An Explanation
Friendly Cove or Yuquot ("The Place Where The Winds Blow From All Directions") is the spot where the British navigator James Cook first made landfall in the Americas on his third transpacific voyage. It also became the site of a colonial contest between the British and the Spanish for control of the Pacific Northwest, and was the place where the first Chinese arrived in what was to become the future British Columbia. Moreover, Yuquot has had a long and distinctive indigenous history, stretching back several millennia and reaching right up until the present day. Your task is to use the history of Yuquot/Friendly Cove as a window into learning about the early post-contact period and for thinking more broadly about the contours, meanings, and representations of the British Columbia past.
Tourists can travel on the Uchuck freight boat during the Summer months up the West Coast from Gold River to Yuquot. The round-trip voyage can be done in one day, and it makes for a wonderful, historically-inspired excursion. There also are camp-sites and cabins at Yuquot itself for those who would like to stay overnight. For details, see Get West Adventures Cruises.
Some Questions
Chart the history of Yuquot. What of significance has happened there? To what extent can this one particular place be used as a microcosm or case study to explore larger historical themes and patterns?
What are the different groups of people who have interacted at Yuquot? How would you describe and account for the nature of the interactions?
What is the Nuu-chah-nulth history of Yuquot? What has archaeology revealed about the prehistory of the site? What is the Whalers' Shrine and how would you embed its story within the larger history of Yuquot? How are the histories of Yuquot and Gold River intertwined?
How has Yuquot/Friendly Cove been represented in history and art? How have these representations changed over time and why do you think the very questions that historians and others now ask of Yuquot's past have shifted focus?
Possible Starting Places
"Yuquot,"
April 17, 2015, Bill Reid Centre, Simon Fraser University.
Yuquot National Historic Site Of Canada,
Canada's Historic Places.
"What
Has Been The Impact Of Colonization On The People Of Yuquot?,"
Vancouver Maritime Museum, January 22, 2024. (14 mins)
Michael Layland, "Our
History: When Capt. Cook First Found The Island,"
Times Colonist, October 3, 2014.
John Price, "Cultural
Renewal For Yuquot,"
Times Colonist, August 20, 2016.
Ben Mussett, "Chief Maquinna Meets Cook," British Columbia: An Untold History.
Evan Munday, "Chief Maquinna, Gatekeeper Of The Pacific Northwest," Canada: The Story Of Us, CBC.
"Reclaiming
History: A New Asian-Indigenous Exhibit Explores The Right To Truth-Telling,"
Faculty Of Arts, University Of British Columbia, June 13, 2025.
Margaretta James and John Price, "Whalers
Washing House Set To Return To Its Home On Nootka Island After 120 Years,"
Times Colonist, March 23, 2025.
Eric Plummer, "Whalers' Shrine Returns Home To Nuu-chah-nulth Territories After 120 Years," IndigiNews, April 3, 2025.
Bruce MacKenzie, "Tales
From The Vault: The Whalers' Shrine Of Yuquot,"
Times Colonist, December 30, 2012.
"The Washing Of Tears," NFB, 1994. [54 mins]
General
History In The News
Philip Burgess Cox, "Displaced First Nation Returns Home," UVIC News, October 29, 2025.
"Spirit Of Yuquot Expressed Through Bentwood Box Pinhole Camera Carving And Film," Alberni Valley News, October 2, 2025.
Eric Plummer, "'For
Some Of Us, It's Natural': Yuquot Celebration Marks Return Of Whalers Shrine,"
Ha-Shilth-Sa, August 6, 2025.
"Elder
Margaretta James: Coming Home,"
Institute For Gender, Race, Sexuality And Social Justice, University Of
British Columbia, May 15, 2025.
Dirk Meissner, "Vancouver
Island First Nation Whose Chief Met Capt. Cook Files Claim Against B.C.,"
Chek News, December 12, 2024.
"The
Life And Legacy Of Indigenous Leader Maquinna,"
Daily Hive, September 27, 2024.
"Transpacific
Connections With Mowachaht/Muchalaht Elder Margaretta James,"
Faculty Of Arts, University Of British Columbia, June 4, 2024.
Amy Romer, "Inside
The Generational Fight For Indigenous Fishing Rights In Yuquot Bay,"
The Tyee, May 6, 2024.
Eric Plummer, "A
Gathering Place From The Past: Restoration Of Yuquot Church Continues,"
Ha-Shilth-Sa, September 8, 2023.
Alexandra Mehl, "Decades
Of Service In Nuu-chah-nulth Waters For What Could Be 'The Last Wooden
Freighter On The Coast,'"
Capital Daily, August 14, 2023.
Austin Westphal, "Researchers
Hope B.C. First Nation Can Ride The Waves To Reclaim their Ancestral Home,"
Coast Mountain News, March 22, 2023.
Eric Plummer, "'The
Homeland Of Our Ancestors Since The Beginning Of Time': Film Presents Yuquot
To A Wider Audience,"
Ha-Shilth-Sa, August 10, 2022.
Eric Plummer, "A
Century Of Yuquot's National Designation Reveals An Awakening Of the Site's
True Heritage," Ha-Shilth-Sa,
August 9, 2023.
Sharon Adams, "Spain
And Britain Settle A Trade War,"
Legion Magazine, October 30, 2019.
"Meet
The Last Indigenous Man Living In Area Of B.C. Where Europeans First Landed,"
CBC News, December 30, 2018.
Feliks Banel, "Without
Captain Cook, We Might All Be Speaking Spanish Or Russian,"
My Northwest, March 14, 2018.
Robert Amos, "Exploring
The History Of Nootka Sound,"
Times Colonist, November 19, 2017.
Eric Plummer, "Work
Underway On Historic Church In Yuquot,"
Ha-Shilth-Sa, October 4, 2017.
Douglas Quan, "The
Race To Preserve A B.C. First Nation's History And The Village Where There Is
Only One Couple Left,"
National Post, August 10, 2017.
Richard Inglis, "Our
History: Cook's Visit To Nootka Sound In Pictures,"
Times Colonist, July 30, 2017.
Denise Titian, "Yuquot Summerfest: 50th Anniversary Of Archaeological Dig Celebrated," Ha-Shilth-Sa, August 8, 2016.
David Paget, "Quadra: Discoverer Of Vancouver Island Gets Some Recognition In His Home Town Of Lima," Peruvian Times, February 22, 2013.
Stephen Ruttan, "Captivity Led To Early Native Record," Victoria Times-Colonist, November 25, 2012.
Jack Knox, "New Longhouse Allows Band To Rediscover Roots," Victoria Times-Colonist, June 4, 2011.
David Chuenyan Lai, "Chinese Arrived In Late 1700s; British Fur Trader Brought Workers To Nootka Sound," Victoria Times-Colonist, August 3, 2008.
Robin Inglis, "Cook's Vancouver Island Contact Led To Trade, Struggle For Control," Vancouver Sun, May 17, 2008.
John Bryant, "Chief Maquinna," Victoria Times-Colonist, November 2, 2003.
Jack Knox, "'Slave' And Chief Reunite 200 Years Later (And, Oh, Those Were Grisly Times)," Victoria Times-Colonist, August 11, 2003.
Jack Knox, "Living History Series: Tales Of Yuquot," Victoria Times-Colonist, August 3, 2003.
Brendan Coyle, "Slave Of The Nootka," Victoria Times-Colonist, February 24, 2002.
Ann Schrag, "Jewitt Survived Nootka Horror," Victoria Times-Colonist, April 10, 1994.
Mowachaht/Muchalaht First Nation
Mowachaht-Muchalaht -- Canadian Encyclopedia:
Mowachaht/Muchalaht First Nation:
Pre-Contact History Of Yuquot
Eric Plummer, "'Perfectly
Intact' Ancient Spear Shows Heritage Of Traditional Village Site,"
Ha-Shilth-Sa, August 15, 2017.
Eric Plummer, "Yuquot
Seeks Designation As A World Heritage Site,"
Ha-Shilth-Sa, August 11, 2017.
Quentin Mackie, "Webber's
House Interior: Original Watercolour,"
Northwest Coast Archaeology Blog (March 25, 2010).
Quentin Mackie, "Webber's
Village In Nootka Sound: Original Watercolour,"
Northwest Coast Archaeology Blog (March 26, 2010).
Quentin Mackie, "Images
Of Nootka Island People, 1787,"
Northwest Coast Archaeology Blog (December 14, 2013).
The British And Spanish At Nootka Sound
"A View Of The Spanish Settlement, In Friendly Cove; Nootka Sound," [between 1792 and 1798?], UBC Library Framed Works Collection.
Nootka Sound Controversy -- Canadian Encyclopedia:
Nootka Convention -- Wikipedia:
Capture Of The Boston And The Narrative Of John Jewitt
Graham Chandler, "A Slave Among The Nootka," Beaver, 83 (February/March 2003).
John Rodgers Jewitt with Richard Alsop, Captive Of Nootka, Or The Adventures Of John R. Jewett (Philadelphia: H. F. Anners, 1841):
A Journal Kept At Nootka Sound, (1807) -- The published version of Jewitt's original journal.
"John
Jewitt's Diary: Capture Of The Boston,"
Canada: A People's History, CBC Learning.
"John Jewitt's Diary: Two Lives Spared," Canada: A People's History, CBC Learning.
"John
Jewitt's Diary: Maquinna,"
Canada: A People's History, CBC Learning.
"John
Jewitt's Diary: Life As A Slave,"
Canada: A People's History, CBC Learning.
"Our History: Living As Captives," Times Colonist, July 27, 2014.
Sarah Jane Eustace, "'An Account Of Our Capture And The Most Remarkable Occurrences': The Textual And Cultural Construction Of John Jewitt In His Journal And Narrative." M.A. Thesis History: University Of Victoria, 1997.
Yuquot Whalers' Shrine
Whaler's Shrine Site National Historic Site Of Canada -- Canada's Historic Places.
Yuquot Whalers' Shrine -- Wikipedia.
"122 Years Later, An Island First Nation Whale Shrine Returns Home," CHEK Media, April 3, 2025. (5 mins)
Grant Warkentin, "Ancient
Whalers' Shrine Returns To Yuquot After 122-Year Sojourn,"
My Campbell River Now, April 3, 2025.
Julia Jacobs, "After
120 Years Stored In A Museum, An Indigenous Shrine Returns Home,"
New York Times, March 30, 2025.
David P. Ball, "Feds
Must 'Step Up To Plate' For Return Of Yuquot Whalers' Shrine,"
Ha-Shilth-Sa, May 6, 2013.
Robert Amos, "Mystery Of The Whalers' Shrine," Victoria Times-Colonist, March 5, 2000.
Stephen Hume, "On Vancouver Island, Destruction; In New York, Rebirth," Vancouver Sun, January 25, 1995.
Mark Hume, "Reviving Dark Forces: The Debate Builds Over Disturbing A Magical Native Shrine Where Shamans Once Harnessed The Power Of The Dead," Vancouver Sun, May 25, 1991.
Emily Carr And Yuquot
"Church
In Yuquot Village,"
TVO Today, January 26, 2022. (5 mins)
Indian Church 1929 -- Emily Carr, Life And Work by Lisa Baldissera:
Sheena Goodyear, "Why The Art Gallery Of Ontario Removed 'Indian' From The Name Of This Emily Carr Painting," As It Happens, CBC, May 22, 2018.
Articles
Hans Tammermagi, "Yuquot:
The Center Of The World,"
Northwest Travel And Life (June 25, 2019).
John Price, "Relocating Yuquot: The Indigenous Pacific And Transpacific Migrations," BC Studies (Winter 2019): 21-44.
Barry Gough, "Captain Cook's Canada," Canada's History, 95 (February/March 2015): 20-27.
George Woodcock, "Captain Cook At Nootka: The Political Aftermath," History Today, 28 (February 1978).
Freeman M. Tovell, "The Other Side Of The Coin: The Viceroy, Bodega Y Quadra, Vancouver, And The Nootka Crisis," BC Studies (Spring 1998).
Biographies
Muquinna, Dictionary Of Canadian Biography:
Maquinna -- Canadian Encyclopedia:
James Cook -- Canadian Encyclopedia:
Juan Francisco De La Bodega Y Quadra -- Canadian Encyclopedia:
George Vancouver -- Canadian Encyclopedia:
John Meares -- Canadian Encyclopedia:
Jewitt, John Rodgers -- Dictionary Of Canadian Biography:
Yuquot/Friendly Cove And Historical Memory
"Rare Native Artifact Returned To B.C.," CBC News, March 20, 2012.
"Captain
Cook Memorial Cairn -- San Rafael Island, Nootka Sound, British Columbia,
Canada," Captain
Cook Society.
"Item
A-05765 -- Friendly Cove; Ceremony For The Unveiling Of The Cook-Vancouver
Monument; C.C. Pemberton Collection,"
August 13, 1924, B.C. Archives Collection.
"File MS-2966.3 -- [Album]: B.C. Historical Association Trip To Nootka Sound," 1920, 1924: A photograph album created by Alma Russell. The bulk of the photos document the 1924 B.C. Association trip to Nootka Sound in connection with the unveiling of the Cook-Vancouver Monument there.
"Captain Cook Bi-Centennial Commemoration Act," B.C. Laws, July 4, 1977.
Henry Giniger, "British Columbian Indians Shun Capt. Cook Fete," New York Times, May 7, 1978.
Denise Titian, "Chief
Maquinna/Captain Cook Canadian Commemorative Coin Released,"
Ha-Shilth-Sa, July 3, 2018.
Video And Audio Sources
"Yuquot: Where The Four Winds Blow," Asian Canadians On Vancouver Island, October 12, 2021. [7 mins]
"Chief
Maquinna, Gatekeeper Of The Pacific Northwest,"
Canada: The Story Of Us, CBC, 2017.
Miscellaneous
Coming Home --
Margaretta James:
Yuquot Project, Volume 2, Parks Canada History:
"Item
I-31549 -- Nootka; Chief Maquinna,"
July 16, 1896, B.C. Archives Collection.
"History Of The Nootka Sound," Village Of Tahsis.