Mike Auger, North Olympic Land Trust,

The attached video was made by the Legacy Forest Group. In it, Linda gives us a guided tour of the plants, the trees, and the cultural evidence.

Some facts:

1. Klallam (Language group, not tribe) villages and territory extended along the north coast from Hoko to Point No Point (Unconquering the Last Frontier).

2. Linda's family (a band) lived in the Pysht/Deep Creek area (Adeline Smith, Unconquering the Last Frontier) since time immemorial. They did not relinquish title to the land by any means at any time. They did not leave.

3. Eventually, in 1877, they homesteaded, reinforcing aboriginal title in a western legal framework to a portion of it. (Adeline Smith, Unconquering the Last Frontier). 

4. Title claims were filed continuously with the BIA/Department of Interior until the present (Jim Wiechman/Linda Wiechman, 2025 to Filmmaker Robert Lundahl), 

5. The Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe as a legal entity was formed according to the Howard and Wheeler Act, enacted June 18, 1934.

6. The Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe was formally established as a modern legal entity on April 29, 1968, when the Secretary of the Interior approved its Constitution and Bylaws. This followed a special election where tribal members voted to organize a modern tribal government under the authority of the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934.

7. The “ownership” or title of the Sadie Creek and Doc Holiday tracts and surrounding areas rests with the descendants of Adeline Smith, Linda Wiechman et. al. based n continuous inhabitation, legal claim and usage of the land areas to the present. The Treaty of Point No Point, requiring a broad based relinquishment of territories is generally inconsistent with International stanfards today, as expresssed by the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, specifically acknowledged are:

UNDRIP (Article 10 & 19): Requires that no relocation or legislative measures affecting Indigenous peoples take place without their free, prior, and informed consent. 

Treaty: The 1855 negotiations were conducted in a highly coercive environment with significant language barriers. The tribes were pressured to cede vast territories and move to a single reservation (Skokomish) within one year. 

Land and Resource Rights: UNDRIP (Article 26): Recognizes the right of Indigenous peoples to the lands, territories, and resources which they have traditionally owned, occupied, or otherwise used.

Based on the liklihood of a Webster Logging and DNR release of claims, the appropriateness of repatriating the lands to the original family inhabitants in order to preserve biodiversity and cultural resources is appropriate for these complex legacy forests.

The video serves as depositional, evidentiary proof of contemporary usage toward these ends.