Film clip on Coast Salish weaving
Video
Image
Video
Audio
Activities
LOOK
Watch the film clip without reading the historical context. When do you think the clip was made? What do you think is the purpose of the film? Explain what influenced your answers.
Now read the historical context and see whether your answers were correct.
Tip: Think about the style of the video, the people in the video, etc.
LOOK
Watch the film clip, but concentrate on the background. What do you notice? What’s interesting or surprising about the buildings or the people that you see?
THINK
Is this a full video or only a clip? Do you think there could be important information missing?
THINK
As a historian or researcher, how would you use this video clip as a piece of historical evidence? In your opinion, how reliable is the film clip as evidence regarding Coast Salish traditions and lifestyle? Explain your thoughts.
Extension: What other historical sources could be paired with this clip to show a more complete picture of Coast Salish traditions and lifestyle? Be creative (for example, an interview with a Coast Salish person, or examples of Coast Salish weaving). If you have time, see if you can find these other sources. Try starting at the Canadian Museum of History’s collection
DO
Watch the film and make a list of questions you have. Next, choose one question you feel is the most important to answer and do some outside research to find the answer.
Details
Date 1928
Materials Historical Context
Choose one of the three levels below to match your needs.
- In this silent clip Skwetsiya (Mrs. Harriet Johnnie) makes a cedar-bark hat. Skwetsiya was a Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) master weaver.
- The clip is from a 15-minute film made in 1928 by archaeologist Harlan Ingersoll Smith.
- His films are now considered an important visual record of traditional practices of several First Nations.
In this silent clip, Skwetsiya (Mrs. Harriet Johnnie) makes a cedar-bark hat. Skwetsiya was a Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) master weaver. We see her sizing a headband and then wearing the finished product.
The clip is from a 15-minute film made in 1928 by archaeologist Harlan Ingersoll Smith. His films are now considered an important visual record of traditional practices of several First Nations.
Harriet Johnnie was also an expert in spinning and weaving wool made from mountain-goat hair. The final scene of this clip shows a blanket she had made.
In this silent video clip, Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) master weaver Skwetsiya (Mrs. Harriet Johnnie) makes a cedar-bark hat. We see her weaving and sizing a headband that is eventually stitched inside the hat. She puts on the finished product but, in the clip’s final scene, she is wearing a different hat.
The clip is from a 15-minute film made in 1928 by archaeologist Harlan Ingersoll Smith from the National Museum of Canada (now the Canadian Museum of History). Smith’s documentary films were intended as lecture aids, but today they are considered an important visual record of the traditional practices of several First Nations.
Skwetsiya was also regarded as an expert in spinning and weaving wool made from mountain-goat hair. The final scene of this clip shows a blanket she had made. Both she and her husband George Johnnie are featured throughout Smith’s film. Skwetsiya would have been about 88 years old at the time.
- In this silent clip Skwetsiya (Mrs. Harriet Johnnie) makes a cedar-bark hat. Skwetsiya was a Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) master weaver.
- The clip is from a 15-minute film made in 1928 by archaeologist Harlan Ingersoll Smith.
- His films are now considered an important visual record of traditional practices of several First Nations.
In this silent clip, Skwetsiya (Mrs. Harriet Johnnie) makes a cedar-bark hat. Skwetsiya was a Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) master weaver. We see her sizing a headband and then wearing the finished product.
The clip is from a 15-minute film made in 1928 by archaeologist Harlan Ingersoll Smith. His films are now considered an important visual record of traditional practices of several First Nations.
Harriet Johnnie was also an expert in spinning and weaving wool made from mountain-goat hair. The final scene of this clip shows a blanket she had made.
In this silent video clip, Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) master weaver Skwetsiya (Mrs. Harriet Johnnie) makes a cedar-bark hat. We see her weaving and sizing a headband that is eventually stitched inside the hat. She puts on the finished product but, in the clip’s final scene, she is wearing a different hat.
The clip is from a 15-minute film made in 1928 by archaeologist Harlan Ingersoll Smith from the National Museum of Canada (now the Canadian Museum of History). Smith’s documentary films were intended as lecture aids, but today they are considered an important visual record of the traditional practices of several First Nations.
Skwetsiya was also regarded as an expert in spinning and weaving wool made from mountain-goat hair. The final scene of this clip shows a blanket she had made. Both she and her husband George Johnnie are featured throughout Smith’s film. Skwetsiya would have been about 88 years old at the time.
Summary
- In this silent clip Skwetsiya (Mrs. Harriet Johnnie) makes a cedar-bark hat. Skwetsiya was a Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) master weaver.
- The clip is from a 15-minute film made in 1928 by archaeologist Harlan Ingersoll Smith.
- His films are now considered an important visual record of traditional practices of several First Nations.
Essential
In this silent clip, Skwetsiya (Mrs. Harriet Johnnie) makes a cedar-bark hat. Skwetsiya was a Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) master weaver. We see her sizing a headband and then wearing the finished product.
The clip is from a 15-minute film made in 1928 by archaeologist Harlan Ingersoll Smith. His films are now considered an important visual record of traditional practices of several First Nations.
Harriet Johnnie was also an expert in spinning and weaving wool made from mountain-goat hair. The final scene of this clip shows a blanket she had made.
In-Depth
In this silent video clip, Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) master weaver Skwetsiya (Mrs. Harriet Johnnie) makes a cedar-bark hat. We see her weaving and sizing a headband that is eventually stitched inside the hat. She puts on the finished product but, in the clip’s final scene, she is wearing a different hat.
The clip is from a 15-minute film made in 1928 by archaeologist Harlan Ingersoll Smith from the National Museum of Canada (now the Canadian Museum of History). Smith’s documentary films were intended as lecture aids, but today they are considered an important visual record of the traditional practices of several First Nations.
Skwetsiya was also regarded as an expert in spinning and weaving wool made from mountain-goat hair. The final scene of this clip shows a blanket she had made. Both she and her husband George Johnnie are featured throughout Smith’s film. Skwetsiya would have been about 88 years old at the time.