Fire at Tchewasan: A Point Roberts Indigenous Village Loses Homes and Orchards
Five houses and 27 tents burned near Point Roberts, prompting an Indian agent to bring bedding and food to a hard-working community.
The Indian village of Tchewasan, near Point Roberts, was visited by fire Tuesday. Five houses, with their 27 tents, were destroyed, and great damage was done to the thriving young orchards adjoining. Indian Agent Devlin visited the scene on Saturday and supplied the unfortunate Indians with bedding and food, and the Indian Department will probably assist those who require it in rebuilding their houses. Mr. Devlin estimates the total loss at $1,500. The sufferers by the fire, he says, were all hard-working Indians.
“The sufferers by the fire, he says, were all hard-working Indians.”
Point Roberts remains a peculiar cross-border community, and Indigenous villages around the Salish Sea still face fire, displacement and relief gaps. The brief treats the Tchewasan fire as a local misfortune; today it reads as a reminder of how thin the safety net could be at the edge of the map.
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