Indians Fishing at Celilo Falls, 1951.
OrHi #65982
The fishermen in this photograph are tied to the fishing platform. Prior to the 1930s, death by drowning at Celilo Falls occurred frequently as fishermen were swept off fishing platforms by the force and struggle of a freshly caught salmon. Slippery platforms and severe weather conditions contributed to accidental drowning. Beginning in the 1930s, the Bureau of Indian Affairs required all Indians to tie themselves to fishing platforms or to the shore.