Career
He was from the Tsimshian community of Hartley Bay, British Columbia He was of the Gispwudwada or Killerwhale clan. As a child he moved to William Duncan"s mission at Metlakatla British Columbia, but when many Tsimshian migrated to Metlakatla Alaska in 1887, he was one of a group of families who moved back to their traditional territories and founded the new community of Hartley Bay. His leadership abilities were recognized and he became hereditary chief of the village early in the 20th century.
He worked all his life in the commercial fishing industry and also worked for Aboriginal rights.
He spoke to the McKenna-McBride Commission in 1913 and was one of the founders of the Native Brotherhood of British Columbia. He recorded some of his oral traditional knowledge with the Tsimshian ethnologist William Beynon, including a version of the story of Gwinaxnuusimgyet.