Darrell Greer
Northern News Services

Baker Lake (Mar 27/00) - The Baker Lake Inuit Heritage Centre continues to improve upon its already impressive number of displays.

The centre is eagerly awaiting its latest acquisition, which represents one of the most thorough Northern historical chronicles of the past century.

In 1922, the Fifth Thule Expedition, led by Greenland native Knud Rasmussen, came through Baker Lake while exploring the North.

The group documented their visit with photographs of the area which are finally on their way home.

Centre curator David Webster received a Millennium Grant to order the 200 photos at a cost of $4,000.

"They should be here any day and we're going to scan them, put them on CDs and make an exhibition on our wall," says Webster.

"We're going to have our local elders identify as many of the people in the photos as they can."

The expedition also passed through Arviat during its journey and the centre is going to share the photos with that community.

"There are a lot of people from Arviat in the photos, so we're going to make copies for the Arviat Historical Society.

"The information-gathering expedition was well equipped with archaeologists, photographers and biologists.

"The Indian and Northern Affairs library has 12 thick volumes of information about traditional music, games, clothing -- it's pretty much the best source of information on Inuit culture you can get."

Baker's Inuit Heritage Centre has also started a project to document Baker Lake legends.

The centre has already collected some legends through its oral history projects, but nothing of this magnitude.

"We've hired an elder, Winnie Owingayak, to collect the legends and then we'll translate into English so we'll have them in both languages.

"We'll be taking photos of every elder she interviews and hiring a local artist to illustrate the legends."

Webster says there's no money to publish the collection yet, but a finished volume will be displayed at the centre for public viewing.

"Some projects have deadlines and pressure, but, with this one, I told Winnie to take her time and whenever it's finished, it's finished.

"She's already started and we'll keep plugging away. We hope to have it finished by the summer."