Katlian – a Tlingit hero

Those battles seem to play a role of an important lieu de memoire for Tlingit community in Sitka, particularly those belonging to the Kiks.ádi clan. They serve as evidence of bravery, spirit, and determination of local residents to fight for their land and their rights.

The role of Katlian is particularly emphasized. He is a central figure in the Tlingit cultural memory of the battles. Katlian is commemorated in various places: among others one of the bigger streets in town (where the old Tlingit village was located) is named after him as well as a bay nearby Old Sitka. Tlingit narrative emphasize that the indigenous warriors abandoned their territories in order to share the space with the Russians. They honorably stepped back making room for others. Therefore, the aftermath of the battle could hardly be seen as a Tlingit defeat. The negotiations took place between the parties and the Tlingit established their new settlements outside of the Russian territory’s premises²²⁶.

Katlian seen as a fiery warrior is a very powerful symbol for Tlingit cultural memory. This image was preserved in the oral tradition. He is depicted as a charismatic leader, assaulting the Russians wearing a Raven Hat (he was a member of the raven moiety²²⁷) with a hammer in his hand²²⁸. The hammer and the hat were kept in the Kiks.ádi clan member families and became a very powerful symbolic object. A material legacy of the legendary leader. A meaningful relic serving as one of the core elements of local collective identity.

Katlian’s hammer is currently displayed at the permanent exhibition on Tlingit culture, which is located at Sitka National Historical Park’s visitor center. The Katlian’s hat is displayed at the permanent exhibition on Sheldon Jackson Museum in Sitka. Both places are located in a close proximity from the site of the battle of 1804.

The figure of Katlian, wearing a Raven Hat, holding his hammer, and followed by other warriors was also replicated in various means of cultural production. In 1988, Louis S.

Glanzman, a popular American artist and illustrator painted an artwork telling a story of the 1804 battle with Katlian in a foreground. His hat and hammer are in the central

226 L. Black, op. cit., p. 161.

227 See more about the Tlingit culture: M. H. Pelton, J. DiGennaro, J. Brady-Morales, Images of a People: Tlingit Myths and Legends, Englewood (Colorado) 1992.

228 G. A. Hall, Handbook for the Sitka National Monument. Manuscript of a history of Sitka, Sitka 1959, p. 48.

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position. The painting hangs in the foyer of Sitka National Historical Park’s Visitor Center and its very commonly presented as a graphic illustration of the battle. The primary function of the painting seems to be of educational or utilitarian character rather than artistic. It fits into a broader narrative common in American art with a goal to educate the audience on certain issue. The painting’s composition delivers a clear message on the presented story.

Battle of Sitka Louis S. Glanzman, 1988 Painting, acrylic on canvas H 75, W 125 cm SITK 9664 Sitka National Historical Park Photo Credit: D. Curl, Sitka National Historical Park

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Katlian's hammer - exhibited at Sitka National Historical Park. Photo by K. Dziekan

As mentioned above, the very location of SNHP’s Visitor Center is quite symbolic. It was built in a crucial area of historic Tlingit territory in Sitka. Not only does it neighbor the 1804 battlefield but also the former Tlingit fort which was called Shiksi Noow²²⁹ and is usually translated as Sapling Fort. There is a very powerful memory inscribed in this area given the fact in the Tlingit oral tradition the Kiks.adi alongside other clans have decided to abandon the fort (see further explanation in next paragraphs), rather than were defeated by the Russians²³⁰. Thus, the Tlingit withdrew from the battle and simply left the fort for

229 A. V. Grinev, The Tlingit…, p. 134.

230 See Tlingit oral sources of Alex Andrews and Sally Hopkins edited by Richard and Nora Dauenhauer: Black L. T., Dauenhauer N., Dauenhauer R., Anóoshi Lingít Aaní Ká / Russians in Tlingit America: The Battles of Sitka, 1802 and 1804 (Classics of Tlingit Oral Literature), Juneau 2008, pp. 329 – 382.

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Russians to settle. The area became part of Russian colony and after 1867 part of the US.

Throughout the second half of 20th century new looks on history, land ownership and colonization in general were popping up. More and more scholars were adopting an emerging post-colonial theory and indigenous peoples’ perspective were breaking through into a public debate²³¹. In Sitka case it meant the Tlingit claim on the land around the role it played in the construction of their collective identity and cultural memory. Different cultures create different forms of cultural commemorative representation of key memory figures, sites, or events. Monuments and statues are among the most common ones. They all play a role of Pierre Nora’s lieux de mémoire. As the author of the concept put it himself: Through human willpower and the work of centuries, these sites have become striking symbols: celebrations, emblems, monuments, and commemorations, but also speeches, archives, dictionaries, and museums²³². Totem poles play such a role in the culture of indigenous peoples of North America. The Tlingit of Alaska have been using totem poles as commemorative representation of their cultural memory for centuries.

Totem poles also played a role in reclaiming the Tlingit land by its people. As a result, The Poles of Historic “Totem Park”²³³ was created alongside SNHP’s Visitor Center. They tell the Tlingit story of this land. They are turned into a trail known as Lover’s Lane or simply the Totem Trail²³⁴. One of the key totems tells the story of Battle of 1804 and commemorates the fallen warriors. It is located where the battle took place and the former Shiksi Noow fort stood. It is called K’alyáan Pole²³⁵. The name itself places Katlian (K’alyáan) in the center of this commemoration. This is another example which features Katlian as a central figure of the Tlingit narrative on the battle, and Russo-Tlingit relations in general. In fact, Katlian could be seen as a lieu de mémoire itself for Tlingit cultural memory. The K’alyáan Pole was commissioned by a Kiks.adi leader Al Perkins and

231 See the chapter on the Rise, Fall, and Rise of Colonial Studies 1951-2001 in: F. Cooper, Colonialism in Question.

Theory, Knowledge, History, Berkeley, and Los Angeles and London 2005, pp. 33 – 58.

232 P. Den Boer, Loci memoriae—Lieux de mémoire, , [in:] Cultural Memory Studies. An International and Interdisciplinary Handbook, ed. A. Erll, A. Nuenning, Berlin and New York 2008, p. 21.

233 https://www.nps.gov/sitk/learn/historyculture/totem-park.htm [access: April 19^th, 2022].

234 https://www.alaska.org/detail/sitka-national-historical-park [access: April 19^th, 2022].

235 https://www.nps.gov/places/k-alyaan-pole.htm [access: April 19^th, 2022].

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installed in 1999²³⁶. The placement was proceeded by the archeological excavations of the site²³⁷. The pole was curved by a local Tlingit artist Tommy Joseph who is credited for numerous works related to Tlingit tangible and intangible heritage. Carving totem poles is particularly important for Joseph. My life has had some bumpy roads. I didn’t know who I was. But when I started carving totem poles, I began to feel connected to my people, my history, my culture. My work makes me feel like I’m part of the big picture he explained in an interview with Fine Woodworking²³⁸. Totem poles are far more than just commemorative statues. These are art works which tell stories. Therefore, they could be also considered as primary source while discovering local ethnohistory. After all, the products of historical reconstruction among such communities can take different format than written manuscripts²³⁹. What is very important, they hold a symbolic meaning for the communities which raise them. The raising of the K’alyaan Pole was a big event and was covered in local media²⁴⁰.