More than meets the eye
GRAND RONDE OFFERS ENTERTAINMENT, CULTURAL EXPERIENCES PHOTOS BY DEAN RHODES
By Dean Rhodes
Today, the tribeâs reservation and land holdings total more than 12,000 acres 16â Explore Polk County 2021
Spirit Mountain Casino may be the unincorporated community of Grand Rondeâs â and Oregonâs â most popular tourist destination since it is situated along a well-traveled route to the coast, but thereâs plenty more to Grand Ronde than meets the eye. Grand Ronde has a long and storied history. Tribal ancestors lived throughout the Willamette Valley, southern Oregon and the Oregon coast since time immemorial. They were moved to the Grand Ronde Reservation beginning in the 1850s after ceding most of what is now western Oregon to the federal government in seven ratified treaties. Remnants of the U.S. Army post that controlled access to and from the Grand Ronde Reservation now overlook the Tribeâs picturesque uyxat Powwow Grounds off Highway 22 (Hebo Road) at Fort Yamhill State Park. Federal recognition was stripped from the Tribe and it was terminated in 1954, but the Grand Ronde Tribe, through the hard work of Tribal members, friends and community allies,
saw the Tribe restored to federal recognition on Nov. 22, 1983. Today, the tribeâs reservation and land holdings total more than 12,000 acres and range from Rattlesnake Butte near Junction City to Kilchis Point on Tillamook Bay. However, the main reservation is situated in forestland just north of the Grand Ronde area. Though closed temporarily due to COVID-19, the tribeâs story is on display in the Chachalu Tribal Museum & Cultural Center, 8720 Grand Ronde Road, which opened in 2014. The center features an exhibit detailing the Tribeâs history and created a place to archive cultural artifacts. A second phase of construction created a large, permanent exhibition display space, work rooms for curating public exhibits, artifact processing, long-term storage for cultural archives and work rooms for Tribal research. The name Chachalu means âthe place of burnt timber,â in honor of what members of the Tualatin-Kalapuya Tribe named part of the See PAGE 18
A Special Publication of the Polk County Itemizer-Observer
