Object: Snuneymuxw Big House

Use: Snuneymuxw community gatherings and meetings, ceremonies, potlatches

Era: constructed in 1993

Builders: Snuneymuxw community volunteers

Materials: Western Redcedar planks, cedar posts and beams, electrical wiring, corrugated metal roofing sheets

Size/ Dimensions: length: 36.6 metres, width: 27.43 metres, height: 10.97 metres

Current Location: Cedar, British Columbia (south of Nanaimo), Canada

Condition: excellent

The traditional Snuneymuxw big house or longhouse was a long, rectangular piece of architecture, constructed from Western Redcedar. A structural frame was erected out of supporting posts that were set into the ground. Beams to support the roof were added to the frame. Carved house posts were sometimes an important feature of Snuneymuxw architecture. The cedar planks that covered the outside were split from massive logs with hand tools and attached to the frame with twisted Redcedar branches. The planks were placed horizontally until the introduction of nails, after which they began to be hung vertically. The planks were designed for easy removal from the frame, as they were transported and used at other locations on other house frames.

The Snuneymuxw big houses were built with a gable roof, which rose to a peak in the middle, supported by ridgepoles. The roof could include an opening along the crest, also covered with a gabled roof, to let out smoke. Summer dwellings could be built in a slightly different way, called the shed roof style. These dwellings were smaller and had a roof of planks that sloped to one side, resting on beams. The planks might be supported horizontally with slender poles, and the frames could even be covered with woven mats instead of planking.

The Snuneymuxw Big House is a piece of 20th century architecture that merges modern necessities with traditional needs. The shape of the building includes the gabled roofs that were specific to the Snuneymuxw houses. The doors are placed at the short end of the structure. Although the builders kept Snuneymuxw architectural history in mind, the Big House uses milled lumber columns instead of hewn posts. The planked cedar siding is also milled, and the roof is made of corrugated metal sheeting. An architect was called in to make sure codes were met and that the technical details were properly finished.