George Edzerza Agouta (1908 – 1987)
George Agouta Edzerza was born in Goondachagga (Tahltan village/Telegraph Creek) to parents Etheny (Mary) and George Edzerza. His was a hereditary chief’s family. George followed his uncle Nonnock’s teaching and at age fourteen walked to Treaty Creek to participate in and witness a peace treaty gathering with the Nisga’a Nation. Not formally educated, he was a prodigious reader and kept up with local, provincial, and national politics. George and his wife Grace homesteaded by the Stikine River. The family moved to Lower Post in 1943, and George was enfranchised so he could own property and the children would not have to attend residential school.1) George also gave up his hereditary chief status.2) The family moved again in the 1950s, this time to Atlin where George owned and operated Cassiar Safari Outfitting, catering to Americans and Europeans. George retired to Whitehorse in 1968.3)
George and Grace's daughter, Millie Johnstone, was a long-standing member of YANSI and served as president of the Carmacks Local from 1975 to 1978. She helped organize projects including Winter Warmth.4)