Petersburg Indian Association
Petersburg Indian Association Séet Ká Ḵwáan (Tlingit) | |
|---|---|
.jpg/1280px-Alaska_aboard_the_Admiralty_Dream_(7762508316).jpg) Petersburg, Alaska | |
  Petersburg Indian Association Petersburg Indian Association | |
| Coordinates: 56°48′39″N132°56′33″W / 56.81083°N 132.94250°W / 56.81083; -132.94250 | |
| Constitution Ratified | March 22, 1948 (1948-03-22) |
| Capital | Petersburg, Alaska |
| Government | |
| • Type | Representative democracy |
| • Body | Petersburg Tribal Council |
| • President | Carol Martinez |
| Demonym | Tlingit |
| Time zone | UTC–09:00 (AKST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC–08:00 (AKDT) |
| Website | piatribal |
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The Petersburg Indian Association is a federally recognizedNative American tribe of Tlingit people.[1] They are the Séet Ká Kwáan[2] or "People of the Fast Moving Waters". This Alaska Native tribe is headquartered in Petersburg, Alaska.[3]
Government
The Petersburg Indian Association is led by a democratically elected tribal council.[3] Their president is Carol Martinez,[4] who was elected in 2025, succeeding Debra O'Gara.[5] The Alaska Regional Office of the Bureau of Indian Affairs serves the tribe.[4]
The tribe ratified their constitution and corporate charter in 1949.[3]Native rights activist Amy Hallingstad (Chilkoot Tlingit) wrote the tribes bylaws.[6]
Territory
The tribe is headquartered in Petersburg and Mitkof Island near the Wrangell Narrows and Tongass National Forest.[1] The region has numerous petroglyphs and pictographs from before European contact.[2]
Economy
Fishing is important to the tribe, as it has been for centuries, as evidenced by precontact stone fish traps and shell mideens, one near Petersburg dating back 1,200 years ago.[2]
Language
The Petersburg Indian Association speaks English and the Tlingit language.
Notable tribal citizens
- Elizabeth Peratrovich (1911–1958), Alaska Native civil rights leader, born in Petersburg
- Edna Jackson (born 1950), paper artist, was born in Petersburg.[7]
- Rosita Worl, president of the Sealaska Heritage Institute grew up here before being forcefully relocated to Haines to an American Indian boarding school
See also
References
- ^ ab"Petersburg Indian Association". Alaska Handbook. Retrieved 13 January 2026.
- ^ abcVerge, Beth (5 January 2023). "Cultures in the town of Petersburg, also known as Séet Ká Ḵwáan, coalesce in shared history". KTUU. Retrieved 13 January 2026.
- ^ abc"Petersburg Indian Association". National Indian Law Library. Native American Rights Fund. Retrieved 12 January 2026.
- ^ ab"Tribal Leaders Directory". Bureau of Indian Affairs. Retrieved 12 January 2026.
- ^Flor, Hannah (January 16, 2025). "Tribal election turnout high for the second year in a row". Petersburg Pilot. Retrieved 13 January 2026.
- ^"Women's History Month Spotlight Amy Hallingstad". MySealaska. Sealaska. Retrieved 13 January 2026.
- ^Patricia Janis Broder (December 10, 2013). Earth Songs, Moon Dreams: Paintings by American Indian Women. St. Martin's Press. pp. 384–. ISBN 978-1-4668-5972-2.
External links
- Petersburg Indian Association, official website
- Constitution and By-Laws of the Petersburg Indian Association
- Voices of Séet Ká Ḵwáan podcast, Petersburg Public Library
