Susie Williams

We taped together in the bedroom of Susie's daughter-in-law's home in Fairbanks on November 16, 1992. We have worked together taping information extensively before so this situation was very familiar and comfortable. We began by talking about her family and her life growing up around Allakaket. Among the key people she mentions in addition to her parents and her Uncle, Billy Bergman, is her grandmother, Old Maggie. She also talks about the early days of Allakaket as a village and the founding of the Episcopal Mission. After her father died, Susie and her mother had to work very hard to support the family. She went on to talk about the epidemic of 1925 when many people in Allakaket died. Various sources suggest that between 18 and 24 people passed away that summer. The missionaries sent Edward Bergman to warn people not to come into the village. When they got back to the village from spring camp, they camped outside of town. Susie's mother went to help the sick and grieving, but Susie was pregnant with her daughter Alice who was born that summer, so she stayed in the camp. Susie talked about her life as an adult with her first husband, including a little of how they made a living and his death. Then she talked about moving down to Hughes and later marrying Lavine. Later in the tape she talks in greater detail about how they moved to Hughes living first with her Uncle Alfred Isaac and his wife, Julia. Her comments on living in Hughes include mention of many people who then lived in the Hughes area, both Native people, and white miners and storekeepers like Joe Hoagland, Jack Sackett, and George Light. Susie and Lavine had a winter camp in a nice place about 40 miles below Hughes where they trapped and hunted. Their son, Bill, has a house there now. In commenting about the hunting and trapping they did, Susie remarks that the animals are more dangerous today than they were in earlier times. She refers specifically to recent problems with grizzly bears. She goes on to describe some of the activities of the early missionaries including Hudson Stuck, Miss Hines, and Dr. Burke. Then, responding to a question she talks about potlatches; their history, what happens at one, and why they are held. Her comments on potlatches conclude with a discussion of singing, for Susie is a talented Native singer and composer of songs. The tape concludes with her comments on some of the important lessons life has taught her, and some messages to Park visitors and employees. The life lessons are a confirmation of the values her mother imparted: don't use cross words with friends; don't be mean -- nice people live longer; never lie; treat each other well; and show hospitality to visitors. To Park employees and visitors she emphasizes the need for communication and listening to one another, the importance of sharing information and helping each other with the knowledge we have. She talks about how people help one another if they are to get along. She expresses concern about the Native corporations and the fate of the "afterborns," those born after 1971 who were originally denied the right to hold stock in the Native corporations. At the end of the tape, she observes that there aren't many old people around anymore to transmit the values and lessons people have learned in the past. She reiterates the idea that we are all dependent on one another. To live, we must all take care of ourselves and each other.