By the turn of the 20th century, Indigenous seafarers adapted cloth sails, usually of the sprit-rig type seen in this image. Traditional sails of woven mats and wood slats had been used prior to the arrival of Europeans, but they were replaced by cloth once the Native peoples began trading with the settlers.

This photograph was probably taken in Port Townsend Bay or along the Strait of Juan de Fuca. It shows a West Coast style canoe equipped with a European style sail. The West Coast style of canoe was originally developed by the Nuu-Chah-Nulth peoples of Vancouver Island. It had a flatter bottom than other canoe styles and a vertical stern, making it more stable in rougher waters and able to carry more cargo. As a result, West Coast style canoes became the most common style in the Pacific Northwest during the late 19th century.

The photographer, James McCurdy, was born in Port Townsend in 1872. He spent many years of his childhood in Neah Bay on the Makah reservation and returned to Port Townsend in 1894.

Caption information source: "Northwest Coast Canoes," Simon Fraser University, retrieved from https://www.sfu.ca/brc/art_architecture/canoes.html.
Caption information source: Charles T. Hommel, A Guide to Historical Photograph Collections in Seattle, p. 33