History
Koniag Board of Directors
The Koniag Board of Directors travels to each village to hold trainings and community meetings after incorporation, 1973.
Koniag Board of Directors, 1973, Armstrong Archive (AM71), KANA Collection, Courtesy of the Alutiiq Museum & Archaeological Repository
Sealaska directors sign the Sealaska Articles of Incorporation in 1972
Sealaska directors sign the Sealaska Articles of Incorporation in 1972 with Assistant Secretary of the Interior Harrison Loesch. From left to right: Clarence Jackson, Jon Borbridge Jr., Marlene Johnson, Harrison Loesch, Dick Kito, Leonard Kato.
Courtesy of Sealaska
Phillip Guy of Kwethluk
The late Phillip Guy of Kwethluk assisted villages during the ANCSA land selections process. He was one of Calista Corporation’s first board members and served as a representative in the Alaska State Legislature.
Courtesy of Calista Corporation
Unalakleet high school students meet with President Richard Nixon in the Oval Office
Unalakleet high school students meet with President Richard Nixon in the Oval Office. To the immediate right of President Nixon is the late Martha Anagick Aarons, who later served as a Board Director for Bering Straits Native Corporation.
Courtesy of Bering Straits Native Corporation
Koniag’s Vice President Karl Armstrong and President Jacob “Jack” Wick meet with US Secretary of the Interior Thomas Kleppe
Koniag’s Vice President Karl Armstrong and President Jacob “Jack” Wick meet with US Secretary of the Interior Thomas Kleppe after signing an agreement facilitating the transfer of land to Koniag and its associated village corporations, November 12, 1976.
Karl Armstrong, Jacob Wick & Thomas Kleppe, 1976, Armstrong Archive (AM71), KANA Collection, Courtesy of the Alutiiq Museum & Archaeological Repository
Doyon, Limited's original Board
Doyon, Limited’s original Board, from left to right: Ronnie Sam, Melvin Charlie, Lucy Carlo, John Sackett, Tim Wallis, Ernest Holmberg, Jimmy Huntington, Jonathon Solomon, and Pat Frank.
Courtesy of Doyon, Limited
Bristol Bay Native Corporation’s first President, Harvey Samuelsen, and Hjalmar Olson, another longtime leader of BBNC, sign papers
Bristol Bay Native Corporation’s first President, Harvey Samuelsen, and Hjalmar Olson, another longtime leader of BBNC, sign papers to close on the corporation’s first major acquisition, Peter Pan Seafoods, on December 12, 1975. After selling Peter Pan Seafoods in 1979, BBNC re-entered the seafood industry in 2019 with the purchase of Blue North Fisheries and Clipper Seafoods.
Courtesy of Bristol Bay Native Corporation
Joseph Upicksoun, Oliver Leavitt, and Jacob Adams Sr.
With the passage of ANCSA, early leaders had no choice but to quickly make the drastic transformation from subsistence hunters, military veterans, and tradesmen into board members and businessmen tasked with building and sustaining the newly created Arctic Slope Regional Corporation (ASRC). From left to right: Joseph Upicksoun, Oliver Leavitt, and Jacob Adams Sr.
Courtesy of ASRC
member of the first Ahtna, Incorporated Board and past Ahtna President, Christine Craig signs paperwork
A member of the first Ahtna, Incorporated Board and past Ahtna President, Christine Craig signs paperwork for the land claims.
Courtesy of Ahtna, Incorporated
Chugach Alaska Corporation’s original founders
After being established in 1972, Chugach Alaska Corporation’s original founders went to work and created the foundation for the success that Chugach enjoys today. One of the first projects that Chugach played a hand in building was the Sunshine Plaza located in downtown Anchorage on 4th Avenue. Anchorage Mayor George M. Sullivan, far left, and one of Chugach’s original founders, Cecil Barnes, far right, each hold a shovel during the groundbreaking.
Courtesy of Chugach Alaska Corporation
drum workshop
As part of its work to keep Alaska Native culture and heritage alive, Cook Inlet Region, Inc. (CIRI) has sponsored drum workshops in Anchorage and around Alaska almost since its inception.
Courtesy of CIRI
Robert Aqqaluk Newlin Sr. and President John Schaeffer Sr. stand at the future site of Red Dog Mine
NANA’s first Chair, Robert Aqqaluk Newlin Sr. (right), and President John Schaeffer Sr. stand at the future site of Red Dog Mine. In 1980, NANA shareholders—after meeting on issues of land use, subsistence, and local control—decided to move forward with a development plan, which was followed by NANA successfully lobbying Congress and securing an amendment to ANCSA, allowing land selections at Red Dog Mine.
Courtesy of NANA
Anfesia Shapsnikoff
Anfesia Shapsnikoff (1901-1973) was an Unangax̂ cultural authority who spoke, read, and wrote the main dialects of her language, Unangam Tunuu, as well as English and Russian. As a master weaver, Shapsnikoff traveled extensively to communities all over Alaska to teach Unangax̂ basketry techniques.
Courtesy of The Aleut Corporation