Tsimshian | Haida | Bella Coola | Kwakiutl | Nootka | Salish

The Coast Salish inhabited the present day city of Vancouver and surrounding mainland north to Bute Inlet, the Gulf Islands, the southern area of Vancouver Island including the City of Victoria and along the coast of Washington and Oregon. The Coast Salish bore a resemblance to and shared characteristics with other coast tribes and with interior native bands extending all the way to the flatheads in Idaho.

They had a rich and vibrant culture and before European contact probably number in the 10s of thousands. Their location at the mouth of the Fraser river gave them access to the largest single source of food on the west coast - the Fraser river salmon runs. This source of food was unlimited for these people and combined with other food sources such as plentiful berries and other natural crops on the Fraser river delta made life considerably easier for them compared to other native groups. They carved large beautiful totem poles and constructed large longhouses, some over 100 feet long from the giant red cedar trees. Although not aggressively a warlike nation, they were more then capable of defending themselves and going to war when required.

In 1592 the Spanish explorer Juan de Fuca arrived on the scene by sailing through the straights that bear his name into the area south of Vancouver Island. Some evidence indicates that Sir Francis Drake may have also explored along the coast in this area and possibly anchored in English Bay by Vancouver. From this time on the Spanish and then in 1792 the English under Captain George Vancouver paid regular visits to this area. In 1843 Fort Victoria was established on Vancouver Island and the impact on the native people was enormous. Disease, alcohol and cultural influences devastated the Coast Salish social structure. Thousands died and many others left their villages and moved into the cities where they were treated badly and worked for minimal payment. The Barkerville gold rush in the 1850's brought in 10s of thousands of additional white people and dislocated the Salish even more. With the growth of the new city of Vancouver on the mainland the collapse of the Salish accelerated.

It is estimated that by 1909 the Salish population had fallen to about 10,264. There way of life was however preserved and today  although they still face many of the challenges that the Europeans brought with them, they are growing and experiencing a revival of customs, traditions and culture.