Hüch’i Äyi (Last Lake)

Hutchi was a gathering place for the Southern Tutchone people and later became a trading center on the Tlingit trading trail, which was later renamed the Dalton Trail. As this was an important gathering place, people from across the territory met at centrally located Hutchi to discuss common concerns. Hutchi was visited by Chilkat Tlingit traders during the 19th century fur trade period. The Chilkats would stop here on their return trips from Fort Selkirk to Klukwan. The Tlingit name meaning, “The Last Stop” derives from this period and refers to the process of saving some goods for this last trading stop on the route home. The coast Indians exchanged goods such as pots, guns, and beads for furs that the families had caught over the winter. [2]