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42-548: The name is that of the Tsimshian peoples, and was conferred in 1927 by the Geographic Names Board of Canada, who noted the variety of spellings then in use i.e. "Tsimshean, Timshian, Chimsain, Tsimpsian, Tsimp-Sheean, Chimsyan" before settling on this one. Aberdeen Passage and Eleanor Passage separate the peninsula from Smith and De Horsey Islands , which are immediately south, and like other waters in

84-557: A language variety similar to Gitxsan and Nisga’a (two inland Tsimshianic languages ), but differentiated from the regional Tsimshian variations. In 2016, only 160 people in Canada were Tsimshian speakers. Some linguists classify Tsimshian languages as a member of the theoretical Penutian language group. Skeena River The Skeena River is the second-longest river entirely within British Columbia , Canada (after

126-726: A location on the North Coast of British Columbia , Canada is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Tsimshian The Tsimshian ( / ˈ s ɪ m ʃ i ən / ; Tsimshian : Ts’msyan or Tsm'syen also once known as the Chemmesyans ) are an Indigenous people of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America. Their communities are mostly in coastal British Columbia in Terrace and Prince Rupert , and Metlakatla, Alaska on Annette Island ,

168-624: A series of disasters befell the people, a chief led a migration away from the cursed land to the coast, where they founded Kitkatla Village , the first of three Southern Tsimshian villages. Kitkatla is still considered to be the most conservative of the Tsimshian villages. The Nisga'a and Gitxsan remained in the upper Skeena region (above the canyon) near the Nass River and forks of the Skeena respectively, but other Tsimshian chiefs moved down

210-475: A variety of activities was not uncommon prior to contact, and for some duration after contact into the 1920s. A battle ensued at Dungeness Spit near Port Townsend, WA where some Tsimshian were camped along the shore. One woman survived and was rescued by a lighthouse operator who later married her. The Tsimshian have a matrilineal kinship system, with a societal structure based on a tribe, house group and clan system. Descent and property are transmitted through

252-462: A wide variety of fish and wildlife. The British Columbia Ministry of the Environment, through BC Parks, has designated a number of Ecological Reserves along the course of the river. The Skeena is well known for its sport fishing , most notably salmon . The Skeena is also very important to the commercial fishing industry. For example, numbering 5 million spawning salmon a year, the Skeena

294-586: Is also home to many black bears and brown bears . Grizzly bears are less common in the area but the Khutzeymateen Grizzly Bear Sanctuary is located nearby. The Skeena River watershed is the ancient homeland of the Tsimshian , Gitxsan , and Wet'suwet'en people. During the 1862 Pacific Northwest smallpox epidemic thousands of indigenous people were evicted from large semi-permanent camps near Victoria and forced to return to their homelands, spreading smallpox throughout

336-632: Is second only to the Fraser River in Canada in its capacity to produce sockeye salmon . However, in the last 40 years there has been a decrease in some of the fish species, leading to strict fishing regulations for the commercial fishery. The following types of Pacific salmon can be found in the Skeena: Other anadromous species: The rare Kermode bear lives in and near the Skeena Valley from Prince Rupert to Hazelton. The region

378-687: The The Tsimshian wanted to preserve their villages and fishing sites on the Skeena and Nass Rivers as early as 1879. They were not able to begin negotiating a treaty with the Canadian government until July 1983. A decade later, fourteen tribes united to negotiate under the collective name of the Tsimshian Tribal Council . A framework agreement was signed in 1997. Due to litigation by one community for commercial fisheries rights,

420-583: The ANSCA. They do not have an associated Native Corporation, although Tsimshian in Alaska may be shareholders of the Sealaska Corporation . The Annette Islands Reserve was the only location in Alaska allowed to maintain fish traps according to traditional rights. The use of these were otherwise banned when Alaska became a state in 1959. The traps were used to gather fish for food for people living on

462-633: The Dixon Entrance , all part of the Pacific Ocean . The Skeena drains 54,400 km (21,000 sq mi) of land with a mean annual discharge of 1,760 cubic metres per second (62,000 cu ft/s). The Skeena River originates at the southern end of Spatsizi Plateau , in a valley between Mount Gunanoot and Mount Thule, south of the Stikine River watershed. The abandoned track of BC Rail 's Dease Lake Extension runs along

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504-526: The Fraser River ). Since ancient times, the Skeena has been an important transportation artery, particularly for the Tsimshian and the Gitxsan —whose names mean "inside the River of Mist", and "people of the River of Mist," respectively. The river and its basin sustain a wide variety of fish, wildlife, and vegetation, and communities native to the area depend on the health of the river. The Tsimshian migrated to

546-531: The Gitxsan and Nisga'a as Tsimshian, because of apparent linguistic affinities. The three were all referred to as "Coast Tsimshian", even though some communities were not coastal. These three groups, however, are separate nations. Tsimshian translates to "Inside the Skeena River " At one time the Tsimshian lived on the upper reaches of the Skeena River near present-day Hazelton , British Columbia. According to southern Tsimshian oral history , after

588-980: The Nass Ranges and Borden Glacier, past the ferry crossing at Usk , through the Kitselas Canyon , and then through the Kleanza Creek Provincial Park . It then flows south-west through the city of Terrace , where the river widens. It continues westwards, followed by the Highway 16 and Canadian National Railway line, passes near the Exchamsiks River Provincial Park , then flows into the Dixon Entrance at Eleanor Passage, between Port Edward and Port Essington , facing De Horsey Island. Partial listing from Fisheries and Oceans Canada Upper Skeena Middle Skeena Lower Skeena The Skeena supports

630-523: The Sitka Tribe of Alaska are of Tsimshian heritage. Tsimshian society is matrilineal kinship -based, which means identity, clans and property pass through the maternal line. Their moiety -based societal structure is further divided into sub clans for certain lineages. The Tsimshian language has some 27 different terms for 'chief' likely because it is a stratified and ranked society. Early Euro-Canadian anthropologists and linguists had classified

672-589: The Southern Tsimshian , 23% for the Coast Tsimshian , 37% among the Nisga'a , and about 22% among the Gitxsan . The Hudson's Bay Company 's local headquarters were at Port Simpson , although Port Essington was also used extensively as a port for its sternwheelers. While canoes played a crucial role on the Skeena for centuries, the age of the steamboat heralded a new era of boating on

714-538: The yaawk (feast) for one specific event. Today in Tsimshian culture, the potlatch is held to honour deaths, burials, and succession to name-titles. The Tsimshian have four different types of feasts. The feast system is the agency for social reproduction, expression of law, the transmission of knowledge, and demonstration of the obligations for chiefs to provide stewardship for resources and attending to needs of communities. The planning and delivery of feast events requires very specific protocols, including those required for

756-589: The 'nine tribes.' The Tsimshian are one of the largest First Nations peoples in northwest British Columbia. Some Tsimshian migrated to the Annette Islands in Alaska, and today approximately 1,450 Alaska Tsimshian people are enrolled in the federally recognized Metlakatla Indian Community , sometimes also called the Annette Island Reserve . The Tsimshian honor the traditional Tlingit name of Taquan for this recent location. Some citizens of

798-466: The 19th century, epidemics of infectious disease contracted from Europeans ravaged their communities, as the First Nations had no acquired immunity to these diseases. The 1862 Pacific Northwest smallpox epidemic killed many of the Tsimshian people. Altogether, one in four Tsimshian died in a series of at least three large-scale outbreaks. In 1835, the total population of the Tsimshian peoples

840-651: The Lower Skeena River, and the Gitxsan occupy territory of the Upper Skeena. During the Omineca Gold Rush , steamboat services ran from the sea to Hazelton , which was the jumping-off point for the trails to the goldfields. The Hudson's Bay Company established a major trading post on the Skeena at what became called Port Simpson, British Columbia ( Lax Kw'alaams ), where nine tribes of

882-1024: The Pacific Northwest coast. Groups of Tsimshian thus brought smallpox from Victoria to the Fort Simpson area, whence it spread widely starting in June 1862. Through the summer indigenous people arrived regularly at the fort to trade, contributing to the spread of smallpox throughout the Northern Coast, up the Skeena River and the Nass River into the British Columbia interior, devastating the Wetʼsuwetʼen and other interior First Nations. All Tsimshianic peoples suffered high death rates from smallpox in 1862–63: About 67% among

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924-687: The Skeena. The first steam-powered vessel to enter the Skeena was the Union in 1864. In 1866 the Mumford attempted to ascend the river but was only able to reach the Kitsumkalum River . It was not until 1891 that the Hudson's Bay Company sternwheeler the Caledonia successfully negotiated through the Kitselas Canyon and reached Hazelton. A number of other steamers were built around the turn of

966-450: The Tsimshian harvested the abundant sea life, especially salmon . The Tsimshian became seafaring people, like the Haida . Salmon continues to be at the center of their nutrition, despite large-scale commercial fishing in the area. Due to this abundant food source, the Tsimshian developed permanent towns. They lived in large longhouses , made from cedar house posts and panels to withstand

1008-727: The Tsimshian nation settled about 1834. Other tribes live elsewhere in BC, and descendants of one group in Metlakatla, Alaska . The Skeena originates south of the Spatsizi Plateau Wilderness Provincial Park in north western British Columbia , forming a divide with the Klappan River , a tributary of the Stikine River . It flows for 570 km (350 mi) before it empties into Chatham Sound , Telegraph Passage and Ogden Channel , east of

1050-598: The area are part of the Skeena estuary. The Tsimpsean Peninsula is broken into two main ecosystems : Coastal Lowlands are characterized by low topography, alternating bedrock and muskeg . Notable wildlife associated with this habitat includes Sandhill Cranes , Canada Geese , Wilson's snipe , Sitka Deer , Wolf , and Black Bear . Central Highlands consist of rugged mountains covered by montane vegetation and temperate rainforest . Notable wildlife associated with this habitat includes Deer , bald eagle , grouse , squirrel and marten . This article about

1092-669: The berries of Vaccinium Vitis-idaea ssp. minus as food. The Tsimshian people of British Columbia encompass fifteen tribes: Some of the Chiefs of these nine tribes happened to be located at Fort Simpson (later Port Simpson, later Lax Kw'alaams , British Columbia)** Giluts'aaw when the Indian Agent assigned reserve communities. Other Chiefs were located at the mission created community of Metlakatla , with some subsequently migrating to Metlakatla, Alaska , newest tribe, with lineages from all Tsimshian tribes. The Tsimshian clans are

1134-467: The century, in part due to the growing fish industry and the gold rush . In 2007 SkeenaWild Conservation Trust was formed to promote projects and initiatives by conservationists, First Nations in Canada , and local communities to protect the natural sustainability of the Skeena watershed and its wild salmon ecosystems. The organization has a large payroll and is dependant on convincing the public that salmon are in crisis. One of SkeenaWild's main goals

1176-560: The community reservation status, which it did in the late 19th century. In 1895, the BC Tsimshian population stood at 3,550, while the Alaska Tsimshian population had dropped to 465 by 1900. Some of the Tsimshian had returned south to their homelands on the Skeena. After this low-water point, the Tsimshian population began to grow again, eventually to reach modern numbers comparable to the 1835 population estimate. However,

1218-563: The community of Kispiox and then Hazelton , where it receives the waters of Morice- Bulkley River , and turns south-west. The Yellowhead Highway and a Canadian National Railway track follow the course of the Skeena on this section. At Kitwanga , the river is crossed by Highway 37 , and then turns south around the Seven Sisters Peaks and Bulkley Ranges, through the Skeena Provincial Forest, then between

1260-639: The federal government forced a confidentiality clause against other communities and caused dissolution of the main treaty group and subsequently the TTC. A subset of the Tsimshian First Nations continues to negotiate with the BC Treaty Commission to reach an Agreement-in-Principle that has alienated most members. The Tsimshian speak a language, called Sm'algyax , which translates as "real or true tongue". The Tsimshian also speak

1302-467: The guests. It is untoward to hold out one's hand while payments (also known as 'gifts' by external observers) are being distributed. The Tsimshian have maintained their fishing and hunting lifestyle (although constrained by colonialism and declining fish and animal population abundances), art and culture, and are working to revitalize the common use of their language. Artists have excelled in traditional mediums and contemporary forms with pieces spread around

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1344-535: The lower Skeena River when the salmon returned. Archaeological evidence shows 5,000 years of continuous habitation in the Prince Rupert region. Gitxaala might have been the first Tsimshian village contacted by Europeans when Captain Charles Duncan and James Colnett arrived in 1787 although Russian fur traders may have visited northern groups earlier. The confluence of the Skeena and Bulkley Rivers

1386-730: The maternal line. Hereditary chiefs obtain their rights through their maternal line through their mother's brother. Although it is inherited the protege must be trained for proper behavior and groomed well for specific obligations. No lineage should be sullied by inappropriate behaviors of high-ranking members. The marriage ceremony was an extremely formal affair, several prolonged and sequential ceremonies. Arranged marriages and births were common to protect rights of access to territories and resources. Some cultural taboos have related to prohibiting women and men from eating improper foods during and after childbirth. Several taboos still exist and are actively practiced. Like all Northwest Coastal peoples,

1428-682: The numbers of the inland Tsimshian peoples are now higher than they were historically, while those of the Southern and Coastal Tsimshian are much lower. In the 1970s, the Metlakatla Indian Community voted to retain their rights to land and water, and opted out of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA); they have the only Native reservation in Alaska. The Metlakatla Tsimshian maintained their reservation status and holdings exclusive of

1470-518: The only reservation in Alaska. The Tsimshian estimate there are 45,000 Tsimshian people and approximately 10,000 members are federally registered in eight First Nations communities (including the Kitselas, Kitsumkalum, Gitxaala, Gitga'at at Hartley Bay , and Kitasoo at Klemtu ) Lax Kw'Alaams, and Metlakatla, BC . The latter two communities resulted in the colonial intersections of early settlers and consist of Tsimshian people belonging to

1512-659: The reservation. Legally the community was required to use the traps at least once every three years or lose the right permanently. They stopped the practice early in the 2000s and lost their right to this traditional way of fishing. The majority of Tsimshian still live in the lower Skeena River watershed near Prince Rupert , as well as northern coastal BC. Some Tsimshian moved south into the Columbia River Basin mid-nineteenth century for picking hops and other agricultural crops. Many Tsimshian have moved into Seattle region from both AK and BC. Long distance canoe travel for

1554-569: The river and occupied all the lands of the lower Skeena valley. Over time, these groups developed a new dialect of their ancestral language and came to regard themselves as a distinct population, the Tsimshian-proper. They continued to share the rights and customs of those who are known as the Gitxsan, their kin on the upper Skeena. The Tsimshian maintained winter villages in and around the islands of Prince Rupert Harbour and Venn Pass (Metlakatla). They returned to their summer villages along

1596-642: The river in its upper course. It flows south-east, between the shallow peaks of the Skeena Mountains , through the McEvoy and Jackson flats. It continues in this direction until it passes the Slamgeesh Range, then flows westwards to Fourth Cabin , when it turns south through a shallow canyon below Poison Mountain. After Kuldo it takes an eastward turn, then flows south again below Cutoff Mountain and Mount Pope. It continues through rolling hills to

1638-450: The wet climate. These were very large and usually housed an entire extended family. Tsimshian religion centered on the "Lord of Heaven", who aided people in times of need by sending supernatural servants to earth to aid them. The Tsimshian believed that charity and purification of the body (either by cleanliness or fasting ) was the route to the afterlife . The Tsimshian engage in the feast system or potlatch , which they refer to as

1680-410: The world. These artisans practice the tradition of story telling with their chosen mediums. Like other coastal peoples, the Tsimshian fashioned most of their goods out of western red cedar , especially its bark . It could be fashioned into tools, clothing, roofing, armour, building materials, and canoe skins. They used cedar in their Chilkat weaving , which they are credited with inventing. They use

1722-546: Was estimated at 8,500. By 1885, the population had dropped to 4,500, 817 of whom moved to Alaska two years later following Missionary William Duncan. In the 1880s the Anglican missionary William Duncan , along with a group of the Tsimshian, left Metlakatla, British Columbia and requested settlement on Annette Island from the U.S. government . After gaining approval, the group founded New Metlakatla on Annette Island in southern Alaska. Duncan appealed to Congress to grant

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1764-459: Was formerly the site of the Tsimshian village of Kitanmaks and became a new European settlement of Skeena Forks (today known as Hazelton). When the Hudson's Bay Company moved their fort to modern-day Port Simpson in 1834, nine Tsimshian tribal chiefs moved to the surrounding area for trade advantage. Many of the Tsimshian peoples in Canada still live in these regions. Throughout the second half of

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