Project Jukebox

Digital Branch of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Oral History Program

Project Jukebox Survey

Help us redesign the Project Jukebox website by taking a very short survey!

Simeon Patkotak, Sr.

Simeon Patkotak, Sr.

Simeon Patkotak, Sr. is an Iñupiaq elder from Barrow, Alaska. He was born in 1932, and has spent his entire life hunting, fishing and whaling. He has a subsistence camp at Peard Bay, southwest of Barrow, which is an especially important area to him. Simeon started whaling when he was seventeen years old under the mentorship of Otis Ahkivgak, his wife Susan’s father. In the late 1950s, Otis Ahkivgak lost all his whaling gear during a big ice pileup (ivu) event that caused many crews in Barrow to have to run for their lives towards shore. Simeon and Susan Patkotak then started Patkotak Crew in 1967. In 2008, his son Crawford Patkotak took over as whaling captain of their crew. Simeon is a well-respected hunter and successful whaler, with extensive knowledge of the sea ice and the tundra environments that have sustained him and his family for generations. Simeon also has been an artist and ivory carver.
Date of Death:
Aug 28, 2016
Simeon Patkotak, Sr. appears in the following new Jukebox projects:
Interview Title Abstract Archive #: Oral History Project Date of Interview
Crawford and Simeon Patkotak, Sr., Part 1

Crawford Patkotak and his father, Simeon Patkotak, Sr. were interviewed on November 13, 2013 by Karen Brewster and Dyre Oliver Dammann at Crawford's home in Barrow, Alaska. Crawford's wife, Laura, and their son, Josiah, were also present at the interview. Inupiaq is Simeon's first language, so at age 81 he is more comfortable speaking Inupiaq than English. During the interview, Simeon would speak in Inupiaq and Crawford would translate what he said into English. The "In Inupiaq" portions of the transcript were translated by Muriel Hopson. In this first part of a two part interview, Crawford and Simeon talk about learning to go whaling and how to read the ice conditions, wind and current. Crawford speaks in particular about the unusual ice conditions in the spring of 2013 and his decision to keep his whaling crew at home for the season, as well as about safety issues in general, changing ice conditions over the years, and about trail building.

 2013-25-01_PT.1 Sea Ice in Northern Alaska Nov 11, 2013
Crawford and Simeon Patkotak, Sr., Part 2

This is the continuation of an interview with Crawford Patkotak and his father, Simeon Patkotak, Sr. on November 11, 2013 by Karen Brewster and Dyre Oliver Dammann at Crawford's home in Barrow, Alaska. Crawford's wife, Laura, and their son, Josiah, were also present at the interview. Inupiaq is Simeon's first language, so at age 81 he is more comfortable speaking Inupiaq than English. During the interview, Simeon would speak in Inupiaq and Crawford would translate what he said into English. The "In Inupiaq" portions of the transcript were translated by Muriel Hopson. In this second part of a two part interview, Crawford and Simeon talk about ice conditions, looking for good spots to set up whaling camp, and the importance of being quiet on the ice and the effect of noise.

 2013-25-01_PT.2 Sea Ice in Northern Alaska Nov 11, 2013