 In the early 19th century, Jesuit Catholic missionaries, primarily French-speaking, came to live among the Salish in the Bitterroot Valley with the intent of converting the natives.They built a church.During the Steven’s Treaty era, Washington Territory Governor Isaac Stevens called the Salish, Pend d’Oreilles, and Ksanka Band of Kootenai together in 1855 to negotiate the Hellgate Treaty.