Alaskan Sampler - Eklutna More Pictures

The Aleut house could be used year round.  Actual entry was by means of a log pole through an entryway in the ceiling.

The Inupiat House of Northern Eskimos was semi-subterranean with an tunnel entrance which served as a cold trap.  Construction materials were sod and driftwood or whalebones. This replica has a cut away wall for demonstration purposes.

The umiak, or large skin covered boat, was used by the Inupiat and other Alaska Natives for cooperative whaling efforts and traveling long distances.  Whales were harpooned and retrieved using floats and lines.  Several umiaks might be strung together to pull the whale into shore.

Athabaskan House of the Interior Indians was chinked with moss and lichen.  The top planks of the separate cooking room on the right were left unchinked to let the smoke escape.

Athabaskan boats were covered with birch bark.  Athabaskans were skilled in using the bark for making a variety of containers.

© Regina M. McMullan, 2000