Using wood on King Island, Alaska
Ugiuvak, or King Island, off the coast of the Seward Peninsula in the Bering Strait, is among the few Arctic villages with stilt houses in an environment where wood is essentially lacking. In 1899, Edward W. Nelson, describing the island’s architecture, noted that wood was abundant. Today, the contr...
| Published in: | Études/Inuit/Studies |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Text |
| Language: | English |
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Association Inuksiutiit Katimajiit Inc.
2012
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://id.erudit.org/iderudit/1015955ar https://doi.org/10.7202/1015955ar |
| Summary: | Ugiuvak, or King Island, off the coast of the Seward Peninsula in the Bering Strait, is among the few Arctic villages with stilt houses in an environment where wood is essentially lacking. In 1899, Edward W. Nelson, describing the island’s architecture, noted that wood was abundant. Today, the contrast is striking between the bareness and steepness of the coast and the extensive use of wood in the village. This article presents information about wood procurement and use as building material on Ugiuvak in the last 300 years based on literature review, on-site observations, and discussions with members of the King Island community. It briefly reviews the origin, circulation, and deposition of driftwood in the Bering Strait region. It then explores the possibility of a relationship in the 19th century between an increase in driftwood availability and the development of stilt architecture on the island, taking into account other wood sources that became available at the time. The last 150 years of occupation of the village were marked by a transition from a solely driftwood-based economy to one where driftwood was first supplemented and then largely replaced by lumber. Ugiuvak, ou île de King, au large du littoral de la péninsule Seward dans le détroit de Béring, fait partie des quelques rares villages arctiques à avoir des maisons sur pilotis dans un environnement où le bois est essentiellement absent. En 1899, Edward W. Nelson, dans sa description de l’architecture de l’île, observe que le bois y est abondant. Aujourd’hui, le contraste est frappant entre l’aspect dénudé des côtes abruptes et l’utilisation abondante du bois dans le village. Cet article présente des informations sur l’acquisition et l’utilisation du bois comme matériau de construction à Ugiuvak au cours des 300 dernières années sur la base de ce qui existe dans la littérature, d’observations faites sur l’île et de discussions avec des membres de la communauté de l’île de King. Il comprend un bref exposé sur l’origine, la circulation et le dépôt ... |
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