Fuel for Thought: An Introduction to Douglas Fir Culturally Modified Trees

While Douglas fir culturally modified trees (CMTs) occur throughout coastal southwestern British Columbia, these features remain poorly understood and largely undocumented. We suggest that Douglas fir bark was one of the premier sources of fuel among the precontact peoples of southwestern BC and was collected from living trees regularly for a multitude of purposes, such as food preparation and funerary ritual. Recent archaeological work at Rocky Point, on southern Vancouver Island, has identified numerous Douglas fir CMTs sites. Drawing on data from these new sites, and incorporating archaeological and ethnographic data from around southwestern BC, this paper introduces researchers to the recognition, morphology, ethnobotany and archaeology of Douglas fir CMTs.