Smakw’uts Mapping Project

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Jen Argan, a graduate student at UVic, worked on the Smakw’uts mapping project, where she drew on archived stories and ethnographic literature to map monumental boulders in Coast Salish oral histories using Google Earth and deck.gl.

This project was initiated by archaeological interest in these rocks, particularly the boulders in a story of Smakw’uts, a giant who stood at Point Roberts throwing boulders to kill Sheshuq’um, a monster who lived in Sansum Narrows. The maps and accompanying collection of stories aim to highlight Coast Salish storied relationships with the land, and the maps and a few of the stories have been shared with some Coast Salish students and educators