The Chilkat are a Tlingit tribe who have lived in and around their village of Klukwan on the Chilkat River, in southeastern Alaska since time immemorial. They lived on foods available on their lands as well as trading with other tribes on the Pacific coast and inland. Settlers came to Chilkat lands in large numbers in the early 20th century, and they dispossessed the Chilkat of most of their land. US authorities attempted to suppress Chilkat culture by prohibiting potlatches and other traditional customs. However, their efforts failed and the Chilkat people maintained many of their traditions. Today most Chilkat people live in Klukwan.

Here, men and boys dressed in dance regalia pose in front of the house of Chief Klart-Reech at Klukwan, Alaska. The man in the center, wearing the highly-patterned Chilkat tunic, is Yielgooxu, a hereditary chief of the Klukwan Whale House. The man next to him wears a fur-trimmed shirt with a beaver design. Several of the masks and spruce root hats appear in photos of the interior of the Whale House taken by the same photographer. The mixture of native and European clothing is typical of this time period.

Caption on image: "Ixterior [sic] of chief's house. Chilkat Indians in old dancing costumes, Alaska. Copyright Winter & Pond."

Caption information source: "History," Chilkat Indian Village, retrieved from https://chilkat-nsn.gov/history/