Published In
Oregon Historical Quarterly
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
Fall 2023
Subjects
Human-animal relationships -- Oregon, Sea otter -- Effect of human beings on -- Northwest Coast of North America -- History, Indians of North America -- Hunting, Marine mammal remains (Archaeology) -- Oregon, Native Americans, Indigenous archaeology
Abstract
Sea otters have held a special role in the cultural, spiritual, and economic life of Native American communities throughout recorded time. Along the coast of what is now Oregon, Native oral traditions recall a rich history of human encounters with sea otters, and speak of the species’ ubiquity, significance, and sentience. Native people also hunted sea otters, fashioning their uniquely dense fur into chiefly robes and using the pelts in ways central to community life — presaging the species’ later role in the global fur trade. Archaeological evidence of sea otter use can be found in sites of diverse antiquity along the length of the Oregon coast, further attesting to this longstanding relationship. In this article, authors summarize these complementary lines of evidence to trace the early history of this now-absent cultural keystone species.
Rights
This is the publisher's final PDF article as it appears in Oregon Historical Quarterly. Copyright © 2023, Oregon Historical Society. Reproduced by permission.
This article is part of a special issue of the Oregon Historical Quarterly featuring authors exploring sea otters in Oregon, a species that has been absent from Oregon waters for more than a hundred years.
Persistent Identifier
https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/41736
Citation Details
Deur, D., Hatch, P., & Wellman, H. (2023). The House Full of Otters: Recalling Human–Sea Otter Relationships on an Indigenous Oregon Coast. Oregon Historical Quarterly 124(3), 264-297. https://www.muse.jhu.edu/article/907890.