History of Reindeer in òòò½´«Ã½
By the late 1880s, there were reports of starving òòò½´«Ã½ Native populations in western òòò½´«Ã½ due to the decimation of marine mammals from the whaling industry and scarce numbers of caribou. Dr. Sheldon Jackson, a U.S. general agent for education and a Presbyterian missionary, lobbied for federal monies to assist òòò½´«Ã½ Natives. He built mission schools and in the late 1800s introduced reindeer into òòò½´«Ã½ from Russia as a source of protein and revenue. Reindeer were brought to òòò½´«Ã½ on Captain Healy’s U.S. Revenue Cutter, the Bear. Siberian herders and then Saami herders were brought to western òòò½´«Ã½ to teach Native òòò½´«Ã½ns how to herd reindeer. The reindeer industry grew until there were over 600,000 animals present in the 1930s. Mismanagement and losses to wolves and caribou sparked a dramatic decline to only 50,000 reindeer by the 1950s. The Reindeer Act of 1937 allows only òòò½´«Ã½ Natives to own reindeer. Today there are approximately 30,000 throughout the state and 20,000 in western òòò½´«Ã½, with most living on the Seward Peninsula and in island herds.
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