In Canada, aboriginal people used bitumen seeping out of the banks of the Athabasca and other rivers to waterproof birch bark canoes, and also heated it in smudge pots to ward off mosquitoes in the summer.
ɪn kˈænədə, ˌæbɚɹˈɪdʒɪnəl pˈiːpəl jˈuːzd bɪtˈuːmɛn sˈiːpɪŋ ˌaʊɾəv ðə bˈæŋks ʌvðɪ ˈæθɐbˌæskə ænd ˈʌðɚ ɹˈɪvɚz tə wˈɔːɾɚpɹˌuːf bˈɜːtʃ bˈɑːɹk kənˈuːz, ænd ˈɔːlsoʊ hˈiːɾᵻd ɪɾ ɪn smˈʌdʒ pˈɑːts tə wˈɔːɹd ˈɔf məskˈiːɾoʊz ɪnðə sˈʌmɚ.