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The first recorded mention of a pole, which was a house pole, was on Langara Island in the Haida village of Dadans, c.1790, by John Bartlett, who wrote: We went ashore where one of their winter houses stood. The entrance was cut out of a large tree and carved all the way up and down. The door was made like a man's head and the passage of the house was between his teeth and was built before they knew the use of iron. -
During the 1800s, the practice of creating totem poles spread south along the coast into the rest of British Columbia and Washington state. Carving and designing totem poles became a tradition and symbol of the First Nations culture,representing and commemorating ancestry, histories, people, or events. -
Ceremonies referred to as Potlatches took place whenever new totem poles were raised. This traditional ceremony made totem poles come alive in the First Nations culture. -
Chief G’psgolox, of the Haisla people, commissioned artists Hemzid and Wakas to carve a pole in memory of the chief’s deceased wife and children. -
In 1884, the federal government, which believed that Indigenous cultural activities, beliefs and traditions were obstructing its goal of assimilation, passed the Potlatch Law. This law provided the perfect setting for the apprehension of poles (and other cultural items) by collectors, government officials, and ethnologist. -
After the law on Potlatch, most indigenous people stopped making totem poles, but still carved small models of poles for tourists.
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The underground potlatch took place at Christmas in 1921 in Alert Bay. ‘Namgis Chief Dan Cranmer held a six day potlatch to celebrate a wedding in their tribe. The potlatch was held on Village Island in an effort to keep the activities out from under the nose of the Indian Agents and missionaries. The celebration was detected by police and under the Potlatch Law, 45 people were arrested and charged. -
The pole erected in remembrance of the chiefs family was taken while the villagers were away on a fishing trip. The pole was then shipped to Sweden, where it remained in storage until 1980, when it was finally put on display at the national Museum of Ethnography in Stockholm. -
The Indian Act was amended and the Potlatch Ban was removed. Totem poles were now legal again. -
A new generation of artists began to learn and promote the artistry of totem pole carving as a form of cultural revitalization. -
Totems were made for museums, parks and exhibits. Totem poles were being raised again at Potlatches. -
The Haisla people and the Museum of Ethnography in Stockholm negotiated the return of the Totem Pole. The museum agreed to return the pole and the Haisla would carve a replacement to be kept at the museum. It was the first pole in Canada to be repatriated from overseas. -
Now we admire the beauty and the detail of what these ancient carvers created with nothing more than sharpened stones and cedar tools (Government of Canada).
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In the last century, traditional pole carving nearly died out. Today's Indigenous carvers are bringing back the crests and stories of the poles for families and clans to pass along to their future generations. (Government of Canada, 2016). The traditional practice is being brought back into the First Nations culture. -
In recent years, many Native organizations have been calling for a return of some of their sacred items, such as masks and regalia, that symbolize their cultural heritage, including their totem poles. -
Most totem poles display beings, or crest animals, marking a family’s lineage and validating the powerful rights and privileges that the family held. A totem pole typically features symbolic and stylized human, animal, and supernatural forms.