KETTLE FALLS ONCE "Schwan-ate-koo"
Two rivers moved churning, foaming, oceanward. Then at a point they met, twisted between rocky islands for a swift mile, then cascaded 20 feet into the mouths of huge stone cauldrons.
The smaller of the two rivers was the Kettle, the larger the Columbia. This place was known as Kettle Falls. To the Indians it was "Schwan-ate-koo" (deep sounding waters).
Hundreds of Indian tribesmen gathered at the falls to spear the mighty salmon; Colvilles, Spokanes, San Poils, Okanogans and Kootenais.
When Grand Coulee Dam was built and Lake Roosevelt was formed the fast rushing, cascading water became a smooth lake ending an era in this region's popular history.
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