Maps Showing Sinixt Territory, 1811–46

Abstract

It is increasingly important to identify the aboriginal boundaries between the time of first European contact and British sovereignty. A number of maps bearing on the location of the Sinixt Tribe’s aboriginal territory of the Arrow Lakes Tribe (sn’ʕay’ckstx or Sinixt) were drafted between 1811 (date of first contact) and 1846 (date of regional sovereignty as a result of the Treaty of Oregon). These maps demonstrate that European interlopers into Sinixt territory during that period gradually became more and more aware of the extent of Sinixt territory, influence, and trading capacity until 1846, when Sinixt territory was very well known in Canada, the United States, and Europe.