PHOTO: E.CURTIS COLLECTION, WA HISTORY.ORG
Hood Canal’s first inhabitants: TWANA Wintering near the mouths of local rivers, the Twana people lived in cedar plank homes enjoying a rich livelihood on the fjord. Fish, shellfish, plants, and game provided all year for the families. The warmer months were marked with visits to neighboring settlements going overland through the Olympic Mountains. They followed the shorelines by dugout canoe to trade as far away as what is now Alaska’s outer coast. The Twana language, ttuwaduq, is a Salishan dialect, but the Twana people spoke many languages forming alliances through marriage and trade with tribes along the Pacific coast. In 1792, Vancouver visited Hood Canal. Vancouver journeyed to the Skokomish River, where Menzies, his botanist, marveled at the rich vegetation as well as the natural beauty. He found the Twana marked by the ravages of smallpox, an epidemic introduced by European contact. After a few days of exploration and trade with the Twana people, Vancouver and his men retraced their path from the Canal leaving a legacy of European names in their wake.
Hood Canal was named by Royal Navy Captain George Vancouver, May 13, 1792,
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to honor Admiral Lord Samuel Hood. He wrote “Hood’s Channel” in his journal, but “Hood’s Canal” on his charts. The US Board on Geographic Names chose “Hood Canal” as the official name in 1932.
