Hundreds celebrated at a dedication ceremony Saturday the first dozen of 30 new totem poles along the Juneau waterfront that will comprise Kootéeyaa Deiyí, Totem Pole Trail.

Over the past week, the poles carved by Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian artists were raised along the downtown waterfront, each depicting the crests of their respective clans and tribes. Most of the artists spent more than six months creating the poles after being commissioned by Sealaska Heritage Institute, which launched the Kootéeyaa Deiyí initiative in 2021 through a $2.9 million grant from the Mellon Foundation.

The...