Chief Joseph and the Nez Percé

· Call themselves Nimi'ipuu, which means the "real people" or "we the people"

· Lived in Idaho for thousands of years before the coming of the Europeans

· Also lived on the Oregon side of the canyon, in a valley in the shadow of the Wallowa Mountains

· Were the largest ethnic group in the Columbia Plateau

· Scattered villages in the Plains west of the Rocky Mountains

· Fishing for salmon and gathering roots and berries, later hunting buffalos

· Got horses in the mid 1700's and quickly became known for excellent horsemanship

· Bred a special colourful horse which is today called Appaloosa (got their name from the Palouse Valley in Oregon)

· Owned the largest horse herd on the continent

· 1803 President Jefferson decided to buy t he Louisiana Territory from France

· He asked to explore this vast territory and the Corps of Discovery lead by Captain Meriwether Lewis and Captain William Clark started their famous exploration of the Pacific Northwest

· In 1805 Lewis and Clark visited the Nez Percé and were welcomed with great hospitality

· All the tribes fought against this plan so the Nez Percé were allowed to stay in their own territory, on the condition that they leave nearly 13 million acres to the U.S. government

· Currently (as of January 2002) the enrolment for the Nez Perce Tribe is 3,296

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