Emma Hunt (Maxwalaogwa) (nee Billy) was an instructor in the teaching of Kwagulth and Nuu-chah-nulth culture. She was married to the late Chief Thomas Hunt. Emma was the daughter of a great Mowachaht Chief and Shaman, Dr. Billy, from the Mowachaht of Yuquot (Friendly Cove) on the west coast of Vancouver Island. .
David Neel is a fifth generation Indigenous artist who draws on both his heritages, Kwakwaka'wakw and European, for his artistic creations. He studied the work of his ancestors by looking at collections and publications of Kwakwaka'wakw art and uses traditional materials to create his contemporary works. He attended the Mount Royal College in Calgary and the University of Kansas where he studied photography. He has also created a series of masks on contemporary issues, which continues to be a focus of his work in photography, graphic arts, and sculpture. He comes from rich cultural and artistic roots: his father was Dave Neel Sr. who was taught to carve by his mother, Ellen Neel, and her uncle, Mungo Martin.
Chief Willie Seaweed, known as Kwaxitola ("Smoky-Top"), was born in 1873 at a time when Kwakwakw'akw culture flourished. He died in 1967 having seen nearly a century of technological change, such as dugout canoes replaced by diesel-powered fishing boats and airplanes. A 'Nakwaxda'xw chief, he was born just eleven years before the passage of the anti-potlatch law. He did, however, create very elaborate art for potlatches. "The name 'Seaweed' is an anglicization of the Kwakwala 'Siwid', which can be translated as 'Paddling owner', 'Recipient of paddling', or 'Paddled to'; all metaphors for a great chief who sponsors potlatches to which guests come from far off" (Holm 1983). Seaweed was a singer, storyteller, wood carver, and artist who kept the traditional potlatches alive through the years in which it was illegal. Willie Seaweed was a traditional artist who passed on his skills to a younger generation and his work is scattered throughout collections in Canada and the United States.
Charles F. Newcombe was a British physician, botanist, and ethnographic researchers and collector. Born in Newcastle upon Tyne, U.K., he studied medicine in Aberdeen, Scotland. He immigrated to the United States with his wife and three children, moving to Oregon, before moving to Victoria, B.C., in 1889.
Shortly after his arrival in Victoria he became an unpaid researcher at the provincial museum in Victoria, where he met people with whom he shared interests in botany, geology, marine biology, geography, palaeontology, and anthropology. [...] In 1895, with Francis Kermode of the provincial museum, Newcombe had travelled by steamer on an expedition to the Kwakiutl community at Alert Bay and to Haida Gwaii. On this trip, he began acquiring anthropological artefacts for his personal collection and he also established a practice of recording detailed field notes. In 1896, he became a founding member of the Victoria Natural History Society. By 1897, Newcombe had had a boat specially made for his fieldwork. The Pelican, a 24-foot double-ended Columbia River boat, was easy to row and to sail, could be transported by steamer, and permitted independent expeditions to the remotest areas of the coast. That year he returned to the same regions on his first major independent collecting trip. At the request of the provincial government he purchased a Haida totem pole for the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew (London) and he acquired artefacts for George Mercer Dawson of the Geological Survey of Canada. [...] By 1900, he had received commissions from major American museums. American anthropologist Franz Boas hired him to conduct research on the Haida history of the southern portion of Haida Gwaii. Newcombe was accompanied on this expedition by assistant, Douglas Scholefield, and Haida Chief, Elijah Ninstints. As they rowed and sailed together, Ninstints described the geography and history of his homeland, while Newcombe took notes and photographs, made sketches, and collected specimens. In late 1901, he agreed to work on a full-time basis for the Columbian Museum of Chicago, an arrangement that would last until late 1905. He acquired comprehensive ethnographic collections for displays on the Haida, Kwakiutl, Nootka, and Salish peoples. In 1904, he was commissioned to assemble ethnographic exhibits for the Louisiana Purchase exposition in St Louis that would include a group of Nootka and Kwakiutl cultural performers and artists, as well as a traditional Native house, a canoe, and other artefacts purchased and shipped for the event. He eventually developed a web of patrons, clients, and colleagues that extended throughout British Columbia and around the world.
For decades most ethnological artefacts from the northwest coast of Canada were purchased by foreign interests. Newcombe was dismayed that he could not interest provincial and federal governments in the collection and preservation of native artefacts and specimens of natural history. Since his overriding concern was to preserve these items for posterity, he was obliged to deal with American and other foreign institutions. In response to this situation, in 1911 the provincial museum at Victoria hired him as its agent. For four years he travelled throughout the province, compiling a major collection of artefacts. After 1914 his pace began to abate and he turned to researching and writing about the exploration history of the British Columbia coast. After a collecting trip to Alert Bay, he contracted pneumonia and died in 1924. From: http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio/newcombe_charles_frederic_15E.html
Charles Edenshaw (Da.a xiigang), was a Haida carver who was born in Skidegate (Saangga.ahl Sdast'aas Eagle Clan). It is recorded that he was sickly when young, and at this time began carving argillite. His father, a noted canoe carver, died a few years later, so at eighteen he went to live with his uncle, Albert Edenshaw, in qang (Kung) village. When Albert moved to Masset in the 1870s, Charles would have accompanied him. He married Isabella in a Haida ceremony around 1873. After choosing his english name, Charles, and surname, Edenshaw (based on the Haidi name Edinso), he was baptized and remarried in an Anglican church. He worked as a full-time artist for most of his life, producing painted bentwood boxes, miniature and large totem poles, masks, chiefs' staffs, argillite totem poles, and gold and silver jewelry. The objects were created for First Nations' use, as well as for commissions by collectors for major museums. Like other Haida artists of his time, Edenshaw did not sign his work. The works are usually attributed to his hand through a combination of stylistic analysis and provenance. Edenshaw was able to speak Haida, Tlingit, Tsimshian, Chinook jargon, and some English and lived and worked in numerous communities, including Sitka, Ketchikan, Port Simpson, Port Essington, and Victoria. He died at the age of 86 and is buried in Massett on Haida Gwaii.
Ben Houstie is a Heiltsuk artist born in Bella Bella, BC (Waglisla) in 1960. Ben’s works include: original paintings, limited edition prints, carved cedar rattles, and paddles. He has worked with Cheryl Hall, Robert Hall, David Gladstone, and Beau Dick. In 1988, Ben worked under Bill Reid painting several drums of Bill’s designs and 20 paddles for the Canadian Museum of Civilization in Ottawa. Ben also painted several reconstructed artworks in 2000 for the Museum of Anthropology’s "The Transforming Image" exhibition. He is known for producing small original paintings and miniature wood masks. As a child, Ben watched master carver, Mungo Martin, working on the world’s largest totem pole, in Alert Bay, B.C. He is a survivor of the St Michael’s residential school in Alert Bay and his art serves as a form of healing and cultural connection. His great grandfather is Daniel Houstie and his son is Christopher Houstie. From: https://sa-cinn.com/ben-houstie-artcards-prints/
Alfred James Hanuse was born in Alert Bay to hereditary Chief Harry Hanuse and Mary Deborah Charlie. His siblings included: Lucy Marion (Adawis) Hanuse, Annie Laura Hanuse, George Harry Hanuse, Alice Ethel Hanuse, Alexander Hanuse, Daniel Edgar Hanuse, Frederick Clarence Hanuse, Florence Eleanor Hanuse, Wilfred Hanuse, and Stella Mae Hanuse. Alfred married Mary Hanuse (nee Alfred) and Alfred James (Jack) Hanuse on February 22, 1935. From: https://issuu.com/umista/docs/winter_2012
Alex Hanuse was born in 19[13?] in Alert Bay to hereditary Chief Harry Hanuse and Mary Deborah Charlie. His siblings included: Lucy Marion (Adawis) Hanuse, Annie Laura Hanuse, George Harry Hanuse, Alice Ethel Hanuse, Alfred James Hanuse, Daniel Edgar Hanuse, Frederick Clarence Hanuse, Florence Eleanor Hanuse, Wilfred Hanuse, and Stella Mae Hanuse. Alex married Gertrude (Gertie) Hanuse (nee Martin) on January 21, 1935. He was a logger and tragically drowned at the age of 37 in a boating accident on the Nimpkish River with his two brothers, Fred and Wildred Hanuse, on December 5, 1950. From: http://nativevoice.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/nv-1951v01.pdf and https://issuu.com/umista/docs/winter_2012
Agnes "Big Granny" Cranmer (nee Hunt) of Tsax̱is (Fort Rupert), carried the name Gwanti'lakw, meaning "born to be heavy (referring to wealth)." Agnes married hereditary Chief Dan Cranmer of the 'Namgis band of Alert Bay, and they had several children, including Bill and Doug Cranmer (Kesu'), and Gloria Cranmer. Franz Boas stayed at her house on one of his visits. Later, Agnes Cranmer and her first cousin Nunu (Helen Knox) gave Boas' descendants, Norman and Doris Boas, names at a potlatch. She taught traditional dancing for many years at the 'Namgis Band School and served as a resource consultant for the Learning Kwak'wala series (1980-1981) and for its accompanying teacher training program.
Art Thompson was born in 1948 in the village of Whyac and lived in Nitinaht on the West Coast of Vancouver Island. Hi father was Ditidaht and his mother was Quwutsun'. His father and grandfather were carvers and canoe builders, and his grandmother was an accomplished basketmaker. Art worked as a logger, a boat builder, and attended commercial art school before travelling across North America. He has been instrumental in defining the innovative direction of contemporary West Coast design, along with Joe David, Ron Hamilton, and others. As well as silk-screen prints, he produced wood carvings and engraved jewelry.
Chief Dan George, was a Tsleil-Waututh actor, poet, writer, activist, and public speaker who was chief of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation from 1951 to 1963. Born Geswanouth Slahoot, Dan George was raised on the Burrard reserve in North Vancouver. He received his English name, Dan George, at St. Paul’s residential school, where he was sent when he was five years old. Before he started acting at the age of 60, George had worked as longshoreman, construction worker, school-bus driver, logger and itinerant musician. By his film roles and personal appearances, Dan George helped improve the popular image of Indigenous people, often represented in stereotypical ways. George earned an Academy Award nomination for best supporting actor for his role in Little Big Man (1970) and won other awards for this role, including from the National Society of Film Critics and the New York Film Critics Circle. He was married to his wife, Amy George, for 51 years and was father to six: Amy Marie, Ann, Irene, Rose, Leonard, and Robert.
Doreen Jensen, also known as Hahl Yee, was born on May 13 1933 in Kispiox, just north of Hazelton, British Columbia. The name Hahl Yee belongs to the Killerwhale family crest from the House of Geel of the Fireweed Clan. Jensen attended the Gitanmaax School of Northwest Indian Design where she learned to carve under the guidance of Tony and Henry Hunt. Doreen Jensen was also known for her work promoting aboriginal artwork, teaching Gitxsan language classes, and helping to revitalize traditional practices. She was a respected cultural leader and historian. In 1983, she curated an exhibit at MOA entitled “Robes of Power” which emphasized the strength of traditional design and craftsmanship. The exhibited highlighted the importance of regalia to First Nation ceremonies and the key role that women played in producing robes. Jensen went on to teach Gitxsan language classes at UBC and traditional art practices such as drum making, cedar baskets and bead work at Emily Carr College of Art and Design in Vancouver. In 1993, Doreen Jensen was acknowledged by the Vancouver YMCA and was rewarded with the “Woman of Distinction” award. She also received the Golden Eagle Feather from the Professional Native Women’s Association and has been honoured with a name given to her by James Sewid and family at one of their potlatches. In 2008, she was also nominated for the BC Governor General Award in recognition of her passion for culture and tradition. Jensen passed away in 2009 leaving behind a lifetime of contribution to a revitalizing First Nation culture, language and artwork.
Doug Cranmer was born in Alert Bay, son of Chief Dan Cranmer and Agnes Hunt Cranmer. He set the standard of innovation for Kwakwaka'wakw art. His first formal instruction was in Victoria under Mungo Martin, in 1959. He worked with Bill Reid on UBC's Haida Village project c. 1959-62, and on the restoration of totem poles in Vancouver's Stanley Park. After completing the UBC project in 1962, Cranmer (with A.J. Scow and Dick Bird) founded a retail gallery, The Talking Stick. This was one of the few initiatives at the time through which First Nations art was marketed by First Nations people. Cranmer had totem pole commissions from around the world, and is considered an innovative master of flat design. His exhibitions include, Arts of the Raven, 1967, and the B.C. Pavillion at Expo '70, in Osaka Japan. His influence as a teacher was also significant, he taught at 'Ksan, the Vancouver Museum, and at Alert Bay, since 1977. He worked as an artist in residence at MOA in 1995. Doug was a hereditary chief of the 'Namgis band, and had also worked as a fisherman and a hand logger. He was an inspiration to his home community, contributing extensively to the construction of the U'mista Cultural Centre and the Bighouse at Alert Bay.
Chief Bill Cranmer (T̓łaḵwagila) is the son of Dan Cranmer, who hosted the 1921 potlatch now often referred to as the "Cranmer Potlatch" and the brother of Kwakwaka'wakw carver, artist, and 'Namgis Chief, Doug Cranmer (1927-2006), and activist, curator, and writer Gloria Cranmer Webster (1931-).
Chief Bill Cranmer has been a strong and vital voice for the sustainment of the ‘Namgis First Nation language and culture. He led the repatriation of cultural objects including masks, bentwood boxes, and regalia that were confiscated under duress in 1921 after a Kwakwaka’wakw potlatch held in the village of ‘Mimkwamlis on Village Island, BC. The confiscation was sanctioned through Canada’s “Anti Potlatch Law” which existed between 1884-1951. Twenty community members were sent to be imprisoned at the other end of the province because of practicing their traditions. A fluent speaker of Kwak’wala, Bill worked tirelessly to retrieve the appropriated pieces and raise awareness about the need to preserve and maintain language, history, and culture. The repatriation of some of the 750 confiscated items has had a significant positive impact on the community. He has travelled to Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and elsewhere to share the story, and present on behalf of the Assembly of First Nations and the First Peoples’ Cultural Foundation.
As Chief Councillor of the ‘Namgis First Nation, Bill negotiated economic treaties to develop businesses for his nation to prosper. Bill has spent numerous terms on the Executive Board of the Native Brotherhood of BC and has been an Elder/Cornerpost with the First Nations Health Authority, giving historical and cultural input into meetings. His efforts in the preservation of First Nations’ traditions have gone a very long way towards Reconciliation. In a speech at the 1980 opening of the U’mista Cultural Centre, which houses much of the reclaimed potlatch items, he said, “It’s important to know your past if you are going to fight for your future.” From: https://ltgov.bc.ca/t%CC%93la%E1%B8%B5wagila-chief-bill-cranmer/
On Monday, June 19, 2017, Bill Cranmer was presented with honours in Recognition of Outstanding Indigenous Leadership by David Johnston, Governor General of Canada. In June 2022, Chief Bill Cranmer was given a British Columbia Reconciliation Award.
Billy Assu (Kwakwaka'wakw) became Chief of the Cape Mudge (now We Wai Kai) First Nation in 1891 when he was 24 years old. He built the first modern house in the village in 1894 and during the 1920s organized the replacement of all the traditional longhouses with modern housing. He was a fisher for most of his life, and bought the first gas fish boat at Cape Mudge. During the Depression, he helped to create the Pacific Coast Native Fishermen's Association, which later merged with the Native Brotherhood of BC. His son, Harry Assu, succeeded him as the first elected Chief of the Cape Mudge band (1954-70).
Born at Tsax̱is (Fort Rupert), Charles James Nowell was the first full blooded Kwakwaka'wakw to act as an interpreter and collector for outsiders. He was married to the daughter of Chief Lageuse of the 'Namgis First Nation. Between 1899 and his death in 1924, Nowell was the assistant to Charles F. Newcombe, an Englishman who supplied ethnographic objects to the Field Museum, the University of Pennsylvania Museum, the Peabody Museum at Harvard and others. Nowell and Bob Harris, also from Tsaxis, were part of the Kwakiutl and Nootka display at the 1904 St. Louis Universal Exposition.
Chief of the Musgamagw Dzawada'enuxw (Tsawataineuk) First Nation. Brother of Chief Peter Scow and Chief John Scow.
Kyuquot Elementary Secondary School
The Kyuquot Elementary School, currently (2019) known as Kyuquot Elementary Secondary School, is located on Vancouver Island. The school provides aboriginal education to students grades K-12. The school is a part of the Vancouver Island West School District 084 that includes other four First Nations Schools.