Native Place Names of the -Kantishna Drainage, Alaska Kantishna Oral History Project Compiled and Edited by Dianne Gudgel-Holmes Gudgel & Holmes Associates. Anchorage, Alaska From Stories Told by Unguistlc Analysis by The Late Abbie Joseph Eliza Jones. James Kari, Tanana, Alaska and Michael Krauss Alaska Native Language Center University of Alaska, Fairbanks United States Department of the Interior National Park Service Alaska Region ·, . Cover Photograph: Lake Minchumina Indians. April. 1919. Abbie Joseph is in the front row. founh from left. Stephen Foster Collection. Alaska and Polar Regions Depanment. University of Alaska. Fairbanks. NATIVE PLACE NAMES OF THE KANTISHNA DRAINAGE, ALASKA Kantishna Oral History Project Colllpiled and Edited by DiaDne Gudgel-Holmes Gudgel '" Holmes Associates Anchorage. Alaska FI"OIII Stories Told By The Late Abbie Josepb Tanana. Alaska LiaguisUc ADalysis Eliza Jones James Karl Michael Krauss Alaska Native Language Center. University of Alaska. Fairbanks Prepar'ed for U.S. National Park Service. Alaska Region PX 97()()..8..106 7 u.s. Department of the IDterior Naticmal Park Service Alaska Regional Office 2525 Gambell Street Anchorage, A1aslca 99503-2892 1991 For John Daile-Molle i CONTENTS AG~ il ACKNO~DG~ ill ~ODUcnON 2 Goals 2 Value of Place Names 3 Approach 3 Abbie Joseph 5 The Repon 7 Funding 7 THE ENVIRONMENT 8 Geography 8 Food Resources 9 A1HABASKAN LANGUAGES 10 NINETEENTII CENTURY TERRITORY AND BAND MOVEMENTS 13 Upper Kuskokwim Athabaskans 13 Lower Tanana Athabaskans 15 Koyukon Athabaskans 16 SEASONAL CYCLE 18 Spring 19 Suuuner 22 Fall 24 Winter 2S HISTORY 27 Population and disease 27 Early Explorers and Adventurers 28 Stephen Foster 31 Transponation 31 Nenana to McGrath Winter Mail Trail 33 Air Transponation 34 KANTISHNA NATIVE PLACE NAMES 37 Onhography 37 Place Name Generics 37 Fonna1 37 Place Name Contnl>utors 40 TANANA RIVER 41 TOKLAT RIVER 48 KANTISHNA RIVER 57 BEARPA W RIVER and TRIBlTfARIES 66 McKINLEY RIVER and BIRCH CREEK 75 MUDDY RIVER 91 COSNA RIVER 105 LAKE MINCHUMINA 112 SWIFT FORK of the KUSKOKWIM RIVER 121 EAST FORK of the KUSKOKWIM RIVER 127 MISCELLANEOUS NAMES 132 APPENDIX A -- Jette's Letter 1926 on McKinley Park native place names 134 APPENDIX B - Stephen Foster of the Kantishna River 145 APPENDIX C - Koyukon Athabaskan dialect of the Kantishna region. Alaska. by Michael Krauss 147 References Cited 149 Alphabetized index 10 place names 156 ii FIGURES page Figure 1. Study area - Kantishna Drainage, Alaska and periphery. 1 Figure 2. Abbie Joseph's family tree. 6 Figure 3. Approximate extent of language boundaries. 1800. 11 Figure 4. Approximate extent of language boundaries. 1900. 12 Figure 5. Kantishna Koyukon seasonal cycle. 20 Figure 6. Mount McKinley Region. Alaska from Rand McNally, 1922. 32 Figure 7. Kroll 194O? map of Alaska. showing winter trails, shelter cabins (SC), Alaska Road Commission cabins (ARC), and roadhouses (RH) 35 Figure 8. Winter trail and mile post sign through Muddy River flats/Lower Birch Creek area. 36 Figure 9. Index of figures showing place name locations. 38 Figure 10. Location map for Yukon-Tanana river place names # 1-14. 42 Figure 11. Location map for Tanana Ri~ place nam~ # 15-21. 46 Figure 12. Location map for Toklat River area place names # 22-38. 49 Figure 13. Enlarged section of location map for Toklat River-Knight's Roadhouse place names. 52 Figure 14. Location map for lower Kantishna River place names #39-46. 59 Figure 15. Wickersham's route to ML MdGnley, 1903 (Wickersham. 1938:3(8). 61 Figure 16. Wickersham's reconstructed 1903 route. 62 Figure 17. Location map for middle Kantishna River place names #47-49. 63 Figure 18. Slim Carlson (1886-1975) in 1972 with MutL 67 Figure 19. Slim Avery and George Hilleary. Kantishna trappers. Fabian Carey Collection. Alaska and Polar Regions Depanment, University of Alaska. Fairbanks. 67 Figure 20. Location map for lower Bearpaw River place names #50,51,57. 68 Figure 21. Location map for Bearpaw River place names #52-64. 70 Figure 22. "FISh Camp" on Moose Creek. From Capps, USGS B-687 (1919). 72 Figure 23. Location map for McKinley River and Birch Creek place names #65-92. 77 Figure 24. Kroll map of Alaska 193O? showing trail along foothills. 80 Figure 25. Twelve Mile Slough conn~ Slippery Creek and McKinley River. 84 Figure 26. Location map for lower Muddy River place names #93-103. 94 Figure 27. Location map for middle Muddy River place names # 104-106. 96 Figure 28. Location map for Muddy River place names # 107-120. 98 Figure 29. Location map for area nonh of Muddy River place names # 94,96, 104, 106, 108, 135. 102 Figure 30. LL Herron's 1899 map - Lake Minchumina to Tanana River. 105 Figure 31. Location map for Cosna River place names # 121-134. 106 Figure 32. Location map for Cosna-ChitaDana place names # 129-130. 108 Figure 33. Enlarged location map of Lake Minchumina area place names # 135-142. 112 Figure 34. Location map for Lake Minchumina area place names # 143-158. 116 Figure 35. Location map for Swift Fork 0( the Kuskokwim River place names # 159-170. 122 Figure 36. LL Herron's 1899 map - Upper Kuskokwim River area. 126 Figure 37. Sesui's son. Carl Sesui and wife, 1919. Stephen Foster Collection. Alaska and Polar Regions Depanment, University of Alaska, Fairbanks. 128 Figure 38. Herron's reconstructed 1899 route. 129 Figure 39. Location map for East Fork of the Kuskokwim River place names # 171-176. 130 Figure 40. Stephen Foster with Kantishna drainage natives about 1920. Stephen Foster Collection. Alaska and Polar Regions Department, University of Alaska, Fairban.ks. 146 iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS After eight years of research this commended for their financial suppon and acknowledgement section could easily be as long patience as should Roben Wolfe and Elizabeth as the repon itself. The people who have stuck Andrews of the Alaska Depanment of Fish and with me over the years and encouraged my effons Game, Subsistence Division. Bob King, BLM's deserve the most credit: they are the people of State Archeologist provided numerous USGS Lake Minchumina. especially the Collins family, maps. Dennaklcanaaga Inc. of the Tanana Chiefs and the native people of Nenana who have Conference offered the use of their photocopying patiently endured my repeated questions and machine and the opponunity to speak about the meager attempt to salvage the local project at the Nenana Elder's Conference. They ethnogeography. Special thanks go to Hank and were the only native organization, out of four Caroline Ketzler. Eli Charlie, Paul George, Lizzie who were asked, to suppon the project. William Esau. Percy and Greta Duyck, Celia Peterson, Schneider of the University of Alaska. Fairbanks. Hester Evan. Elsie Mahaynay, Ben Alben and the Oral History Program is appreciated for being a late Matthew Titus and Margaret John for sharing mentor to all Alaskan oral historians. their knOWledge. Paul Starr of Tanana not only Panicular thanks goes to my family for their provided information on place names, but also tolerance. The last recognition goes to John provided encouragement in a much appreciated Oalle-MoUe, formerly of Denali National Park. and traditional way -- he thanked me for working Thanks John. for (besides being a nice guy) your with his grandmother, Abbie Joseph. Eliza Jones interest, great ideas, funds, helicopter time, and of the Alaska Native Language Center, aside from for actually reading all the data gathered over the her monumental task during the original years of years. It has been one of the pleasures of my life the project., contributed her time for the final to have known you. editing of the repon. Her special contnoution, however. was in re-translating critical passages of Joseph's material. Florence Collins, Dick BishOp, Jim Kari, Ray Collins, Jack Hayden, and Louis Banon also provided invaluable editorial comments. On the administrative side of things, Gary Holthaus of the Alaska Humanities Forum has provided funds over the years to see various stages of this project through. along with good advice. Ken Schoenberg and Kate Lidford of the National Park Service. Anchorage. are to be 1 Miles 0 10 20 30 40 50 I I I I I I I I I I 0 Km. 50 Figure 1. Study area - Kantisbna Drainage, Alaska and periphery. 2 INTRODUcnON I WIls impressed during all my intocourse with the and human history of the area. Because place few indillns in AJaskll tluzt thdr geographical names tend to be consistent through time, their knowledge is very considerable, they travel extensively and they have names for every topographical feature antiquity reflects the history and significance of of the country. These names have always certain panicuJar locations (Karl 1989). attributes to recommend them: they hove been spoken by untold generations of men and handed The Denali National Park and Preserve down in the native tongues of the land for unknown currently encompasses much of the land described ,!n~ity. They are, therefore, a parr of the zn~ance of the humon race and especiaJIy of in this repon. The remainder of the land is Amencans. These place names have, moreover, in essentially unpopulated, with the exception of the each instance a most appropriate significance; they carry wuh them local associations of special meaning communities of Telida and I...ake Minchumina. and and they hand down long traditions of man's the seasonal activities of trappers, vacationers, and relation with narure [Gordon 1917:77]. scattered homesteaders. The region is historically imponant to at least three Alhabaskan groups. It This repon is about Athabaskans and their remains significant in the minds and lives of use of the land in the Kantisbna River drainage former residents, some of whom return seasonally of interior Alaska (Figure 1).