Edward Linnaeus Keithahn (May 15, 1900 – September 26, 1970) was an American

museum curator A curator (from la, cura, meaning "to take care") is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the parti ...

and the author of a well known book on

totem poles Totem poles ( hai, gyáaʼaang) are monumental carvings found in western Canada and the northwestern United States. They are a type of Northwest Coast art, consisting of poles, posts or pillars, carved with symbols or figures. They are usually m ...

, ''Monuments in Cedar,'' published in 1945. According to WorldCat, the book is held in 725 libraries. He became interested in totem poles at the

Alaska–Yukon–Pacific Exposition The Alaska–Yukon–Pacific Exposition, acronym AYP or AYPE, was a world's fair held in Seattle in 1909 publicizing the development of the Pacific Northwest. It was originally planned for 1907 to mark the 10th anniversary of the Klondike Gold R ...

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

in 1909 and later traveled to southeast Alaska and eventually lived there. He lived and taught in native villages for about 15 years, and became working "in the Indian service," as he put it (meaning perhaps employment with the

Bureau of Indian Affairs The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA), also known as Indian Affairs (IA), is a United States federal agency within the Department of the Interior. It is responsible for implementing federal laws and policies related to American Indians and A ...

), living mainly among the

Tlingit The Tlingit ( or ; also spelled Tlinkit) are indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America. Their language is the Tlingit language (natively , pronounced ),

and

Haida people Haida (, hai, X̱aayda, , , ) are an indigenous group who have traditionally occupied , an archipelago just off the coast of British Columbia, Canada, for at least 12,500 years. The Haida are known for their craftsmanship, trading skills, and ...

. He was Curator and Librarian at the

Alaska Historical Library and Museum The Alaska State Library and Historical Collections and Talking Book Center are located on the second floor of the Andrew P. Kashevaroff Building in Juneau, Alaska. Mission statement The Alaska State Library: *promotes and coordinates library s ...

from 1941.Renner, F. G., J. C. Dykes, and B. W. Allred. 1968
"A Roundup of Western Reading"
''Arizona and the West'' 10 (1). ''Journal of the Southwest'': 89–104. p. 100

Bibliography

* ''Monuments in Cedar.'' Ketchikan, Alaska: Roy Anderson. 1945 * ''Monuments in Cedar''. Seattle: Superior Pub. Co, 1963. (Expanded edition) * ''Alaskan Igloo Tales''. Anchorage: Alaska Northwest Pub. Co, 1974.Whidden, Lynn. Book reviews : ''Alaskan Igloo Tales'' by Edward L. Keithahn. ''American Indian Quarterly'' 17.1 01 Jan 1993: 123. University of Nebraska Press. * (with George A. Ahgupuk). ''Igloo Tales''. Lawrence, Kansas: U.S. Indian Service, 1950. * ''Eskimo Adventure: Another Journey into the Primitive''. Seattle: Superior Pub. Co, 1963. * "Stone Artifacts of Southeastern Alaska". ''American Antiquity'', 28(1), 66–77. 1962 http://doi.org/10.2307/278079 * ''Alaska for the Curious''. Seattle: Superior Pub. Co, 1966.

References

1900 births 1970 deaths Alaska Territory officials American curators Librarians from Alaska Educators from Alaska People from Juneau, Alaska {{NorthAm-native-stub