Nez Perce County: Extant Territorial Period
Buildings (1863 – 1890)
Ex scrinio S. D. Branting
21 RANCH (1888)
7570 Waha Road
Joseph Shissler and John “Buena” Siers settled the area south of Lewiston in the 1860s,
and the “21” brand was registered in 1866. Siers earned his sobriquet based on his
valorous service on February 23, 1847, at the Battle of Buena Vista in the Mexican War.
The partners intended to use water from Waha Lake to irrigate the pasturelands at the
base of the mountains. So-named because its distance in miles from Lewiston, the ranch
and house were located on the stagecoach route to the Camas Prairie. Some accounts
link famed desperado Henry Plummer to the ranch in its earliest days, and it is rumored
that ill-gotten treasure was buried on the property.
After the death of
Shissler in August 1886
from injuries sustained
while working on the
ranch, the land was
divided among his heirs.
Anna Hoopes, his niece,
received the ranch. Siers
moved to Wyoming.
Frank Ward, the longtime ranch manager,
built a three-story home
in 1888, constructed in a
modified Queen Anne
style. Now privatelyowned, the house has
been reburbished and
maintained without any
major structural
alterations since its
original construction.
The 21 Ranch harbors a
c. 1900
violent tale of resentment and Siers leased
land from the Shissler heirs and then lived in the East for a few years, returning in 1894.
Legal problems quickly arose to reclaim monies owed as part of the lease agreement.
The situation was aggravated by Siers’ insistence on moving into the new home built on
the property. A settlement was negotiated, and Siers arrived at about 6:00am on May
19, 1895, to gather his belongings.
He was met at the door by his former associate John Ward, whom Siers had
dispossessed when Siers returned to Idaho. Words were exchanged. Mrs. Mary Goddard,
a neighbor who had gained control of the property and Ward’s son-in-law, tried to
Nez Perce County: Extant Territorial Period
Buildings (1863 – 1890)
Ex scrinio S. D. Branting
intervene. Ward fired two shots at Siers but missed. As Siers was going for his revolver,
Mrs. Goddard pulled a pistol from her waist, place the muzzle against Sier’s back and
fired several times. Ward struck Siers over the head with his revolver as the victim fell
forward. Elmer Shorthill, a Siers employee, shot Ward, who later died of his injuries.
Mrs. Goddard was charged with murder. James W. Reid, a former North Carolina
Representative and at the time the chairman of the board of trustee of Lewiston State
Normal School, defended her and got her acquitted after a very expensive 40-day trial,
much to the dismay of Lewiston residents, who followed the proceedings very closely.
Idaho Film Office
Listings: National Registry of Historic Places
Nez Perce County: Extant Territorial Period
Buildings (1863 – 1890)
Ex scrinio S. D. Branting
SPALDING PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH (1876)
Adjacent to the Nez Perce National Historical Park, Spalding ID
Henry Spalding left his mission on Lapwai Creek in the aftermath of the killings of the
Marcus and Narcissa Whitman at their mission near Walla Walla, Washington, in
November 1847. He returned in 1871 as a result of President Ulysses S. Grant's peace
policy, allowing various Christian denominations to nominate Indian agents to administer
tribal affairs. Spalding’s goal was to strengthen the Presbyterian Church on the
reservation and end the growing influence of other Protestant denominations and the
Catholic Church, led by Father Joseph M. Cataldo SJ. Missionaries Sue and Kate McBeth
continued Spalding's work and continued to strengthen the Presbyterian Church,
vigorously enforcing church doctrine and working to diminish the influence of traditional
Nez Perce religious practices.
The first services were held in the building in 1876. A brick facing was added to the
structure in 1905. The property is privately-owned, and the church is not open to the
public.
Undated appearance of church, 1886-1905
(Nez Perce National Historical Park)
S. D. Branting
Listings: none
Nez Perce County: Extant Territorial Period
Buildings (1863 – 1890)
Ex scrinio S. D. Branting
INDIAN AGENTS’ CABIN (c. 1862)
Nez Perce National Historical Park, Spalding ID
Little definitive information is known about the cabin. Some historians have speculated
that this structure dates from Spalding's mission. However, it was most likely erected in
the 1860s.
The cabin was probably the residence of an agency employee, although this has not
been verified. In period photographs, agency buildings stood in the midst of Nez Perce
tipis and lodges. However, as whites usually lived apart from the Nez Perce, the building
may have been used as a school.
Nez Perce National Historical Park
Nez Perce National Historical Park
Listings: none
Nez Perce County: Extant Territorial Period
Buildings (1863 – 1890)
Ex scrinio S. D. Branting
FORT LAPWAI OFFICERS’ QUARTERS (1883)
Lapwai ID
The remnants of Fort Lapwai are situated near U.S. Highway 95. Troops were assigned
to the Lapwai Valley in response to the gold rush. The fort was in use from 1862 to
1885. It was here that General Oliver 0. Howard met with the leaders of Nez Perce nontreaty bands on May 3, 1877, as they made one last attempt to remain on their land.
The officers’ quarters were built as a duplex, allowing two families to reside in the
structure. The majority of the buildings constructed at the fort, most of which are no
longer standing, were built between 1862 and 1884. The post had barracks for enlisted
personnel, stables, warehouses, offices and corrals. The Northern Idaho Indian Agency,
originally located at Spalding, was relocated to Fort Lapwai in 1904. Fort Lapwai was
converted into a government Indian school and then into a tuberculosis sanitarium with
a hospital, boys' and girls' dormitories, and a school. Fort Lapwai is held in trust by the
Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) for the Nez Perce Tribe.
Fort Lapwai, c. 1888
Idaho State Historical Society
Nez Perce National Historical Park
Listings: none