Saxman Native Village & Totem Park

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On South Tongass Hwy, 2.5 miles south of Ketchikan, is this incorporated Tlingit village of 475 residents. It's best known for Saxman Totem Park, which holds 24 totem poles from abandoned villages around the Southeast, restored or recarved in the 1930s. Among them is a replica of the Lincoln Pole (the original is in the Alaska State Museum in Juneau), which was carved in 1883, using a picture of Abraham Lincoln as a reference, to commemorate the first sighting of white people.

You can wander around the Totem Park on your own or, by prior appointment (and an extra $32), join an Alaska Native–led two-hour village tour. Tours, which usually include a traditional drum-and-dance performance, a narrated tour of the totems and a visit to the carving shed, are heavily tailored to cruise-ship groups and can be hit and miss. There are several a day in peak season

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

  • Totem Heritage Center

    Totem Heritage Center

    2.18 MILES

    For a crash course in Southeast Alaska's impressive totem art look no further than the Totem Heritage Center, where old poles brought from deserted…

  • Native American Totems and Clan Houses located at Totem Bight State Historic Site.

    Totem Bight State Park

    9.85 MILES

    Ten miles north of downtown Ketchikan is this seaside park that contains 14 restored totem poles, a colorful community house and a viewing deck…

  • Dolly's House

    Dolly's House

    2.34 MILES

    Dolly's house, in Creek St, looks like a dollhouse from the outside, but it once operated as a bastion of the world's oldest profession (read:…

  • Southeast Alaska Discovery Center

    Southeast Alaska Discovery Center

    2.4 MILES

    Three large totems greet you in the lobby of this center run by the National Park Service (NPS), while a school of silver salmon suspended from the…

  • Creek Street

    Creek Street

    2.37 MILES

    Departing from Stedman St is Creek St (a boardwalk built over Ketchikan Creek on pilings), a history book of misshapen wood-paneled houses painted in…

  • Hopkins Alley

    Hopkins Alley

    2.81 MILES

    Up in Newtown, just north of the road tunnel, is an old wooden boardwalk furnished with buildings constructed in the early 20th century on the profits of…

  • Waterfront Promenade

    Waterfront Promenade

    2.86 MILES

    Ketchikan’s newest boardwalk is the Waterfront Promenade, which begins near Berth 4, passes Harbor View Park (a city park that is composed entirely of…

  • Potlatch Park

    Potlatch Park

    9.76 MILES

    Potlatch Park is right next door to Totem Bight State Park. It's less manicured, but still home to a dozen totems, one of which is 42ft high. There are…

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Nearby Ketchikan attractions

1. Totem Heritage Center

2.18 MILES

For a crash course in Southeast Alaska's impressive totem art look no further than the Totem Heritage Center, where old poles brought from deserted…

2. Thomas Basin

2.22 MILES

Thomas Basin is home to Ketchikan’s fishing fleet and is the city’s most picturesque harbor. When the boats come in, you can photograph them unloading…

3. Dolly's House

2.34 MILES

Dolly's house, in Creek St, looks like a dollhouse from the outside, but it once operated as a bastion of the world's oldest profession (read:…

4. Creek Street

2.37 MILES

Departing from Stedman St is Creek St (a boardwalk built over Ketchikan Creek on pilings), a history book of misshapen wood-paneled houses painted in…

5. Southeast Alaska Discovery Center

2.4 MILES

Three large totems greet you in the lobby of this center run by the National Park Service (NPS), while a school of silver salmon suspended from the…

6. Tongass Historical Museum

2.47 MILES

Houses a collection of local historical and Alaska Native artifacts, many dealing with Ketchikan’s fishing industry. More interesting is the impressive…

7. Hopkins Alley

2.81 MILES

Up in Newtown, just north of the road tunnel, is an old wooden boardwalk furnished with buildings constructed in the early 20th century on the profits of…

8. Alaska Rainforest Sanctuary

2.82 MILES

A 40-acre wildlife reserve at Herring Cove, 8 miles south of Ketchikan, where you can go on a naturalist-led walk (with the chance of spotting bears),…

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