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Tsimshian Society and Culture
Men's Activities
Fishing
 To
Respect the Fish
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This picture is of a Nass River fishing village, ca. 1903, with
numerous smokehouses and fish-drying racks used for preserving
fish. Salmon and eulachon were the most prized catches, but many
other kinds of fish and seafood were consumed as well.
British Columbia Provincial Museum (4279)
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According to the Tsimshian, fish and people shared the same
universal pool of souls. Schools of fish were villages of people
in another world. Salmon people migrated yearly from their father's
house at the mouth of the river to their mother's house at the
headwaters. In the form of fish, they were appropriate food for
people, who reciprocated the favour in the next incarnation. Lack
of respect could sever this soul exchange and result in human
starvation.
The
Story of the Salmon Prince
A chieftainess at Kitselas Village kept a dog salmon folded in a
box for more than a year. The fish run did not occur on schedule
that year, and the people went hungry. Her nephew, a prince, was
enticed into a canoe and taken to the house of the Salmon Chief at
the mouth of the Skeena River. Each day, after a meal of salmon,
he disposed of the bones in the fire. The next morning, he noted
a child with an eye or a rib missing. To restore the child to health,
it was necessary to find and burn the corresponding piece of the fish
that had been missed the night before. The Salmon people returned the
prince to his home to teach his people how to respect the remains of
the salmon by cremating them. This would ensure their reincarnation
into new schools of fish each year. Salmon could thus be caught
easily in traps and nets in the rivers.
Salmon trap
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Families owned specific fishing grounds that were known and respected by everyone.
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Salmon Fishing
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Salmon-trap fence
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During their annual migration upriver to spawn, salmon were
caught using traps, spears, lines and nets. A wooden trap was placed
in the river, and a wooden fence was attached to the trap on either
side, forcing fish to enter the trap.
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A man wearing cedar bark clothing stands on a rocky shore
poised to spear salmon. His two-pronged spear is designed so that
the tips detach from the shaft when they pierce a salmon. A line
attached to the spear tips allows the speared fish to be recovered.
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Salmon were also caught by gaff hooks, spears and harpoons in clear
streams and rivers, bays and inlets.
The use of hand nets was another method of catching salmon. Fishermen
usually stood on a rock platform and dipped their nets repeatedly into
the water in order to catch fish.
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Eulachon Fishing
Eulachon were caught by men in canoes using nets and rakes.
The fish were scooped out of the water and dumped into the canoe.
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This picture shows a canoe full of eulachon, as well as a
second canoe in which two men are standing with nets in hand,
as they would when fishing for eulachon.
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Herring
and Eulachon Raking
Herring and eulachon were so plentiful that they were easily
harvested by men who ran a rake through the water to impale the fish.
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Halibut Fishing
Deep-sea fishing for cod and halibut required extra-long lines of
dried kelp and hooks that were effectively designed for the feeding
habits of the fish. Rituals ensured the success of the fishing
expedition.
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This hook is carved with an image of Sea-Lion swallowing a fish.
(VII-C-697)
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Spirit helpers were often carved on the hooks to lure fish to the line.
Halibut and salmon are large fish. Salmon can weigh up to 13
kilograms, and halibut frequently exceed 88 kilograms. Before pulling
these fish into a boat, clubs are used to kill them quickly in order to
prevent them from upsetting the canoe.
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Fish club for halibut
Collected by Rev. Thomas Crosby, 1886; Fort Simpson
(VII-C-68)
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These fish clubs were often shaped and decorated to show respect
for the fish who willingly gave their flesh to feed humans.
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Date Created: August 17, 1998 | Last Updated: May 31, 2011
The use of hand nets was another method of catching salmon. Fishermen
usually stood on a rock platform and dipped their nets repeatedly into
the water in order to catch fish.
