EXPLORE WHISTLER'S NATIVE HERITAGE

The Squamish Nation and Lil'wat Nation have coexisted respectfully as neighbors since time immemorial. We have thrived on the bounty of the ocean, the rivers, and the land, living in close relationship with the world around us. Our cultures are grounded in rich, ancient traditions, and continue to grow and evolve in a modern world.

We have built the Squamish Lil'wat Cultural Centre (SLCC) to preserve our cultures and share them with others. We have treated the site with respect, building on the northern side of the property, and leaving the forested area mostly untouched. The building is designed to evoke the longhouses of our Squamish people and the Istken (traditional earthen pit house) of our Lil’wat people with a modern architectural interpretation.

Click here to view video of the SLCC Experience!

Click here to explore building map.

The Exhibits
Our exhibits showcase our heritage, art, technology, language and seasonal use of land and resources. Our culture is as alive and vital as it has always been. Strike up a conversation with our Squamish and Lil'wat hosts, view our captivating film, examine our precious historical artifacts in our Museum, or view modern art in our Contemporary Gallery. Join us in song and dance. Celebrate our arts and culture with us.

Great Hall
As you enter the Great Hall you will be greeted by massive hand carved cedar spindle whorls that celebrate our weaving heritage. The Great Hall features authentic dugout canoes, wool and cedar weavings and exhibits that explore our relationship to the land. The Great Hall was designed in the form of a Squamish Longhouse.

What we Treasure - Museum
The museum highlights what both Nations treasure including regalia, artifacts, baskets, legends and language. Long ago, we could not go to the store to buy the things we needed. We thanked the Creator for giving us so many things in the plant and animal worlds from which to make our tools. Our everyday objects were carved or painted with symbols that held spiritual significance to the maker. These symbols tell our Creator stories - times of survival and times of abundance. We are kept alive by living our spirituality. We treasure the teachings of our ancestors. We make them proud when we weave a beautiful basket or carve a welcome figure.

Istken Hall
Designed to evoke the traditional underground dwellings of the Lil'wat Nation, Istken Hall is a circular glass dining room and meeting space with a striking backdrop of forest and mountain scenery.

Theatre
Experience our stories, history and culture through the magic of film in our 80 seat theatre. Our documentary style 15-minute film, “Where Rivers, Mountain and People Meet”, highlights our historical and modern cultures with spectacular footage of our traditional lands.

Gift Gallery
The Squamish Lil'wat Gift Gallery offers original Native art and jewelry, designer clothing, hand carved yellow and red cedar, ceremonial masks, cedar baskets, wool weavings, moccasins and limited edition prints. All products are designed and created by our Squamish and Lil'wat artists, as well as other BC Aboriginal artists.

Café
The café at the Squamish Lil'wat Cultural Centre features affordable food with a First Nations twist. The café can be accessed directly, without going through the exhibit spaces of the Cultural Centre.
Click here to view our Café menu.

Outdoor Exhibits

Traditional Squamish Longhouse (Tl'aktaxen Lam)
The Longhouse, with its single sloped roof, was the traditional communal dwelling of the Squamish people. Its engineering was ingenious; cedar planks for the sides and roof were tied to a timber frame with cedar ropes. Because the planks were not permanently attached, it could be assembled, or taken apart, and transported by canoe to seasonal locations.

Traditional Lil'wat Pit House (Istken)
The Istken, with its unique cone shaped roof, was the traditional dwelling of the Lil’wat people. A hole was dug in the forest floor, crossed tree branches were placed over the hole and filled with moss to form the roof. It was warm in winter and cool in summer. The main entrance was by a single ladder through the smoke hole in the roof, making it easy to defend. A secondary entrance was built into the side of the Istken, generally hidden from view, where elders and children could enter more easily.

Forest Walk (Ts'éKts'ek in Squamish language Mámteq in Lil'wat language)
To the Squamish and Lil'wat people, the forest is a place that provides much of our sustenance - clothing, food, medicines, and raw materials for housing and daily implements. For us, the forest is like a church - it is where we can stay connected to the natural world - a place of balance, harmony, and spirituality. We must respect and protect it.