The Coeur d'Alene Indian's were first noticed by the American explorers, Lewis and Clark, in 1805, the Coeur d'Alêne were a wandering people, dwelling in mat-covered communal houses on the border of the lake, and subsisting chiefly upon fish and wild roots. Blackwell Island was one of these places. French traders allegedly named the local Indian tribe the Coeur d'Alene out of respect for their to