The excavation of the Native American village of Ozette between 1967 and 1981 provided American archaeologists and the descendents of the site’s original inhabitants with unparalleled details about Native American life before European contact. Excavations were undertaken with the full cooperation of the Makah Nation. Here was a prime example of the benefits of archaeologists and Native American people cooperating to preserve and document indigenous heritage.
Ozette is a coastal shell midden and village site on the Olympic Peninsula of Washington State on the northwest coast of the United States. It includes several locations on the mainland and nearby islands and is one of five Makah Indian tribal villages that were occupied for at least 2,000 years, until the beginning of the twentieth century.
The Ozette site was first test excavated by archaeologist Richard Daugh-tery in 1967. In 1970 tidal erosion uncovered the remains of a whaling village that had been covered by a mudslide 500 years ago. The mud had not only covered six wooden houses, but it had also “sealed” them and consequently preserved their entire contents. This meant that artifacts made from organic materials, which are rarely found at archaeological sites because of rapid deterioration, had survived. Here were artifacts, such as boxes, baskets, cloth, wooden structures, and carved and decorated items, that had never made it into museum collections before.
Ozette was a multiseason site where whales were processed. Excavation of the site provided archaeologists with a complete material record of daily and seasonal village life. Northwestern Native American coastal cultures subsisted on what the sea supplied them, hunting and catching whales, sea lions, seals, otters, ducks, geese, and shore birds and gathering shellfish.
Ozette presented a unique opportunity to study the Native American coastal village before European contact. In recognition of this, funding for a decade of excavation was provided by a number of sources. The 55,000 artifacts found made Ozette one of the most significant archaeological discoveries in North America.
The nature and success of the agreement between the contemporary Makah Indians and the archaeologists were also unique. In recognition of the Makah’s direct ancestors who had lived at Ozette, all excavated material was kept on the tribal reservation in a museum managed by tribal members. Makah representatives participated in excavating and preserving finds. In this case both the Makah’s pride in their past and their traditions and the research outcomes for the archaeologists were satisfied. The excavation became a model for other interactions between archaeologists and Native people in other parts of North America.
In 1979 the Makah Cultural and Research Center, located at Neah Bay, the center of the present day Makah Nation, was opened so that the public could see the legacy of Ozette. This nationally recognized museum features full-scale replicas of cedar longhouses as well as whaling, sealing, and fishing canoes. On display are about 1 percent of the 55,000 artifacts recovered from the site.
See also Vermillion Accord and NAGPRA (1989-1990); Fate of “Kennewick Man” (1996-Present).
Further Reading
Samuels, S. R., ed. 1991. Ozette archaeological project research. Pullman: Dept. of Anthropology, Washington State University.
World History
