Iñupiat Heritage Center

Dedicated in February 1999, it is an affiliated area of New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park in New Bedford, Massachusetts, and recognizes the contributions of Alaska Natives to the history of whaling.

The Heritage Center is one of several associated partners that participate in telling the story of commercial whaling in the United States.

Park partners operate independently but collaborate in a variety of educational and interpretive programs.

The whalers developed the following route for their voyage of over 20,000 miles: to the Azore islands off the coast of Africa, around Cape Horn and the southernmost tip of South America, to the Hawaiian Islands, and finally to the Bering Sea and Arctic Ocean.

Many Alaska Natives, particularly Iñupiat Eskimo people, participated in commercial whaling.