Spanish expeditions to Northwest Coast affirm Spain's claim to the territory:ġ774: Juan Jose Perez Hernandez explores coastline and trades with Indiansġ775: Bruno de Heceta and Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra sail northward, landing and claiming territory at points in Washington and British Columbiaīritish expeditions to Northwest Coast search for the Northwest Passage, discover the rich trade in sea otter pelts, and challenge Spanish claims to the region:ġ778: Cook's third expedition to the Pacific Ocean (1776-1780) made landfall at Nootka Sound, acquired sea otter pelts, and explored the coastline northward to Alaskaġ785: James Hanna's voyage marked the return of the British to open the coastal fur tradeġ786: Eight British ships sailed to the Northwest Coast to trade fursġ787: Six British vessels sailed to the Northwest Coast to trade fursġ785-1794: Twenty-five British ships sailed to Northwest Coast to trade fursĬlick on the map icon, right, to see a larger view of British explorationsġ789: Spain sent expedition led by Esteban Jose Martinez to fortify Spanish claim to Nootka Sound and seize British vessels and crewsġ790: Spain and Britain signed the Nootka Sound Convention, resolving the dispute over claims along the Northwest Coast in favor of the Britishġ792: Britain sent George Vancouver and Spain sent Bodega y Quadra to Nootka Sound to implement the 1790 Convention locally both captains explored the coastlineġ794: Spain and Britain amended the 1790 convention, and Spain decided to withdraw from Northwest Coast Russian expeditions to Alaska spur Spanish voyages to the Northwest Coast:ġ728: Vitus Bering discovered the Bering Straitsġ741: Bering and Aleksei Chirikov sighted portions of Alaska and the Aleutian Islands Spain's galleons sailed between Mexico and the Philippines, beginning in 1527, establishing a limited Spanish presence in the North Pacific:ġ707: The Spanish galleon San Francisco Xavier, sailing from Manila to Acapulco, shipwrecked on the Oregon coast near Nehalem Beach Robert Ballard Whitebrook, Coastal Exploration of Washington (Palo Alto: Pacific Books, 1959).Įuropean and American Exploration of the 18th-Century Pacific Northwest Princessa Real, ship of Manuel Quimper, 1790, right. HMS Discovery, ship of George Vancouver, left. All rights reserved.European Rivalry for the Pacific Northwest Copyright © 2023, Columbia University Press. The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Drucker, The Northern and Central Nootkan Tribes (repr.

With the exception of the Makah and a few of their neighbors, they were the only Native Americans on the Pacific coast who hunted whales.

The so-called Nootka hats of woven fiber were common among other tribes of this area. In 1991 there were some 4,000 Nootka in 15 bands in Canada. Traditional Nootka culture was fundamentally that of the Northwest Coast area (see under Natives, North American) they fished for salmon, lived in long wooden houses, and created elaborate totem poles. The Nootka proper are a small group on the west coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, but the name is also used to refer to the Aht Confederacy, which formerly included more than 20 tribes. Nootka no͝ot´kə, Native North Americans whose language belongs to the Wakashan branch of the Algonquian-Wakashan linguistic stock (see Native American languages).

Nootka indian tribe facts