Reindeer and Sami at Woodland Park, 1898

• Main Author: Edward S. Curtis (Firm)
• Format: Other/Unknown Material
• Language: unknown
• Subjects: Gates Greenhouses; Parks; Reindeer; Sami (European people); Norway; sami; Alaska; Siberia
• Online Access: http://cdm16786.contentdm.oclc.org:80/cdm/ref/collection/imlsmohai/id/7157

In 1892, the United States government started bringing reindeer from Siberia into Alaska as a new food source for the native peoples. In 1898, the government brought in Norwegian reindeer, along with Sami herdsmen and their families. They stopped in Seattle to wait for a ship to Alaska. Some Sami remained in Alaska, while others eventually returned to Seattle or home to Norway. The Sami were formerly called Lapplanders. In this 1898 photo, taken by the Edward S. Curtis firm at Woodland Park, Sami herders from Norway stand with a group of reindeer. A gate and a greenhouse can be seen in the background. 1 photographic print mounted on cardboard : gelatin, b&w; 16 x 21 cm.