Rich Traditions
A potlatch was a social event, where the public assembled to witness the beginning of the salmon or berry season, the building of a new plank house, a wedding, or the naming of a child. There were also paying-off potlatches where a family would pay for several previous ceremonies and pay debts that had accumulated over decades. Most potlatches were held in the fall when the gathering of resources for the winter was completed.
Families would plan and save for a long time before they would host a potlatch. The family hosting the potlatch would supply the food and pay the officials they hired. An official may have been an elder who was hired to give a speech. Artists, cooks, hunters, and all others who performed special services were publicly acknowledged and thanked. A healer or canoe maker who had performed some service in the past would also be publicly acknowledged, thanked and be rewarded with a gift. Gifts were also distributed by presenting an individual with a staff that had a special meaning. The staff could represent a canoe, and a promise to the recipient that they would receive the gift in the future. The last day of the potlatch, the hosts would get up on the roof where they threw highly prized blankets down to the guests below.
A marriage ceremony involved gift exchanges, and started with the village leader, the groom, the groom's parents, grandparents and other relatives going to the brides family with gifts to propose. The leader, then the grandparents, then the parents would do the talking for the groom. If the bride's parents accepted, the leader would make the announcement and the bride would go back with the groom's party. At a later date, the family of the groom held a celebration, and the bride's parents would bring gifts for the groom's family.
At a naming ceremony, a person was given his/her official name. Before receiving a name the person had to prove themselves to be worthy of a name. A person would have a nickname before they received their official name at a potlatch or naming ceremony.
Each family line owned a stock of names varying in degrees of importance and prestige. An important name was treated like property and the owner of the name had the right to choose a successor. If a person died before passing on a name, the members of the family would chose a successor. A person could pass on their name at anytime to a grandson or granddaughter, and several prominent people would be called to witness the naming.
Potlatches were celebratory gatherings of families and neighbors that provided a way to redistribute resources, and reinforce prestige and social status.
Wedding Guests
Northwestern University Library
Photo by: E.S. Curtis
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Rich Traditions
In comparison to potlatches that were social and celebratory in concept, winter dances were serious spiritual ceremonies. Of all ceremonies, winter spirit dances were the most prominent. Dances would be hosted by families throughout the winter and dances lasted as long as the host family could provide for his guests.
Enormous feast dishes held great quantities food that was prepared for the guests. The women used serving dishes to carry the food to guests and serve out portions into individual bowls.
The protocol, dress, and basis of the winter dance varied among the west coast first nations. In some areas masks with mystic powers were worn and in others men wore a feathered headband, women adorned their hair with eagle down. Dancing and singing lasted throughout the night accompanied by hand drums, box drums, whistles, clappers and rattles.
For some winter dances were emotional releases and have been described as a "cry". For some no spiritual search or quest required to obtain the spirit song. The song came spontaneously to anyone interested in becoming a dancer. For others the song was passed to the person in a dream or vision from their guardian spirit.
Dancing Mask
Source: Northwestern University Library
Photo by: Artist: E.S. Curtis
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Rich Traditions
The Fraser River provided the Sto:lo with fish for thousands of years. Archaeological evidence of fishing on the Fraser River dates back 9000 years. Starting with the spring salmon and ending in the fall, the process of catching, drying and smoking fish was a major activity.
Fish were taken by a variety of methods including nets, traps, weirs, hooks and harpoons. Most of the fish was caught in a dip net. Dip nets were used to take fish directly from the rocky banks of the Fraser River. Bag nets were used for ocean trawling and river fishing. Bag nets were weaved from grass 10 to 12 feet wide were held between two canoes and filled with fish.
The hemp fibre for dip and bag nets grew in limited quantities. Most was obtained through trade with the Thompson near Lytton for dried salmon, saskatoons and soapberries. The inner bark was used, it was spun between the hand and thigh into strands of various thickness, usually two strands were twisted together to produce the fibre for the net. Inner red cedar bark line was also used to catch bigger fish and to construct netting. Yellow cedar bark line was used to catch smaller fish and was to weak for netting.
Community owned weirs were built in shallow areas of the river to catch fish. This ancient technique of building a fence stopped the fish, and they were caught with a three pronged leister or a noose at the end of a pole. When enough fish were caught, the weirs or fences were opened.
Smoking salmon with cherry and crab apple wood was a popular way to flavour and preserve fish. Fish that was smoked for a week would last for a year. Salmon would also be cut, stretched and hung to dry on racks in the hot and windy season of July. Winds were hot enough to allow natural oils of the fish to act as a preserver. Depending on the weather and location of the racks the fish would take one to three weeks to dry and be good for two years. Preserved fish would be placed in a storehouse.
Most hunting was done in the fall when the salmon drying season was over. Although hunting was not as important as fishing it was an important economic activity. Men who specialized in hunting would lead expeditions into the mountains to hunt goats. Black bear was also a favorite and sought after along with deer, moose, ducks, geese, and grouse. Ducks and deer were caught using a net made of a hemp fibre. Expeditions lasted several weeks and camps were set up. Meat was cut up, dried and smoked, and transported back to the longhouse.
Nootka Method of Spearing Fish
Source: Northwestern University Library
Photo by: E.S. Curtis
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Rich Traditions
Goat hair blankets were made for personal use, given as gifts to establish friendly relations, and distributed at the potlatch to display wealth. At potlatches leaders were known to give away between 300 and 400 blankets. At burials blankets were distributed as gifts. At a wedding a girl of high rank would have the path from her home to her husband's canoe covered with blankets. Women who devoted most of their time to weaving became specialists and their knowledge was passed on from mother to daughter. Weaving of blankets was an art form and a thriving industry.
Ingenuity and hard work were combined to create the materials used in weaving. Goat's wool was dusted with a white clay-like substance to absorb the oils and making it easier to spin. A combination of dog's hair, down from water fowl, and milk or fire weed was combined on a spindle. The yarn was used for finer garments. Colors used in weaving were black, yellow orange and brown. Black was produced by boiling hemlock, birch bark or fern roots. Yellow dye was created by immersing yellow lichen in water and bringing it to a boil. The wool was left I the dye bath until the desired color was obtained. Red was produced from the bark of the alder. Brown was obtained from hemlock bark and the husks of hazel-nuts.
The looms were of two types: the two bar vertical loom was used for large twilled blankets and the single bar was used for mats, dance aprons, rugs, sashes and tump-lines (pack straps).
To make baskets the inner bark of the Yellow Cedar was stripped off, boiled, and worked into a soft pliable condition. Strips of the desired width would be torn off and used. Bark strips were also pounded into shreds, combined into small separate fibres, and used in work that required finely spun material.
The plain, checkerboard or diagonal weave was common in the making of baskets, mats and pack straps. Twilled weave was common in the production of the large Salish blankets. Twined weave was used in making the finest pieces.
Twine produced from nettle fibre was used in making nets, fishing line and for a warp (vertical threads of the web) in weaving. Cat-tail (Tule) were cut, laid on racks to dry and used for mat making. Cherry bark was used for decoration in mats in and baskets. No pounding was necessary for cherry bark preparation. Baskets were used for cooking, collecting berries, storage, ornaments, and as a status symbol.
Clallum Women Weaving
Source: Royal Ontario Museum
Painting by: Paul Kane
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