Letters to the Editor

Letter: More history on Point Woronzof

I thoroughly enjoyed Steve Haycox's discussion of the origin of the place name "Point Woronzof." It's important to add, however, that Lt. Joseph Whidbey in fact renamed that place.

For a thousand years or more, it has been known to the Dena'ina, the indigenous people of Anchorage, as Nuch'ishtunt, "Place Protected from Wind." Dena'ina families fished for salmon at Nuch'ishtunt into the mid-20th century, until federal authorities closed the area to fishing and the Dena'ina moved their camps to Fire Island (Nutuł'iy) and Point Possession (Tuyqun).

As presented in Shem Pete's Alaska, an ethnogeography of upper Cook Inlet (Tikahtnu), about 130 Dena'ina place names have been recorded within the boundaries of the municipality. A few Dena'ina names survive in anglicized form on today's maps: for example, Idlughet (Eklutna) and Chanshtnu ("Chester" Creek). But most have been largely ignored and almost — but not quite — forgotten. Since the Dena'ina Civic and Convention Center was named to honor Anchorage's original people in 2006, a small but growing number of interpretive signs have appeared featuring Dena'ina place names and heritage.

Professor Haycox' suggestion that a historical marker be displayed at Point Woronzof is a great one. An interpretive sign highlighting both George Vancouver's important exploratory voyage and the Dena'ina's long and intimate association with Nuch'ishtunt would be an appropriate step toward a better public awareness of our city's deep and fascinating history.
— James A. Fall
Anchorage

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