Kitamaat Village is on the eastern shore of the Kitimat Arm extension of Douglas Channel, approximately 71 miles (115 km) southeast of Prince Rupert and 6 miles (10 km) south of Kitimat, British Columbia. Formerly known as Kitimat Mission, it is the main community of the Haisla people and their government, the Haisla Nation. Douglas Channel, one of the principal inlets of the British Columbia Coast, is named after Sir James Douglas, the first governor of the Colony of British Columbia. It serves as a busy shipping route due to the aluminum smelter in Kitimat, where bauxite is imported and smelted aluminum is exported. A major port expansion is underway to establish a terminal for exporting liquefied natural gas, expected to be operational in 2025.

The contemporary Haisla Nation is an amalgamation of two ancient bands: the Kitamaat of upper Douglas Channel and Devastation Channel, and the Kitlope of upper Princess Royal Channel and Gardner Canal. Historically, each band controlled its own resources within a traditional territory and occupied an independent winter village. The remoteness of these villages enforced isolation until the 1890s, when a mission and residential school were established. Epidemics and diseases brought by Europeans reduced the native population significantly. After the 1918 influenza pandemic, fewer than 300 people survived. These survivors formed linkages and eventually began to occupy the same village. Missionaries and government agents pressured them to abandon feasts, dancing, and potlatches. Traditional communal houses were demolished, and children were forbidden to speak their native language. After decades of strain and dislocation, a culture has emerged that combines elements of traditional heritage and Euro-Canadian influences.

Kitamaat was the location of the Kitamaat Indian Residential School, which operated from 1883 to 1941. The Canadian Indian residential school system was a network of compulsory boarding schools for Indigenous peoples. Funded by the Canadian government’s Department of Indian Affairs, these schools were administered by Christian churches. The Methodist Church ran the Kitamaat school. This system aimed to remove Indigenous children from their cultural influences and assimilate them into dominant Canadian culture. While the Kitamaat school reported fewer cases of abuse than others, it still suffered from poor conditions and a harsh regime similar to other schools. Read more here and here. Explore more of Kitamaat Village and Kitimak Arm here: