People of the Pacific Northwest & the Arctic

THE NORTHWEST

This area is found between the Pacific Ocean and mountains to The east.

Cool ocean winds brought heavy rains, so forests grew tall & thick.

The forest & rivers were filled with animals & fish.

Some tribes that lived in This area were the Kwakiutl, Makah, and Chinook. These tribes fished, hunted, and gathered to eat.

Salmon was the staple food for tribes.

Whales were an important resource for food, oil, bone.

Makah hunted whales in dugout canoes.

RESOURCES & TRADE Trees were a very important resource for the Northwest tribes. Trees were used to build shelters, boats, tools & clothing.

They used harpoons made from poles & sharp shell points.

Kwakiutl captured whales that became stranded on the beach.

SHELTERS  The MAKAH made longhouses which could reach the length of 60 feet. These were called PLANKHOUSES.  The walls & floors were covered with long boards.  All members of the clan lived in the same longhouse.  The clan made decisions & taught younger members stories, songs, and skills.

TOOLS Most tools of the Northwest tribes were made from wood. Totem Poles were also made from cedar trees.

TRADE Trade was very important to the tribes economy. People traveled far distances to trade their goods. The CHINOOK people were the best known traders in this area. The DALLES was the center of trade. Many groups that spoke different languages traded at the Dalles. The Chinook developed a special language that allowed them to barter for goods.

A POTLATCH  Because of the natural resources in this area & trade, these tribes were rich.  One way they expressed their good fortune was through a Celebration or potlatch.  A potlatch was meant to show wealth & share the riches.

TOTEM POLE Totem poles were built for villages or individual clans. Each segment of the totem pole represented something personal about the village or people in the clan.

The Arctic Tribes

LANDS of the NORTH  The Arctic is the region near the North Pole.  It is the a flat plain that stays frozen during the year.

Aleut people lived along the coast of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska.

Inuit people lived in what is now Alaska and northernmost Canada.

 The Aleut are one tribe found here.  They lived along the coast of the Aleutian Islands.  The Inuit are people related to the Aleut.  These people now live in Alaska & Northern Canada.

Because of the climate, few plants grew in this area. The Aleuts & Inuit hunted. They used spears to hunt foxes, caribou, and polar bear. They used harpoons & kayaks to hunt seals, walruses, and whales.

RESOURCES Resources were limited, so nothing was wasted. All parts of the animals were used for food, clothing, shelter, tools, light, etc.

SCRIMSHAW  Inuit people used all parts of the animals they hunted  Scrimshaw is the carving of pictures into whalebone. Scrimshaw

SHELTER  The Aleuts lived in shelters whose frames were made of whalebone and walls made of sod.  During the winter some Inuit made shelters from ice called igloos.  Other families lived year round in tents made of animal skins or in sod houses.

Snow Goggles Tools Bow Drill

Bow & Arrow Bone Knife

Kayaks & Paddles

Harpoon Ulu

THE SUB ARCTIC  The land south of the Arctic is the sub Arctic.  There are trees in this region.  The tribes (Like the Cree) relied on hunting & gathering to survive.  The Cree used the trees to make bows & arrows they hunted with.