Dan Penn, a longtime Tenino resident, is the tribal historic preservation officer with the Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation, a role he’s played since 2012.
He began his career with the tribes’ Chehalis Language Program. Weekly, Penn reviews as many as 10 federally funded projects to be implemented on ancestral lands.
“The Chehalis people lived along all waterways of the Chehalis River for thousands of years and many tools and artifacts were left behind,” Penn said. “My job is to make sure that no modern day excavations will disturb those artifacts.”
William Thoms grew up on the Chehalis Reservation and is the tribal cultural resource specialist. He is a graduate of the Institute of the American Indian Arts. After working as a sculptor for Walt Disney Imagineering in Orlando, Florida, Thoms’ renewed cultural curiosity led him back home to the Chehalis Watershed.
“The Chehalis Basin provides about everything possible needed to build a strong society,” Thoms said. “Its native name translates to ‘my wealth water.’”
Thoms’ primary role is the curation and conservation of the tribe's shared material history. He also works to support the Historic Preservation Office in their compliance efforts.
A primary goal of his is the revival of traditions lapsed during colonial times and to best understand how things once worked. One of these traditions is the prescribed burning of prairie ecosystems.
“From Nisqually territory and the Puget Sound inlands south to the Cowlitz homelands, our vast ancestral lands were Oak Savanna and prairie lands,” Thoms said. “I want to get involved, learn about the practice of prescribed burns, and again apply the cultural practice on our tribal lands. Our real job is to find all those old traditions that have seen this lapse and do everything to bring them back.”
In fall 2021, Thoms and the tribe got that opportunity. In partnership with the Washington State of the Department of Natural Resources and the Center for Natural Lands Management, Chehalis tribal members were able to renew their understanding of the cultural practice of prescribed burning of prairies.
On the tribe's 22-acre prairie, located near the Black River — named “the old grocery store,” according to Thoms, because of the wealth of foods traditionally found there — the prairie site was prepared for restoration.
A crew of staff from the Center for Natural Lands Management and Tribal youths cleared the highly invasive species Scotch broom and reseeded the area with camas collected from Mima Mounds and a blend of other native and indigenous plant seeds.
The planting of food plants is a cultural need for the Chehalis.
The Chehalis “grocery store” with its nutritious camas, carrots, strawberries, blackberries and other seasonal plants are important to the daily lives of the Chehalis people.
Thoms gathered Chehalis elders for the prescribed burn.
“We’re doing it here on tribal land, and vital for the elders to be involved,” Thoms said. “There was a narrow window of opportunity for the prescribed burn on tribal land. One day, we made it happen. Just above the prairie was blue sky, and everywhere else, rain.”
He added, “We learned so much from the process. A ceremony with the elders was held to bring the land back to life. Over the course of one day, bear, deer and rabbits all came by with their curiosity. Having all these animal people show up, let us know that the (prescribed burn) was the right thing to do.”
The cultural burn was the first time in over a 100 years that the Chehalis people “lit a prairie fire,” and signals new beginnings for the Chehalis.
Thoms remarked, “The elders watched as the Garry Oak trees literally ‘opened up’ in reaction to the smoke.”
Recently, Penn and Thoms returned to the prairie to survey the changes after the fall burn. There were many new signs of prairie life, including the violet blue-eyed Mary and other native prairie plant species.
Penn and Thoms emphasized the importance for the Chehalis Tribe to set community examples with their stewardship activities.
“Last summer, I took a trip to California, and I could not believe that what I saw were once rivers,” Penn said. “By watching a river, you can learn how a river wants to work, and how to be a river. I may not be the owner of the land, but I feel deeply connected that I came from it. I am of all the people — the Chehalis, Squaxin, Nisqually.”
In discussion of what makes a healthy watershed, Thoms shared, “the health of the river is dependent on the health of the land adjacent to the rivers.”
To fulfill their role as stewards of the land, the tribe recently purchased land along the Chehalis River. They removed invasive species and planted 150-foot buffers of native trees and shrubs. The tribe is also purchasing land that can provide for “greenways” to allow the Chehalis River to meander, slow down and dissipate some of its energy.
“The land is slowly converting back into a healthy ecosystem,” Penn said.
Penn and Thoms spoke favorably of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife’s Aquatic Species Restoration Project, also known as the “ASRP.”
“When we take time to talk to people, we can find our shared humanity,” Penn said. “It’s exciting to see what will be done (by the ASRP) in my lifetime. In river scale, it is here and gone … in the blink of an eye … There’s hope for good things for my children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren.”
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This story is part of the Chehalis Basin Lead Entity’s “Watershed Hero” series to celebrate the work of Chehalis Basin residents for their restoration of native ecosystems that salmon and other wildlife need in the basin. For more information, visit the Chehalis Basin Lead Entity website at www.chehalisleadentity.org or contact Watershed Coordinator Kirsten Harma at 360 488-3232.
