Teachers workshop focuses on history of Kalispel tribe, fur trade

A workshop for teachers coming up on Wednesday, June 24 in Hope, Idaho will cover the history of the Kalispel Tribe, North West Company fur agent David Thompson and the regional fur trade.

Continuing education credit is available for teachers in Montana, Idaho and Washington.

Exactly 200 ago this summer, Canada’s North West Company pushed south from the lower Kootenai River with the intention of establishing a fur trade presence among the closely related tribes who lived around Lake Pend Oreille and the Clark Fork, Flathead and Pend Oreille rivers.

The leader of the expedition was agent and surveyor David Thompson, and his party of 16 men included French, Scot, Cree, and Iroquois names that would soon become familiar touchstones for the region.

Local envoys guided the newcomers around the north shore of what Thompson called Kullyspel Lake to an area of lush meadows between modern Hope, Idaho, and the delta of the Clark Fork River; there they joined an encampment made up of families from tribes that included Flathead, Coeur d’Alene, and Kootenai as well as Kalispel.

Thompson thought this gathering was exactly the kind of place where he wanted to build a trading post. After he and two tribal leaders scouted the Hope Peninsula for a favorable location, the North West Company voyageurs spent the next few weeks erecting a complex of buildings that Thompson called Kullyspel House, which initiated a permanent fur trade presence among the Salish-speaking tribes of the Interior Northwest.

An all-day teacher’s workshop will take place at the old Litehouse Restaurant in Hope. Morning sessions will focus on who Thompson was and how the British fur trade companies operated. In the afternoon, Kalispel elder Francis Cullooyah will speak about Kalispel history and culture. Throughout the day, experienced educators will provide guidance to applying the information to practical curriculum.

After the workshop, participants will partake in an evening voyageur canoe paddle from Hope to the vicinity of the original Kullyspel House site.

Due to limited space, pre-registration is required. The cost of the workshop, which includes lunch and dinner and the voyageur canoe paddle costs $50.

The workshop begins four days of events commemorating the David Thompson Bicentennial at Lake Pend Oreille. On June 25, a symposium at the Litehouse in Hope will feature presentations for the public, and on June 26-27, the Kalispel Tribe will host an encampment with classes on traditional skills, language and history at the Diamond T Ranch near Clark Fork.

For the registration form and more information visit www.DavidThompson200.org or contact Alana Mesenbrink at Libby Dam at 293-7751, ext. 252 or Alana.F.Mesenbrink@usace.army.mil .

For specific information on the teachers workshop and college credit available for Montana, Idaho and Washington teachers, call Heidi Wilkins at 208-305-7583 or send an e-mail to heidi@juicejam.com .