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Katzie & the Wapato: An Archaeological Love Story

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Abstract

Archaeological site DhRp-52 is a long-lived multi-component residential site situated in the Fraser River Delta, about 50 km upriver from Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The wetland wapato (also known as Indian potato, x̌ʷəq̓ʷə́l̕s in hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓, and Sagittaria latifolia in Latin) garden at this site was built 3800 years ago, and for the following 700 years residents of DhRp-52 managed the garden to mass produce the wapato’s wild tubers. The discovery of this garden is challenging conventional notions of Northwest Coast peoples as developing politically, ritually, and socioeconomically complex societies in the absence of farming. This paper tells the story about a time before memory when ancestors of contemporary Coast Salish q̓íc̓əy̓ (Katzie) people fell into a deep and mutual love with the wapato, building a life to accommodate their collective desires and needs. Katzie ancestors sustained their knowledge and appreciation of wapato through hundreds of generations. Today, this knowledge is being applied through experimental research and ecological restoration in Katzie territory.

Résumé

Le site archéologique DhRp-52 est un site résidentiel longévif à composantes multiples situé dans le delta du fleuve Fraser, à environ 50 km en amont de Vancouver en Colombie-Britannique au Canada. Le potager de wapato des marais (aussi appelé pomme de terre indienne, x̌ʷəq̓ʷə́l̕s in hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ et Sagittaria latifolia en latin) dudit site fut construit il y a 3800 ans et pendant les 700 années subséquentes, les résidents de DhRp-52 l’ont entretenu pour produire en masse des tubercules sauvages de wapato. La découverte de ce potager remet en question des notions conventionnelles sur les peuples côtiers du nord-ouest comme étant capables de bâtir des sociétés complexes d’un point de vue politique, rituel et socioéconomique sans pratiques agricoles. Le présent article traite d’une époque immémoriale où les ancêtres du peuple Coast Salish (Katzie) contemporain sont simultanément tombés éperdument amoureux du wapato, créant ainsi un style de vie accommodant leurs désirs et besoins collectifs. Les ancêtres Katzie ont préservé leurs connaissances sur le wapato et leur appréciation du tubercule des centaines de générations durant. De nos jours, ces connaissances sont appliquées dans le cadre de recherche expérimentale et de restauration écologique sur le territoire Katzie.

Resumen

El yacimiento arqueológico DhRp-52 es un yacimiento residencial de múltiples componentes de larga vida situado en el delta del río Fraser, unos 50 km aguas arriba de Vancouver, Columbia Británica (Canadá). El humedal de wapato (también conocido como patata india, x̌ʷəq̓ʷə́l̕s en hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓, y Sagittaria latifolia en latín) de este yacimiento se construyó hace 3800 años y durante los siguientes 700 años los residentes de DhRp-52 cultivaron el huerto para producir en masa tubérculos silvestres de wapato. El descubrimiento de este huerto cuestiona las nociones convencionales de que los pueblos de la Costa Noroeste eran sociedades desarrolladas política, ritual y socioeconómicamente complejas, en las que no existía la agricultura. Este documento cuenta la historia de una época que no recordamos en la que los ancestros del pueblo q̓íc̓əy̓ (Katzie) de Coast Salish se enamoraron profunda y mutuamente del wapato, creando una vida para satisfacer sus deseos y necesidades colectivos. Los ancestros de los Katzie mantuvieron sus conocimientos y apreciación del wapato a través de cientos de generaciones. Actualmente, estos conocimientos se aplican a través de la investigación experimental y la restauración ecológica en el territorio Katzie.

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Notes

  1. We use the term ‘farming’ here in a vernacular sense to mean any concerted form of plant food production. In the case of ancient and historical Indigenous communities of Western North America, these resources were predominantly wild but could be considered cultural or economic domesticates (Garibaldi and Turner 2004; Turner 2014; Zvelebil 1993). Interestingly, evidence for the development of a ‘crop complex’ existed in southeastern North America at 3800 BP, the date of first establishment of the wapato garden; maize agriculture would not emerge for at least another 1200 years (Smith and Yarnell 2009; and see Simon 2017).

  2. On anthropological approaches to the question of wild plant food cultivation in what have been called ‘mid-range societies’ that occupy a socioeconomic space between foragers and farmers, see Anderson (1997), Arnold et al. (2016), Ford (1985), Smith (2005, 2007) and Zvelebil (1993).

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Acknowledgements

We graciously acknowledge Katzie leadership, Elders, youth and members, particularly former Chief Susan Miller, Katzie Band Councillors Rick Bailey, Robin Green, and Peter A. James, Katzie Elders Willie Pierre and Cyril Pierre, and the late Grand Chief Peter James. Our thanks to Andrew Martindale, John Welch, Chelsey Armstrong, Amy Homan, Alejandra Diaz, Emily Wilkerson, Ania Baran, Teresa Leon, Bill Angelbeck, Michael Blake, Ian Cameron, Kisha Supernant, Sonya Atalay, Jane Baxter, Dave Schaepe, Ken Ames, Ken Sassaman, Anna Prentiss and Madonna Moss for their varied contributions to the plotlines written here. Stephanie Huddlestan produced the marvellous illustrations in this paper, and Leah Meunier graciously provided the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ terms. This story is partially inspired by the life’s work of Joan Gero, an archaeological heroine if there ever was one.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ursus Heritage Consulting, 11500 Coldstream Creek Road, Coldstream, BC, V1B 1E3, Canada

    Natasha Lyons

  2. Department of Archaeology, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, Canada

    Natasha Lyons

  3. Katzie Development Limited Partnership, 10946 Katzie Road, Pitt Meadows, BC, V3Y 2G6, Canada

    Tanja Hoffmann, Debbie Miller, Stephanie Huddlestan & Roma Leon

  4. Blue Turtle Ecological Services, PO Box 194, Garibaldi Highlands, BC, V0N 1T0, Canada

    Kelly Squires

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  1. Natasha Lyons
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Correspondence to Natasha Lyons.

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This study was funded by the South Coast British Columbia Transportation Authority. The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Lyons, N., Hoffmann, T., Miller, D. et al. Katzie & the Wapato: An Archaeological Love Story. Arch 14, 7–29 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11759-018-9333-2

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