Suquamish Museum and Cultural Center

Suquamish Museum and Cultural Center is a Tribal Museum dedicated to preserving and educating people about the Suquamish Tribe. The Museum is located in Washington State and is on the Port Madison Indian Reservation.

History

The Museum opened in 1983, the culmination of an effort to document and preserve the history of the Suqumish begun by Tribal members in the 1970s. The Oral History of Tribal Elders, some of whom remembered the Suquamish leader Sealth Chief Seattle, was used by the lead curator to design a premier exhibit that debuted at the Museum of History and Industry in Seattle, Washington. After leaving MOHAI the "Eyes of Chief Seattle traveled to Seattle, Washington's Sister City, Nantes, France. When the exhibit returned from France it debuted at the Suquamish Museum, then only the second Tribal Museum in the State of Washington.

The Suquamish Tribal Cultural Center established by the Tribal Council in the 1970s is the foundation of the Museum. Housed in a converted attic space in the former Suquamish Tribal Center the Center staff worked to collect oral histories from Tribal members whose memory and family knowledge extended before the Port Madison Reservation was established and then on through the early decades of Reservation life. The outcome of this endeavor was the exhibit "The Eyes of Chief Seattle" and a media production "Come Forth Laughing" and the Suquamish Museum was charged with continuing and expanding the activity to document the history and culture of the Suquamish People and Coastal Salish life.

Mission

“To collect, protect, educate, and preserve the history and culture of the Puget Sound Coast Salish peoples with an emphasis on the Suquamish tribe. In order to do this the Suquamish Museum must provide exhibits that allow the visitors from all age levels to understand the culture and history from the view of the First Peoples of the Puget Sound and the Suquamish Tribe, through the use of oral history, photography, artifacts, replication and audio/visual productions. With the assistance of Tribal elders, scholars and other museum professionals, the Suquamish Museum will strive to meet all of the above goals, and provide visitors with a new understanding of the Native Peoples of the Puget Sound and the Suquamish Tribe.”

Collection

The Museum has artifacts documenting the material culture and economic activities of the Suquamish and other Coastal Salish Tribes, including baskets, woven mats, bone and stone artifacts, carvings, and full sized canoes. The Tribe also has a collection of artifacts from the archeological site known as Old Man House that were repatriated by the State of Washington. In addition to artifacts the museum owns a collection of historic and contemporary photographs, manuscripts and a rich oral history collection of tribal elders began in the mid 1970s and continuing today.

Organizational structure

The Suquamish Museum is governed by a seven member Board appointed by the Suquamish Tribal Council. The Museum's Charter and Mission revised by the Council in 2010 authorizes the Museum Board to engage a Museum Director and provide oversight of Museum operations, present a budget to Council for approval, and advise on museum programming.

Audience

The Museum's serves the Suquamish Tribe as a repository for cultural artifacts and knowledge. The museum strives to provide an environment that encourages the Suquamish and surrounding community a comfortable engaging space to share and learn from one another. The permanent and temporary exhibits are designed to share and inform Tribal and non-Tribal communities about the culture and history of the Suquamish People and other Coastal Salish Tribes. Museum programming engages tourists, locals and school children with a variety of experiential and presentation format selections.

References

• van Gelder, Sarah "Going Home", Yes Magazine, 18 Jan 2005
• McDonald, Kathy. "Museum of the Month: Suquamish Museum" Seattle Times, Outdoor Section, Dec 2006