DCHP-3

deer fence

DCHP-1 (pre-1967)

Entry from the DCHP-1 (pre-1967)

This entry may contain outdated or offensive information, terms, and examples.

two converging lines of fencing, as poles, piles of turf or brush, etc., used in early times in deer drives.

Quotations

1832
On the north side of the lake, opposite the river Exploits are the extremities of two deer fences, about half a mile apart, where they lead to the water.
1953
. . . the most abundant supply of meat was obtained by means of contrivances similar to the deer-fences of the Interior Salish. These were set at converging angles, culminating in narrow openings. Whereas the method used by the Salish people ended in the slaughter of the animals by bow and arrow, that used by the Sekani . . . ended in the animals being caught in loop snares. Often as many as forty snares would be set at the narrow end of these funnel-shaped corrals.
1962
The Beothuks showed marked ingenuity in their deer-hunting methods. They built deer fences made of trees felled in such a way as to form an impassable barrier extending sometimes for as far as forty miles. The purpose of these fences was to divert the caribou . . . and force them toward the rivers. . . .