AHTNA TRADITIONAL CHIEF HARRY JOHNS, SR. BORN
Johns, born on the Klutina Lake Trail, began working at age 9 hauling water. In 1929, he joined the Territorial Railroad Commission and retired in 1975 from the Alaska (AK) Dept. of Highways. Harry personally received a plaque from the governor for 45+ years of service. In 1954, Harry presided over the 1st meeting of the AK Native Brotherhood Camp at Copper Center. In 1966, when AK restricted a subsistence fishery without consulting the Ahtna, Johns asserted that it had acted arbitrarily, and that the Ahtna would fish in defiance. The State backed down. This action served as a guide for 1978 when AK tried this again and again backed down. From 1975-85, Johns later was a paralegal for AK Legal Services. In 1991, Johns was chosen as Ahtna Region Traditional Chief. An advocate for his community, he bought phones auctioned by the AK Road Commission and had them installed through the entire village. He did the same for electricity and water wells. Chief Johns died January 31, 2004.
Sources:
“Harry Johns, Sr.,” Project Jukebox: Digital Branch of the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Retrieved 6/28/2020, https://jukebox.uaf.edu/site7/p/707
Bill Simeone, “Government to Ahtna in 1898: Assimilate or Be Removed,” Ahtna Kanas, 1/2017. Retrieved 6/28/2020, https://www.ahtna.com/government-to-ahtna-in-1898-assimilate-or-be-removed/
Photo: Denali National Park and Reserve, 6/29/2010. Public Domain. .
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