Totem Heritage Center

The Totem Heritage Center is a historical and cultural museum in Ketchikan, Alaska, operated by the city of Ketchikan. Founded in 1976, it preserves one of the world's largest collections of unrestored 19th-century totem poles and serves as a center for Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian cultural heritage. Its location was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as Alaska Totems on June 21, 1971, five years before the museum's establishment.

The Totem Heritage Center was founded in 1976 specifically to preserve a significant group of totem poles and to function as a cultural center. The poles themselves had been recovered during the 1960s and 1970s from uninhabited Tlingit settlements on Village Island and Tongass Island, south of Ketchikan, as well as from the Haida village of Old Kasaan. In November 1990, the center helped establish the Ravenstail Weaver's Guild in Ketchikan, an organization formed to strengthen the nearly extinct craft of Ravenstail weaving and to build a community of Native and non-Native makers across the United States and Canada.

The center houses one of the world's largest collections of unrestored 19th-century totem poles. Of the museum's thirty-three totem poles, sixteen are on permanent display, while the remainder are available for research purposes. Beyond the poles, the collection includes historical photographs and other artifacts and art pieces from the Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian peoples. The center also preserves and promotes traditional arts and crafts through a nationally recognized program of art classes and activities held throughout the year.

The collection features work by world-famous Tlingit carver Nathan Jackson and renowned Haida weaver Delores Churchill. The totem poles originate from three abandoned villages near Ketchikan, representing significant examples of 19th-century carving traditions from Tlingit and Haida communities.

The Totem Heritage Center is located in Ketchikan, Alaska. Its site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as Alaska Totems on June 21, 1971, recognizing the historical significance of the location prior to the museum's founding.

The Totem Heritage Center is operated by the city of Ketchikan and is open to visitors year-round, with extended hours during the summer. The museum maintains an official website at https://www.ktn-ak.us/totem-heritage-center and shares a joint online collection with the Tongass Historical Museum.