Stó:lō means “people of the river” and the Fraser River is extremely important to the Stó:lō people. The Stó:lō historically ate, and continue to eat a lot of salmon. Scientific evidence, as well as oral tradition, indicates that over 80 percent of the Stó:lō protein was from fish (salmon, trout, sturgeon, etc.).
Stó:lō people used, and continue to use, many different tools to catch salmon: nets, traps, weirs, hooks, gaffs, harpoons, and spears. Nets were used in the main channel of the Fraser River while in the lower Fraser River, trawl nets were used. Nets were very precious items that took days of labour to make and because they were precious, Stó:lō people took good care of them.
The first fish to be fished on the Fraser River were the Spring Salmon. This is the fish that the First Salmon Ceremony is based on. When the first salmon was caught each year, a “First Salmon Ceremony” was held. This ceremony honoured the belief that the salmon has a soul because they are relatives that were transformed into salmon by Xa:Is many years ago, and that the Salmon People must be acknowledged and thanked for returning each year. In the ceremony, the bones of the first fish caught are put back into the water. This continues today. A first salmon ceremony has been reinstituted by Stó:lō Nation on a nationwide basis and is open to all members of the Nation as well as members of the public. This ceremony is held in mid-March.
Grandparents usually trained the younger people in the specific knowledge and skills needed to become effective fishers, hunters, and gatherers. In doing so, they also contributed significantly to the food supplies of the communities.
To preserve their fish, the Stó:lō built smokehouses where fish were dried and cured. They also wind dried the salmon (only in the Fraser Canyon area). Fish cured this way could be kept for a long time.
Every person in Stó:lō communities participated in some degree in fishing, hunting, and gathering activities, regardless of their social status, gender, or age. Family-owned fishing sites were the property of the wealthy. Individual people had specific roles and abilities which guided their activities. Both men and women were involved in fishing. The women standing on the shore processing the fish to smoke or dry as the men caught them with their nets, traps, and wiers. Without this coordination of labour in fishing, the great amount of salmon which appear in the Fraser for a short period of time could not be effectively utilized.
Adapted from: 9000 Years of History in the Land of the River People