Today Departure Bay is best known for the B.C. Ferries Terminal that transports cars and people to and from Nanaimo, Vancouver Island on a daily basis. To the Snuneymuxw people, Departure Bay was the location of an important village site. An archaeological excavation in 1992 dated the site at 2500 years old. It was here in this scenic bay where the Snuneymuxw house posts once stood.

Cedars, both Western Redcedar (Thuja plicata) and Yellow Cedar (Chamaecyparis nootkatensis), have been known to people on the west coast, including the Snuneymuxw First Nations as "the tree of life" because of their versatility and the myriad of uses for their parts. Carvers choose Western Redcedar because it is naturally rot-resistant, straight grained, relatively light and easy to split.

Scientists now know that Redcedars were not common on the west coast until about 4,000 years ago. It is the abundance of the Western Redcedar and its particular properties that made the creation of big houses, totem poles, canoes and soft bark clothing possible. Some archaeologists have speculated that it is no coincidence that the prevalence of Redcedars 4,000 years ago coincides with the marked development of material culture on the west coast. They believe that the new abundance of Redcedars that made big houses and the drying and storing of salmon possible, ensured a year round food source, which then allowed people more time for cultural and artistic pursuits.

House posts were inside structures that supported the main house beams. House posts were also outside structures that did not support beams at all. The Snuneymuxw house posts, now at the Chicago Field Museum, were outside house posts. The rounded hat-like structures at the tops of these house posts are a typical Coast Salish design feature.

House posts usually depict animals, humans or both. These figures could have personal significance to the people of the house or community. House posts figures could also be related to shamanism, spiritual rituals or ancestors. Animals and mythological creatures, such as the sxwayxwuy, are often part of cleansing, puberty rites and other rituals. Shamans had animals and mythological animal creatures from which they derived their power. Perhaps the man in house post 18981 was a shaman who had a particular spiritual connection to swans. Perhaps he was a sxwayxwuy dancer preparing a costume. The story behind these figures is unknown as no oral history associated with the posts has survived.