History & culture in Haines

Haines in brief

1. Haines' original Native name is Deishu, 'end of the trail.' Archaeology shows fish traps in the Chilkoot River about 2,100 years ago. (hainesalaska.gov · checked Oct 5, 2026)
2. Oral history and archaeology point to a long Tlingit presence in the Chilkat Valley, and the Chilkat were widely regarded as the biggest and strongest of the Tlingit tribes. (hainesalaska.gov · checked Oct 5, 2026)
3. In 1852 Chilkat warriors led by Kohklux destroyed the Hudson's Bay Company's Fort Selkirk on the Pelly River. (hainesalaska.gov · checked Oct 5, 2026)
4. A 2021 letter from the Chilkoot Indian Association says the Chilkoot people lent land to the Presbyterian mission for a school for their children, with the land to return to them once the school was gone. (hainesalaska.gov · checked Oct 5, 2026)
5. The Presbyterian mission at Deishu was established by 1881, and the town is named for Mrs. F. E. Haines, a Presbyterian home-missions secretary. (hainesalaska.gov · checked Oct 5, 2026)
6. Fort William H. Seward, finished in 1904, was the last of 12 gold-rush-era Army posts in Alaska, built to keep order among gold seekers during the Canada boundary dispute. It became a National Historic Landmark in 1978. (nps.gov · checked Oct 5, 2026)
7. Five World War II veterans and their families bought the fort's 85 surplus buildings and 400 acres sight unseen; it became Port Chilkoot in 1947, joined Haines by popular vote in 1970 and was renamed Fort William H. Seward two years later. (assets.simpleviewinc.com · checked Oct 5, 2026)
8. Today Haines is known as an artists' town, with galleries showing traditional Native and contemporary work; the 48,000-acre Chilkat Bald Eagle Preserve was created in 1983. (sheldonmuseum.org · checked Oct 5, 2026)