Insight into life in the Selawik area in the 1940s and 1950s is available through a booklet called Uqausriptigun: In Our Own Words. Produced in 2007 by the Selawik National Wildlife Refuge, this colorful booklet features ten Iñupiaq elders from Selawik describing their knowledge of and experience with caribou, caribou hunting, and reindeer herding. Although abundant in the region today, caribou were very scarce in the Selawik area before the 1950s. Hunters recall traveling north by dogteam for weeks at a time to find caribou.
The research for this booklet was conducted in 2003 by Selawik resident Hannah Loon and supported in part by the Selawik Refuge, NANA’s Iñuunialiqput Committee, and the Native Village of Selawik. The featured elders include Daniel Foster, Sr., Ruby Foster, Ralph Ramoth, Sr., David Greist, Marie Clark, Johnny Norton, Laura Smith, Frank Berry, Sr., Delbert Mitchell, Sr., and Eva Henry. Several of these elders have since passed away, making their words and photos all the more precious.
Download this booklet (pdf - 7.7mb)
