Tongass National Forest

The Tlingít village of Angoon is the only permanent settlement on Admiralty Island.

The village's 487 human residents share the island with about 1,600 brown bears.

Tlingít culture is evident throughout the community, from the village's ornate clan houses to its regular potlatch celebrations.

Commercial fishing is Angoon's main industry, although many residents live a subsistence lifestyle by hunting and fishing in the surrounding area.

The Tlingít village of Angoon, home to about 500 people, is the only permanent settlement on Admiralty Island.

[Click to Enlarge]

The Alaska Marine Highway provides regular ferry service to Angoon aboard the M/V LeConte and M/V Aurora. While Angoon has no airport, three air carriers offer scheduled floatplane service to Angoon from Juneau and Sitka.

Angoon is a subsistence community with few tourist facilities. While there are a handful of lodges in the area and a bed and breakfast in town, Angoon has no hotels or restaurants.

PLEASE NOTE: Angoon is a dry community; it is illegal to possess alcohol anywhere within the village limits.

A Tlingít totem pole, circa 1901.

Most of the people in Angoon are Tlingít (pronounced "clink-it"). These native Alaskans once occupied a territory extending from present-day Hyder, Alaska, north to the Copper River. They also traveled far up the rivers of what is now British Columbia, trading with the Athabascan tribes of the interior.

Tlingít culture places a strong emphasis on family and kinship, dividing society into two main moieties, or clans: the Raven clan and the Eagle/Wolf clan. The latter may be represented by other animals such as the bear, which is the predominant clan in Angoon.

Within each clan are various houses (hít). In Tlingít villages like Angoon, clan houses remain an important part of daily life, and are used to host meetings and celebrations.