[5] In 1853, the territorial governor of Washington (which at the time included the panhandle of Idaho), Isaac Stevens, began to negotiate treaties with local tribes.

On May 16, 1858, he was met by a force of about 600 Indians[fn 2] who, after blocking Steptoe's path forward, began to fight the next day.

In 1887 the tribe and the federal government came to an agreement under those terms, but Lake Coeur d'Alene and related waters were part of the reservation.

[25] In 1889, the tribe ceded the northern third of the reservation back to the federal government, including part of Lake Coeur d'Alene, for compensation.

[26] Unusually, in contrast to practices at the time, the reservation boundary was drawn across the lake, rather than by meandering the high water line.

In 1894, the tribe ceded a one-mile wide strip (the "Harrison cession") for use by the Washington and Idaho Railway to extend its tracks.

As of 2012, the Silver Valley was the second largest Superfund cleanup site in the nation, as designated by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

In 1991, the tribe notified the state of its intent to sue for title of the lake and submerged lands beneath.

[38][39][40] The case was brought in the U.S. District Court which initially held that a suit by the tribe against the state was barred by the Eleventh Amendment.

In the Supreme Court, Justice Anthony Kennedy delivered the majority opinion which held that the Eleventh Amendment barred direct lawsuits by tribes against a state.

[45] The Coeur d'Alene tribe requested that the United States sue to quiet title to the submerged lands on the reservation.

[46] The tribe moved to intervene on the side of the United States in this suit, and the court granted the request.

The court found that the earlier executive agreements had clearly intended to reserve the lake and submerged land for the use of the tribe, and ruled for the United States.

[58] The tribe has proceeded to file lawsuits requiring cleanup against mining companies for contamination of waters and land.