Michael Livingston: Unangax̂ historian corrects the historical record of Benny Benson, designer of the Alaska state flag

Send us Fan MailDr. Michael Livingston is an Unangax̂ historian. The Unangax̂ are the indigenous people of the Aleutian Islands, also known by the Russian-given name Aleut. For many years it was thought that Benny Benson designed the Alaska state flag when he was 13 and that, because he had been born in Chignik, that he was Alutiiq. But thanks to the research and persistence of our guest today, Benny Benson’s birth certificate was posthumously corrected; we now know he was 14 when he designed the Alaska state flag. We also know that Benny’s maternal ancestors are from Unalaska making Benny Unangax̂, not Alutiiq. We discuss Dr. Michael Livingston’s own story, Unangax̂ history, and Benny Benson.