Beothuk Culture
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There is a lot about the Beothuk that we will never know. Very little about them was written down because they did not have a lot of contact with Europeans. However, we can learn something about these people from what has been written down and from what archaeologists have discovered. As well, some information was gathered from Shawnadithit and a few of the remaining Beothuk in the early 1800s.
‘Red Indians'
Red Ochre Pit at Russell's Point. (Image by William Gilbert. Reproduced with permission of the Baccalieu Trail Heritage Corporation.)
When Europeans first came to the New World, they believed they were in Asia. This is why they called the people they met ‘Indians'. Many people still use this term to describe Native Americans. Many Native American groups painted their bodies, clothing and belongings different colours for decoration or for religious reasons. One of the paints they used was red ochre. Red ochre is a mineral called hematite that can be mixed with fat to make a red paint.
The Beothuk liked red ochre more than any other paint. They painted their bodies, clothing and many other things this colour. Nobody is sure why the Beothuk were so fond of red ochre. Some people think that the colour red was a symbol for life, and the Beothuk believed that if they used it they would stay healthy. Some people even think that it may have kept away flies. The red ochre made the Beothuk stand out so much that many fishermen and planters started calling them ‘Red Indians'.
Appearance of Beothuk
John Guy wrote a description of what the Beothuk looked like when they met in Trinity Bay. He described them as being of “ordinary middle size” with their hair somewhat long and decorated with feathers. He also said that they did not have beards. They wore gowns made of “stag's skins” that went down to the middle of their legs and had sleeves to the middle of their arms. They also wore a beaver skin around their necks. Only one of them was wearing shoes and mittens, so most of them had bare legs and bare feet. They were “full-eyed” and their eyes were “of a blacke colour”. He reported that they had different colours of hair including black, brown and yellow. John described their faces as being flat and broad and “red with oker”. He also wrote that their clothing was also covered in red ochre. The Beothuk, according to John, were “broad breasted” and stood very upright.
Band Organization
Beothuk Man. (Detail from original painting by Pamela Williams for Baccalieu: Crossroads for Cultures.)
The Beothuk people lived in independent bands of around 30 to 60 people. Most of the people in these bands were related. Each band had its own territory where it hunted and fished. Neighbouring bands sometimes came together to exchange news and to trade. This was also a good time for young men and women to find mates. There was a great deal of equality within bands. Certain people were respected for their knowledge and consulted when decisions had to be made. When a job had to be done, someone with the right skills might be chosen to lead the band, but there were no formal leaders or chiefs. Like most hunters and gatherers, most bands probably included a person called a "shaman." Shamans were supposed to have special powers to communicate with animal spirits and other supernatural beings.
Beothuk Houses
Mamateek. (© www.dildoislandtours.com)
The main type of house used by the Beothuk was a kind of wigwam. It was much like the wigwams used by other hunting and gathering people who lived in northeastern North America. John Guy described three Beothuk houses that he saw at Russell's Point. He said that they were made by setting up poles in the shape of an upside-down cone. The poles were tied together at the top and covered with caribou skins. In some parts of Newfoundland, these houses were covered in birch bark.
The houses John saw were only about 10 feet wide. There was a small fireplace inside many of the houses, but in the summer the fireplace might have been outside the house. Henry Crout visited a Beothuk house on Dildo Island and said the bed inside it was made of long green grass covered in animal skins.
When Europeans first came to Newfoundland, the Beothuk seem to have lived in this simple type of house all year round. As time went on, the houses changed. The Beothuk started to dig shallow pits and build their houses over these pits. Sometimes they used the earth dug out of the pit to make a low wall and built their house over it.
They also began using different types of houses in winter and summer. They still lived in the type of house described by John Guy in the summer, but they built larger, more sturdy houses to live in during the winter. Shanawdithit, who was the last known Beothuk, called the simple summer house a mamateek and the winter house a mameateek.
A typical summer mamateek was shaped like an upside-down cone. The frame was made of young trees, called saplings. Around these saplings birch bark was wrapped. There was an opening at the top so smoke from the fire pit could escape. Surrounding the fire pit were sleeping hollows dug into the ground and these were lined with fir or pine branches.
Some mameateeks were built over pits that were more than a metre deep and had double walls with fur between the walls for insulation. The rooves of these houses were made using a frame of poles covered in birch bark or hides just like the summer house.
The Beothuk people also built square buildings for storing and smoking meat, and small, dome shaped buildings called sweat lodges. Sweat lodges were like small saunas or steam baths. They were used to treat people who were sick. In many Native American societies, sweat lodges were also used for religious ceremonies.
Beothuk Canoes
Beothuk Canoe. (Lambeth Palace Library, MS. 250, Folio 412 verso. Used with permission.)
John Guy made a drawing and described in detail the canoes of the Beothuk people. They were about twenty feet long and about four and a half feet wide in the middle. The â??keele and timbersâ?? were made of light pieces of dry fir and were made with great craftsmanship. John wrote that the body of the canoe was not made with boards but instead birch bark was used and was sewn together with thin roots. The canoes were built in the shape of a â??new mooneâ?? and could carry four people. Both ends were identical. These canoes not only crossed the many lakes and rivers on the island, they were also used to travel on the ocean. Some Beothuk traveled in their canoes as far as the Funk Islands, which were 60 kilometers away from the coast.
Because the canoes were made of birch bark, they were light and easy to carry. The canoes were made in different sizes. Some could carry only two people. Others were big enough to carry ten people. Hunting canoes usually only carried two people and were between 3.65 to 4.27 m (12 to 14 ft) long. Canoes used for travel on lakes, rivers and the ocean were between 4.27 and 6.09 m (14 to 20 ft) and could carry five people. Ocean going canoes for six, eight or ten people were about 6.09 to 6.71 m (20 to 22 ft) long.
The Beothuk used single-headed paddles to move their canoes through the water. Although their canoes were not designed for sails, sometimes they may have used a bushy tree to act as a sail. If a canoe was not available, they would make rafts by tying several tree trunks together.