Sinixt - Grand Coulee Dam

Grand Coulee Dam

Until the construction of Grand Coulee Dam, the Lower Sinixt continued to fish in their traditional manner at Kettle Falls. They continued to elect a Salmon Chief. They fished with baskets on poles that caught the salmon who were not strong enough to clear the falls, and also with spears that had detachable tips, like a harpoon. Reyes sees this as the end of the traditional life of the Colville and Lakes: "After the concrete was poured into the steel framework to form the base of the dam, the great salmon runs ended. … It brought to a close a great tradition that had existed for centuries. From that day on… there was always a shortage of food. The bands dispersed… the great days of the Sin-Aikst were over." A few years later, rising waters from the dam also engulfed the largely Sinixt community of Inchelium, Washington on the banks of the Columbia, which had to be relocated, further disrupting even remnants of their traditional way of life.