We woke up on the ferry. Gorgeous patterns in the wake as we cruised into Sitka.
Wake from the ferry with reflection in the Sitka sound
I have wanted to come and photograph the totem poles for some time, and also visit some of the National Historic Landmarks (NHL) in town. I used to work for cultural resources in the regional office, for the National Landmark program. I am very familiar with the history in this small town.
We arrived in Sitka too early to check into our hotel, so we jumped into exploration. First we visited Castle Hill (NHL), then we drove around the St. Michael’s Cathedral (NHL), walked around town, watched the fisherman fish, visited the Sheldon Jackson Campus (NHL) and Museum, and an old Russian cemetery. We finished the day of exploring by walking the fishing docks and admiring the ships.
Castle Hill, or Noow Tlein (Tlingit), is a rocky hill that overlooks Sitka. The top of this location is significant to the history of this area. First the Tlingit, then the Russians built and lost forts in battles on this hill. لعبة بلاك جاك 21 It was on this very mound that the Russians lowered their flag and the American flag was raised, signifying U.S. ownership.
At this ceremony in 1867, a dual cannon salute was fired. The Russian flag got stuck in the lanyards as they tried to lower the flag. Several soldiers tried to climb the pole with no success. Eventually they got it down, but once it was untangled, it fell, landing on the Russian soldier’s bayonets. The American flag was raised with no incidents, and Alaska became part of the United States. Today, there are no sign of forts, structures, or bayonets. Two cannons still reside, and the space is a grassy spot with a view.
1827 illustration of Castle Hill in Russian-controlled Sitka. The hilltop building was an imposing fortification that overlooked the water and Tlingit areas. (Old Sitka, Alaska) by Postels.
Source: Alaska Department of Natural Resources.
The top of Castle Hill today
In 1959, after Alaska was admitted as the 49th U.S. state, Castle Hill was the location where the first 49-star U.S. flag in Alaska was raised.
Sheldon Jackson (May 18,1834 – May 2, 1909) was a Presbyterian minister, missionary, and political leader. His history and legacy in Sitka is very interesting, particularly his interest in education. He is interesting enough that he should have a blog post all about him, but instead I will mention where my interests are. Sheldon was a collector, an early scientist and ethnographer, who believed in preserving the material objects from all his travels. He traveled extensively in early Alaska. I wanted to go to the museum to see some of these artifacts that remain in Sitka. I was not disappointed. If you ever get a chance to get to the Sheldon Jackson Museum, it is definitely a must! Some of the best artifacts I have seen in Alaska are here. I purchased a couple of books on Sheldon Jackson and toured the museum.
Sheldon Jackson School
Center of the Sheldon Jackson Museum has three totem pole artifacts
Collection cases in the museum
From the collection (I particularly like the masks):
We spent a good part of the afternoon enjoying the boats.
Boats
and more boats…
Fishermen
I glanced at a map and saw there was an old Russian cemetery in town. We opted to explore this graveyard. What an amazing find! The cemetery was overgrown and was very lush. The Russian Orthodox cross was to be seen in many places, and someone had been planting flowers randomly in the cemetery. إلعب واربح We later ran into the security guard who told us a woman spends a lot of time in the place. She plants the flowers out of respect, and to add a touch to many of the mostly forgotten graves. مراهنات المباريات The place was very peaceful and beautiful.
Russian cemetery
Mostly forgotten graves
Soon we will visit the totem poles; my primary reason for coming to Sitka.
About Maya
Leave a Reply