After leaving Anan Creek, we began heading towards our final destination, Ketchikan. But on the way, we were able to make a short stop at the old totem village of Kasaan, Alaska. Kasaan is located along the Inside Passage, on Prince of Wales Island. You may have seen my post on totems that I shared from our visit to the Totem Heritage Center (Ketchikan). Some of the ancient totems at the Heritage Center were original totems that were salvaged from Kasaan, to preserve them.
Kasaan was established by the Haida Indians. Chief Son-I-Hat built the original “Whale House” (a long house) around the turn of the century (~1900) but the structure fell into a state of disrepair and was reconstructed in 1938. Still standing, it is once again needing repairs, but still stands as a spectacular sight, visible when your boat pulls up along the beach:
… and a close-up of the totem that stands in front of the long house:
And an image from inside the long house:
In my next post, I’ll share some of the totems that are standing around the area of the Kasaan long house.
