Photographs taken during the interview with Bill and Lill Fickus.
Bill Fickus
Born in 1928 and originally from Pennsylvania, Bill Fickus came to Alaska in 1956. Bill was a pilot, guide, and miner. In 1959, he married Lill who was from Arctic Village and Fort Yukon. In 1963, they moved to Crevice Creek, about forty miles north of Bettles, where they lived year-round on a remote homestead hunting, gathering, and raising their own food. They also raised and educated their children there.
Lill Fickus
Lillian "Lill" Fickus was born in Arctic Village, Alaska and then moved to Fork Yukon when she was ten years old. Her father was from Old Crow and her mother from Arctic Village. She grew up living a traditional subsistence lifestyle where the family moved from camp to camp following the seasons. As a teenager, she went to school at Mt. Edgecumbe in Sitka and since she wanted to be a nurse she worked at the hospital in Fort Yukon in the summer. In 1959, she married Bill Fickus. In 1963, they moved to Crevice Creek, about forty miles north of Bettles, where they lived year-round on a remote homestead hunting, gathering, and raising their own food. They also raised and educated their children there. Lill was a prolific and talented Alaska Native artist, beading beautiful articles of clothing and accessories. For more about Lill Fickus, see her obituary in the Fairbanks Daily News Miner newspaper.