The 1869 Bombardment of Wrangell

What if I told you that over 150 years ago, Wrangell was almost blown to smithereens by the U.S. Military after a member of the Stikine tribe bit off a white woman's finger?

You wouldn't believe me.  I didn't believe it at first.  How had I not heard this story before?

While not a lot of documentation exists on the Bombardment, most tell a very similar tale.  If you haven't heard of the 1869 Bombardment of Wrangell yet ... spoiler alert!

... The US Army was also involved in a shelling, later in 1869. 

George Thornton Emmons, a US Naval officer in Alaska from 1882 to 1899, and later one the first ethnographers to study Alaska Natives, wrote about the Wrangell incident in "The Tlingit Indians" his masterwork, which was written in the 1930s and 1940s but not published until 1991. 

"The shelling of Wrangell in 1869 by the Army at Fort Wrangel was ordered to enforce the surrender of an Indian named Scutdoo or Scutdor who had killed a White trader in retaliation for the wanton and unjustifiable killing of an Indian name Si-Wau by Lt. Loucks the second in command of the post," Emmons wrote. "Si Wau was drunk at the time and had bitten off part of a finger of (another soldier's) wife."

Emmons noted that Scutdoo was a cousin of Si Wau and felt duty bound to kill a white to avenge the death. The Army shelled a large portion of the Indian village and then took Scutdoo's mother and another Native hostage. Scutdoo gave himself up and was tried, convicted and hanged for the murder.

Emmons reported that before the execution Scutdoo expressed sorrow over the killing and said he had nothing personal against the dead trader and he hoped to meet up with him in the afterlife.

That's the Cliffs Notes version, courtesy of Dave Kiffen from his article US Navy Bombed Angoon 125 Years Ago, which can be found at Sitnews.us.

What that clip leaves out is that the U.S. Military blasted a few cannon balls into what was then Fort Wrangel and threatened to take the whole place down if Scutdoo didn't give himself up to be hung.  Well, he did.  In fact, Scutdoo's hanging was the first recorded in Alaska (Dec. 29, 1869), according to DeathPenaltyUSA.org.

  

The Bombardment made waves in the National news, but somehow isn't remembered when we, the locals, celebrate Wrangell history.  Sealaska Heritage Institute (SHI) and WCA hope to change that thanks to a new grant.  SHI was the recipient of a one-year National Park Service (NPS) Battlefield Preservation Grant to document 1869 Bombardment through oral history work with elders in partnership with the WCA.  This is the first ever NPS grant awarded to an organization in Alaska to study a U.S. conflict with a Native tribe.

The final report generated through the grant will be given to the WCA and community of Wrangell to allow them to determine what could be done to preserve, market, develop or memorialize the conflict for the community’s advantage.  Some Battlefield Grant recipients in years past have gone on to build memorials, or be recognized as a National Historic Site, like Chief Shakes Tribal House.

Zachary Jones, SHI Archivist & Collection Manager and PhD student in Ethnohistory at University of Alaska Fairbanks focusing on Tlingit and Russian relations, will serve as the primary investigator on the Bombardment and believes “past writings do not do the situation justice.  Reports out there now largely represent only one side of the story.  They didn’t go far enough. One needs to understand Tlingit law, the cultural context and aspects of Federal Indian policy to address the whole situation.  I look forward to working with and serving the WCA and community of Wrangell in bringing this complex issue forward."

Fort Wrangell, 1869, by Vincent Colyer, who reported to President Ulysses S. Grant on the Bombardment

Rasmuson Foundation excited about Tribal House progress after visit

Wrangell Cooperative Association was pleased to welcome one of the earliest and largest contributors to the Chief Shakes restoration to Wrangell, as members of the Rasmuson Foundation paid the Tribal House and Carving Shed a visit on June 25th.

“The Chief Shakes Island Tribal House restoration is exactly the type of project the Rasmuson Foundation likes to get behind,” said Ed Rasmuson, who before becoming President and Chairman of the Board for National Bank of Alaska spent two years running the Wrangell branch after Senator Frank Murkowski.

Rasmuson Foundation members

“I called Wrangell home in 1966 and ’67 and it still holds a place in my heart. I would like nothing more than to see the Native culture preserved for future generations. Throw in the visitors that the restored Tribal House and a new carving facility will bring to town and this was a no-brainer project for us to back.”

“The Rasmuson Foundation absolutely loves Alaska,” added Rasmuson. “We’ve contributed more than $2.5 million to Wrangell projects and are proud to have contributed to Wrangell Cooperative Association (WCA). We can’t wait to see the Tribal House and Carving Shed completed and the totems back in their rightful place again soon.”

Project Manager Todd White, WCA's Carol Snoddy and Ed Rasmuson

WCA’s Carol Snoddy worked for Ed Rasmuson at National Bank of Alaska/Wells Fargo for 30 years and “was very encouraged with the Rasmuson Foundation’s visit.”

“The members and their spouses were all really enthused on the island and genuinely excited to see our progress,” said Snoddy. “I really do believe that Wrangell is one of the bright spots in Southeast Alaska right now and our progress will help to strengthen our community and Native culture. Now it’s time to get the House back together and get those totems back up.”

Project Manager Todd White gave Foundation members a rundown of the project during the Shakes Island visit, showing off the freshly raised corner posts and mapping out the next steps in the restoration.

“The South wall framing is in place,” said White. “We're waiting on the second batch of our Cedar donated by Sealaska so we can finish the front wall, so we’re going to do some roof work in the meantime.”

Speaking on the South wall, White admitted to being a little nervous as Superintendent Richard Oliver made cuts through the corner posts for sill beams and framing.

“I was a little nervous for the first cut,” said White. “There's a lot of pressure riding on the cuts at this stage, not only due to the time and manpower involved in getting the Cedar here, but by the time the logs were finished, delivered and then adzed, they are valued at $30,000 a piece. I just told Richard, ‘If you can't make the cut, nobody can.”

First of the giant Cedars leave Carving Shed for Shakes Island

A muggy Tuesday morning in Wrangell saw the first batch of freshly adzed Cedar leave the confines of the Carving Shed for Shakes Island.  Here are a few pics of the process.

Carvers joined the renovation crew to assist with the transport, which includes toting the up to 27' Cedars across 300' worth of bridge.  Just like they did it during the 1940 restoration, dollies help usher the beams and posts across.

After resting under tarps for months, the totems were recently uncovered to breathe.  Laying next to the totems are sill beams, the longest being the aforementioned 27 footer.  These beams are pocketed, and the groves will hold panels of Cedar that can be slid in and out of place.  Many of these panels were preserved during deconstruction of the Tribal House and will be re-used.

Here sits one of the corner posts, in front of the Southwest corner of the Tribal House waiting to be raised.  This beast of a log was one of the prizes of the Sealaska log donation, and after some artful adzing by carver Justin Smith, it should go a long ways to make sure the house is standing for another 100 years.

M.J. Murdock Trust Awards $222,000 Grant to Chief Shakes Tribal House Restoration

The Tribal House restoration on Chief Shakes Island in Wrangell was awarded another grant
last week, with the latest $222,000 award from the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust inching the
project towards full funding.

After submitting and revising the grant multiple times beginning in 2009, WCA received notice
on May 24 that the grant had been approved. The M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust put no
restrictions on the grant distribution, and with the paperwork now officially signed, the entire
$222,000 will be paid out to the WCA at once.

“We extend our congratulations on your receipt of this grant,” said Steven Moore, M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust Executive Director. “We wish you significant and satisfying progress as you seek to strengthen and implement the ideals and mission of the Wrangell Cooperative Association.”

WCA’s Tis Peterman was pleased to hear the funds will arrive at once, and not be piece-mailed to the project. Peterman stated that “Murdock Charitable was very cognizant that we are aiming to get the building renovated this year and wanted to ensure we had all of their funding as we need it.”

“The funding is very close, if not fully-funded” added Peterman. “It will be dependent on the
costs of the materials needed to reassemble the building. The expense of getting the planks from
Prince of Wales Island was more than originally projected.”

Work continues on the Tribal House. Recently, Master Carver Steve Brown recently arrived
from Seattle to assess the project, and under advice from Brown, Project Manager Todd White
and his team are working to reassemble the National Historic Site.

Volunteers still needed for 2013 Shakes Island re-dedication, contact the WCA office

With Tribal House restoration on schedule, Wrangell Cooperative Association is looking for volunteers to help with the re-dedication ceremony, which will take place in May, 2013.  The WCA is in search of committee members and volunteers from all communities to help celebrate the re-opening of our National Historic Site.  If you can help organize housing, transportation, food, advertising, fund raising, dancing, gift giving or assist in any other fashion, please contact the WCA via phone (907.874.4304), email us at wcatribe@gmail.com, or stop by the office in downtown Wrangell.  Thank you.

Governor Appropriates $250,000 to Shakes Island, Sealaska Cedars Arrive to Blessing

Governor Parnell includes Shakes Island in Capital Projects for upcoming fiscal year

Wrangell Cooperative Association just got another dose of financial help, as Governor Sean Parnell included the Chief Shakes Tribal House and Carving Shed on the list of Alaska House District 2 funding recipients for the upcoming fiscal year.

"Alaska’s cash position is as strong as it’s ever been," said Governor Parnell in his annual Budget Message given in Anchorage on May 14th.  "We start from a position of strength.”

The WCA submission was just 1 of 8 Wrangell projects recieving funding in the new budget.  The Governor appropriated $250,000 for use in either, or both of, the Chief Shakes Tribal House restoration and Carving Shed projects. 

Speaking with KSTK’s Charlotte Duren, Wrangell Finance Director Jeff Jabusch called Wrangell’s results in the 2013 Fiscal Year Capital Projects list “by far, one of the better years we have ever had … We did well last year but I think this year was even better."

Architectual plans for the new Carving Shed have been completed, and the 40,000 + sq. ft. building will serve as not only a carving facility, but will contain retail and office space.  Sitting on the land adjacent to the SNO Building in downtown Wrangell, property given to the WCA by the Tlingit and Haida Housing Authority, the WCA plans to have master carvers taking one-month shifts at the facility for a period of 2 years to train local carvers.

"We were on the City of Wrangell priority list for Capitol Projects for over a year," said WCA's Tis Peterman.  "They submitted it and we were so focused on further fund raising and the Tribal House restoration, which is currently underway, that we were pleasantly surprised when Senator Bert Stedman called us in April, letting us know we were still on the Governor's table."

As far as the Chief Shakes Island restoration, Peterman says complete funding for the project is “very close,” after the State appropriation. 

Sandy Churchill - Photo by Greg Knight

"This is huge for the Tribe," said Peterman.  "It's not only a relief to know we will have the money for not only the Tribal House, but enough set aside to break ground on the new carving facility too.  This appropriation by the Governor should create momentum for further funding."

First of Sealaska donated Cedars arrive in Wrangell to Native celebration and blessing

The first batch of giant Cedars for the Chief Shakes Island restoration were delivered to the carving facility in Wrangell on this week, where the gift was met with a songs, beaded regalia and a blessing from members of the Tlingit community.

Elders, dancers and Wrangell community members were on hand for the blessing, which began with a prayer from Father Thomas Joseph Weise of the Saint Rose of Lima Catholic Church.  Tribe members then brushed the massive, milled logs with Cedar branches and eagle feathers to brush away the negative spirits, and concluded the blessing with songs and dancing from members of the local clans.

"The blessing went beautifully," said Tongass Tribe member Willard Jackson of Ketchikan, who is assisting the WCA with Tlingit history during the resoration.  "I believe it is important to remember the tree and its life, as it too was part of this Earth."

Justin Smith and Dawn Hutchinson - Photo by Greg Knight

Justin Smith, who first came to town in 2011 to carve along side Wrangell’s female adzers, has returned to the city he claims to love Wrangell more than his hometown to help with the restoration.

Justin Smith and Dawn Hutchinson - Photo by Greg Knight

"The blessing was great," said Smith.  "We want this house to get built and everyone involved with the restoration to be safe.  I'm going to be here in Wrangell until the project is finished and the job is done.  The Cedar looks really good and I can't wait to get started so further generations can continue to honor Chief Shakes." 

Smith and his brother are working to restore a Tribal House in their home of Whitehorse, in the Yukon Territory, and is hoping to see the Chief Shakes project to the end and take some of that knowledge back with him.

Sealaska granted the WCA's request for Cedar, with logs found on nearby Prince of Whales Island by the Sealaska Timber Corporation (STC) .  Had the Sealaska donation not come through, the WCA could have been looking at an estimated $120,000 to purchase a dozen Cedars of that size and quality to finish the corner posts of the Tribal House.

Project Manager Todd White called the first batch of Cedar "great looking wood ...  We've cleared a spot in the carving facility for these logs.  They're huge, so we're gonna need a backhoe to move them.  The corner posts are priority, so we're going to get them into the shed and get the adzers going on them right away."

Volunteers still needed for 2013 Shakes Island re-dedication, contact the WCA office

With Tribal House restoration on schedule, Wrangell Cooperative Association is looking for volunteers to help with the re-dedication ceremony, which will take place in May, 2013.  The WCA is in search of committee members and volunteers from all communities to help celebrate the re-opening of our National Historic Site.  If you can help organize housing, transportation, food, advertising, fund raising, dancing, gift giving or assist in any other fashion, please contact the WCA via phone (907.874.4304), email us at wcatribe@gmail.com, or stop by the office in downtown Wrangell.  Thank you.

Photo by Greg Knight

Wrangell Cooperative planning Shakes Island re-dedication, needs volunteers

With the Tribal House restoration chugging right along, Wrangell Cooperative Association has begun preliminary planning for the Shakes Island re-dedication event.

1940 Chief Shakes Tribal House dedication

The WCA met Saturday, April 28, at the American Legion Hall to begin planning the ceremony, tentatively scheduled for May 2013.  There aren't many Tribal House re-dedications to compare to, so while WCA’s Tis Peterman is planning to for a rough estimate of 500 visitors for the ribbon cutting ceremony, she has left the door open for than number to be much greater.  

“Looking at numbers from similar events around Southeast Alaska, and throw in the fact that Haines and Kasaan are looking to do renovations to tribal houses like Shakes Island, we could be looking at more than 500,” said Peterman.  

Numbers exceeding this estimate will create some extra work to accommodate visitors to Wrangell, especially in the area of housing.  The lack of available beds in town may cause the WCA to get creative with their planning, including perhaps bringing in a ferry to house the overflow, or getting people to open up their homes to visiting parties.

“We will have a better estimate on total visitors after the dance committee gets filled up,” continued Peterman.  “We’ll be conducting an outreach, hopefully recruiting dancers from communities all around Southeast.  We could see as much as 30 dancers per community participating in the re-dedication ... we'll know more after Celebration 2012 in Juneau, we can gauge interest from other communities there.”

WCA is looking for volunteers to pull off a ceremony for the ages.   Committees are being formed to organize housing, transportation, food, advertising, fund raising, dancing, gift giving and much more.  If you would like to help with the re-dedication, sign-up sheets can be found at the WCA office.  

The next WCA meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. on May 9^th at the American Legion Hall in Wrangell. 

Concrete being poured, Cedar logs on the way

Project Manager Todd White stated that he was “very happy” with the schedule the restoration is keeping, as walls have already been removed and concrete is currently being poured. 

“The concrete will go a long ways to help to battle moisture and helping prevent future insect and pest infestation by keeping the Cedar dry and off the ground,” said White. 

While the Tribal House will have a new floor and footings, the centerpiece of the structure has been preserved.  

Original restoration plans had the Tribal House’s historic fire pit to be replaced.  Carbon dating conducted on the ash dates the pit back to the late 1800’s and White quickly changed the plans to leave the pit untouched. 

The Shakes Island crew carefully covered the pit with planks as concrete was delivered one wheelbarrow at a time, creating a foundation to ensure visitors will enjoy the fire pit for another 100 years.

In other restoration news, Sealaska has confirmed that the 12 giant, Cedar logs donated to the project have been found by the Sealaska Timber Corporation on nearby Prince of Whales Island and delivered to Thorne Bay to be finished by the Thaja Plicata Lumber Company. 

 

Delivering the logs to Wrangell is expected to be a 10-day process, but the Cedar will be transported as quickly as possible to begin adzing.  Wood currently occupying the carving facility will be moved to containers located on the site of the future Carving Shed to make room for the giant, Cedar logs, which are the priority.