Our Story
Our History
The Three Chiefs Cultural Center’s Resilience and Renewal in Preserving Native Heritage
In the heart of western Montana’s Flathead Indian Reservation was temporarily a unique cultural center, Three Chiefs Cultural Center, formerly named “The People’s Center”, established in 1990 and opened the doors to the public in the fall of 1995. The original building located in Pablo, MT burnt down in an arson fire in September 2020. In September 2023 we moved back to Pablo, MT into the renovated Glacier Bank building and will remain until a permanent building is built, in the near future. The center has always been the place to come to learn about the three tribes, history, games, lifeways, arts, and purchase a Native American made item from our gift shop. We served thousands of people yearly in all we provided.
After extensive loss and recovery, the center staff chose to “rebrand” the center and work to care for the collections that survived. Owned and operated by the Confederated Salish & Kootenai Tribes, the new Three Chiefs Cultural Center is temporarily housed in a log building that was built several years ago for Colonel Doug Allard, member of the tribes as his first restaurant.
This building helped us when we were in despair and need for someplace to call home again for our center. Three Chiefs Cultural Center will continue to be more than a museum; it is a vital, living encounter with Native American culture, the Bitterroot Salish, the Kootenai and Pend d’Oreille tribes.
Our Rich Culture
Discover the Rich Cultures of the Salish, Kootenai, and Pend d’Oreille Tribes at Three Chiefs Cultural Center
Three Chiefs Cultural Center is a place to experience the rich cultures of the Salish, Kootenai and Pend d’Oreille tribes. The traditions of our people have been passed down orally from generation to generation. As our lifestyles change with time and technology, we continue to preserve and protect our heritage, histories and cultures.
Explore the pictures and stories of tribal artifacts recovered from the fire, pictures of our people and their lifeways and see new exhibits, hear the stories of our people, and participate in cultural activities, traditional arts and crafts, cultural education, native games and other events. Visit the Center’s Gift Shop which has a beautiful collection of Native arts and Native made crafts.
Mission & Vision
To Educate and Celebrate Salish, Kootenai, and Pend d’Oreille Traditions.
Explore the pictures and stories of tribal artifacts recovered from the fire, pictures of our people and their lifeways and see new exhibits, hear the stories of our people, and participate in cultural activities, traditional arts and crafts, cultural education, native games and other events. Visit the Center’s Gift Shop which has a beautiful collection of Native arts and Native made crafts.
Mission
It is the Mission of Three Chiefs Cultural Center to promote and education the public on all aspects of traditional lifestyles and histories of the Salish, Kootenai and Pend d’Oreille people.
Vision
Our Vision is to foster awareness understanding and appreciation of the cultures, traditions and lifeways of the Salish, Kootenai and Pend d’Oreille people as passed down from generation to generation.
Three Chiefs Cultural Center’s Vibrant Programs Bridge Generations
Three Chiefs Cultural Center perpetuates our rich heritage, through our tradition of oral history, and by creating opportunities of exchange between tribal elders, youth and the public. Through education, we hope to dispel myths and stereotyping of Native Americans and create better understanding between all peoples.
We provide cultural arts classes, community beading, sewing circles, history presentation, guided history tours in the museum, video presentations on tribal history and lifeways, and volunteer with other entities to help educate the public.
We hope you will stop in at Three Chiefs Cultural Center
Take a moment to learn a little more about your friends and neighbors, the Salish, Kootenai and Pend d’Oreille tribes. We are many things, from technological innovators to protectors of our cultures, waters, wildlife, land and mother earth all while planning for our future generations.
Our Staff & Facility
Operating at a High Capacity
We are staffed by a Program Director, Gift Shop/Office Manager, Curation Technician, Gift Shop Clerk, and Education Coordinator.
While facing high demand for cultural presentations and craft classes from schools and organizations, particularly with large groups, we typically operate with limited staffing. Due to the size constraints of our current facility, accommodating groups larger than 25 requires arrangements for an alternative venue. We actively seek volunteers to assist with crafts and engage tribal employees in presenting tribal history.
Building for the Future
We Need Your Help
We are currently focused on redesigning cultural education trunks and curriculum, our primary requirement is the planning and construction of a new facility. Collaborating with conservators, we are actively restoring collections salvaged from the fire, temporarily stored at the Montana Historical Society’s warehouse in Helena. Our Curation Technician and part-time IMLS Grant Project Director are dedicated to this effort. Currently based in Pablo’s Glacier Bank building on Major Houle Road, we eagerly anticipate a new facility to fully resume our mission and vision.