142 years of trauma: When the Navy obliterated a Tlingit village in Alaska

The Navy’s Devastating Retaliation Against Admiralty Island

Admiralty Island National Monument holds the story of how a workplace accident destroyed an entire village.

In 1882, a harpoon gun exploded on a whaling ship near Angoon, killing a respected Tlingit shaman. Following tribal law, villagers demanded 200 blankets as compensation.

The company superintendent fled to report the incident, and Navy Commander Edgar Merriman arrived demanding 400 blankets by noon.

When the Tlingit could only provide 81, Merriman attacked on October 26, destroying clan houses, canoes, and winter food stores.

The bombardment of Angoon became one of Alaska’s darkest chapters, finally receiving a formal Navy apology in 2024 after 142 years.

A Deadly Accident Sparked a Chain of Tragedy in Alaska

On October 22, 1882, a harpoon gun blew up on a North West Trading Company whaling ship near Angoon, Alaska.

The blast hurt crew members and killed Til’tlein (also called Téel’ Tlein), a respected Tlingit shaman from Angoon who worked on the ship.

Tlingit crew members brought his body ashore to tell his village the bad news. This accident started a chain of events that soon brought disaster to the whole community.

Tlingit Leaders Asked for Blankets as Payment

Following Tlingit customs, villagers mourned Téel’ Tlein by putting coal tar and tallow on their faces. The whaling station workers thought this normal mourning looked like war paint.

Tlingit law needed payment for accidental deaths, so tribal leaders asked for 200 blankets to make up for losing their medicine man.

To make sure they got paid, the Tlingit took two white workers and two boats from the Killisnoo plant and stopped working.

The Company Boss Ran to the Navy for Help

J. M. Vanderbilt, who ran the company station at Killisnoo, got away on the company boat Favorite to Sitka on October 23.

He went right to the navy station and told Commander Edgar C. Merriman that Angoon natives took over the Killisnoo buildings and were holding two white workers against their will.

Vanderbilt said he feared for his life and begged the commander to send military help.

Naval Forces Showed Up Ready for a Fight

Commander Merriman came to Angoon on October 25 with armed men. The Tlingit right away freed the white hostages and gave back the boats.

Merriman’s ship, the USS Adams, was too big for the shallow bay, so he used the company boat Favorite and the USRC Thomas Corwin under Captain Michael A. Healy.

He put marines, a Gatling gun, and a howitzer on these smaller boats.

Even though things seemed settled, Merriman told the Tlingit to give 400 blankets as “punishment” by noon the next day.

The Village Couldn’t Meet the Impossible Demand

Commander Merriman wanted the tribe to bring 400 blankets by noon on October 26 as punishment for what he called disobedience.

This demand was twice what the Tlingit first asked for and way more than the village could gather. The villagers rushed to collect blankets but only found 81.

Billy Jones, who was 13 then, said the people of Angoon didn’t know what would happen if they failed to meet this unfair demand.

Shells Rained Down Without Warning

At two o’clock that afternoon, Merriman moved his ships outside the lagoon and started shelling the town. Tlingit stories tell how the attack came without warning, with shells suddenly falling on homes and buildings.

The bombing caught most villagers by surprise, making them run for their lives as blasts tore through their community.

The naval guns gave cover for marines to land and keep destroying things up close.

Marines Destroyed Everything in Their Path

With the bombing as cover, marines came ashore and carefully destroyed the village. They burned down 12 clan houses and many smaller homes.

The soldiers wrecked 40 canoes that the Tlingit needed for fishing and travel. Food storage houses full of winter supplies burned to the ground.

Valuable clan treasures and family keepsakes went missing from the ruins, taken as souvenirs by the attackers. The damage was total and on purpose.

Children Died in the Smoke and Flames

Six children died during the attack, choking on smoke as buildings burned around them.

While most villagers got away into the nearby forest, these children couldn’t escape the deadly smoke. The attack ruined all but one of the village’s dugout canoes.

Billy Jones later told a researcher the sad truth: “They left us homeless on the beach” with winter coming and no shelter or food.”

Hunger and Cold Claimed More Lives That Winter

Many more Tlingit died during the harsh winter after the attack, though no one knows exactly how many.

Old people and babies suffered most from cold, weather, and hunger.

Some elders “walked into the forest” that winter, meaning they gave up their lives so younger people would have more food.

Billy Jones later talked about the suffering:

“The people of Angoon nearly starved to death, all of them. How much we suffered with no homes, food stores, or ways to hunt properly.”

One Surviving Canoe Became Their Lifeline

Only one canoe survived because it happened to be away from the village.

This single boat became key for survival that winter, used all the time for hunting, fishing, and gathering whatever food they could find.

Villagers built quick shelters and searched beaches at low tide for anything to eat, including shellfish, gumboots, and fish scraps left by sea lions.

According to Tlingit stories, the community needed five years to recover enough to start rebuilding properly.

The Navy Finally Apologized 142 Years Later

Rear Admiral Mark Sucato delivered the Navy’s formal apology on October 26, 2024, exactly 142 years after the bombardment.

During a traditional ku.éex’ ceremony in Angoon, he acknowledged the Navy’s wrongful actions caused loss of life, resources, culture, and created trauma that passed through generations.

The ceremony marked the end of Angoon’s period of mourning, with black paint wiped away after nearly a century and a half.

The bombardment helped push Congress to pass the First Organic Act of 1884, which took Alaska away from Navy control and put it under civilian authority.

Visiting Admiralty Island National Monument, Alaska

You can reach Admiralty Island National Monument by Alaska Marine Highway ferry from Juneau twice weekly (5 hours) or daily floatplane service (30 minutes).

The ferry dock is 3 miles from town with possible local rides, while the floatplane dock is a quarter-mile away. The island has limited services with a general store and lodges but no restaurants.

Visit the Old Village Site to see historic forts, fishing camps, and clan areas from the destroyed Tlingit village.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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