Chief "Plenty of Horses" Victor

Plenty of Horses, chief of the Salish from 1842 - 1870, christened Victor, was a man caught between two worlds: the world of the white settlers and missionaries and the world of his ancestry.

Chief Victor tried to balance the two worlds. He was a devout Catholic and, at the insistence of the priests, tried to encourage his people to take up agriculture, yet also held on to may Salish traditions and lead bison hunting parties and war parties against their enemies.

As time went on, many factors played into the diminishing influence of the Catholic priests over the Salish. Because of his alignment with the priests, Chief Victor's power and authority over his people also began to weaken.

In 1855, the governor of Washington Territory, Isaac Stevens, met with Chief Victor and the chiefs of the Pend d'Oreille and the Kootenai to discuss a treaty. They thought the treaty was arranged to discuss their ongoing tribal wars with the Blackfeet. Instead, Governor Stevens was there to discuss the relinquishing of Indian lands to the U.S. and the establishment of a reservation in either the Bitterroot or Mission Valley.

Knowing that his people were reluctant to surrender any of their ancestral lands to the white government, let alone leave the Bitterroot Valley, Chief Victor was faced with a difficult decision. He proposed to Governor Stevens that both valleys be examined and surveys as to which would be the better place for his people. Until such a time that this could be completed, his people would remain in the Bitterroot Valley.

The compromise was accepted and Chief Victor left the council with increased prestige among the tribe. For his wisdom, Governor Stevens bestowed the title of Head Chief of the three confederated tribes upon Victor.

Never allowing hostile behavior towards the white settlers at the hand of his people, Chief Victor remained a hunter and warrior while resisting the pressure to relocate his people and force them into an agricultural way of life.

Chief Victor died in July 1870 while on a hunt in eastern Montana. It was reported that his body was returned to his homeland and buried at St. Mary's Mission.

References for writing "About Chief Victor" came from:

The Victor Story, by Jeffrey H. Langton, Pictorial Histories Publishing Co., Copyright 1985.

Montana's Bitterroot Valley, by Russ Lawrence, Stoneydale Press Publishing Co., Copyright 1999.