Scope and Contents: In late 1980 United States Forest Service (USFS) officials were notified about a large Tlingit or Haida (later attributed as Haida) carved item found in the woods in Tongass National Forest, Ketchikan area. This carving was a 12 foot long killer whale carving, similar to those which often rest atop totems, and was deemed as being over 100 years old. In response to laws governing such finds, the USFS contacted the Sealaska Corporation and the newly organized Sealaska Heritage Foundation (now Sealaska Heritage Institute) in mid 1981 about this carving. The USFS offered legal ownership of the carving to Sealaska and the Sealaska Heritage Foundation, legal papers were drawn up, but since expenses involved transporting, cleaning, preserving, and storing the item were large, Sealaska asked that the carving be deposited with the Alaska State Museum and the USFS retain legal ownership.
During this period of ownership negotiation, the 12 foot carving was airlifted by helicopter and then barged the remaining way to Juneau, where it was stored at a USFS faculty for a few months. Sealaska Heritage Foundation staff inspected the carving, took pictures of it, and talked about its origins. Once ownership agreement was decided to remain with the USFS, the carving was transferred to the Alaska State Museum. Throughout the early 1980s the Alaska State Museum cared for and cleaned the totem and some small newspaper reports were produced on the carving. In the mid-1980s it was transferred to the Totem Heritage Center, Ketchikan.
| Sealaska Heritage Institute Archives
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