The Yakama Indian Reservation is a United States Indian reservation located on the east side of the Cascade Mountains in southern Washington. It is the homeland of the Yakama tribe of American Indians.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the reservation covers 2,185.94 square miles (5,661.56 km²) and the population in 2000 was 31,799. It lies primarily in the Yakima and the northern edge of Klickitat counties, however, a tiny section crosses the southeast corner of Lewis County as well. The largest city on the reservation is Toppenish.
The reservation was created in 1855 by a treaty signed by Washington Territory Gov. Isaac Stevens and representatives of the Yakama tribe. A dispute over the treaty led to the Yakima War (1855–1858).
Famous quotes containing the words indian and/or reservation:
“Our Indian said that he was a doctor, and could tell me some medicinal use for every plant I could show him ... proving himself as good as his word. According to his account, he had acquired such knowledge in his youth from a wise old Indian with whom he associated, and he lamented that the present generation of Indians “had lost a great deal.””
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Music is so much a part of their daily lives that if an Indian visits another reservation one of the first questions asked on his return is: “What new songs did you learn?””
—Federal Writers’ Project Of The Wor, U.S. public relief program (1935-1943)