Nelson River

Our Inuvialuit ancestors, the Early (Thule) Inuit, first inhabited this site at the mouth of Nelson River on the southeastern coast of Banks Island around 800 years ago. They were some of the earliest Inuit to arrive in Inuvialuit Nunangat. They built at least two houses of driftwood and sod that contain well-preserved artifacts and animal bones. One of these houses had two rooms with a shared entrance tunnel. These remains tell us that people lived here in the winter months and lit their houses with pottery oil lamps. They focused on hunting ringed seal.