Milwaukie and Grand Ronde leaders dedicate First Fish Herons at Milwaukie Bay Park

City and tribal leaders on the banks of the Willamette dedicated three seasonal public sculptures known as First Fish Herons at Milwaukie Bay Park, celebrating an Indigenous first‑fish practice and a formal city–tribal partnership.

David Harrelson, cultural resources department manager for the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, said the herons are intended to mark the spring Chinook run and the tribe’s obligation to the salmon. “And when the first fish comes up the river and it’s caught, all fishing stops for five days,” Harrelson said, describing the ceremony that the artworks recall.

The project grew from a 2020 call by Portland’s Monuments and Memorials Committee and was selected for a public exhibition, Harrelson said. The city and tribe later agreed that Milwaukie Bay Waterfront was an appropriate public site. Harrelson said the tribe commissioned three artists this year—Greg…