Northern Paiutes of the Malheur - by David H Wilson

About the Book

David H. Wilson Jr. recounts an epic story of the Northern Paiutes' resistance and adaptation as they faced settler colonization and governmental misappropriation of their land in Oregon Country from the early 1850s to the 1930s.

Book Synopsis

Finalist for the 2023 Oregon Book Award

In 1870 a twenty-six-year-old Paiute, Sarah Winnemucca, wrote to an army officer requesting that Paiutes be given a chance to settle and farm their ancestral land in Oregon Country. The eloquence of her letter was such that it made its way into Harper's Weekly. Ten years later, as her people languished in confinement as a result of the Bannock War, she convinced Secretary of the Interior Carl Schurz to grant the requests in her letter and to free the Paiutes as well. Schurz's decision unleashed a furious campaign of disinformation by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, cattlemen, and settlers, overturning Schurz's decision, sweeping truth aside, and falsely branding Paiute chief Egan as instigator of the war.

To this day histories of the Paiutes appear to be unanimous in their mistaken claim that Egan led his Paiutes into the Bannock War. Indian agents' betrayal of the people they were paid to protect saddled Paiutes with responsibility for a war that most opposed and that led to U.S. misappropriation of their land, their only source of life's necessities. With neither land nor reservation, Paiutes were driven more deeply into poverty and disease than any other Natives of that era. In Northern Paiutes of the Malheur David H. Wilson Jr. pulls back the curtain to reveal what government officials hid--exposing the full jarring injustice and, after 140 years, recounting the Paiutes' true and proud history for the first time.

Review Quotes

"In this searing and painstakingly researched account, Wilson challenges the accepted story of [the Paiutes'] exile . . . and argues persuasively that they were victims . . . of a misinformation campaign whose effects have lasted more than a century."--The New Yorker-- (9/19/2022 12:00:00 AM)

"Portland author David H. Wilson Jr. spent eight years hiking and rafting Oregon's high desert, meeting with descendants of the Paiutes, and researching primary sources to untangle the causes of a tragedy as infuriating in its own way as the Cherokee Trail of Tears. The result is a chronicle that deserves to be recognized as a definitive work of Native American history."--Matt Buckingham, Willamette Week

"An outstanding text that flips the official narrative of the Bannock War and clears Egan."--Ethan Gauthier, Pacific Northwest Quarterly

"Northern Paiutes of the Malheur fills a historical gap with a meticulously researched, fascinating story of the survival of a small band of Indians who wanted to go home--and eventually did. . . . David H. Wilson Jr. does extremely well in describing personalities and backgrounds of leading characters in the story, bringing them to life as real people, not dull figures from a history book. He also excels at placing events in context of some of the cultural and social movements that affected Indian policy."--Roberta Ulrich, author of American Indian Nations from Termination to Restoration, 1953-2006

"Northern Paiutes of the Malheur is a beautiful book, one that seeks to finally deliver the justice the Northern Paiute were due after the war and never received. . . . Wilson adroitly balances the refutation of previous scholarship with the strength of his own, and it is a book that will help shape future interpretations of the short but devastating Bannock War."--Katrina Phillips, H-Environment

"David H. Wilson Jr.'s beautifully written book tells the story of the Northern Paiutes in their historical lands of southeastern Oregon. The Paiutes had learned to survive in this harsh and spectacular landscape in ways that were antithetical to the manifest destiny drive of dominant society. Warfare and persecution of the Paiute people was justified by the long-standing lies of self-serving Indian agents. Wilson shines truth on this sad yet amazing story."--Jim Scott, founder of the Foundation for Community Vitality in Montana

"Fascinating. . . . Extensively researched and carefully documented, Northern Paiutes of the Malheur is essential reading for anyone interested in Native American history of the Northwest."--Steven Lubet, author of The "Colored Hero" of Harper's Ferry: John Anthony Copeland and the War against Slavery

"In Northern Paiutes of the Malheur David Wilson captures the untold story of Chief Egan and our people, fulfilling the wish of my grandfather Hubert Egan for the true story of the Paiutes, hidden for almost a century and a half, to be revealed at last."--Nancy Egan, direct descendant of Chief Egan and representative of the Egan family

"In this well-researched and meticulously argued history of the Northern Paiutes who were involved in the 1878 Bannock War, David Wilson constructs an ethnographic record of what transpired before and during that war."--Sondra Cosgrove, Nevada Historical Society Quarterly

"Wrong was done to the Paiutes--it's as simple as that--and the passion David Wilson puts into telling their story comes through more powerfully for the restrained and careful way he tells it. This will be a book of lasting value for its contributions to the history of the West and for its simple, elegant prose, which is a western artifact of its own. Both authoritative and exciting to read, this is an excellent piece of work."--Ian Frazier, best-selling author of Great Plains and On the Rez and two-time winner of the Thurber Prize

About the Author

David H. Wilson Jr. grew up in Northern Ohio, but after months of canoeing in far northern Canada he left Ohio for the readily accessible wilderness of Oregon. He practiced employment law for thirty-five years and taught law as an adjunct at three law schools. Decades of exploring the mountains and waters east of the Cascade Mountains sparked a curiosity about those who preceded him to this remarkable land. The result, eight years later, is Northern Paiutes of the Malheur.