Zack+H


 * What do you believe were the causes of the conflict?**

I believe that the Cayuse were worried that the whites were coming to change their old ways and leave their old traditions. The Cayuse also knew that the whites were moving other tribes out too. But most of all when the measles epidemic struck the Cayuse thought that the whites were trying to kill them in order to clear the way for more settlers. The Cayuse probably went on their killing spree because they thought it would save them from dying.

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

The Whitmans moved to Cayuse, Umatilla, and Walla Walla land in 1837 to set up the Waiilatpu Mission. They had come to try and convert the natives to Christianity.



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

The whites came to Oregon Country wanting to convert the Cayuse, Umatilla, and Walla Walla tribes to christianity, and leave all their beliefs and traditions behind. They also wanted them to give up their nomadic lifestyle and become more civilized. Then the Waiilatpu Mission became a major way station and landmark along the Oregon Trail, more and more settlers and emmigrants started to go through. The Cayuse tribe began to realize that the whites that were coming through the mission were coming to displace their land elsewhere. Then a Measles epidemic spread from the Waiilatpu Mission to the native tribes. Since the settelers had a already been exposed to measles they had a better immunity to them. The natives, however, hadn't been exposed to them, and since natives were dying but the settelers were recovering the Cayuse thought that Dr. Whitman was posioning them instead of treating them.

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

The Measles epidemic was probably the most important factor of the Whitman Massacre. The reason it was so important was because it was the tipping point for the Cayuse indians.

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

The conflict might have been able to be avoided if the Cayuse had understood their own immune system a little better. If they had understood that they had not been exposed to the measles virus, there for their immune systems did not know how to deal with the forign disease. The whites, on the other hand, had been exposed to the disease, so they had a higher chance of getting better. And when the natives started to die, even when they were treated, the Cayuse believed they were killing them on purpose. But i do believe that if the Cayuse had understood what was killing them the Whitman Massacre may have been able to be avoided.


 * What sources of information have you used? **

"Washington State Legends: The Whitman Massacre." __Legends of America.__ August 2007. Legends of America. May 20, 2009. 

Lambert, Dale & Dustin Clark. __Washington: A State Of Contrasts.__ East Wenatchee, WA. Directed Media, Inc, 2008.

Wilma, Dale. "Whitman Massacre." __History Link.__ Febuary 14, 2003. History Link. May 22, 2009. []