United States v. Washington, 384 F. Supp. 312 (W.D. Wash. 1974), was a 1974 court case which affirmed the right of most of the tribes in Washington to continue to harvest salmon

Salmon

Salmon is the common name for several species of fish in the family Salmonidae. Several other fish in the same family are called trout; the difference is often said to be that salmon migrate and trout are resident, but this distinction does not strictly hold true...

. The case was decided by Judge George Hugo Boldt

George Hugo Boldt

George Hugo Boldt was a United States federal judge.Boldt was born in Chicago, Illinois. He received a B.A. from the University of Montana in 1925. He received an LL.B. from the University of Montana School of Law in 1926. He was in private practice in Helena, Montana from 1926 to 1927...

 of the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington

United States District Court for the Western District of Washington

The United States District Court for the Western District of Washington is the Federal district court whose jurisdiction comprises the following counties of the state of Washington: Clallam, Clark, Cowlitz, Grays Harbor, Island, Jefferson, King, Kitsap, Lewis, Mason, Pacific, Pierce, San Juan,...

.

Specifically, the court held that, when the Tribes conveyed millions of acres of land in Washington State through a series of treaties signed in 1854 and 1855, they reserved the right to continue fishing. For example, the Treaty of Medicine Creek

Treaty of Medicine Creek

The Treaty of Medicine Creek was an 1854 treaty between the United States, and the Nisqually, Puyallup and Squaxin Island tribes, along with six other smaller Native American tribes.-Site:...

 (1854) includes the following language: "The right of taking fish, at all usual and accustomed grounds and stations, is further secured to said Indians in common with all citizens of the Territory." Most of the treaties negotiated by Territorial

Washington Territory

The Territory of Washington was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 8, 1853, until November 11, 1889, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Washington....

 Governor Isaac Stevens

Isaac Stevens

Isaac Ingalls Stevens was the first governor of Washington Territory, a United States Congressman, and a brigadier general in the Union Army during the American Civil War until his death at the Battle of Chantilly...

included this, or very similar, language.

The court also looked at the minutes of the treaty negotiations to interpret the meaning of the treaty language—"in common with"—as the United States described it to the Tribes, holding that the United States intended for there to be an equal sharing of the fish resource between the Tribes and the settlers. As the court stated:

By dictionary definition and as intended and used in the Indian treaties and in this decision, 'in common with' means sharing equally the opportunity to take fish . . . therefore, non-treaty fishermen shall have the opportunity to take up to 50% of the harvestable number of fish . . . and treaty right fishermen shall have the opportunity to take up to the same percentage.

For years preceding the Boldt decision, the state of Washington had attempted to limit the treaty fishing rights of the tribes. The federal government filed suit in the support of Native American rights. Non-Native fishermen in the state opposed the decision.

External links

• Text of the decision
• Text of Treaties
• "Federal Judge George Boldt issues historic ruling affirming Native American treaty fishing rights on February 12, 1974", History Link Website
• "25 years after the Boldt Decision: The fish tale that changed history", Seattle Times
• "40th Anniversary of Puyallup Fish Camp Raid". Seattle Times