Deisheetaan leader to give lecture on clan crest
Talk part of project to document Southeast Alaska Indigenous crests
Feb. 13, 2026
Tlingit leader Dan Johnson Jr. will give a talk next week on the history of the crest used by the Deisheetaan (Beaver) clan of Angoon.
Johnson holds the Deisheetaan clan leadership position of Kaashaaduhaani, which translates as “He/they who stand before the people.”
His talk, The Story of the Angoon Tlingit Beaver Crest, is part of SHI’s project to document Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian clan crests. The project is a collaboration between Sealaska Corporation, SHI, and the Council of Traditional Scholars, and funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services. Through oral histories, the project aims to document the origin, cultural significance, and clan ownership of 12 crests to create a publication and a webpage for revitalizing Southeast Alaska Native cultures and educating the public about the sacred nature of crests, their clan ownership, and all tangible and intangible intellectual property associated with them.
The lecture is schedule from 1-2 pm, Tuesday, Feb. 17, in Shuká Hít (clan house) within the Walter Soboleff Building, 105 Heritage Way, in Juneau. The event will be livestreamed and posted on SHI’s YouTube channel.
Sealaska Heritage Institute is a non-profit tribal organization founded in 1980 to perpetuate and enhance Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian cultures of Southeast Alaska. SHI also conducts scientific and public policy research that promotes Alaska Native arts, cultures, history and education statewide. The institute is governed by a Board of Trustees and guided by a Council of Traditional Scholars, a Native Artist Committee, a Southeast Regional Language Committee and a newly formed Education Committee.
CONTACT: Kathy Dye, Deputy Director of Publications and Communications, Kathy.Dye@Sealaska.com
Caption: Beaver prow that survived the military’s bombardment of Angoon in 1882. It was attached to the only canoe to survive the attack. Photo taken at a ceremony in 2024 where the U.S. Navy formally apologized to the community of Angoon for its devastating bombardment of the village. Photo by Nobu Koch, courtesy of Sealaska Heritage Institute. Note: news outlets are welcome to use this photo only for coverage of this story. For a higher-res version, contact kathy.dye@sealaska.com.