Shoshone Nation Restores Massacre Site

Why this is here: The restoration project will return an additional 13,000 acre-feet of water to the Great Salt Lake each year, addressing critical water scarcity in the region.

Brad Parry, vice chairman of the Northwestern Band of the Shoshone Nation, received the inaugural Schnitzer Prize of the West for leading a project to restore the Bear River Massacre site in Idaho. The Shoshone began restoring 500 acres along Battle Creek in 2019, a location considered the site of the largest attack on Indigenous people in U.S. history.

The project extends beyond ecological restoration, aiming to rewrite the narrative surrounding the 1863 massacre where between 300 and 500 Shoshone people were killed. The effort has garnered support from diverse groups including The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the University of Utah, and corporations like Rio Tinto and Northrop Grumman.

The restoration is projected to add roughly 13,000 acre-feet of water annually to the struggling Great Salt Lake. While the project demonstrates successful collaboration, challenges remain in fully restoring the land and changing long-held perceptions of the tragic event. The Shoshone Tribe and partners will continue ecological and cultural work at the site.