At the beginning of white settlement in Oregon, most of the Indians were friendly. As more and more settlers came, however, some of the tribes became hostile in response to the encroachment on their lands. The Whitman mission was wiped out by Cayuse Indians in 1847, and three years of warfare followed. The Rogue River Indians rose against the whites in 1853 and 1855–56.

Beginning in the 1850's, the federal government began negotiating treaties with the Indians for cession of their lands and placement of the Indians on reservations. Several tribes fought for their homelands and their freedom. The major conflicts were the Modoc War (1872–73), the Nez Percé War (1877), and Bannock-Paiute War (1878). By the end of the 1870's, all the Indians of Oregon were on reservations.