Linn A. Forrest posing with the Howkan Eagle
Linn A. Forrest was the U.S. Forrest Service architect who supervised the CCC restoration program. On the back of the photo is a note in Linn Forrest Sr. handwriting. "'Howkan' Eagle. Photo of the above and Linn Forrest Sr. Taken about 1938-1939. Howkan was a Haida Village abandoned when the salmon cannery locations developed. L. Forrest Sr. 10-22-78"
Description
A 2013 Department of Natural Resources, Master Development Plan for Totem Bight describes the characteristics and history of the totem: “This pole illustrates the mythological conception of thunder. A huge bird that lives on the tops of the highest mountains, the thunderbird, creates thunder by beating its wings, and lightening by blinking its eyes. The thunderbird was said to live in the mountains and come down to prey on whales. The whale at the base of the pole symbolizes the mountaintop where the bird rests before devouring his prey and it is said that whale bones can be found on the tops of many mountains where they were carried in ages past.”
Part of the photographic material published on this page by the Living New Deal was provided by courtesy of Linn A. Forrest (1905-1986), a practicing architect who photographed the totem poles at the time of their restoration, between 1939 and 1941. Forrest oversaw the joint program of the Forest Service and the Civilian Conservation Corps to recruit Alaska native carvers in the restoration and recarving of totem poles throughout Southeast Alaska. Employed by the U.S. Forest Service in Oregon, Forrest transferred to Juneau, Alaska in 1937, where he undertook the totem restoration as one of his first projects. Under his supervision, indigenous carvers preserved and restored 103 totem poles and three Tlingit and Haida community houses. Forrest documented the restoration process and maintained notes and a photo record of a significant portion of the work. He used a Leica camera designed for the then new Kodachrome 35mm color slide format.
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Photo courtesy of Linn A. Forrest.
Thunderbird and Whale Totem circa 1939
Photo courtesy of Linn A. Forrest.
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Linn A. Forrest posing with the Howkan Eagle. Original Caption Reads: “A man in a hat poses with carved eagle figure.” Source: Alaska’s Digital Archives, Dora M. Sweeney Photographs. Holding Institution: Alaska State Library – Historical Collections
Thunderbird Totem at Howkan, circa 1939
Linn A. Forrest posing with the Howkan Eagle. Original Caption Reads: "A man in a hat poses with carved eagle figure." Source: Alaska's Digital Archives, Dora M. Sweeney Photographs. Holding Institution: Alaska State Library - Historical Collections
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The Thunderbird totem prior to restoration, photographed by the U.S. Forest Service in its original location, an uninhabited Haida Village at Howkan. The original caption reads: “An old Hydah Indian totem pole at Howkan, deserted village on Long Island. It has been removed for restoration by Indian CCC enrollees from the Tongass National Forest.” Archival photo processed by Brent McKee.
Thunderbird and Whale Totem
The Thunderbird totem prior to restoration, photographed by the U.S. Forest Service in its original location, an uninhabited Haida Village at Howkan. The original caption reads: “An old Hydah Indian totem pole at Howkan, deserted village on Long Island. It has been removed for restoration by Indian CCC enrollees from the Tongass National Forest.” Archival photo processed by Brent McKee.
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The original caption reads: “An old Hydah Indian totem pole at Howkan, deserted village on Long Island. It has been removed for restoration by Indian CCC enrollees from the Tongass National Forest.” Archival photo processed by Brent McKee.
Thunderbird and Whale Totem Verso
The original caption reads: “An old Hydah Indian totem pole at Howkan, deserted village on Long Island. It has been removed for restoration by Indian CCC enrollees from the Tongass National Forest.” Archival photo processed by Brent McKee.
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Original caption reads: “Carving of Eagle, with traditional house structure in background.” Source: Alaska’s Digital Archives, Alaska State Library – Historical Collections.
Thunderbird at Howkan
Original caption reads: "Carving of Eagle, with traditional house structure in background." Source: Alaska's Digital Archives, Alaska State Library - Historical Collections.
Source notes
Garfield, Viola and Linn Forrest, 1961, The Wolf and the Raven, Seattle: University of Washington Press, p. 71-99.
Totem Bight State Historical Park, Master Development Plan, Department of Natural Resources, 2013, accessed July 15, 2017.
Totem Bight State Historic Site, National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, 1970, accessed July 15, 2017.
Project originally submitted by Steve Forrest (with documentation courtesy of Linn Forrest); Brent McKee on July 20, 2017.
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