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Chugach Museum

A new cultural gathering place taking shape in the heart of Anchorage, the Chugach Museum invites all visitors to learn from, connect with, and celebrate the living traditions of the Chugach region of Alaska.

Rooted in community leadership and guided by ancestral knowledge, this museum is a shared space where Chugach voices, values, and ways of knowing lead the way. Here, the Sugpiaq (Alutiiq) and Eyak peoples are honored not only in history, but in the strength and vibrancy of their living cultures, languages, and relationships to the land and sea.

Whether you arrive as a neighbor, a learner, or a guest, you are warmly welcomed into a place shaped by community, where the stories and languages of the Chugach region continue to thrive.

The Chugach Museum will serve as a cultural home for the peoples and histories of the Chugach region—Cordova, Seward, Valdez, Port Graham, Chenega, Nanwalek, Tatitlek, and Whittier. Located within the four-acre Village in the Citydevelopment at 36th and Old Seward, the new 12,000 square-foot museum will offer a welcoming “home away from home” for Chugach people and an engaging place of learning for all. 

Through participatory exhibitions, immersive storytelling, and community-driven programs, the museum will celebrate the resilience, creativity, and continuity of Chugach life. As a vibrant gathering place, it will honor the region’s past while uplifting living cultural traditions and future generations. 

Spanning more than 5,000 miles of coastline—from the southern Kenai Peninsula through the Kenai Fjords, Prince William Sound, and the Gulf of Alaska—the Chugach region is defined by deep ancestral knowledge and strong community ties. The museum will honor these histories and help ensure they continue to guide future generations.  Anchorage—Alaska’s largest and most visited city—offers a powerful opportunity to share the story of the Chugach people with the world.

Our semi-permanent exhibit and our first traveling exhibit are currently being developed closely in collaboration with Elders, cultural experts, artists, and community members from across the region. Together, we are designing a family-friendly experience that reflects the richness of Chugach cultural traditions, ancestral technologies, languages, and deep relationships with the land and sea.

In addition to the main semi-permanent exhibit, we are also creating a dedicated space for smaller short-term temporary and traveling exhibitions. These flexible areas will allow us to highlight timely topics, share new community-led projects, and bring in work from partner institutions.

These exhibitions will be shared throughout the Chugach region and beyond, creating meaningful opportunities for diverse audiences to learn from, connect with, and celebrate Chugach heritage and values.

The museum will include two flexible classroom spaces designed to support year-round teaching and learning. These spaces will host artist residencies, school programs, public events, and tour group experiences that allow visitors to learn directly from cultural knowledge holders.

A dedicated theatre will further expand the museum’s ability to offer immersive learning and community engagement. This venue will support film screenings, cultural performances, lectures, storytelling events, and youth programs—creating another dynamic environment for sharing knowledge and celebrating regional traditions.

With the Chugach Heritage Foundation also located in the building, the museum will have strong opportunities to partner on programs and educational initiatives. Collaborative workshops, co-developed cultural curriculum, year-round camps and shared public events will strengthen the connection between urban and rural communities. 

Together, these learning spaces create a center for cultural education throughout the year.

At the heart of the museum will be its collections, archives, and repository. Our current collection consists of more than 20,000 archaeological and archival objects on loan to the museum from the Chugach Alaska Corporation. The Chugach Museum will provide thoughtful, culturally grounded care for these materials through co-stewardship with the region. This space will ensure access for communities, researchers, artists, and future generations. 

As we grow, the museum will begin accepting additional repository loans from federal agencies, regional partners, and community organizations. These additions will expand the scope of materials connected to the cultural and historical landscape of the Chugach region. Alongside these loans, we will be developing a separate permanent collection that reflects community priorities, supports cultural revitalization, and strengthens the long-term stewardship responsibilities of the museum.

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Please follow along as we move closer to our goal of constructing the Chugach Museum and accomplish other organizational milestones.