Kevin+M


 * What is your //general// belief about who or what is most responsible for causing the conflict?**

A misunderstanding and miscommunication between Native Americans and White Settlers. The Native Americans believed that Dr. Whitman was poisoning them and they took measures that they believed were appropriate for the situation.

**What is the relevant background information (i.e. who, what, when, where)?**

The Whitman Massacre took place on November 29th, 1847. An unknown number of Cayuse Native Americans broke into Waiilaptu Mission on the Walla Walla River and murdered 14 settlers, including Marcus and Narcissa Whitman. They took over 50 hostages which were later negotiated back by Catholic Bishop Augustin Blanchet and Peter Ogden. This sparked the war commonly called the Cayuse War for years the Cayuse fought volunteer settler soldiers until 5 Cayuse Native Americans voluntarily went to Oregon City and were executed after a completely unfair trial. This information was found at []

**What were 3 factors that helped cause the conflict (politics, economics, geography, history)?**

The Native Americans, especially the Cayuse, were not happy about the settlers but were dealing with it until nearly 900 new settlers came and took up their land, used their resources and never asked for their permission. This was the first spark in the blaze that was the coming massacre. What infuriated the Cayuse even more is that the settlers tried to convert them to the Christian religion. They did not want to give up their religion and so the settlers "help" was unwelcome. The last straw was when a measles outbreak hit both Native Americans and settlers. Unknown to the Native Americans the settlers were dying much less in the care of Dr. Whitman because of a genetic history with measles the settlers had at least a small amount of immunity. This information was found in the textbook, Washington A State of Contrasts. To the Native Americans it appeared that the Dr. was allowing his Cayuse patients to die because they had no knowledge of genetic immunities. A settler who had arrived in 1847, by the name of Joe Lewis, helped build these suspicions and spread rumors that he was in fact poisoning his Cayuse patients. Not long after this measles outbreak, the Whitman massacre occured. Information on Joe Lewis was found at []

**Explain why one factor is more important than the others.**

The measles outbreak was by far the worst factor in this conflict. In many Native American cultures when a shaman fails to save someone he may be killed. It would have been unspeakable to think the person treating their people is in fact killing them and that alone may have been the cause for the massacre. Joe Lewis as I previously mentioned built on these suspicions for the sole reason of being able to rob the Waiilaptu mission. This was, on top of those other reasons, the last straw and the Cayuse for all of these reasons attacked the Waiilaptu mission on the infamous day of November 29th, 1847.

**How could the conflict have been avoided?**

The conflict could not have been avoided, only postponed. The Massacre could have delayed it by leaving the Native Americans to themselves and slowing the coming of people but this would just delay it. The Cayuse were not about to leave their land, and even if it took a long time the settlers would eventually try and take it. The Cayuse would respond and all the same people would have died. A conflict was coming no matter what, it was just a matter of how and when. If the Whitman massacre had not happened then I could very well be writing about what happened in its stead right now.
 * What sources of information have you used? **

Book: Lambert, Dale and Clark, Dustin. Washington A State of Contrasts. East Wenatchee, Washington: Directed Media Inc, 2008 Page 443 Websites

Author Unknown. "Whitman Massacre". Fact Archive.com. 2005. No sponsoring organization found. May 20, 2009

Pauls, Becker. "Walla Walla County-- Thumbnail history". History Link.org. Publisher Unknown. March 31, 2006. May 20, 2009