Port Townsend in Jefferson County, Washington — The American West (Northwest)
Chief Chetzemoka
Coast Salish Canoe Culture
Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., August 1, 2021
1. Chief Chetzemoka Marker
Inscription.
Chief Chetzemoka. Coast Salish Canoe Culture. ,
Many in Port Townsend have heard of Chief Chetzemoka (Cheech-Ma-Ham), chief of the S'Klallam. At Point No Point in 1855, he signed the treaty giving up all S'Klallam land for a reservation to be shared with another tribe. Such treaties, pushed by Governor Isaac Stevens and largely misunderstood by the Indians, provoked the Indian Wars in 1855-56. During these wars, a number of S'Klallam held a secret meeting to decide whether or not to wage war on the whites in Port Townsend. The S'Klallam deliberated for nine days, during which time Cheech-Ma-Ham sent a daily signal of "danger" to the white settlers. On the tenth day, the message from Signal Rock was, in essence, "danger is passed." Chetzemoka was considered a hero by the white population and from that point on was immortalized by them in many ways, including a bronze plaque, a statue, a park bearing his name and two ferries named for him. He died in 1888 and is buried in Laurel Grove Cemetery in Port Townsend. You can also see Chetzemoka, his two wives and his brother's faces on the capitals of the columns of the old Post Office, Court and Customs House buil[t] in 1893, located at 1322 Washington Street up on the bluff above downtown..
Many in Port Townsend have heard of Chief Chetzemoka (Cheech-Ma-Ham), chief of the S'Klallam. At Point No Point in 1855, he signed the treaty giving up all S'Klallam land for a reservation to be shared with another tribe. Such treaties, pushed by Governor Isaac Stevens and largely misunderstood by the Indians, provoked the Indian Wars in 1855-56. During these wars, a number of S'Klallam held a secret meeting to decide whether or not to wage war on the whites in Port Townsend. The S'Klallam deliberated for nine days, during which time Cheech-Ma-Ham sent a daily signal of "danger" to the white settlers. On the tenth day, the message from Signal Rock was, in essence, "danger is passed." Chetzemoka was considered a hero by the white population and from that point on was immortalized by them in many ways, including a bronze plaque, a statue, a park bearing his name and two ferries named for him. He died in 1888 and is buried in Laurel Grove Cemetery in Port Townsend. You can also see Chetzemoka, his two wives and his brother's faces on the capitals of the columns of the old Post Office, Court and Customs House buil[t] in 1893,
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located at 1322 Washington Street up on the bluff above downtown.
Erected by Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe and Northwest Maritime Center.
Location. 48° 6.967′ N, 122° 45.115′ W. Marker is in Port Townsend, Washington, in Jefferson County. It is on Water Street east of Monroe Street, on the right when traveling east. Marker is in the passageway at the Northwest Maritime Center. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 431 Water Street, Port Townsend WA 98368, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Washington’s Olympic Peninsula. It is also on the American Pacific Coast, in the Pacific Northwest, and in the Lewis & Clark Corridor. Globally, it is in North America, the Pacific Rim, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere.
Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., August 1, 2021
3. Coast Salish Canoe Culture Markers
Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., August 1, 2021
4. Coast Salish Canoe Culture Markers
Looking toward Water Street
Credits. This page was last revised on November 16, 2025. It was originally submitted on August 14, 2021, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio. This page has been viewed 600 times since then and 31 times this year. Photos:1. submitted on August 14, 2021, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio. 2. submitted on November 16, 2025, by Larry Gertner of New York, New York. 3, 4. submitted on August 13, 2021, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio.
