At the site of one of the deadliest massacres of Native Americans in US history, hundreds seek to heal spirits and soil

Preston, Idaho • Rios Pacheco stood on the land where, in 1863, his ancestors were victims of one of the deadliest attacks on Native Americans in United States history.

Behind him, across the site of the Bear River Massacre, hundreds of volunteers planted native shrubs and — a collective effort to heal what was taken from both the land and the Northwestern Band of the Shoshone Nation.

For Pacheco, who serves as the tribe’s spiritual leader, planting native plants on the land where hundreds of his ancestors’ lives were stolen by the U.S. Army is a way to not only restore the ecological balance of the area but also to heal the spirits of his people. Once you plant something in the ground, he said, life is restored.

Through the plants, he feels connected to his ancestors. Planting native species on this sacred ground is a way for his people to return and heal — much like a plant regenerates from its own seeds. In reconnecting with the land and honoring the memories of those who survived, the plants offer both renewal and forgiveness for the past, he said.

“That’s just like the plants,” Pacheco said. “When you plant them, the forgiveness comes by taking care of them, fertilizing them, watering them, so that way that plant will grow again.”

The Northwestern Band of the Shoshone Nation began its journey to ecologically and spiritually restore the site of the Bear River Massacre in 2018 when it purchased approximately 350 acres of ancestral land just north of Preston, Idaho. Friday and Saturday marked the second year the tribe has held a planting weekend at the site for volunteers.

The Bear River Massacre occurred during one of the coldest winters his ancestors experienced at the site, Pacheco said. His people would camp in the valley where the attack occurred because the surrounding hot springs kept the area warm during winters. The tribe’s efforts to heal the site — named “Wuda Ogwa,” which directly translates to “Bear River” — are also meant to honor the plants that used to be abundant in the area and aided Pacheco’s ancestors in a variety of ways.

Rooting out a thirsty tree

Because Wuda Ogwa is primarily a wetland habitat, many of the native species that volunteers planted on Friday and Saturday were water-based and will help filter the river, Pacheco said. The tribe has also made efforts to attract beavers back to the area.

As volunteers worked, Pacheco observed them and heard them share stories about the plants they contributed last year and the friendships they have developed through the effort.

“You’re not just elevating the landscape,” Pacheco said, “you’re elevating your inner spirits.”

Although the tribe has only involved the broader public in its project since last year, a great deal of work has been done to prepare the land for the new plants.

For the past three years, the Utah Conservation Corps has been removing thousands of invasive Russian olive trees that have invaded Wuda Ogwa’s floodplain since the massacre. This tree, according to corps regional coordinator Ben Borgmann-Winter, outshades and outcompetes the native vegetation the tribe hopes to revive in the area.

Russian olives also serve as “junk food” for wildlife, Borgmann-Winter said, as their olives are high in sugar and not nutritionally valuable. In addition, these trees channelize and hold riverbanks in place, leading to various issues, including a lowered water table and soil moisture. They also siphon an estimated 75 gallons each day from the Bear River that could otherwise make its way to the Great Salt Lake, Borgmann-Winter said.

“This is a really special space; a sacred space,” he said. “Look at how many hundreds of volunteers are here right now from all over Utah, all over Idaho. It’s a pretty special project. We’re very honored to be involved in that.”

Hundreds of volunteers

The tribe’s big-picture vision for the land includes planting 300,000 native shrubs and trees, cleaning up the land’s creeks and restoring degraded agricultural fields into wetlands abundant with life. While many of this past weekend’s volunteers work in natural resources, many do not, and came for a variety of reasons.

Jennifer Britt, who came from Cache Valley to help with the project, said she joined to pay tribute to a friend of hers who recently passed away.

“She loved to plant trees all the time,” Britt said, “so I’m thinking this is a way to honor her as well.”

One group of volunteers was an eighth-grade English class from Salt Lake City private school Rowland Hall. The students’ instructor, Brady Smith, said teaching children Native American literature and history is fundamental to their learning. On the bus ride to the site, the students were assigned readings that discuss the history of the land and its connection to the Great Salt Lake.

“Being able to learn about the history of a site and come out and work on the project of restoring it to something like its pre-colonial state,” Smith said, “is a great way for them to learn more and make things more concrete.”

Shea Gainer, one of his students, agreed.

“Being able to actually plant trees and be able to say, ‘Oh, I did that. Like, I helped with that,’” Gainer said, “that’s really cool to me.”

Tribal Council Chair Dennis Alex said the efforts made over the past few years have already brought wildlife back to Wuda Ogwa. Soon, the nonprofit conservation group Trout Unlimited will reintroduce the Bonneville Cutthroat trout to the river. The restoration project, completely funded by the tribe and grant money, wouldn’t be possible without the help of hundreds of hands, he said.

“It’s quite heartwarming to see this,” Alex said, “without the funds of the government.”

Soon, the land will become a memorial with a walking trail and visitor center, complete with an amphitheater to continue the work of sharing the stories the land carries, Alex said.

“History repeats itself if you don’t learn from it,” he said. “Well, this is a learning process.”