Makah Woman Carrying Firewood - 1910

In this photo by Asahel Curtis, brother of Edward S. Curtis, an elderly Makah woman brings firewood back to her home, somewhere on the northwest corner of the Olympic Peninsula.

In the late 1700s, the Olympic Peninsula was home to five permanent Makah villages, housing from two to four thousand residents. With the coming of Europeans, many of them died from multiple diseases, leaving villages with large gaps in their families.

At the time of this 1910 view, remnants of the tribe still lived along the edge of the water, source of most of their food. Today Makah still live in the area, and many follow their long-standing traditions.

-- This photo is restored and printed by Old Oregon.