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Tlingit History Timeline

(c. 10,000 BCE–Present)

Tlingit History traces the enduring story of the Tlingit people, their rich cultural traditions, clan-based society, relationships with the land and sea, encounters with colonial powers, and continuing efforts to protect their sovereignty and heritage. Less

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European and Russian Exploration

Bering and Chirikov expedition separates

1741

In 1741, Vitus Bering and Aleksei Chirikov became separated during their exploratory voyage in the North Pacific. The division of their routes led to separate encounters with the Alaskan and Tlingit regions.

Bering reaches Kayak Island

1741

Vitus Bering reached Kayak Island in 1741, an encounter that contributed to European geographic knowledge of the Alaskan coast and its Indigenous peoples.

Image source: Vitus Bering

Bering reaches Kayak Island

Chirikov reaches the Alexander Archipelago

1741

Aleksei Chirikov traveled to the western shores of the Alexander Archipelago in 1741. His voyage became one of the earliest Russian exploratory contacts with the coastal world of the Tlingit.

Image source: Aleksei Chirikov

Chirikov reaches the Alexander Archipelago

First Bucareli Expedition is dispatched

1774

In 1774, Juan Josef Pérez Hernández was sent north by Antonio María de Bucareli y Ursúa, the viceroy of New Spain, to explore as far as 60 degrees north latitude.

Juan Crespí joins the First Bucareli Expedition

1774

Juan Crespí participated in the First Bucareli Expedition of 1774 alongside Juan Josef Pérez Hernández and Tomás de la Peña Suria, contributing to Spain's exploration of the northwest coast.

Tomás de la Peña Suria joins the First Bucareli Expedition

1774

Tomás de la Peña Suria, also identified as Savaria, accompanied the 1774 expedition that explored the Pacific coast toward the northern limit assigned by Spain.

Second Bucareli Expedition begins

1775

The Second Bucareli Expedition departed in 1775 as part of Spain's effort to investigate and assert its claims along the northwest coast of North America.

Image source: Bruno de Heceta

Second Bucareli Expedition begins

Bruno de Hezeta commands the Santiago

1775

Bruno de Hezeta commanded the Santiago during the Second Bucareli Expedition. The voyage extended Spanish exploration into waters connected with the Tlingit coastal region.

Bodega y Quadra commands the Sonora

1775

Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra led the Sonora as de Hezeta's second-in-command during the 1775 expedition, helping survey the northwestern coast.

Image source: Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra

Bodega y Quadra commands the Sonora

James Cook explores the northwest coast

1778

James Cook's 1778 expedition used existing Spanish geographic information while exploring the northwest coast, bringing another European maritime power into contact with the Tlingit region.

Image source: James Cook

James Cook explores the northwest coast

James Cook acquires Spanish exploration journals

1778

During his 1778 voyage, James Cook acquired the journals of Francisco Antonio Mourelle and maps produced from the first two Bucareli expeditions. These materials informed British exploration of the northwest coast.

Third Bucareli Expedition begins

1779

The Third Bucareli Expedition took place in 1779, continuing Spain's exploration of the northern Pacific coast and waters near Tlingit lands.

Ignacia de Arteaga leads the Princesa

1779

Ignacia de Arteaga officially led the Third Bucareli Expedition aboard the Princesa in 1779, making her the expedition's formal commander.

Bodega y Quadra accompanies the Favorita

1779

The experienced explorer Bodega y Quadra accompanied the Third Bucareli Expedition aboard the Favorita in 1779, strengthening Spain's navigational and surveying effort.

Malaspina explores the Alaskan coast

1791

In 1791, Alessandro Malaspina explored the Alaskan coast as far north as Prince William Sound. The glacier later named for him commemorates this period of exploration.

Image source: Alejandro Malaspina

Malaspina explores the Alaskan coast

Russian-Tlingit Conflict

Russian settlement expands in Tlingit lands

1790 - 1805

From the 1790s onward, Russian settlement in Tlingit lands developed through trade as well as coercion and conflict, creating sustained pressure on Tlingit communities.

Image source: Russian colonization of North America

Russian settlement expands in Tlingit lands

Russian-Tlingit trade develops

1790 - 1805

Russian expansion in Tlingit territory included periods of peaceful trade. Commercial relationships existed alongside competition over resources, political authority, and access to coastal settlements.

Russian-Tlingit War begins

1802 - 1805

The Russian-Tlingit War unfolded from 1802 to 1805 as Tlingit communities resisted Russian settlement and colonial expansion in their homelands.

Image source: Battle of Sitka

Russian-Tlingit War begins

Battle of Sitka

1804

The Battle of Sitka in 1804 was the decisive culmination of the Russian-Tlingit War. It marked a major confrontation over control of Sitka and the surrounding region.

Image source: Battle of Sitka

Battle of Sitka

Russian-Tlingit War concludes

1805

The Russian-Tlingit War concluded in 1805 after years of conflict between Tlingit communities and Russian colonial forces seeking control of Tlingit lands.

Chilkat Tlingit attack Fort Selkirk

1852

In 1852, Chilkat Tlingit warriors attacked and burned Fort Selkirk, a Hudson's Bay Company post at the junction of the Yukon and Pelly Rivers.

Image source: Fort Selkirk

Chilkat Tlingit attack Fort Selkirk

Tongass Tlingit and Haida raid Puget Sound

1855

In 1855, an alliance of Tongass Tlingit, also known as Stikines, and Haida raided Puget Sound in an expedition aimed at enslavement.

Image source: Tlingit

Tongass Tlingit and Haida raid Puget Sound

Tlingit Rights and Institutions

Tlingit and Serbian communities intermarry

1800 - 1899

During the 19th century, Serbian and Montenegrin immigrants intermarried with Tlingit people, partly because they shared the Russian Orthodox faith.

St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church is built

1900

St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church in Juneau was built by Orthodox Tlingit and Serbian community members. Its history reflects religious ties and intermarriage between Tlingit people and Serbian and Montenegrin immigrants.

Alaska Native Brotherhood founded

1912

Two Tlingit brothers founded the Alaska Native Brotherhood in Sitka in 1912 to pursue rights and privileges enjoyed by white residents. The organization became a major vehicle for Alaska Native political activism.

Image source: Alaska Native Brotherhood/Sisterhood

Alaska Native Brotherhood founded

Alaska Native Sisterhood follows

1912

The Alaska Native Sisterhood followed the founding of the Alaska Native Brotherhood. It provided an important organizational role for Alaska Native women in the struggle for civil rights and equality.

ANCSA is signed

Dec 18, 1971

President Richard Nixon signed the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act on December 18, 1971. The Tlingit were a driving force behind the legislation, which established land and financial settlements for Alaska Native peoples.

Image source: Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act

ANCSA is signed

Angoon clans receive compensation

1973

In 1973, the Indian Claims Commission awarded the Angoon clans $90,000 for clan property destroyed during the 1882 Angoon Bombardment.

Image source: Angoon bombardment

Angoon clans receive compensation

Alaska designates Elizabeth Peratrovich Day

Feb 16, 1988

In 1988, Alaska designated February 16 as a state holiday honoring Elizabeth Peratrovich, an Alaska Native Sisterhood member and prominent Tlingit civil rights advocate.

Image source: Elizabeth Peratrovich

Alaska designates Elizabeth Peratrovich Day

U.S. Colonial Rule

U.S. military rule begins in Alaska

1867 - 1884

After the Alaska Purchase, the Army and Navy governed Alaska until 1884. Military rule was characterized by inconsistency, violence, and legal ambiguity for Tlingit communities.

Image source: Alaska

U.S. military rule begins in Alaska

United States purchases Alaska

Mar 1867

In March 1867, the United States purchased Alaska from Russia. The transfer placed Tlingit homelands under American authority and began a new period of colonial administration.

Image source: Alaska Purchase

United States purchases Alaska

Kake War

Feb 1869

During the February 1869 Kake War, the USS Saginaw destroyed three deserted villages and two forts near present-day Kake, demonstrating the violence of early U.S. military rule.

Image source: Kake War

Kake War

Wrangell Bombardment

Dec 1869

The December 1869 Wrangell Bombardment followed an incident in which Lowan, a Stikine, bit off a white woman's finger. Soldiers killed Lowan and another Stikine, after which U.S. forces bombarded Wrangell.

Image source: Wrangell, Alaska

Wrangell Bombardment

Klawock and Sitka canneries open

1878

The first American industrial fish canneries in Tlingit territory were established in 1878 at Klawock, or Lawáak, and Sitka. Their arrival connected Tlingit communities to an expanding commercial fishing industry.

Image source: Klawock, Alaska

Klawock and Sitka canneries open

Angoon Bombardment

Oct 1882

In October 1882, U.S. naval forces destroyed the Tlingit village of Angoon. The operation was commanded by Edgar C. Merriman, with the USRC Thomas Corwin under Michael A. Healy.

Alaska receives civil government

1884

Military rule in Alaska ended in 1884. The change followed years of inconsistent and violent administration that had affected Tlingit communities throughout the region.

Image source: Organic act

Alaska receives civil government

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Key Facts

  1. The Tlingit homeland, known as Lingít Aaní, includes Southeast Alaska and parts of northwestern British Columbia.
  2. Tlingit society is organized through matrilineal clans divided into two moieties: Raven and Eagle, also called Wolf in some regions.
  3. Tlingit communities developed complex systems of governance, trade, law, art, storytelling, and environmental knowledge long before European contact.
  4. Russian colonization in the late eighteenth and nineteenth centuries brought warfare, disease, missionary activity, and major disruptions to Tlingit communities.
  5. Tlingit people continue to revitalize their language, cultural practices, political sovereignty, and stewardship of ancestral lands and waters.

Source

This Tlingit History timeline was generated with the help of AI, using information found on the internet.

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