The Muckleshoot Indian tribe, descendants of the Coast Salish people, have lived in the Puget Sound area for thousands of years, with salmon as their mainstay. They learned to smoke and preserve salmon, which became a recognized currency and allowed for trade. The tribe has now diversified its income with gaming and casinos.
The Muckleshoot Indian is found on the Muckleshoot Indian Reservation in the Puget Sound area of the northwestern United States. The reservation is located south and east of the city of Seattle, Washington on the banks of the White and Green rivers. The reserve consists of an area six square miles in circumference with approximately 20 miles of boundary.
The Muckleshoot Indian tribe is descended from the original inhabitants of the region, the Coast Salish people. The tribe has called the Puget Sound area home for thousands of years, ever since the last glaciers disappeared from the Pacific Northwest. The rivers and streams of the Cascade Range served as a good home for the tribe.
The mainstay of the Muckleshoot Indian tribe has always been salmon. The tribe learned how to smoke and preserve salmon to provide food that would last all year round. This allowed the tribe to focus on other activities and not just finding food. The salmon would serve the tribe in other ways as well. Fishing remains a top priority for the Muckleshoot Indian.
The Puget Sound area has been the site of a major salmon migration. The tribe would have many salmon-focused ceremonies. Each year, the first spawning salmon was caught and ceremonially eaten by the tribe. After being consumed, the salmon skeleton was placed back in the river and pointed upriver. This was in the hope that his salmon brother and sister would follow his lead down to the spawning grounds in the river.
The Muckleshoot Indian Tribe’s smoking and storage of salmon was so good that the salmon actually became a recognized currency of the tribe. The salmon was used year-round to trade and purchase other goods needed by the tribe. Neighboring Native American tribes took notice of the smoked fish and often traded for it. The Muckleshoot Indian people enjoyed this prosperity as it fostered trade.
The modern tribe has branched out beyond salmon fishing as a primary source of financial profitability. Muckleshoot Indians, taking advantage of encroachment on suburban areas near the reservation by adding gaming and casinos to its business portfolio. This new income has created a diverse business that has amassed wealth that allows the Indian tribe to match funding from other local governments in the area. This allows the Muckleshoot to create new ways to assist its people.
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