Value Native Trout | Native Fish Keepers, INC.

No Fish Has Been More Crucial
to Our Wellbeing

No Fish Has Been More Crucial To Us

The Flathead Indian Reservation is home to three tribes: the Bitterroot Salish or Flathead, the Pend d’Oreille, and the Kootenai. The 1855 Hellgate Treaty, which established the Flathead Indian Reservation, provided for cession of tribal lands to the U.S. government in exchange for continued rights to fish, hunt, gather, and pasture on unoccupied lands and usual and accustomed places, exclusive use of a reservation, and various annuities, goods, and services, all to be provided by the federal government. It was the understanding of both Governor Stevens and the tribal leaders who signed the 1855 Treaty of Hellgate that the rights of the Flathead, Pend d’Oreille, and Kootenai to gather, hunt, and fish were reserved and protected by this Treaty, including exclusive rights to do so on the Reservation. Today, we continue to hunt, fish, and gather, and these activities remain at the heart of our spiritual and cultural practices.

We have always valued bull trout and other native fish. While many native fish species were important in our traditional diet, none was more crucial to our survival and wellbeing than bull trout (pictured at left and in the banner at the top of this page). This is because bull trout were abundant, easy to harvest at certain times of the year, and a protein-rich food and because bull trout were the largest of the native fish species. In short, they were an ideal food for sustaining us through Montana’s long, harsh winters. The fish’s importance is reflected in the fact that many traditional place-names within our aboriginal territory refer specifically to bull trout. In fact, there are more Salish place-names in western Montana describing bull trout than any other plant or animal.

Flathead Lake was especially important with respect to bull trout and westslope cutthroat trout. The Pend d’Oreille band that lived in the Flathead Lake area was known in the Salish language as “The People of the Broad Water”, after the name of the lake, which translates

as “Broad Water”. Lieutenant John Mullan, a member of Isaac Stevens’ exploratory party journals indicate that one of the reasons why the lake and river was such vibrant center for the Pend d’Oreille was “the abundance of [bull trout,] these most excellent fish” -- “one of the chief articles of food for the Pend d’Oreilles at this [spring] season.”

The importance of bull trout to us is evidenced today by the substantial efforts we have made to restore bull trout. And today, hunting and fishing remain one of the most important opportunities for our young people to learn about our culture, traditions, and history.

Native Fish Keepers Inc. plays a vital role in our effort to conserve and protect bull trout by reducing the numbers of non-native lake trout and lake whitefish. When you purchase our delicious fillets, you are not only purchasing one of the best eating freshwater fish available, you are helping us restore native trout populations in Flathead Lake.

GillnettersOnBoat

The Flathead Indian Reservation is home to three tribes: the Bitterroot Salish or Flathead, the Pend d’Oreille, and the Kootenai. The 1855 Hellgate Treaty, which established the Flathead Indian Reservation, provided for cession of tribal lands to the U.S. government in exchange for continued rights to fish, hunt, gather, and pasture on unoccupied lands and usual and accustomed places, exclusive use of a reservation, and various annuities, goods, and services, all to be provided by the federal government. It was the understanding of both Governor Stevens and the tribal leaders who signed the 1855 Treaty of Hellgate that the rights of the Flathead, Pend d’Oreille, and Kootenai to gather, hunt, and fish were reserved and protected by this Treaty, including exclusive rights to do so on the Reservation. Today, we continue to hunt, fish, and gather, and these activities remain at the heart of our spiritual and cultural practices.

We have always valued bull trout and other native fish. While many native fish species were important in our traditional diet, none was more crucial to our survival and wellbeing than bull trout (pictured at left and in the banner at the top of this page). This is because bull trout were abundant, easy to harvest at certain times of the year, and a protein-rich food and because bull trout were the largest of the native fish species. In short, they were an ideal food for sustaining us through Montana’s long, harsh winters. The fish’s importance is reflected in the fact that many traditional place-names within our aboriginal territory refer specifically to bull trout. In fact, there are more Salish place-names in western Montana describing bull trout than any other plant or animal.

Flathead Lake was especially important with respect to bull trout and westslope cutthroat trout. The Pend d’Oreille band that lived in the Flathead Lake area was known in the Salish language as “The People of the Broad Water”, after the name of the lake, which translates

as “Broad Water”. Lieutenant John Mullan, a member of Isaac Stevens’ exploratory party journals indicate that one of the reasons why the lake and river was such vibrant center for the Pend d’Oreille was “the abundance of [bull trout,] these most excellent fish” -- “one of the chief articles of food for the Pend d’Oreilles at this [spring] season.”

The importance of bull trout to us is evidenced today by the substantial efforts we have made to restore bull trout. And today, hunting and fishing remain one of the most important opportunities for our young people to learn about our culture, traditions, and history.

Native Fish Keepers Inc. plays a vital role in our effort to conserve and protect bull trout by reducing the numbers of non-native lake trout and lake whitefish. When you purchase our delicious fillets, you are not only purchasing one of the best eating freshwater fish available, you are helping us restore native trout populations in Flathead Lake.

GillnettersOnBoat

The Flathead Indian Reservation is home to three tribes: the Bitterroot Salish or Flathead, the Pend d’Oreille, and the Kootenai. The 1855 Hellgate Treaty, which established the Flathead Indian Reservation, provided for cession of tribal lands to the U.S. government in exchange for continued rights to fish, hunt, gather, and pasture on unoccupied lands and usual and accustomed places, exclusive use of a reservation, and various annuities, goods, and services, all to be provided by the federal government. It was the understanding of both Governor Stevens and the tribal leaders who signed the 1855 Treaty of Hellgate that the rights of the Flathead, Pend d’Oreille, and Kootenai to gather, hunt, and fish were reserved and protected by this Treaty, including exclusive rights to do so on the Reservation. Today, we continue to hunt, fish, and gather, and these activities remain at the heart of our spiritual and cultural practices.

We have always valued bull trout and other native fish. While many native fish species were important in our traditional diet, none was more crucial to our survival and wellbeing than bull trout (pictured at left and in the banner at the top of this page). This is because bull trout were abundant, easy to harvest at certain times of the year, and a protein-rich food and because bull trout were the largest of the native fish species. In short, they were an ideal food for sustaining us through Montana’s long, harsh winters. The fish’s importance is reflected in the fact that many traditional place-names within our aboriginal territory refer specifically to bull trout. In fact, there are more Salish place-names in western Montana describing bull trout than any other plant or animal.

Flathead Lake was especially important with respect to bull trout and westslope cutthroat trout. The Pend d’Oreille band that lived in the Flathead Lake area was known in the Salish language as “The People of the Broad Water”, after the name of the lake, which translates

as “Broad Water”. Lieutenant John Mullan, a member of Isaac Stevens’ exploratory party journals indicate that one of the reasons why the lake and river was such vibrant center for the Pend d’Oreille was “the abundance of [bull trout,] these most excellent fish” -- “one of the chief articles of food for the Pend d’Oreilles at this [spring] season.”

The importance of bull trout to us is evidenced today by the substantial efforts we have made to restore bull trout. And today, hunting and fishing remain one of the most important opportunities for our young people to learn about our culture, traditions, and history.

Native Fish Keepers Inc. plays a vital role in our effort to conserve and protect bull trout by reducing the numbers of non-native lake trout and lake whitefish. When you purchase our delicious fillets, you are not only purchasing one of the best eating freshwater fish available, you are helping us restore native trout populations in Flathead Lake.

GillnettersOnBoat

No Fish Has Been More Crucial to Our Wellbeing

No Fish Has Been More Crucial To Us

No Fish Has Been More Crucial
to Our Wellbeing