In 1974 and 1975, Dan Jorgensen traveled in Papua New Guinea’s Sanduan Province where he studied the initiation cult and mythology of the Telefolmin people. In 1981 Dan Jorgensen received his PhD in anthropology from UBC, writing a thesis about his travels and studies in Papua New Guinea. Since 1977 he has been a faculty member of University of Western Ontario in the Anthropology department. He specializes in the anthropology of religion
The 14th Dalai Lama, is a Tibetan Buddhist monk who is considered to be the first Dalai Lama to become a global figure, largely for his advocacy of Buddhism and of the rights of the people of Tibet. Despite his fame, he dispensed with much of the pomp surrounding his office, describing himself as a “simple Buddhist monk.” He was born Lhamo Dhondup in a small village called Taktser in northeastern Tibet. Born to a peasant family, His Holiness was recognized at the age of two. In accordance with Tibetan tradition, as the reincarnation of his predecessor the 13th Dalai Lama, His Holiness is an incarnation of Avalokiteshvar, the Buddha of Compassion.
Daisy May Sewid-Smith (née Sewid) was born in Alert Bay, BC, on November 28, 1938, daughter of Chief James Sewid and Flora Violet Alfred, and granddaughter of Agnes Alfred. After graduating school, she took a secretarial course at Vancouver College and worked for the Indian Affairs Branch in Alert Bay. During her time in Alert Bay, she published several articles and books about the prosecution of potlatches and the confiscation and return of artifacts by the Canadian government.
Daisy Sewid-Smith is one of the leading linguistic experts in the Kwakwakka’wakw community, teaching the language and developing a method to transcribe it. She wrote a grammar book for the Kwak’wala language. She also translated some of Franz Boas’ texts in the context of land claim issues and contributed to the UN convention on the rights of the child. Sewid-Smith works in the Faculty of Education at the University of Victoria and was a member of the Advisory Council for the Centre for Studies in Religion and Society.
In the late 1970s, her grandmother, Agnes Alfred, introduced her to Martine J. de Widerspach-Thor (later Martine J. Reid) with whom she recorded and translated her grandmother’s memoirs between 1979 and 1985. From then until the late 1990s, they put a hold in their project for personal and work-related reasons. In the late 1990s, they resumed their work, which lead to the publication of the book Paddling to Where I Stand in 2004.
Collections Care, Management and Access department
The Collection’s Care, Management and Access department (CCMA) of the Museum of Anthropology (MOA) was formed April 1, 2015, as part of a larger organizational restructuring. It combined the previously separate Collections Care & Management department and Library & Archives into a single department. The core functions of the former departments remain largely the same: to manage and preserve object, paper and digital collections; to facilitate public, community and academic access; and, to collaborate in the dissemination of knowledge through exhibitions, publications and training. One of the main goals in combining these previously distinct departments into CCMA was to better integrate the digital, archival and object collections (the tangible and intangible aspects of culture) to facilitate access and interpretation.
Members of CCMA also work with other units on UBC’s campus - including the Barber Learning Centre, the Endangered Languages Program and the development of the Truth and Reconciliation Unit – and help mobilize these relationships to assist with the implantation of new language initiatives at MOA.
The Head of CCMA is Heidi Swierenga, who became Head when the department was established in 2015 and remains so to the present (as of 2017).
For more detailed information about each of the areas within CCMA, see the records for Collections, Conservation, and the Audrey & Harry Hawthorn Library and Archives.
List of Past and Current CCMA Staff
• Audrey Hawthorn -- Curator of Ethnology, 1947-1983
• Audrey Shane -- Archivist/Librarian, 1975-1979
-- Curator of Documentation , 1979-1987
• Elizabeth Johnson -- Curator of Collections, 1979 - 1986
-- Curator of Ethnology/Documentation, 1986 - 2006
• Miriam Clavir -- Senior Conservator, 1980-2004
• Mauray Toutloff -- Conservator, 2009 - present (2017)
• Carol Mayer -- Museum curator (various titles), 1987 – present (2017)
-- Librarian (unofficial title), ca. 2000's
• Ann Stevenson -- Collections Manager, 1990- ca. 2003
-- RRN Programme Manager, 2004 - 2005
-- Information Manager , 2006 – present
-- AHHLA Department Head, 2011/2012 - 2018
• Allison Cronin -- Assistant Collections Manager, 1990-1996
-- Manager of Loans/Projects, 1996-2003
-- Loan Manager, 2004 - 2005
• Nancy Bruegeman -- Assistant Collections Manager, 1996-2003
-- Acting Collections Manager, ca. 2004-2005
-- Collections Manager, 2005 - present (2025)
• Darrin Morrison -- Preventative Conservation Specialist, 1991 - 1993
-- Project Manager, Conservation, 1993 – ca. 2003
-- Manager Conservation/Design, ca. 2004 - 2005
• Heidi Swierenga -- Collections/Conservation Intern, 1997-1998
-- Assistant Conservator, 2000- ca. 2002
-- Conservator, 2002 – ca.2013
-- Senior Conservator, ca. 2013-present (2017)
-- Collection Care & Management Dept. Head, ca. 2005-2016
-- CCMA Department Head, 2015 - present (2025)
• Susan Buchanan -- Documentation Coordinator/Collections Project Manager, 2004 - 2005
-- Collections and Loans Coordinator, 2005 -2014
-- Department Head, 2010 - 2011
• Candace Beisel -- Collections Technician, 2010-2018(?)
• Teija Dedi -- Acting Collections Research Facilitator, ca. 2012-2014
--Interim Loans Manager, 2014
-- Loans Manager, 2014 – present (2025)
• Caitlin Pilon -- Collections Assistant/Coordinator, 2014 – present (2025)
• Lisa Bruggen-Cate -- Collections Assistant, 2002 – 2005
• Magdalena Moore -- Collections & Loan Coordinator, 2006 – 2007
• Shabnam Honarbakhsh -- Acting Collections & Loans Coordinator, 2009 – 2010
-- Acting Conservator, 2010 – 2011
-- Project Conservator, 2012 - 2013
-- Preventative Conservator ? - present (2025)
• Krista Bergstrom -- Collections Assistant, 2006 - 2008
-- Collections Research Facilitator, 2008 – 2016
• Justine Dainard -- Librarian, 2002 – 2005
-- Research Manager (Library), 2006 - 2008
• Krisztina Laszlo -- Archivist, 1999 – 2014
• Shannon LaBelle -- Research Manager (Library), ca. 2009 - 2014
• Alissa Cherry -- Research Manager (Library & Archives), 2014 – present (2025)
• Gerry Lawson -- Oral History & Language Lab Coordinator, 2009 – present (2025)
• Elizabeth McManus - Archivist, 2014 – 2015
• Jessica Bushey -- Digitization Lead, 2006 - 2011
• Kyla Bailey -- Imager, 2007 – 2018(?)
Note: In addition to the staff listed above, numerous museum, library, and archives assistants, students, and interns were hired on a short term basis for CCMA work.
The Collections area is responsible for:
• care of the object collections
• registering and processing acquisitions
• managing the storage, movement and handling of objects
• managing the documentation of objects
• providing access to the collection
• dealing with requests for information about the collection
• managing the museum collection’s database
• managing the data in the museum’s online catalogue
• borrowing and safe keeping of objects for short term and long term loans
• exhibition installations, de-installations
• loaning out of objects to other institutions and individuals
• object photography
• deaccessioning museum objects
• providing training opportunities for studen ts and interns
• managing travelling exhibitions
Prior to 1976, the Curator of Ethnology, Audrey Hawthorn, was responsible for the above-mentioned activities, with the help of studen t volunteers and assistants, but specific duties were never clarified, nor were they officially attributed to particular individuals. From the late 1970s onwards, the Curator of Documentation and the Curator of Collections were responsible for care of the collections. By 1990, the staff had expanded to include a Collections Manager, part-time Loans Manager and Collections intern. In 1999, an Assistant Collections Manager was added. In the late 1990s Collections and Conservation staff became a department (Collections Care & Management), with a representative Head on the Executive Committee. From 2005 to 2010 the Collections and Conservation staff managed the Collections Research Enhancement Project (CREP) section of the MOA Renewal Project, which included more than 20 full-time temporary staff. In 2015, due to restructuring, the Collections Care & Management department was merged with the Library and Archives, forming the Collections Care, Management and Access Department.
Currently (as of 2017), the Collections staff consists of the Collections Manager, Loans Manager, two Collections Assistants and a part-time Imager, in addition to temporary studen t and contract workers. See the fonds level description for a list of individual Collections staff names.
Chief Willie Seaweed, known as Kwaxitola ("Smoky-Top"), was born in 1873 at a time when Kwakwakw'akw culture flourished. He died in 1967 having seen nearly a century of technological change, such as dugout canoes replaced by diesel-powered fishing boats and airplanes. A 'Nakwaxda'xw chief, he was born just eleven years before the passage of the anti-potlatch law. He did, however, create very elaborate art for potlatches. "The name 'Seaweed' is an anglicization of the Kwakwala 'Siwid', which can be translated as 'Paddling owner', 'Recipient of paddling', or 'Paddled to'; all metaphors for a great chief who sponsors potlatches to which guests come from far off" (Holm 1983). Seaweed was a singer, storyteller, wood carver, and artist who kept the traditional potlatches alive through the years in which it was illegal. Willie Seaweed was a traditional artist who passed on his skills to a younger generation and his work is scattered throughout collections in Canada and the United States.
Chief Thomas Hunt, was a singer, orator, and hereditary Chief of the Kwagulth Band of the Kwakwaka'wakw Nation. He was married to Emma (nee Billy) Hunt (Maxwalaogwa), the daughter of Mowachaht Chief and Shaman, Dr. Billy from Yuquot, Friendly Cove. Emma was an instructor of Kwagulth and Nuu-chah-nulth culture. Their children are: Ross Hunt Sr., Calvin Hunt, Tony Hunt, and Eugene Hunt and his grandfather was the renowned carver Mungo Martin.
Chief Joe Capilano (S7ápelek) (born on the traditional Squamish Nation territory in British Columbia and died 10 March 1910 in Yekw’ts, BC) was a Squamish Nation member who became one of the most influential Indigenous leaders in British Columbia, beginning in the late 19th century. His rise to this position was due in part to the encouragement of the Catholic Bishop who recognized S7ápelek’s devotion to his faith and his impressive abilities as an orator and leader. As the chosen successor to Chief Láwa Capilano, Joe S7ápelek became better known as Chief Joe Capilano and spent the rest of his life advocating for Canada’s recognition of Indigenous rights and title.
Ozistalis (Chief Henry Speck) worked as a fisherman, dancer, and song writer. He became chief of the Tlawitsis Nation when he succeeded his father. In the early 1960s, he became artistic director of the Kwakiutl House Project in Alert Bay, where he also pursued his artistic skills; he taught carving and dancing in Alert Bay. "His unique approach to Kwakwaka'wakw design opened a new range of possibilities for a generation of artists" (Ayotte, Gallery of Tribal Art, 1995). He was commissioned by Gyula Mayer, a Vancouver art and antiques dealer, who was interested in collecting Northwest Coast pieces for his gallery; it was Mayer who encouraged Speck to paint with watercolours. Many of these paintings by Speck and other artists at the time were sold to private collectors, museums, or were collected by Mayer. "...Speck's paintings speak to the viewer with a clarity and a sense of immediacy. A striking aspect of Speck's work is its ability to invoke a three-dimensional "space" within the confines of a limited design field" (Ayotte, 1995).
Chief Dan George, was a Tsleil-Waututh actor, poet, writer, activist, and public speaker who was chief of the Tsleil-Waututh Nation from 1951 to 1963. Born Geswanouth Slahoot, Dan George was raised on the Burrard reserve in North Vancouver. He received his English name, Dan George, at St. Paul’s residential school, where he was sent when he was five years old. Before he started acting at the age of 60, George had worked as longshoreman, construction worker, school-bus driver, logger and itinerant musician. By his film roles and personal appearances, Dan George helped improve the popular image of Indigenous people, often represented in stereotypical ways. George earned an Academy Award nomination for best supporting actor for his role in Little Big Man (1970) and won other awards for this role, including from the National Society of Film Critics and the New York Film Critics Circle. He was married to his wife, Amy George, for 51 years and was father to six: Amy Marie, Ann, Irene, Rose, Leonard, and Robert.
Billy Assu (Kwakwaka'wakw) became Chief of the Cape Mudge (now We Wai Kai) First Nation in 1891 when he was 24 years old. He built the first modern house in the village in 1894 and during the 1920s organized the replacement of all the traditional longhouses with modern housing. He was a fisher for most of his life, and bought the first gas fish boat at Cape Mudge. During the Depression, he helped to create the Pacific Coast Native Fishermen's Association, which later merged with the Native Brotherhood of BC. His son, Harry Assu, succeeded him as the first elected Chief of the Cape Mudge band (1954-70).
Hereditary Chief of the Da'naxda'xw / Awaetlala Nation of the Kwakwak'awakw people.
Chief Bill Cranmer (T̓łaḵwagila) is the son of Dan Cranmer, who hosted the 1921 potlatch now often referred to as the "Cranmer Potlatch" and the brother of Kwakwaka'wakw carver, artist, and 'Namgis Chief, Doug Cranmer (1927-2006), and activist, curator, and writer Gloria Cranmer Webster (1931-).
Chief Bill Cranmer has been a strong and vital voice for the sustainment of the ‘Namgis First Nation language and culture. He led the repatriation of cultural objects including masks, bentwood boxes, and regalia that were confiscated under duress in 1921 after a Kwakwaka’wakw potlatch held in the village of ‘Mimkwamlis on Village Island, BC. The confiscation was sanctioned through Canada’s “Anti Potlatch Law” which existed between 1884-1951. Twenty community members were sent to be imprisoned at the other end of the province because of practicing their traditions. A fluent speaker of Kwak’wala, Bill worked tirelessly to retrieve the appropriated pieces and raise awareness about the need to preserve and maintain language, history, and culture. The repatriation of some of the 750 confiscated items has had a significant positive impact on the community. He has travelled to Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and elsewhere to share the story, and present on behalf of the Assembly of First Nations and the First Peoples’ Cultural Foundation.
As Chief Councillor of the ‘Namgis First Nation, Bill negotiated economic treaties to develop businesses for his nation to prosper. Bill has spent numerous terms on the Executive Board of the Native Brotherhood of BC and has been an Elder/Cornerpost with the First Nations Health Authority, giving historical and cultural input into meetings. His efforts in the preservation of First Nations’ traditions have gone a very long way towards Reconciliation. In a speech at the 1980 opening of the U’mista Cultural Centre, which houses much of the reclaimed potlatch items, he said, “It’s important to know your past if you are going to fight for your future.” From: https://ltgov.bc.ca/t%CC%93la%E1%B8%B5wagila-chief-bill-cranmer/
On Monday, June 19, 2017, Bill Cranmer was presented with honours in Recognition of Outstanding Indigenous Leadership by David Johnston, Governor General of Canada. In June 2022, Chief Bill Cranmer was given a British Columbia Reconciliation Award.
Chief Albert Edward Edenshaw was born near Cape Ball on the east coast of Haida Gwaii. The uncle of Charles Edenshaw, Albert was the head chief of the Stastas, one of the Eagle divisions. In the 1840s, he piloted New England trading vessels and Royal Navy ships visiting Queen Charlotte waters. On Sept. 26, 1852, Edenshaw became a central figure in a historic event. Hired as pilot of the American schooner, Susan Sturgis, they encountered, head-on, canoe-loads of Masset Haida. Edenshaw was able to hold off the attack for seven hours, and was commended by Captain Matthew Rooney. He was known as an ironworker, coppersmith, jewelry-maker, and carver of large wooden poles. It has also been stated that he was very likely a carver of argillite, however, no pieces have been definitively assigned to him.
Charlotte Townsend-Gault is an art historian, author, curator, and Professor Emeritus of UBC's Department of Art History, Visual Art & Theory. Her research, teaching, and scholarship concerns contemporary visual and material Native American and First Nations cultures, particularly those of the Pacific Northwest. She is the co-editor of "Native Art of the Northwest Coast: A History of Changing Ideas" (2019, UBC Press) with Jennifer Kramer and Ḳi-Ke-In, a canonical text and historical survey of Northwest Coast First Nations' art.
Charles Sidney Leary (often referred to as Sid Leary) was born in England and moved overseas in 1907, eventually settling in Nakusp, British Columbia. He began working in the lumber industry and eventually came to own a mill. He served as an officer in the first World War, eventually rising to the rank of Captain. He was posted to Cyprus for timber operations in 1917 and it was there that he began to collect ancient artifacts. On returning to Canada, Leary continued to work in the timber industry. He later served as an MLA in the British Columbia Legislature, including two years as the Minister of Public Works. His collection of antiquities acquired in Cyprus was eventually shipped to Canada. After his death in 1950, his family donated his collection to the Museum of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia.
Charles S. Brant was born in Portland, Oregon in 1919. A life-long anthropologist, Brant began his academic career at Reed College where he obtained a B.A. 1941. In 1943, Brant completed his M.A. requirements at Yale University, where he was also University Scholar from 1941-1943. From 1943-1946 Brant served in the U.S. Army as part of the Medical Administration in India and China. With the support of Wenner-Gren and Fulbright awards, Brant undertook pre-doctoral research in the United States and Burma before completing his Ph.D. at Cornell University in 1951.
In the early years of his career, Brant taught at University of Michigan (1947-1948), Colgate University (1951-1952), University of California (1952-1953), and Sarah Lawrence College (1954-1956). Brant was also resident anthropologist at Albert Einstein College from 1956-1957. In 1957, Brant joined Portland State University as Assistant Professor. Brant moved to Canada in 1961 to take the position of Assistant Professor at the University of Alberta, and obtained Canadian citizenship six years later. Brant became head of the Department of Anthropology at the University of Alberta in 1963, and also directed the University’s Boreal Institute for Northern Studies from 1964-1967. In 1970, Brant left Alberta for Montreal to join the faculty at Sir George Williams University (now Concordia) as professor. Brant spent the last 12 years of his career there, retiring from teaching in 1982.
Brant is best known for his work on the Kiowa Apache through his book Jim Whitewolf: The Life of a Kiowa Apache Indian, originally published in 1969. In addition to his work on North American Native peoples and cultures, Brant had research interests in social organization and change in India and China; social change in Arctic regions (especially as it applied to Canada and Greenland); and in the problems of developing countries. During his career, Brant completed fieldwork in Burma, Greenland, the Canadian Arctic, and in Native American communities in California and Oklahoma.
Brant and his wife Jane were both photographers and life-long social activists. They had two sons. After his retirement in 1982, Brant moved to Gabriola Island, British Columbia. Brant passed away in 1991 at age 71 in Nanaimo, British Columbia.
Charles Kerry opened his studio in 1884, which later became Kerry and Co based in Sydney. In 1913 he toured the Pacific, taking photographs in Tonga, New Caledonia, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands and Samoa. The studio closed in 1917.