Tiller's Guide to Indian Country - Second Edition

540 children's games, royalty competitions, traditional hand games, an NIAAsoftball tourney, a competitive powwow, and a parade. The Sho-Ban Golf Classic is held during the festival, as is the RMRIRA Rodeo. The tribes also host the Fort Bridger Treaty Day on July 3 to recognize the signing of the Fort Bridger Treaty. Fort Hall Bottoms is a premier fishing ground that is located on the reservation. In addition to vast populations of fish, there aremoose, elk, deer, wild horses, and buffalo in the area. The ecosystem at the Bottoms was in grave danger due to loss of vegetation, erosion of streambanks, warmer water temperature, and siltation in spawning gravels brought on by unrestricted grazing and rapid flooding. Restoration efforts have successfully revitalized the natural resources in this area. Fishing is permitted at the Bottoms with limited permits and adherence to strict regulations set forth by the tribes. There are also historical sites of great interest near the reservation: theOld Fort Hall Monument at the original trading post site and The Oregon Trail. INFRASTRUCTURE Interstate 15 crosses the reservation north-south, while Highway 84/86 crosses in an east-west direction. The reservation is also crossed by the main line of the Union Pacific Railroad and a northsouth line connecting to Montana and Utah. The PocatelloAirport, located on reservation land that was alienated under theWorldWar Two PowersAct, provides an all-weather instrument-certified runway for large commercial aircraft. Electricity. Electricity is provided by Idaho Power Company. Fuel. Natural gas is supplied by Intermountain Gas Company. Water Supply. The Fort Hall Water and Sewer District supplies the reservation with water and sewer service in the form of a large lagoon located north of the Fort Hall town site. Because of agricultural chemical contamination of much of the reservation's groundwater, a domestic water supply system is being constructed to serve the core area of the reservation. Outlying residents rely on wells and septic tanks. Transportation. The tribes have contracted with the BIA for their roads program, including planning, maintenance, and construction. The tribes maintain a number of school buses to transport students to schools within the tribal school district. Commercial air service is available at the Pocatello Municipal Airport on the reservation.Commercial bus lines also serve the reservation directly, as do the Union Pacific Railroad and numerous truck lines. Telecommunications. A site on Ferry Butte, north of Fort Hall, commanding a 50-mile radius, is leased out to communications service providers and is used for police, fire, and public safety communications. COMMUNITY FACILITIESAND SERVICES The tribes maintain a Human Resource Center, a Tribal Business Center, and a Multipurpose Center for various tribal activities and meetings. Education. Students attend schools on the reservation that are operated under the tribal school district. A new high school was built in 1992. Health Care. The Indian Health Service runs a large health clinic at Fort Hall, and there are hospitals in Pocatello and Blackfoot. Traditional healingmedicines and ceremonies continue to be honored by many tribal members. Medicine persons are still consulted and often collaborate with Euro-American medical practitioners to treat Native patients. Construction. The tribes own and operate a construction company that primarily employs tribal members.The company, founded during the 1970s and reactivated in 1992, does roadwork and builds commercial structures on the reservation. Manufacturing. FMC/Astaris, a private, non-tribally owned company manufacturing phosphate-based products, was located on the reservation. The company closed its plant in 2001. Its plant site is now known as the Michaud Superfund Site. The tribes are taking a lead role in redeveloping this site. Mining. The tribes possess right-of-way agreements with Northwest Pipeline, Williams Gas, and Idaho Power. These agreements generate income for the tribes. A non-Indian-owned phosphate mine that had been operating on the reservation since 1947 closed in 1993 due to diminishing recoverable reserves. This had been a source of significant employment for the tribe, and its closing has had a fairly severe impact. Services and Retail. The tribes own a store, Indian Goods: The Corner Mercantile, located within the historic Fort Hall Trading Post. The store offers seed beads, cut beads, and traditionally tanned buckskin. It also sells handmade crafts, items for regalia, paintings, antique photographs, postcards, and music. The Trading Post Grocery is located on the reservation and provides full supermarket services. It also contains a butcher shop that occasionally features buffalo meat from the tribe's herd. The grocery offers the largest, and lowest priced, tobacco products selection in the state of Idaho. The Oregon Trail Restaurant serves buffalo stew, Indian tacos, and Indian fry bread in addition to traditional Euro-American foods. The Trading Post Clothes Horse is a retail outlet and distribution center for craft work produced by the tribe. Clients can purchase hand-crafted and beaded moccasins, purses, bolo ties, belt buckles, hatbands, and jewelry as well as leather goods, porcupine quill work, and contemporary Native artwork. The store also sells books, jeans, shirts, and Pendleton brand clothing. The Travel Plaza Fuel and Convenience store offers a full-service station that caters to travelers. Facilities include a lounge, shower facilities, office facilities, a restaurant, and grocery selection. It is located in the tribal enterprises complex off exit 80 on Interstate 15. The Bannock Peak Fuel and Convenience store offers a fullservice station as well as a deli and convenience store. It is located on Interstate 86. The tribes maintain a number of businesses on the reservation. Among these are a small cabinet shop, an electrical contracting firm, a credit union, and a gas station and convenience store. Media and CommunicationsThe tribes publish theSho-Ban News, a weekly newspaper distributed nationwide and in several countries. Tourism and Recreation. The tribes own the Shoshone-Bannock Tribal Museum, located on the reservation. The museum was initially opened in 1985 but closed for a number of years. It reopened in 1993 with the assistance of volunteers. The museum houses photos and artifacts donated by communitymembers. The gift shop offers hand-made beaded items and buckskin crafts as well as books, posters, T-shirts, caps, and calendars. The museum sponsors daily tours of the Oregon Trail Crossroads. The tribes host the Shoshone-Bannock Indian Festival in early August.Activities includeartshows,ayouthpowwow,rodeoevents, Fort Hall

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