Lesson plan
Chaatl
Chaatl, also spelled Cha'atl, Tsaa'ahl, Tts’aa’ahl, and other variations, was a historic Haida village located on the shore of Chaatl Island, facing south across Buck Channel to the western side of northern Moresby Island, near the western end of Skidegate Channel, Haida Gwaii, British Columbia, Canada. Across Buck Channel from Chaatl was the long-abandoned village site of Niisii. There were close connections between Chaatl and the nearby village of Kaisun, about to the south in a straight line, or about by water. Chaatl is within the Daawuuxusda Conservancy. According to John R. Swanton, Chaatl is the village written as Kow-welth by John Work in his list and census of towns conducted around 1836–41. Work described Chaatl as having 35 houses and 561 inhabitants. The Haida told Swanton that there had been a great fire in Chaatl sometime after 1878, which destroyed a large part of the town. Evidence of 25 house sites were found during surveys done in 1968 and 1970, verified by photographs from about 1900.
Article summary
Chaatl, also spelled Cha'atl, Tsaa'ahl, Tts’aa’ahl, and other variations, was a historic Haida village located on the shore of Chaatl Island, facing south across Buck Channel to the western side of northern Moresby Island, near the western end of Skidegate Channel, Haida Gwaii, British Columbia, Canada. Across Buck Channel from Chaatl was the long-abandoned village site of Niisii. There were close connections between Chaatl and the nearby village of Kaisun, about to the south in a straight line, or about by water. Chaatl is within the Daawuuxusda Conservancy. According to John R. Swanton, Chaatl is the village written as Kow-welth by John Work in his list and census of towns conducted around 1836–41. Work described Chaatl as having 35 houses and 561 inhabitants. The Haida told Swanton that there had been a great fire in Chaatl sometime after 1878, which destroyed a large part of the town. Evidence of 25 house sites were found during surveys done in 1968 and 1970, verified by photographs from about 1900.
Key claims
- population: 561 inhabitants — source: Wikipedia · confidence 0.95
Discussion questions
- Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
- The record states that the population is "561 inhabitants". What evidence would count against this claim?
- Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
- If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?
Bibliography
- Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1374265761
Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.