“AS FAR AS THE GRASS STILL GROWS”: A LEAST COST ANALYSIS OF OVERLAND AND CANOE TRAVEL IN HODINǪ̱HSǪ́:NIH TERRITORY, 1750–1766
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This thesis applies Geographic Information System (GIS) technologies and Least Cost Analysis (LCA) to reconstruct and analyze the multi-modal mobility patterns of the Hodinǫ̱hsǫ́:nih from 1750–1766. The study examines whether these methods can accurately model the culturally specific travel choices within Hodinǫ̱hsǫ́:nih homelands, with a particular focus on the significant role of waterways in Hodinǫ̱hsǫ́:nih movement. By bridging ecological, social, and cultural data, this work challenges existing theories and advances spatial methodologies. The study’s methodology helps improve our models of historical Indigenous mobility, offering a qualitative correlation between considered costs, calculated optimal paths, and historical waypoints. While GIS models can provide valuable insights, they serve as exploratory tools rather than supplying definitive answers. The models used, combined with historical textual analysis, can help to uncover some of the complexities that human movement involves. This work emphasizes autonomy as shown in Hodinǫ̱hsǫ́:nih mobility networks, territorial expanse, and control. It reveals how the Hodinǫ̱hsǫ́: nih leveraged their spatial knowledge to assert sovereignty during the period of entanglement with Europeans contradicting oversimplified narratives of colonialism.