Gitsegukla (also Kitsegeucla or Skeena Crossing) is a
Gitxsan community of about 500 at the confluence of the
Kitseguecla and
Skeena Rivers, approximately 40 km southwest of
Hazelton,
British Columbia, Canada. The community is on Gitsegukla Indian Reserve No. 1.
History
The original village was located below the present day graveyard near the Skeena River. The village was destroyed in 1872 when a party of miners on their way to Omineca failed to extinguish their camp fire. The result was a significant confrontation that was only resolved when the Lieutant-Governor travelled on war-ship, HMS Scout, to meet the Gitsegukla chiefs at Metlakatla. They received compensation for their losses. Subsequently the community relocated slightly upriver. Following the building of a church, the village divided along religious lines.
Methodists moved to the upriver community of
Carnaby, and followers of the
Salvation Army
Salvation (from Latin: ''salvatio'', from ''salva'', 'safe, saved') is the state of being saved or protected from harm or a dire situation. In religion and theology, ''salvation'' generally refers to the deliverance of the soul from sin and its c ...
to
Andimaul, although most later returned to Gitsegukla in the decades that followed.
[Gitsegukla Band (1979). ''Adawkhl Gitsegukla'' Supervisor Charlotte Sampare]
Gitsegukla has been impacted by flooding of the Skeena River. In 1914, a large flood washed away many of the houses of the second village. And in 1936, another flood washed away the entire second village, and many totem poles, leading to the building of the current site higher above the riverbank.
In the
Gitxsan language, Gitsegukla roughly translates to "people living under the precipice" or more specifically under the "Segukla" or "sharp-pointed" mountain.
["Gitsegukla. ''Encyclopedia of British Columbia'' (2000). Harbour Publishing.]
References
External links
Gitsegukla Homepage
Unincorporated settlements in British Columbia
Gitxsan
Skeena Country
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