Stories | Pukaist Community Site

Stories & Culture

Stories carried through place, teaching, and record

These public stories draw on oral traditions, historical records, archived testimony, and community-linked materials from the Thompson River area.

They are part of a public collection, not a complete archive. Some knowledge stays with the community or requires further review before public sharing.

Current public collection

25

What this section is for

A readable public place for story, history, and cultural context that can keep growing through review.

How to read this collection

Individual story pages note source basis where available. This page is a front door to public stories, not a claim that every story or teaching is ready for public release.

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Browse by story type

Showing 25 of 25 public stories.

Traditional Knowledge

Traditional Knowledge

Pemymoos Farming

Pemymoos had 70 acres under cultivation — hay, potatoes, wheat, and fruit.

Traditional Knowledge

Traditional Knowledge

Rivers, Salmon, and Travel

Travel routes along the Thompson and Nicola rivers, from Lytton to Spences Bridge.

Traditional Knowledge

Traditional Knowledge

Open Range and Stock-Keeping

Cook's Ferry testimony describes how open range and highland reserves were used for stock-keeping.

The Land and the People

River valleys and highland meadows — how the land was used between Ashcroft and Highland Valley.

Intergenerational Learning

Huckpestes — the Nlaka'pamux concept of developing wisdom through experience.

Named Places Near Spences Bridge

Published notes from 1898 record named places within a few miles of Spences Bridge on the Thompson River.

Traditional Knowledge

Traditional Knowledge

Seasonal Practices

Seasonal use of highland meadows and home villages — winter, spring, and the annual round.

Place Names and Memory

Pokaist, Peymanoos, and other place names recorded in historical sources and still in use.

Regional Story Geography

Regional Story Geography

Coyote People and Spences Bridge

In the published story traditions, the country around Spences Bridge belongs to the Coyote people.

Regional Story Geography

Regional Story Geography

Hunters, Fishermen, and the River

The Nlaka'pamux were hunters and fishermen. Salmon and venison sustained life along the Thompson and Fraser rivers.

Chief Timothy Shemahallsee

A 2011 dissertation records that Timothy Shemahallsee was Chief at Pekeyst on the east bank of the Thompson River in the late nineteenth century.

Betani Valley

Betáni was a great root-digging and hunting resort in the mountains north of Lytton, and a summer gathering place for all the upper divisions of the tribe.

Traditional Knowledge

Traditional Knowledge

Railway and Water Changes

Cook's Ferry 1913 testimony describes how water and railway changes affected farming on the reserves.

Regional Story Geography

Regional Story Geography

The Spider and the Upper World

In Thompson River traditions, the Spider lowered a hero from the upper world through a hole in the earth, landing at a place declared the centre of the Indian's country.

Pokaist — Little White Stones

The name Pokaist means "little white stones" — a name that has been in use since at least the late nineteenth century.

Peymanoos — The Large Bare Place

Peymanoos means "large bare place" — one of the two reserve names that remain in use by the Pukaist community today.

Traditional Knowledge

Traditional Knowledge

Highland Valley — Reserves 12 to 15

Cook's Ferry testimony describes Highland Valley reserves 12-15 as hay and meadow lands used seasonally.

Regional Story Geography

Regional Story Geography

The Centre of the Earth (Traditions)

In Thompson River traditions, a stone marks the place where NLi'ksEntEm first touched the earth.

Regional Story Geography

Regional Story Geography

Coyote and the Salmon

In the traditions, Coyote introduced salmon to the Thompson River.

Regional Story Geography

Regional Story Geography

The People of Nkamtcí'n

Nkamtci'n (Spences Bridge) was Coyote people territory in the published traditions.

Traditional Knowledge

Traditional Knowledge

The Dam and the Mountain Lakes

Cook's Ferry 1913 testimony describes how mountain lakes fed the water supply and how a dam could help.

Regional Story Geography

Regional Story Geography

The Sacred Stone (Traditions)

In the traditions, a stone marks where NLi'ksEntEm first touched the ground — the centre of the country.

People of Pukaist Society

The People of Pukaist Society was incorporated September 20, 2022 in Ashcroft, BC.

Traditional Knowledge

Traditional Knowledge

Root Digging and the Mountain Meadows

Betani Valley was a root-digging and hunting area in the mountains north of Lytton.

Regional Story Geography

Regional Story Geography

The Thompson and Fraser Confluence

The Thompson and Fraser rivers meet near Lytton — the geographic centre of Nlaka'pamux territory.

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Collection status

More stories are added as they're reviewed and prepared for public use.