Would you guess that there are 29 federally recognized Native American tribes in Washington State? Well, tiz so. Suz Bennett is the tribal historian for the Klallam Tribe in Port Angeles. She explained to me that there are three “parts” to the Klallam Tribe: Port Gamble, Jamestown and Klallam. All have health clinics, housing and casinos and all speak the same language but they are “separate but equal.” 

The Elwha Tribal Center in Port Angeles (in the old Carnegie Library) is where to start learning about the Klallam peoples. When I visited there in May 2026, Suz was a deee-lightful tour guide. She showed me a 1000 pages dictionary of Klallam words…… for instance, the word for “sheep” is lemetu, pronounced “leMEtu.” She explained that the site of their ancestral village is now a weedy fenced lot at the entrance to Ediz Hook but they have future plans for an interpretive center. She gave me a colored map of Clallam and Jefferson counties with dots showing the 26 sites of S’Klallam Villages of yesterday. 

The Center is open 8:00-4:30, Monday through Friday, and would welcome your visit. 

The Center has artifacts and exhibits which taught me more about these native peoples. Thank you, Suz, and may the Elwha Tribal Center thrive!