The American Indians of the Northwest Coast
Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest, sometimes referred to as Cascadia, is a geographic region in western North America bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the west and by the Cascade Mountain Range on the east. Though no official boundary exists, the most common conception includes the Canadian provi…
Why did Native Americans live in the Pacific Northwest region?
In the Pacific Northwest, Native American tribes enjoyed a wet and mild climate that allowed for ample agriculture and fishing. Many tribes inhabited the modern-day states of Oregon and Washington, as well as northern California. Along the coast, tribes relied heavily on the Pacific salmon for food.
Where is the Pacific Northwest located in North America?
Native North Americans of the Pacific Northwest. The Pacific Northwest consists of the northeast corner of the United States including Oregon and Washington , the islands of southern Alaska , and parts of northern Idaho , northwestern Montana , and the coast of British Columbia, Canada.
What Indian tribes lived in the Northwest region?
There are many tribes that lived in the Northwest region. Some of these were the Chinook, Tillamook, Coast Salish, and the Tlingit . These groups are well known for its hand-crafted totem poles. A totem pole in front of a home shows the generations and social rank of that family. What Did Northwest Native Americans Live In?
What is the history of the northwest coast?
About 10,000 years ago, people began living on North America’s Northwest Coast, a narrow area along the Pacific Ocean that stretches across parts of modern-day Alaska, Washington, Oregon, and Yukon and British Columbia in Canada. By 3,000 B.C., people had set up permanent villages along the rivers, peninsulas, and islands of this region.
Where did people live in the past 10,000 years?
What tribes have totem poles?
What did tribes do in the spring?
Why did the tribes have a salmon ceremony?
What tribes have a YouTube channel?
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About this website
What did the Northwest tribes live in?
The dwellings of the Northwest Coast Indians were rectilinear structures that were built of timber or planks and, except for those in northwestern California, were usually quite large, as the members of a corporate “house” typically lived together in one building.
How did Native Americans survive in the Pacific Northwest?
The ocean and the lush coastal forests provided the Northwest Coast people with everything that they needed to survive. Tribes carved huge canoes made from cedar or spruce trees. The boats could fit up to 30 people, who paddled into the sea to hunt otters, seals, and whales.
What is the largest Native American tribe in the Pacific Northwest?
The Coast Salish are the largest of the southern groups. They are a loose grouping of many tribes with numerous distinct cultures and languages.
Which tribe belongs to North West?
The Northwest Coast Indian peoples, who lived in the Pacific Northwest, can be classified into four units, or “provinces.” The northern province includes speakers of Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, and the Tsimshian-influenced Haisla (northernmost Heiltsuq or Kwakiutl).
What was the environment like in the Northwest Coast?
The climate of the Northwest Coast was mild and rainy. The geogra- phy where the Chinook lived was the shoreline. The Chinook had salmon for food, cedar bark for clothing, and trees for shelter. Exemplary Answer: The environment in which a Native American tribe lived influ- enced their culture.
What is the Pacific Northwest environment?
The main general climatic types of the Pacific Northwest are temperate oceanic, where cool temperatures and frequent cloudy skies are typical: both moderate and four seasons, but mountainous and arid high desert climates occupy the sparsely populated areas east of the Cascades.
What disease devastated the native population in Oregon?
A vaccination to smallpox was discovered in 1798 by an Englishman and first used in Puget Sound during the 1836-1837 outbreak. The 1770s smallpox epidemic affected a large area of the Northwest Coast of North America ranging from Alaska to Oregon.
How was religion important to the Native Americans of the PNW?
The religion and spiritual beliefs of Native Americans played an important role in their everyday life. Each tribe and peoples had their own unique beliefs, legends, and rituals, but they all believed that the world was filled with spirits.
Which Native American peoples lived in the Pacific Northwest?
The Northwest Coast Indian peoples, who lived in the Pacific Northwest, can be classified into four units, or “provinces.” The northern province in...
Where did the Northwest Coast Indian people live?
Historically, the Northwest Coast people inhabited a narrow belt of North American Pacific coastland and offshore islands from the southern border...
What was the social structure of Northwest Coast Indian society?
The Pacific Northwest Indian peoples often organized themselves into corporate “houses” of a few dozen to 100 or more related people who held in co...
How did the Native Americans of the Northwest Coast get their food?
The Native American peoples of the Northwest Coast had abundant and reliable supplies of salmon and other fish, sea mammals, shellfish, birds, and...
What kind of homes did the Northwest Coast Indians live in?
The dwellings of the Northwest Coast Indians were rectilinear structures that were built of timber or planks and, except for those in northwestern...
Learn about history of Northwest Coast Indians
Northwest Coast Indians were found in Oregon, Washington, and even as far north as Alaska.
How did the Pacific Northwest people move?
In the summer, they lived by the ocean and spent the bulk of their time fishing. In the fall, they moved inland to the rivers and streams to harvest salmon. Winter drove them into sheltered bays, where they rode out the cold weather. They did not raise plants or vegetables for their own use, but their hunting-and-gathering economy worked well in the rich coastal environment and enabled them to enjoy a considerable amount of free time.
When did the Pacific Northwest first appear?
The earliest known inhabitants of the Pacific Northwest appeared in the area around 8000 bce. By 1500 bce, they had developed a large coastal trade in obsidian, a volcanic glass used to make knife blades and other sharp tools, and other goods. Around 400 bce, improvements in hunting and fishing tools led to a large growth in population.
What were the diseases that the Pacific Northwest Indians carried?
As contact with Europeans increased, the people of the Pacific Northwest were devastated by the infectious diseases the newcomers carried—smallpox, measles, influenza, typhoid fever, and others. Thousands died; by some estimates, 80 percent of the native population of the Northwest had died by the late 1800s, a period when white (European) settlers began to arrive in the Pacific Northwest in large numbers.
What were the rights of the coastal tribes?
Many of the tribes of Washington and Oregon signed treaties with the United States in the 1850s that established reservations, land that would be held forever for their use, and reserved certain resource rights, such as the right to fish and hunt in traditional areas . The Coastal tribes never experienced extended warfare with the United States.
Where are the Northwest Coast Indians?
Northwest Coast Indian, member of any of the Native American peoples inhabiting a narrow belt of Pacific coastland and offshore islands from the southern border of Alaska to northwestern California. Distribution of Northwest Coast Indians Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Top Questions.
What is the Pacific Northwest?
Read about the Pacific Northwest, the region of the northwestern United States including the states of Oregon and Washington and part of Idaho.
What are the four provinces of the Northwest Coast?
Northwest Coast groups can be classified into four units or “provinces.”. The northern province included speakers of Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, and the Tsimshian-influenced Haisla (northernmost Heiltsuq or Kwakiutl). The Wakashan province included all other Kwakiutl, the Bella Coola, and the Nuu-chah-nulth.
What are the names of the chinooks in Oregon?
The Coast Salish–Chinook province extended south to the central coast of Oregon and included the Makah, Chinook, Tillamook, Siuslaw, and others. The northwestern California province included the Athabaskan-speaking Tututni-Tolowa as well as the Karok, Yurok, Wiyot, and Hupa.
What languages did the Northwest Coast speak?
From north to south the following linguistic divisions occurred: Tlingit, Haida, Tsimshian, northern Kwakiutl, Bella Coola, southern Kwakiutl, Nuu-chah-nulth (Nootka), Coast Salish, Quileute-Chimakum, Kwalhioqua, and Chinook. Along the Oregon coast and in northwestern California, a series of smaller divisions occurred: Tillamook, Alsea, Siuslaw, Umpqua, Coos, Tututni-Tolowa, Yurok, Wiyot, Karok, and Hupa.
What is the transition from the Northwest Coast to the California culture area?
Although the sea and various mountain ranges provide the region with distinct boundaries to the east, north, and west, the transition from the Northwest Coast to the California culture area is gradual , and some scholars classify the southernmost tribes discussed in this article as California Indians.
What were the three main divisions of the Native American society?
These highly stratified societies also had three main divisions: chiefly elites, commoners, and slaves or war captives. Read more below: Native American: The Northwest Coast. Native American: Native American history. Learn more about the history of the Native Americans of the northern Pacific Coast.
Where did people live in the past 10,000 years?
About 10,000 years ago, people began living on North America’s Northwest Coast, a narrow area along the Pacific Ocean that stretches across parts of modern-day Alaska, Washington, Oregon, and Yukon and British Columbia in Canada. By 3,000 B.C., people had set up permanent villages along the rivers, peninsulas, ...
What tribes have totem poles?
Many tribes, such as the Tlingit (KLIN-kit) and Haida (HY-dah), showed off their status with totem poles. These carved and painted poles represented a family’s history or honored a chief or other important person. The totem poles featured carvings of animals or supernatural creatures associated with family clans.
What did tribes do in the spring?
In the spring and summer, many tribes lived in temporary shelters that could be moved around while they hunted, fished, and gathered berries and roots. During winter, people moved into cedar houses that were large enough for many families to share. Often these homes had totem poles outside.
Why did the tribes have a salmon ceremony?
Salmon was such an important food source that these fish featured in many of their stories, and many tribes held a First Salmon Ceremony to celebrate the salmon’s return to freshwater rivers from the ocean.
What tribes have a YouTube channel?
For instance, the Puyallup (pyoo-AH-lup) tribe has a YouTube channel with videos of events such as the Puyallup powwow. Fish have become part of many of modern tribal businesses: The S’klallam (SKLAH-lum) and the Stillaguamish (stil-AG-wa-mish) operate fish hatcheries.
