ANGOON, ALASKA: A TERRIBLE NAVAL BOMBARDMENT AND A VERY LATE APOLOGY
If you were to visit Angoon, Alaska, today, you’d find yourself enjoying views of the breathtaking Tongass National Forest, taking advantage of the ample fishing opportunities, and enjoying the rich culture of the Native Tlingit people. However, while you’ll find beauty in the wonderful brown bears and the culture of the people that call the town home, you’ll also find its history is marred by a bombing from the U.S. Navy and an apology that took far too long to come.
Angoon, Alaska Bombardment: Small Village, Lasting Consequences
On October 22, 1882, the fishing village of Angoon, Alaska, would have its history altered together.
An explosion on a Northwest Trading Company whaling ship ended up injuring many employees and killing a village shaman known as Til’ Tlein.
A day later, reports from the superintendent managing the company’s Killisnoo location only miles away told the Navy that residents of Angoon were demanding 200 blankets as compensation for the death of Til’ Tlein and were holding two white employees hostage.
Unfortunately, the response from Sailors would end up being a destructive overreach of power that ended in a massacre.
The Angoon Bombardment Begins
In October 1882, U.S. Navy forces under Commander Edgar C. Merriman and Michael A. Healy destroyed the Tlingit village of Angoon, Alaska, after demanding 400 blankets as compensation for the hostage situation.
Despite a peaceful resolution, the demand was made to be a sign of respect to the U.S. Navy but only 81 blankets were provided.
As a result, the Navy shelled, looted, and burned the village, leaving nearly 420 residents destitute, many of whom died during the following winter.
This event, known as the Angoon Bombardment, led to public outcry and contributed to the passage of the First Organic Act of 1884, transferring Alaska from military to civilian control.
Aftermath and Devastation
It’s no surprise that due to the location of Angoon, Alaska, colder temperatures are the norm and winters can be brutal.
Beyond the initial bombardment of Angoon, killing at least six Tlingit children, and fighting, and looting the area in a deadly clash, anyone who managed to survive didn’t last long.
Sentimental items, such as ceremonial objects were lost but so too were essential items and infrastructure, including homes and canoes.
Many who were able to live either died from the harsh winter or left the area in the hope of starting over.
With their pride destroyed, families killed, and homes taken from them, the Tlingit people couldn’t even begin rebuilding for another five years due to a lack of resources.
Reparations
Ever since the events in 1882, there have been calls on the U.S. Navy to make things right, and nearly a century later, there was a gesture from President Jimmy Carter who spearheaded a $90,000 settlement with the U.S. Department of Interior.
A letter from former Navy Assistant Secretary of Manpower and Reserve Affairs, John S. Herrington, stated, “The destruction of Angoon should never have happened, and it was an unfortunate event in our history.”
However, leaders of the Angoon community continued to push for a formal apology for decades by lobbying Congress in the hopes of receiving one and official recognition of the errors committed by the U.S. Navy.
Angoon, Alaska Finally Receives Formal Apology for Bombardment (142 Years Later)
Towards the end of President Biden’s term, there was a consorted effort to apologize for a number of atrocities committed by the U.S. government on Native people. The apology to the Tlingit community was one of them.
At a ceremony formally apologizing to the community, Navy Rear Adm. Mark Sucato said the following:
“As the U.S. Navy acknowledges their wrongful actions of the past that have brought about the loss of life and resources, causing much intergenerational trauma and suffering, and as the Navy repents and apologizes seeking forgiveness, may the Tlingit villages and the clans of Angoon receive this apology begin in the process of healing and catalyzing reconciliation.”
Furthermore, the Navy also apologized for its actions against Tlingit villages in Kake, which took place in 1869, and like Angoon, would see Sailors destroy the village’s canoes, homes, and food during winter.
The Tlingit people of Angoon, Alaska, and beyond, have dealt with far too much destruction at the hands of the Navy. While it won’t undo the pain suffered by the group, it’s encouraging that after all these years, the wishes of the Tlingit people were honored.
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