[Photo Album Depicting Whale Hunts and other Native American Activities]

Barrow (Now Utqiagvik), Alaska, 1959. Very good. 7" x 11". String tied, cloth over wood. 47 leaves with 109 black and white photographs adhesive mounted rectos only with another 8 laid in; 57 photos measure 4 7/8" x 4 7/8" or larger, the rest a mix of sizes; several are captioned. Album very good with moderate wear; photos generally very good or better.

This is a photo album with approximately 80 photographs showing Native Americans in the northernmost regions of the United States. It was compiled by a Caucasian man who appears to have been in the military, but he may have been a civilian employee who we think was there to work at the Point Barrow Long Range Radar Site as a dentist. The compiler is seen in at least 15-20 photos and we know his name, and that he was a dentist, due to an included award of merit he received for his service in Point Barrow.

Point Barrow is one of the northernmost cities in the world; it's north of the Arctic Circle and today has a population of around 5,000. At the time these pictures were taken, a little over 1,000 people lived there. While there are some great scenic shots showing ice floes and radar monitoring areas, the vast majority of the photos depict Native Americans, presumably the Iñupiat, an Inuit group who has lived in the area for more than 1,500 years. In 1940, the group incorporated as the Native Village of Barrow Iñupiat Traditional Government, now a federally recognized Alaska Native Iñupiat "tribal entity", as listed by the US Bureau of Indian Affairs around 2003. They also wrote a constitution and by-laws under the provisions of the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934.

This album shows our compiler and many of his Iñupiat friends a little under 20 years after that incorporation. Approximately 53 photos relate to hunting, with around 30 specific to whaling. One of the loose photos shows a man in a canoe dressed in fur, its verso reads "Henry is in his 60s and whaling since 10 years old. A ready smile, he calmly accepts the long cold hours of waiting. He has harpooned many whales and is still one of the best." Several show numerous tribe members, including women, assisting with a freshly killed whale. Another captioned photo shows the compiler in the foreground with a freshly killed reindeer; behind him in the near distance can be seen the bodies and antlers of hundreds and hundreds of living reindeer. We also see images of a seal hunt, fishing, and several showing hunters with their equipment and/or their canoes.

The rest of the photos include approximately 13 portraits of Iñupiat as well as at least 20 showing that the compiler was clearly close with some of the native people. These include an internal shot of barracks showing him and fellow servicemen hosting Native children as well as a multishot series of what appears to be a games night showing a lot of laughing, happy people appearing to play limbo as well as dancing.

A fascinating album juxtaposing the brutal work of Native Americans hunting with joyful images of recreation.