ARCHAEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS AT NOOTKA SOUND, VANCOUVER ISLAND by ALAN DANIEL McMILLAN B.A., University of Saskatchewan 1966 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF . THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF M.A. in the Department of Anthropology We accept this thesis as conforming to the required standard THE UNIVERSITY OF*BRITISH COLUMBIA October, 1969 In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and study. I further agree tha permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the Head of my Department or by his representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. Department of Anthropology The University of British Columbia Vancouver 8, Canada Oct. 20, 1969 ABSTRACT The archaeology of the Moachat Nootka territory, consisiting of Nootka Sound and Tahsis and Tlupana Inlets, was chosen as the specific concern of this thesis. Nootka Sound was an important area in the early historic fur trade and a great deal was written by the early explorers and traders about the inhabitants of this region. However, little archaeological work has been done. A large-scale excavation, carried out at the main Moachat village of Yukwot in 1966 by the National Historic Parks Branch, was the only previous archaeological project. As the material obtained by this excavation had not been published or fully processed at the time of writing, very little of the information was available for the present study. The objectives of the fieldwork were: to visit and describe the sixteen villages and camp sites listed for the Moachat by Drucker (1951: 229), to carry out excavations at one of these sites, to visit and describe the burial caves and pictographs which were known to exist in the area, and to collect whatever ecological and ethnographic information could be conveniently obtained. No site survey was undertaken, although a few previously unrecorded sites were discovered. Excavations were carried out at Coopte (DkSp 1), the winter village of the Moachat, during the summer of 1968. The excavations were rather small in scope, lasting only two months and being conducted sometimes by myself only and sometimes with the help of one assistant. Nevertheless, fifteeen test pits were excavated which yielded 273 artifacts and a fair sample of faunal remains and historic material. This paper includes an account of the excavations at Coopte, as well as descriptions of the other sites visited. It is also an attempt to integrate historic and ethnographic information with the archaeological data. The substantial body of published and unpublished information provides a convenient basis for the interpretation of the archaeological material. It is hoped that this approach will prove useful in attempting to describe the way of life of the aboriginal inhabitants of Nootka Sound. i TABLE OF CONTENTS Ethnographic Setting A. Introduction.......... p. 1 B. The Nootka - General View p. 3 C. History of Nootka Sound p. 6 D. Ecology of Nootka Sound p. 10 E. The Moachat Confederacy...., p. 13 F. Economic Cycle ....p. 15 G. Trade p. '-20 H. Subsistence Technology ...p. 23 The Moachat Sites A. Village and Camp Sites... p. 31. B. Burial Caves p. 45 C. Burial Canoe p. 51 D. Pictographs p. 53 Excayations at DkSp 1 A. The Site 1. Description p. 55 2. Surface Features p. 55 3. Localized Ecology p. 57 4. Excavating Procedure p. 58 5. Notes on Measurements p. 59 6. Excavated Units p. 60 B. The Artifact Collection 1. Chipped Stone p. 66 2. Pecked and Ground Stone p. 67 3. Ground Stone p. 68 4. Bone and Antler p. 76 5. Shell p. 90 6. Contact Goods p. 92 C. Discussion of the Site p. 99 Other Archaeological Work in Nootka Sound p. 113 Bibliography P> 118 Appendix 1 - Account of Each Excavated Level... p. 123 Appendix 2 - Profiles and Floor Plans p. 163 Appendix 3 - Artifact List p. 182 ii Maps The Nootkan Tribes .p. 5 Moachat Territory and Sites ... p. 30 Yukwot in 1779 p. 32 Coopte (DkSp 1) p. 63 Plates 1. Yukwot P- 41 2. Yukwot P- ^2 3. Yukwot . .. • p. 42 4. O'wis p. 43 5. Tsawun p. 43 6. Tacis p. 43 7. Hisnit Inlet P- 44 8. Hisnit ...p. 44 9. Mowatca . .p. 44 10. rock shelter -p. 50 11. rock shelter burial p. 50 12. pictograph... p. 50 13. burial canoe p. 52 14. burial canoe.... p. 52 15. Coopte p. 64 16. Coopte... p. 64 17. canoe skids. p. 65 18. posts p. 65 19. bone artifacts p. HO 20. bone artifacts P- HO 21. hand maul fragments p. H3i 22. chipped pebbles.......... p • HI 23. contact goods p. 112 Figures 1. composite fish-hook p. 109a 2. composite harpoon head p. 109a 3. salmon trolling hook p. 109a 4. halibut hook. p. 109a ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Thanks are due to my advisor, Mr. Wilson Duff, who has offered guidance throughout this project. The assistance of Dr. C. E. Borden, whose suggestions and comments were invaluable, is also gratefully acknowledged. For contributions to the fieldwork I am indebted to Mr. Bruce Watson, my assistant; the Chisholm Family of Tahsis, for their hospitality; Mr. Stan Sharcott of the Fisheries Department for information on the area; and various members of the Nootka band, for their support and for allowing me to dig on reserve land. Faunal remains were identified with the assistance of Miss Gay Calvert of the Vancouver Centennial Museum and by the use of comparative specimens in the University of British Columbia Zoology Museum. Financial support for fieldwork came from a University of British Columbia Faculty Research Grant obtained through Mr. Wilson Duff. 1 ETHNOGRAPHIC SETTING A. Introduction Ethnographic information is particularly relevant to the interpretation of data from the sites in this area. The time depth seems shallow enough so that the archaeological remains most likely are those of the historic occupants described in the ethnographic literature and of their immediate ancestors. Direct ethnographic analogy can be employed, looking to the published material for information on the manufacture and use of the items found during the excavation. Occasionally this method yields insights into the social or religious life of the inhabitants, which could never be gained by an analysis of the artifacts alone. Workers in this area are particularly fortunate in having a comparatively large body of published and unpublished sources available, including a number of early journals. Such information as the seasonal occupation of the various sites in the area and economic activities carried out there, which is fairly well documented for the early historic period, is of inestimable value in interpreting the archaeological data. The fullest description of the aboriginal culture, then, is reached by a synthesis of the ethnographic, historic, and archaeological information. Not only does archaeology gain in this synthesis, but the other two disciplines can also utilize archaeological findings. Ethnographic and historic documents are often incomplete or biased. Informants may not always remember correctly or may attribute to their group qualities which they did not possess. Fieldworkers also may color the results by their own preconceptions '. Archaeological data are more definite and may be used to test the validity of ethnographic 2 evidence or historical traditions. They can also be used to f i ll in the blank spots in historic or ethnographic information. On the other hand, ethnography benefits from the temporal depth.which archaeology provides. One approach complements the other. The most effective use of these three disciplines, then, would call for the excavation of Indian sites with a relatively shallow time depth, extending into the historic period. This approach has been used with considerable success by others. The work of Frederica de Laguna (1956, 1960, 1964) on the northern coast is especially notable in this respect. This thesis will be primarily archaeological, but it is hoped that a description of the ethnographic and historical setting will complement the archaeological data and lead to a more complete picture of the life of the aboriginal inhabitants. The section on the ethnographic setting is of necessity selective in the aspects described. A large volume could be written on Nootkan ethnography. Two good ethnographies already exist (Drucker 1951$ Koppert 1930). This section will deal with those aspects of Nootkan ethnography that offer most help in the interpretation of archaeological data. Other major aspects of Nootkan life, less useful for this purpose, are either not included or dealt with peripherally in.the text. 3 B. The Nootka — General View The Nootka tribes inhabited the west coast of Vancouver Island from Cape Cook to the vicinity of modern Port Renfrew. In addition, the Makah, a Nootkan branch speaking a dialect mutually intelligible with that of the Vancouver Island tribes, occupied the land across the Strait of Juan de Fuca on Cape Flattery. The neighbors on northern Vancouver Island were the Kwakiutl, who were closely related to the Nootka. Across the island from the central and southern groups lived various divisions of the Coast Salish. The Nootka groups along the west coast were relatively homogeneous in culture, but some differences did arise in the south due to sustained Coast Salish influence. The term "Nootka" was erroneously applied by Captain Cook in 1778, when he thought he heard the Moachat use it to refer either to themselves or their land, He therefore named the entrance Nootka Sound and the people Nootka. Actually the word does not seem to occur in the Nootka language (Mozino 1913: 36; Drucker 1951: 3). Like most coastal Indians, the Nootka had no conception of themselves as a unified "tribe". The only inclusive term would refer to those speaking the same language. The Nootka, along with their Kwakiutl neighbors, belong to a language stock known as Wakashan. This name was first applied by Cook (1790; 1778), while visiting Friendly Cove in 1778. Were I to affix a name to the people of Nootka, I would call them Wakashians; from the word Wakash, which was very frequently in their mouths. It seemed to express applause, approbation, and friendship. For when they appeared to be satisfied, or well pleased with anything they saw, or any incident that happened, they would, with one voice, call out, "wakash! wakash!"