Our Trails Bring Us Together / Haa deiyí wóoshxh haa ła.ât / Łä̀chʼi tän kwäga dūjal du

Our Trails Bring Us Together (English) /

Haa deiyí wóoshxh haa ła.ât (Coastal Tlingit) /

Łä̀chʼi tän kwaäga dūjal du (Southern Tutchone) /

Nehtän anāy lazh’i dūnyana yē nǟts’eddhat (Northern Tutchone) /

Dahtene yèh shī̀dèł (Tagish) /

Nitąy łits’ą̈̀’ në̀näjèl (Hän) / Nos chemins nous rassemblent (French)

Celebrating the Kohklux Maps at 150 Year

Dates: October 24-27, 2019 (reception October 24, conference sessions October 25-27)
Location: Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre

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This multi-disciplinary conference commemorates the 150th anniversary of the drawing of the Kohklux Maps by Chilkat Tlingit chief Kohklux and his people at Klukwan, Alaska for American scientist George Davidson. These are the oldest surviving maps of south-east Alaska and southern Yukon, and the oldest known maps drawn by Indigenous people in this part of the world. 11 years later, Hän river pilot Paul Kandik drew the Kandik Map for French Canadian fur trader François Mercier, documenting the region around the Yukon, Tanana, and upper Kuskokwim rivers.

Using these maps as a starting point, join us to explore themes such as trade alliances, astronomy, Indigenous languages and place names, mapmaking, travel and journey experiences, and more. This conference will offer a forum for the exchange of new research, stories, and memories between community knowledge-keepers, academics, historians, and others.

The conference will coincide with the launch of a new travelling exhibition exploring the Kohklux and Kandik Maps in their historical and contemporary contexts, including their origins and ongoing significance. A shared opening reception for the exhibition and conference will take place during the evening of October 24.

Note: Champagne and Aishihik First Nations will host a Family Gathering event on Saturday, October 19 as part of the Kohklux Maps at 150 commemoration. Open to all, it will feature stories and information about families in Alaska and Yukon linked by the maps, languages, cultures and history.

This conference is produced in partnership with Jilkaat Kwaan Heritage Center, Champagne and Aishihik First Nations/Da Kų Cultural Centre, and Kwanlin Dün Cultural Centre. Funding for this project is made possible with support from Government of Yukon’s Community Development Fund.

Want to learn more about the Kohklux Map? You can download our 1995 publication, The Kohklux Map, here (PDF, 10 MB).