Reddit mentions of Potlatch People: Indian Lives & Legends of British Columbia

Okay here we go:

Indians of the Pacific Northwest: From the Coming of the White Man to the Present Day. General information!

Looking At Indian Art Of The Northwest Coast by Hilary Stewart, which has a lot of the common symbolism you see in many coastal tribes. Many other useful books by this woman. Here's her Amazon page. Some of her books are kinda pricy but there are other affordable ones out there!

Indian Relics Of The Pacific Northwest by SG Seaman. Some visual information on tools used by indigenous tribes, dry but good info.

Art In The Life of the Northwest Coast Indian by Erna Gunther. This one is a little more in depth!

Totem poles were a distinct and important part of many NW coast tribes. Lots of books out there on their function and purpose, definitely something to research.

The potlatch was another extremely important aspect of PNW indigenous lives. Some info here and here, but also lots of research papers for free on the internet.

Salmon was a vital food resource for hundreds of tribes. They fished along the Columbia, Pacific, and other major waterways. Here and here is more info.


Indians of the North Pacific Coast by Tom McFeat.

Mythology is a must! There might be some online collections but here and here are a couple books.

Tales of the Northwest is a classic!

Please check out the Vancouver Museum of Anthropology website. They have TONS of information on a variety of indigenous tribes, with a focus on NW coastal tribes. If you ever have a reason to go to Vancouver you MUST visit this beautiful, beautiful museum.

The Seattle Public Library (also a must visit, just a gorgeous library) has an extensive local history section.

Once you've read a couple books and have a better understanding of what you want to study, it's actually much easier to pick a certain tribe or area and find more information that way. Tons and tons of books out there on the Haida, Kwakiutl, Salish, Chinook, etc. I would highly recommend contacting people who study or write about these tribes! For the most part professors and authors love to talk about their work, or can direct you to other resources.

My final recommendation is if you want to write a fictional book about a PNW tribe, please read some fiction out there already written by indigenous Americans! This will help you more intimately understand the emotion and history that is part of these ancient cultures.

Anyway, don't feel too bogged down by all the info. Pick a subject or two you want to learn about and do some internet research before you buy a book. I don't know what kind of access your library might have, but maybe you could rent a few books through them.

Lastly, if you ever have a chance to come visit the PNW, please do! It is absolutely beautiful out here and unlike many parts of the world. It's cool and rainy so we have an extraordinary abundance of wild flora. So many must visit places: Vancouver, Mt Hood National Park, Vancouver Island, Olympic National Park, the San Juan Islands, the Columbia Gorge, Gold Coast, Oregon Coast, Haystack Rock, Redwood Forest - look up any of those and you will start to get an understanding of how indigenous peoples connected with their gorgeous natural environment. You may also start to notice that many of the pictures that appear in r/earthporn are from the West Coast. It's damn pretty out here.

Cheers, mate, and hit me up if you ever make it out here!