Settlement of Quebec

What is Settlement?

The process by which humans occupy a territory that they organize and transform according to their needs.

The first traces of occupation in what is today Quebec dates back about12 000 years.

Beringia Theory

Most archeologists believe that humans migrated to North America from Asia over the Beringia land bridge.

About 15 000 years ago, as the climate was changing, an ice-free corridor opened up and allowed people to travel into the continent.

Migration via ocean routes

New discoveries have cast some doubt on the ice-free corridor theory.

Some researchers think that the climate would have been too hostile for people to pass by that route.

Instead they believe that small goups of people may have come to North America by boat.

It is very likely that North America’s first settlers came from Asia.

The precise date of their arrival is difficult prove.

Occupation of Quebec The occupation of the territory of

Quebec took place over a very long time.

About 15 000 years ago, the Laurentian Ice Sheet started to melt.

This caused sea water to flow into the St. Laurence lowlands.

The tops of mountains like Mount St-Hillaire and Rougemont formed islands in the Champlain Sea.

The sea water eventually receded around 10 000 years ago.

The occupation of Quebec took place during 3 distinct periods.

› Paleoindian period (10 000 to 8 000 BCE)› Archaic period (8 000 to 1 000 BCE)› Woodland period (1 000 BCE to 1 500 CE)

Paleoindian Period (10 000 to 8 000 BCE)

This period is when the first occupants arrived in the territory of Quebec.

Ice still covered a large part of the area.

The climate was harsh. The Champlain Sea was slowly

receding, leaving behind the St. Lawrence River and many lakes and rivers.

Animals came to inhabit the territory and groups of hunter-gatherers came into the territory to hunt the herds of large game animals.

These nomadic groups travelled along waterways and through mountain passes.

Archaic Period (8 000 to 1 000 BCE)

Major change occurred in the landscape and the settlement of the territory.

The end of the glaciation period mean the inhabitable territory increased in size.

The environment became increasingly stable and moving around became seasonal.

Trade networks developed.

The nomadic populations of the Archaic period were very familiar with the resources of the territory.

The population increased.

Food and tools diversified.

Woodland Period (1000 BCE to 1500 CE)

Trade networks permitted the spread of objects, plants and new techniques.

3 major innovations transformed daily life for Aboriginal populations:› The bow and arrow› Pottery› agriculture

Bow and arrows improved hunting techniques.

Pottery and cultivation of corn spread into the area from south of the great lakes.

Agriculture lead to increase population in the region.

Gradually groups came together to form organized communities, which lead to the creation of villages.

The settlement of the Arctic2 500 BCE to 1 500 CE

About 4 500 years ago groups of nomadic hunters from Siberia arrived in Arctic Quebec.

They hunted sea mammals (seal, walrus, narwal) and flourished in a very hostile environment due to their hunting techniques.

They had to be good hunters because of the rarity of vegetation and raw materials.

Around the year 1 000 CE the arctic experienced another wave of migration from Alaska.

They were the Thule, ancestors of the Inuit.

The Thule hunted whales and moved around in their kayaks or umiaks.

They also travelled by dogsled. They used spears, harpoons, and bows

and arrows.