Heritage: 500 years ago until today

Modern Environment: 500 years ago until today

The last 500 years are actually part of the late Holocene. They are discussed as a distinct period because of the incredible amount and pace of change which has occurred since European expansion into North America. Although the first recorded contact between Native Americans and Europeans did not occur in the Blue Mountains until the early 1800's, many effects of European colonization were felt before this. One often discussed example is that of the horse, which was driven to extinction in America during the late Pleistocene, and was reintroduced to America by the Spanish in the 1500's. It has been estimated that the horse reached the Blue Mountains, by way of Indian traders, by the early 1700's, about a century before European people themselves. It is very likely that something much more widespread, disrupting and dangerous spread through all Indian tribes of North America well before this. European diseases decimated Indian groups several times after the arrival of Europeans in the Northwest. There is mounting evidence that waves of disease spread through Indian populations well before the advance of the colonists themselves. It is quite possible that major disruptions in traditional practices and beliefs occurred in response to these illnesses. It was not uncommon for mortalities caused by European diseases to run from 50 to 90 percent. People who did survive often were interrupted from their food gathering activities and suffered or starved as a result.

The climate, flora and fauna of the Malheur Forest over the last 500 years were similar to those of today. The only major changes are those which stem from European settlement. At this time the Malheur Forest is a mix of ponderosa pine, fir and mixed conifer forest stands with interspersed moist to dry meadows and riparian areas along streams. Sage, and some juniper, are found between the tree line and the grasses. Small older aged stands of aspen and willow are found near streams, marshes and springs. The climate is very pleasant in the spring and fall, with warm, sunny days and cool, clear nights. Large thunderheads can build along the mountains causing fires ignited by lightning and locally heavy rain and hail. In contrast the winters are bitterly cold with snow that often accumulates to a depth of several feet. In the valleys deer and antelope graze, along with cattle and horses. Eagles and hawks can been seen hunting mice, squirrels and rabbits. Several species of water and grassland birds use the forest including the sand hill crane.

How did the valley differ 500 years ago? Obviously there were no cattle or horses, but there may have been bison. There were also probably fewer deer and antelope primarily because there were more of their predators around, both animal and human. Cougars are still common today but the grey wolf and grizzly bear are locally extinct. The same birds and small mammals were probably around 500 years ago but there were most likely larger numbers of water birds and beaver. Before the introduction of grazing and draining of the wet lands the valleys probably had much more extensive marsh systems associated with them. Beavers probably maintained a number of pools and ponds on the streams. Aspen and willow stands would have been larger and healthier. Large fields of camas probably covered some valley floors and were a major attraction for Native Americans. Frequent fires, often of human origin, kept the meadow grasses healthy and reduced the amounts of sage and juniper. These fires also kept pine stands open so that "you could drive a car from Seneca to Burns in the woods." On higher elevations and north facing slopes, where the increased moisture kept fires small, the understory tended to be thicker and included mountain mahogany and wild cherry.

Today the timbered ridges, mountains and rolling hills of the Malheur Forest are composed of stands of ponderosa pine, lodgepole pine, fir and tamarack. Remnant stands of spruce, white bark pine and cedar exist mainly at high elevations and in sheltered locales. Stands tend to be heavily stocked except where timber harvest, thinning or fire have reduced them. Diseases and insect mortality have killed off much of these stands leaving large numbers of dead standing and down wood debris. This mortality is particularity heavy in thick stands with heavy understories. These stands of timber are a major component of the "forest health crisis" we have in the Blue Mountains today. Are these thick stands of timber with heavy understories and large quantities of dead and dying trees in the "range of historic variation?" In other words, was this same situation present 500, 400, or even 200 years ago? The answer to this is a simple yes, and no.

Historical research, primarily review of explorers and settlers accounts, early survey notes, newspaper accounts and old photographs, demonstrates that between 1830 and 1930 conditions similar to the current situation did occur but seemingly on a much less massive scale. Descriptions include examples of stands so thick with dead fir or lodgepole that they were almost impossible to cross. Places that fit these descriptions tended to be on the more inaccessible slopes, especially those with northern exposures. It seems that the current problems existed but on a smaller scale. More research needs to be completed but indications are that the forest was composed of a mosaic of stand types and conditions except near major meadows and grasslands. The Indians maintained grasslands and associated ponderosa pine forests in an "open park-like setting" through their use of fire. It is possible that before their population was severely reduced by disease, which most certainly began before 1830, that even more forest lands were so managed by the Indians. It seems that the primary cause of our current "forest health crisis" is the intense reduction in the number and size of forest fires, both naturally ignited, and those set by humans. This has allowed extreme crowding of the stands which encourage infestation by insects and disease. These always existed but they used to affect only certain parts of the patchwork mosaic of stand types in a healthy forest. Now they are effecting entire regions, like the Blue Mountains. To make matters more complex, fire can not be easily reintroduced because the heavy fuel loads from many years of fire suppression could cause catastrophically hot fires which might sterilize the soil and lead to severe erosion.

The effects of historic grazing and logging on the soils of the valley and surrounding forests are not well understood but there is a general consensus that these practices led to erosion of some extent. This is a problem of primary concern for archaeologists because the condition of an archaeological site is heavily dependent on the condition of the soils which make up the site. Sites which have been severely eroded will have all artifacts from all periods of time lumped together so that it will be virtually impossible to determine which artifacts, and hence which events, took place at which times. If we know what parts of the valley are eroded and which are not we would have a good idea where to look for intact sites. In general it appears that erosion has been moderate to severe over much of the Forest with dry meadows and side slopes being hardest hit. Streams in general have probably been heavily eroded but certain benches, terraces and flood planes may actually be in fairly good shape.

Other environmental changes which arrived with the Europeans include introduction of non-native plants, such as cheat grass, mullein and dandelion, which have often aggressively replaced native plants. In our rangeland and open forests, cheatgrass, which originated on the northern steppes of Asia, has replaced much of the native grass. This may be a situation which is impossible to reverse since cheatgrass is so well established and is a much more aggressive colonizer than the native grasses. Many native root plants seem to be much less abundant probably due to the impacts of grazing and fire suppression. Camas, onion, yampa and bitter root all seem to be less common. The forest understory appears to have contained much more mountain mahogany and choke cherry than it does today. These bushes actually thrive in wild fires and it appears that they would develop into thick stands which would be burnt through on a somewhat regular basis. Elk may have been introduced into this area from the north or east, or they were always here but their populations have increased. The native trout and salmon runs on the John Day and Malheur rivers have been greatly reduced. This was already being noted in the 1880's with the blame being placed on run off from mining operations. Many of these changes affected plant and animal resources on which the native people were dependent. This put them in a situation of extreme poverty and inflamed the conflicts between the native Indians and the encroaching settlers.