Guide to the Donald Mitchell oral histories
1971-1999
Collection number: HMC-1099.
Creator: Mitchell, Donald, 1947 Jan. 23-.
Title: Donald Mitchell oral histories.
Dates: 1971-1999.
Volume of collection: 1.0 cubic feet.
Language of materials: Collection materials are in English.
Collection summary: Oral history interviews and recorded programs made during research for the author’s books, Sold American: The Story of Alaska Natives and their Land and Take My Land Take My Life: The Story of Congress’s Historic Settlement of Alaska Native Land Claims.
Biographical note:
Donald C. Mitchell (b. 1947) is an attorney practicing law in Washington D.C. and Alaska; he specializes in federal Indian Law. Mitchell has authored two books on the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act: Sold American: The Story of Alaska Natives and their Land and Take My Land and Take My Life: The Story of Congress’s Historic Settlement of Alaska Native Land Claims.
Collection description:
The collection consists of 73 oral history interviews found on 133 cassette and microcassette tapes conducted by Donald Mitchell with people involved in the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act. There are an additional 17 cassette tapes featuring speeches recorded at different Alaska Federation of Natives meetings, National Public Radio broadcasts and 4 tapes with unknown content. There are 150 total cassette tapes.
Arrangement: Audiocassette tapes have been kept in their original order.
Alternative formats: Transcripts of some of the recordings are available. Links to PDF copies of the transcripts can be found in the container list below.
Digitized copies: Digitized copies of some audio recordings are available online. Links to the audio can be found in the container list below. For information about obtaining digital copies, please contact Archives and Special Collections.
Access restrictions: Because of the condition and age of the tape stock, access is limited to digitized copies of the tapes. Digitization of the collection is underway. For those standard audiocassettes not yet digitized, requests may require 2-3 business days for digital copies to be created.
Rights note: Materials in collection not created by Donald Mitchell may be subject to copyright restrictions.
Preferred citation: Donald Mitchell oral histories, Archives and Special Collections, Consortium Library, University of Alaska Anchorage.
Works used in preparation of inventory: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/donald-craig-mitchell/#blogger_bio
Acquisition note: This collection was donated by Donald Mitchell in 2011.
Processing information: This collection was initially described by Jason Sylvestre in 2011. The item list of recordings below was provided by Donald Mitchell. Digitization for much of the collection was funded by a 2021 grant by the Atwood Foundation. Permissions were requested from interviewees or heirs to have the recordings posted online. Transcriptions were made by reporters at Pacific Rim Reporting. Updates to the finding aid based on the digitization project were made by Arlene Schmuland in 2021-2022.
Container list:
| Box/Tape | Description | Date |
| 1/1 | Richmond Allen (attorney, Department of Interior/Tlingit Haida Central Council. On-site access only. | 1989 September 28 |
| 1/2 | Wayne Aspinall (Chairman, House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs). On-site access only. Recordings courtesy University of Denver Special Collections and Archives. Use and duplication requests should be directed to the University of Denver Special Collections and Archives. | 1971 May 4, September 28, December 14 |
| 1/3-4 | Richard Baenen (attorney, NANA Corporation) (two tapes). Audio of tapes 3-4. Transcript of tapes 3-4. | 1999 March 4 |
| 1/5-7 | Ken Bass (attorney, Alaska Federation of Natives) (three tapes). On-site access only. | 1993 July 16 |
| 1/8 | Joe and Carolyn Begich (brother and sister-in-law of Congressman Nick Begich) Audio of tape 8. Transcript of tape 8. | 1994 February 9 |
| 1/9 | Ron Birch (Chief of Staff, United States Senator Ted Stevens). On-site access only. | 1993 July 14 |
| 1/10 | Red Boucher (Lieutenant Governor of Alaska). Audio of tape 10. Transcript of tape 10. | 1993 October 7 |
| 1/11-12 | Edgar Paul Boyko (Attorney General of Alaska) (two tapes). On-site access only. | 1991 February 5, 18 |
| 1/13 | Frank Bracken (Department of the Interior) Audio of tape 13. Transcript of tape 13. | 1992 September 10 |
| 1/14-16 | Terry Bracy (staff, House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs) Note: this interview also on 2 microcassettes. On-site access only. | 1994 June 1 |
| 1/17 | Mike Bradner (Member, House of Representatives). On-site access only. | 1990 October 5 |
| 1/18 | Rita Singer Brandeis (attorney, Department of the Interior). On-site access only. | 1992 August 8 |
| 1/19-22 | Bill Byler (Executive Director, Association on American Indian Affairs) (four tapes). On-site access only. | 1989 July 3, 1992 September 8 |
| 1/23 | Maurice Carmody (teacher, Native Village of Tyonek) Audio of tape 23. Transcript of tape 23. | 1993 February 11 |
| 1/24 | John Carver (Assistant Secretary of the Interior). On-site access only. | 1993 March 29 |
| 1/25 | Reid Chambers (attorney, Department of the Interior). On-site access only. | 1993 July 27 |
| 1/26-27 | Ramsey Clark (Attorney General of the United States/Attorney for Alaska Federation of Natives ) Audio of tapes 26-27. Transcript of tapes 26-27. | 1993 July 20 |
| 1/28-35 | Harry Crandell (staff, Wilderness Society) Note: eight tapes total. Tapes 28-31, the full-size audiocassettes, are second generation duplications of tapes 32-35 which are first generation microcassettes which are of higher quality and more complete. On-site access only. | 1994 May 17, June 14 |
| 1/36 | C. Emerson Duncan (law school classmate of United States Senator Ted Stevens). On-site access only. | 1993 July 27 |
| 1/37 | Wally Duncan (attorney, Department of the Interior). On-site access only. | 1989 September 25 |
| 1/38 | John Ehrlichman (Domestic Policy Advisor, Nixon White House). On-site access only. | 1992 September 18 |
| 1/39 | Roger Ernst (Assistant Secretary of the Interior). On-site access only. | 1994 January 5 |
| 1/40-41 | Victor Fischer (Alaska Constitutional Convention delegate/member, Alaska Territorial Legislature) Audio of tape 40 (1989). Transcript of tape 40. Audio of tape 41 (1997). Transcript of tape 41. | 1989 December 1
1997 August 25 |
| 1/42 | Hugh Gallagher (staff assistant, United States Senator Bob Bartlett/Lobbyist, British Petroleum) Audio of tape 42. Transcript of tape 42. | 1992 September 12
|
| 1/43 | Leonard Garment (staff, Nixon White House). On-site access only. | 1992 September 14 |
| 1/44-49 | Mike Gravel (United States Senator) (six tapes). On-site access only. |
1992 August 7
1993 August 5 1995 October 1 |
| 1/50 | Clint Gray (brother of Native Leader Nick Gray). On-site access only. | 1990 August 20 |
| 1/51 | Cliff Groh (attorney, Alaska Federation of Natives). On-site access only. | 1989 December 13 |
| 1/52 | Fred Harris (United States Senator). On-site access only. | 1993 January 4 |
| 1/53-54 | John Havelock (Attorney General of Alaska) (two tapes) Audio of tapes 53 and 54. Transcript of tapes 53 and 54. | 1994 May 17 |
| 1/55-58 | Willie Hensley (Northwest Arctic Native Association/Alaska Federation of Natives) (four tapes) On-site access only. | 1989 November 24
1991 July 31 1992 October 23 |
| 1/59 | Jude Henzler (friend of Howard Rock, Publisher of Tundra Times) On-site access only to audio and transcript. | 1989 November 22 |
| 1/60 | Jack Hession (Alaska staff, Sierra Club). On-site access only. | 1994 May 23 |
| 1/61 | Walter Hickel (Governor of Alaska/Secretary of the Interior) Audio of tape 61. Transcript of tape 61. | 1989 November 22 |
| 1/62-63 | Dave Hickok (staff, Federal Field Committee) (two tapes) Audio of tapes 62-63. Transcript of tapes 62-63. | 1992 July 16 |
| 1/64 | Frances Horn (attorney, Department of the Interior). On-site access only. | 1988 August 4 |
| 1/65, 2/78 | Bill Iverson (attorney, Alaska Federation of Natives) Tape 65, the full-size audiocassette, is a second generation duplication of tape 78 (box 2) which is a first generation microcassette of higher quality and more complete. On-site access only. | 1993 August 30 |
| 1/66-71 | Barry Jackson (attorney, Alaska Federation of Natives).(6 tapes including 1 microcassette). On-site access only.
|
1989 August 30
1991 October 18 1992 July 11 1993 October 7 |
| 1/72 | Ken Jensen (staff assistant, United States Senator Bob Bartlett) Audio of tape 72. Transcript of tape 72. | 1990 January 30 |
| 2/1 | Esther Kaloa (sister of Albert Kaloa, Native Village of Tyonek). On-site access only. | 1989 September 14 |
| 2/2 | John Katz (staff assistant, United States Senator Ted Stevens) Audio of tape 2. Transcript of tape 2. | 1992 September 11 |
| 2/3 | Bruce Kendall (Speaker, Alaska House of Representatives). On-site access only. | 1990 November 27 |
| 2/4 | Al Ketzler (Tanana Chief Conference) | 1989 August 31 |
| 2/5 | Bobbie Green Kilberg (staff, Nixon White House) On-site access only to audio and transcript. | 1992 June 24 |
| 2/6 | Niilo Koponen (relative of Henry Forbes) Audio of tape 6. Transcript of tape 6. | 1990 February 3 |
| 2/7 | Keith Lawton (clergyman, Kotzebue). On-site access only. | 1990 August 15 |
| 2/8-10 | Arthur Lazarus (attorney, Association on American Indian Affairs) (three tapes). On-site access only. | 1989 October 5
1993 July 26 |
| 2/11 | Flore Lekanof (Cook Inlet Native Association /Alaska Federation of Natives). On-site access only. | 1989 December 15 |
| 2/12 | Carl Marrs (President, Cook Inlet Region, Inc.) On-site access only. Recording of KSKA radio interview. | 1996 December 17 |
| 2/13-14 | Guy Martin (staff assistant, Congressman Nick Begich) (two tapes). On-site access only. | 1992 September 11 |
| 2/15 | Lloyd Meeds (Congressman and Member, House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs). On-site access only. | 1992 September 11
|
| 2/16 | Keith Miller (Governor of Alaska). On-site access only. | 1997 September 29 |
| 2/17-20 | Emil Notti (President, Alaska Federation of Natives)
(four tapes) Audio of tapes 17-18 (1989). Transcript of tapes 17-18. Audio of tapes 19-20 (1992). Transcript of tapes 19-20. |
1989 November 15
1992 October 30 |
| 2/21-22 | Adrian Parmeter (consultant, Alaska Federation Natives) (two tapes). On-site access only. | 1992 August 3 |
| 2/23 | Bradley Patterson (staff, Nixon White House). On-site access only. | 1992 June 25 |
| 2/24-27 | Fred Paul (son of William Paul/Attorney, Arctic Slope Native Association) (four tapes). On-site access only. | 1987 March 26
1992 July 30 |
| 2/28 | Ralph Perdue (Fairbanks Native Association/Tanana Chiefs Conference) Audio of tape 28. Transcript of tape 28. | 1989 August 30 |
| 2/29-30 | Roy Peratrovich (Grand President Alaska Native Brotherhood) (tape 30 is a duplicate of tape 29) Audio of tape 29. Transcript of tape 29. | 1988 August 16 |
| 2/31 | Howard Pollock (Alaska Congressman). On-site access only. | 1993 July 1 |
| 2/32-33 | Robert Price (attorney, Alaska Department of Law) (two tapes). On-site access only. | 1997 October 28 |
| 2/34 | Daniel Rezneck (attorney, Native Village of Stevens). On-site access only. | 1998 June 6 |
| 2/35 | Irene Rowan (Native Village of Klukwan) On-site access only. | 1990 September 21 |
| 2/36 | Lewis Sigler (attorney, House Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs). On-site access only. | 1992 September 16 |
| 2/37-38 | Ted Stevens (United States Senator). Audio of tape 37, audio of tape 37 (1989). Transcript of tape 37, transcript of tape 38 (1993). | 1989 December 18
1993 December 2 |
| 2/39 | George Sundborg (administrative assistant to United States Senator Ernest Gruening). On-site access only. | 1991 November 16 |
| 2/40 | Letters dictated by Frank Ferguson, president of AFN, to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Paul Tsongas. Topics include migratory bird treaties and subsistence and designation of wild and scenic rivers and power costs. On-site access only. | Undated |
| 2/41 | Stewart Udall (Secretary of the Interior) (small tape). On-site access only. | 1994 October 7 |
| 2/42 | Joe Upicksoun (President, Arctic Slope Native Association). Recording of speech delivered to Alaska Federation of Natives convention. On reverse side, excerpt of recorded interview with a Minto resident about Alaska Native words for birds. On-site access only. | 1971 December 18 |
| 2/43-48 | William Van Ness (attorney, Senate Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs) (6 tapes). On-site access only. | 1992 September 22
1996 July 11 |
| 2/49 | Edgar and Peggy Wayburn (Sierra Club). On-site access only. | 1994 July 19 |
| 2/50-51 | Ed Weinberg (Solicitor Department of the Interior/ Attorney, Alaska Federation of Natives) (2 tapes). On-site access only. | 1989 September 28
1992 September 10 |
| 2/52 | John Whitaker (staff, Nixon White House). On-site access only. | 1992 September 17 |
| 2/53-55 | Jim Wickwire (attorney, Arctic Slope Native Association) (three tapes). On-site access only. | 1992 July 29-30 |
| 2/56 | David Wolf (attorney, Native Village of Stevens) Recording and transcript available for on-site access only. | 1992 October 21 |
| 2/57-61 | Don Wright (President, Alaska Federation of Natives) (five tapes) On-site access only to audio of all tapes and transcript of tapes 59-61. Tapes 57-58: 1979 recording of classroom lecture. Tapes 59-61: 1992 interview with Don Mitchell. | 1979 December 18
1992 August 26 |
| 2/62-63 | Bristol Bay Native Convention (two tapes) On-site access only. | 1983 December |
| 2/64-65 | Perry Eaton (2 tapes) On-site access only. Recording of classroom lecture. | 1979 December 4 |
| 2/66-68 | Alaska Federation of Natives Convention (ANCSA History Panel) (3 tapes) On-site access only. | 1991 October 17 |
| 2/69 | Alaska Federation of Natives Convention (Panel: Defining the Native Future). On-site access only. | 1998 October 16 |
| 2/70 | All Things Considered (Native American Youth) On-site access only. | 1990 September 14 |
| 2/71-72 | Alaska Public Radio Network (ANSCA) (two tapes) On-site access only. | 1996 December |
| 2/73-74 | Subsistence Conferences (two tapes) On-site access only. | Undated |
| 2/75 | Western Media (Holding our Ground) On-site access only. | Undated |
| 2/76 | Unlabeled tape: partial Fisheries Board meeting. On-site access only. | 1986-1987? |
| 2/77 | Unlabeled tape: unknown meeting, possibly a committee within the Alaska Federation of Natives. On-site access only. | Undated |