The Modoc War: A Homeland Lost

Klamath County, Oregon, the United States

(45)

Driving Tour

120 mins

60.3mi

About the Tour

Join Modoc descendent Cheewa James on a riveting and epic driving journey through the historic sites of the Modoc War, starting from Klamath Falls, Oregon to the Lava Beds National Monument in California. Along the way you’ll discover the roots of the Modoc War, hear Modoc and settler stories, and learn what life was like during this turbulent episode in American history. You’ll also pass through the charming communities of Merrill and Malin, and explore several archeological wonders, including Petroglyph Point, Captain Jack’s Stronghold and the impressive Lava Beds National Monument. As the great-granddaughter of the Modoc Warrior Shkeitko (better known as Shacknasty Jim), James' firsthand knowledge and imaginative voice bring the events and landscapes to life in a way you’ve never heard them before.

TOUR PRODUCED BY:
The Klamath Basin Rural Tourism Studio in partnership with Travel Oregon, Discover Klamath, Discover Siskiyou and Rural Klamath Connects

WRITER
Megan Peterson

NARRATOR:
Cheewa James

Cheewa James was born at the Klamath Indian Agency, Oregon. Her great-grandfather Shkeitko— Shacknasty Jim—was a warrior in the 1873 Modoc War. Cheewa attended the University of Oregon and graduated from Northwest Missouri State University. She was a ranger-historian at the Lava Beds National Monument and authored MODOC: The Tribe That Wouldn’t Die. She was also a talk show hostess and anchorwoman in southern Oregon.

ADDITIONAL CAST:

Keintpoos (better known as Captain Jack) – Brandon Tupper
Honorable AM Rosborough – Charles Cossey
Louisa Boddy – Linda Woodley
Ivan Applegate – Todd Kepple
Colonel Wheaton – Rick Woodley
Captain David Perry – Patrick Lynch

MUSIC:
“Howinna (Time of Change)” performed by Taylor Tupper, Natalie Ball and Cheewa James

Tour Producer

Discover Siskiyou

Above it all atop California lies a destination beyond the ordinary—a place uniquely touched by all four seasons, shaped by rich local pride and watched over by a legendary mountain. Wander above and experience adventure how it was meant to be–wild, pure and untamed. With four unique regions to explore, no two stories are the same in Siskiyou.

Megan Peterson has been a writer and storyteller for more than two decades, with credits ranging from National Geographic to the Sundance Channel. Her multiple forays into the audio tour world have included eight previous audio tours for Detour and Airbnb, as well as another VoiceMap Tour entitled: Tule Lake National Wildlife Refuge History Tour. Megan also works as a freelance writer and television producer.

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Map

Major Landmarks

Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuge
Hospital Rock

Directions to Starting Point

This tour begins in front of the Klamath County Museum on Main Street, address: 1451 Main St, Klamath Falls, OR 97601. You will want to be parked in one of the diagonal parking spaces in the front of the museum on the same side of the street (ideally with a full tank of gas).

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Tips

Places to stop along the way

Along this tour, some additional places we stop along the way are the Klamath County Museum, the Merrill Historical and Modoc War Museum, Stone Bridge, the Malin Park Settlers Monument, the Malin Historical Society & Museum and the Warm Springs Indian Graves.

Best time of day

This tour can be taken at any time, though for maximum enjoyment and to ensure all of the sites are open, we recommend Tuesday through Saturday from 10 AM to 5 PM

Precautions

This route travels along several country roads that are also sometimes used by farm equipment, so please use courtesy and caution - driving a little slower will also give you time to soak in the beauty of where you’re driving! Also, it’s advised to wear sturdy shoes in some of the places you explore, and a pair of binoculars can be handy (but not necessary to enjoy the tour).

Comments

Can this tour be driven from Lava National Monument to Klamath?

Posted by Anonymous Explorer , 25 days ago

Hi there, the tour is intended to be taken from the start in Klamath, with directions to each subsequent location, and won't work being taken in reverse.

Posted by Gary , 21 days ago

Great tour and very informative. We were looking forward to seeing Bloody Point but the tour skipped this critically important part of history where 90 men, women and children settlers were killed. Please include this in the tour for future generations, we also noticed that the historical markers for Bloody Point are also missing, very sad.

Posted by Anonymous Explorer , 7 months ago

Excellent tour! Only made one wrong turn (our fault) and would highly recommend. Informative, entertaining, paced well and easy stop/start feature. Gives us more!

Posted by Anonymous Explorer , almost 2 years ago

It would have been nice to mention the Tule Lake Segregation Center, which the tour goes by (County road 113 and state highway 139), where more than 12,000 Japanese Americans were imprisoned and punished for protesting the injustice of their WWII incarnation. Perhaps the topic of another tour?

Posted by B , almost 3 years ago

Great idea for new tour - we considered mentioning it but there was so much information to cover and not enough time/space to do it justice! I appreciate your feedback!

Posted by Megan , almost 3 years ago