northwest, Pgs. 166-169; Copyright © 1986, 1992 by the University of Oklahoma Press.

© Donald Healy 2008
information provided by Peter Orenski, 28 January 2008