The first is from southern Greenland and Labrador that extends to Manitoba to the west and to the mountains of North Carolina to the south.

The second is in Alaska and adjacent areas of British Columbia, extending towards eastern Siberia and into Japan and Manchuria.

[5] The disrupted and wide range of the species suggests that the three populations have been isolated from each other for significant periods of time.

[6] The rhizome of the plant was chewed by Native Americans, including Algonquian-speaking peoples and the Iroquois, to relieve canker sores, and is the source of another common name, canker-root.

Other external threats to Coptis trifolia include logging, fire, agricultural development, and human recreation.