Why this weathered Alaska church matters more than most Americans know

Fourteen Athabascan Chiefs’ 1915 Stand Against Federal Reservations

In 1915, as railroad tracks cut through Alaska’s Tanana Valley, fourteen Athabascan chiefs took a bold stand.

They met with federal officials in Fairbanks, not to accept the government’s offer of reservations, but to demand something more: the right to live as both Native and American.

Just eight years earlier, Episcopal Archdeacon Hudson Stuck had built St. Mark’s Mission in Nenana, where Anne Farthing taught 28 Native children.

The chiefs, led by men like Chief Thomas of Nenana, fought to protect their hunting grounds, burial sites, and way of life.

Today, the Alaska Native Heritage Center preserves this powerful story of resistance and adaptation that shaped modern Alaska Native rights.

Hudson Stuck Traveled 250,000 Square Miles by Dog Sled to Reach Alaska Natives

Bishop Peter Trimble Rowe hired Hudson Stuck as Archdeacon of the Yukon in 1904. Stuck covered a huge area of 250,000 square miles across Alaska’s Interior.

He spent months each year traveling by dog sled in winter and boat in summer to reach far-off Native villages. He learned to drive dog teams and handle the tough land while wearing Native-made clothes.

During his trips, Stuck noticed gold rush growth changing old ways of life. He fought for Native rights while teaching Episcopal beliefs.

Unlike many other missionaries, Stuck wanted to keep Native languages and customs alive alongside Western schooling.

A Church Across the River Changed Nenana Forever

Stuck built St. Mark’s Mission and Tortella School in 1907 right across from the Native village of Nenana.

The mission grew into a small group of buildings with a church, boarding school, dorm, and small hospital. Anne Cragg Farthing ran the school, teaching about 28 Native children from villages across Interior Alaska.

Stuck picked this spot to keep kids away from what he called bad influences in the Native village. He later grumbled that the nearby railroad town brought even worse problems.

The mission became a key meeting place for Athabascans from all over, with families traveling far to attend church and bring their children for school.

Kids From Distant Villages Filled Alaska’s Interior Boarding School

Tortella School became the only boarding school for Native children in Alaska’s Interior, housing about 40 students at its busiest.

Children came from villages as far as Minto, Tanana, and other places hundreds of miles away.

Many families moved closer to the mission to be near their children, making what Stuck called a “proper village” with log cabins built like Western homes.

The school ran on money from church members in the Lower 48 who “adopted” Native children through scholarships. Students learned reading, writing, math, and job skills while living year-round at the mission.

The school day included Christian teaching and church time, slowly changing old spiritual practices.

The Railroad Threatened Hunting Grounds and Burial Sites

President Woodrow Wilson signed the Alaska Railroad Act in 1914, starting work on a government-owned railroad linking Anchorage to Fairbanks.

Workers began clearing land through hunting areas and near sacred burial grounds throughout the Tanana Valley.

Alaska’s rep James Wickersham warned chiefs that thousands of new settlers would follow the railroad into their lands.

The building brought fast changes as survey teams marked routes through areas used for generations by Athabascan hunters. Animals moved away from construction noise, making hunting harder.

Chiefs watched as their people struggled to feed their families while outsiders flooded their lands.

Native Leaders Saved Their Ancestors’ Graves From Bulldozers

In early 1915, tribal chiefs joined forces to stop railroad crews from destroying a burial ground in Nenana. They talked to officials about respecting their ancestors’ final resting places.

The chiefs showed they knew American laws about cemeteries and property rights, despite language barriers. Their united stand surprised government officials who expected less organized push-back.

This win at the Nenana burial ground gave the chiefs confidence to bring up bigger concerns about their lands and rights.

Word spread through Native communities that standing together could protect their interests against powerful outside forces.

Fourteen Chiefs Met Government Officials in a Fairbanks Library

On July 5-6, 1915, fourteen Athabascan tribal leaders met with federal officials in Fairbanks’ George C. Thomas Memorial Library.

Wickersham set up the meeting after talking with Chief Charlie and Chief Alexander during his summer travels.

The government side included Wickersham, Thomas Riggs from the Alaska Engineering Commission, and people from the U. S. Land Office. Paul Williams from Tanana helped translate the complex talks.

Reverend Guy Madara from the Episcopal mission at Salchaket helped explain cultural ideas between the groups. The chiefs wore both traditional and Western clothes, showing their position between two worlds.

Government Men Wanted to Put Natives on Reservations

Federal officials suggested making reservations or giving out individual homesteads to protect Native land rights.

Wickersham thought reservations would shield Alaska Natives from losing everything to the flood of new settlers coming with the railroad.

The officials explained that without formal land papers, they couldn’t stop miners and homesteaders from taking Native hunting grounds.

This approach followed the same pattern used with Native Americans in the Lower 48 states. The government men viewed Natives as needing protection rather than having their own authority.

They drew maps showing planned reservation lines around existing villages.

Chiefs Refused to Be Fenced In Like Cattle

The chiefs firmly rejected both reservation and homestead options after talking about them overnight.

Chief Ivan of Crossjacket spoke for the group, saying: “We don’t wish to go on a reservation, but we wish to stay perfectly free.”

The leaders explained that their hunting and fishing needed them to move across vast areas with the seasons. They told officials that being stuck in small areas would mean their people would starve.

The chiefs compared reservations to being penned like animals rather than living as free men. They pointed out that their ancestors had used these lands for countless generations before any white men arrived.

Native Leaders Wanted Schools But Not Restrictions

On the second day, chiefs shared their own plan: they wanted full part in American society while keeping their freedom to hunt and fish. They asked for more schools like St. Mark’s Mission but wanted them built in their own villages. The chiefs requested medical care to fight diseases that had hurt their communities.

They asked for jobs cutting wood for steamboats and working on the railroad being built through their lands. The leaders wanted training in new skills to adapt to the changing economy.

They insisted on being told about government decisions affecting their communities before changes happened.

Missionaries Helped Chiefs Navigate American Legal System

Reverend Madara from the Episcopal mission played a key role explaining and supporting Native leaders’ positions during the meeting. His presence showed how missions like St. Mark’s connected traditional leadership with Western institutions.

Paul Williams used his mission education to translate complex legal and political terms between English and Athabascan languages.

The chiefs relied on knowledge gained through their interactions with missionaries to frame arguments in terms Americans would understand.

Several chiefs had children attending mission schools, creating personal connections to Western education while maintaining traditional values.

A Two-Day Meeting Launched Decades of Native Rights Struggles

The conference established the first formal government-to-government talks between Interior Alaska Natives and federal officials.

Though no treaties were signed, the chiefs’ arguments impressed the government representatives with their clarity and logic.

The meeting laid groundwork for the modern Tanana Chiefs Conference organization formed in 1962 and influenced the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act of 1971.

The chiefs demonstrated sophisticated political thinking by rejecting federal paternalism while seeking specific benefits.

Their approach showed a clear vision of maintaining independence while adapting to unavoidable changes coming to their homeland.

Visiting Alaska Native Heritage Center, Alaska

The Alaska Native Heritage Center at 8800 Heritage Center Drive in Anchorage helps you understand how traditional Athabascan leadership met Western institutions like St. Mark’s Episcopal Mission.

Summer admission costs $29 for adults, $25 for seniors, and $19 for youth ages 4-17. Take guided Village Site tours at 9:15AM, 11:15AM, 1:15PM, or 2:15PM with Alaska Native culture bearers.

You’ll see six traditional dwellings around Lake Tiulana, including a Dena’ina Athabascan Log Home, plus authentic art in Ch’k’iqadi Gallery.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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