Name/Title
Chief Si'ahl (Chief Seattle)Entry/Object ID
2025.001.017Description
Photograph of Chief Si'ahl (Chief Seattle), the only photograph of him known to exist. C. 1864.
The name “Seattle” is an Anglicization of Si'ahl (1780-1866), the most famous dxʷdəwʔabš chief. Si’ahl's mother Sholeetsa was dxʷdəwʔabš and his father Shweabe was chief of the the Suquamish Tribe. It is said that Si’ahl was born at his mother's dxʷdəwʔabš village of Stukw on the Black River, in what is now the city of Kent. By 1851, Chief Si'ahl was a venerable leader respected for his peaceful ways, not his prowess at war. Chief Si'ahl and other members of the dxʷdəwʔabš Nation greeted the first European-American immigrants when they arrived at Alki Point, near Duwamish Head in what is now West Seattle.
From the early years of European-American settlement, Chief Si'ahl and the dxʷdəwʔabš worked hard to be protectors and benefactors of the immigrants. European-American immigrants perceived that Chief Si'ahl was an intelligent man striving to live amicably and peacefully with the newcomers.Photograph Details
Subject Person or Organization
Si'ahl, Chief