U.S. Navy Issues Apology for 1882 Bombardment of Tlingit Village

The apology comes 142 years after the Navy's attack on Angoon, Alaska, which left the community devastated and sparked intergenerational trauma.

The U.S. Navy formally apologized for the 1882 destruction of the Tlingit village of Angoon, where six children died and the community was left without shelter or food.
Rear Adm. Mark Sucato delivered the apology during a ceremony in Angoon, acknowledging the long-lasting pain and suffering caused by the attack.
The incident was sparked by the accidental death of a Tlingit shaman on a whaling ship, leading to tensions and a naval assault following unmet demands for compensation.
Despite a $90,000 settlement in 1973, the village had long sought an official apology, which was finally issued on the anniversary of the attack.
This apology follows a similar recent acknowledgment by the Navy for the destruction of another Tlingit village, Kake, in 1869, and the Army's plans to apologize for shelling Wrangell.