From the beginning, the United States vacillated on how to 

enumerate American Indians. The U.S. Constitution 

specifically excluded “Indians not taxed” (defined as those 

living in tribal relations as part of a sovereign community) 

from the census count. However, the federal government 

soon recognized that they would have to count the 

American Indian population, even if the numbers were not 

part of the apportionment decisions. In 1850, the United 

States began sporadically conducting separate censuses for 

these communities, a practice that continued for almost 

100 years. In 1860, for the first time, American Indians not 

living on tribal lands had their own racial category on the 

census. The 1880 Census contained the first full count of 

Alaska Natives, while the 1900 Census was the first to 

count and classify all Indians living in the United States, 

regardless of their status. Throughout the evolution of the 

enumeration of American Indians and Alaskan Natives, 

census officials have embraced the hiring of a diverse 

workforce representative of the local communities. 

Ekaterina Pelagia Dyakanoff, known as Kathryn, was born on 

December 7, 1884, on the Aleutian Island of Unalaska to Nikifor 

and Pelagia Dyakanoff, both Aleut Indians. Kathryn began 

attending a local Methodist boarding school in 1894. At the age 

of 12, the Alaska Commissioner of Education recognized her 

intelligence and sent Kathryn to the Carlisle Indian Industrial 

School in Pennsylvania, where she graduated in 1906. After 

receiving her teaching degree from the West Chester Normal 

School in 1909, Kathryn returned to Alaska to teach at Sitka. On 

June 1, 1910, while visiting Seattle at the close of the school year, 

Kathryn married Harry G. Seller, an Englishman who had 

emigrated to the United States after the Boer War. They met while 

she was studying on the east coast and eventually they had a total 

of seven children.

Following their marriage, Kathyrn and Harry were commissioned 

by the U.S. government to build a government school in 

Atka in the Aleutian Islands—an area so remote that it only 

received mail once a year. They lived in Atka for 4 years

and helped to establish the first cooperative store, radio 

station, and library. Harry also acted as a game warden. 

The family then moved to the Alitak Bay area on Kodiak 

Island, where they taught at various villages for 6 years. 

 

Aleut Teacher, Community Leader, Census Enumerator

Kathryn and Harry, c. 1910

Bruce Parham, “Seller, Harry G.,” Cook Inlet Historical 

Society, Legends & Legacies, Anchorage, 1910-1940, 

http://www.alaskahistory.org (accessed 1 Sep 2017)

Alaska Women’s Hall of Fame (accessed 1 Sep 2017)

Fairbanks Daily News-Miner (Fairbanks, AS) 29 Sep 1939
In 1919, Kathryn lost both her parents to the Spanish flu. In 1920, Harry served as one of the 

enumerators on Kodiak Island, where Kathryn helped her husband as an Aleutian translator. 

The Seller family then moved to Tyonek on Cook Inlet, 

where Kathryn was both a teacher and the school

superintendent for a year. Following their move to 

Anchorage, Kathryn was able to take a break from 

teaching to raise her children. She remained active in 

the community and kept house while her children 

attended high school. Harry continued working in 

various government jobs as well as for the railroad, until 

he passed away in 1936. Following the death of her 

husband, Kathryn returned to Akhiok village on Kodiak 

Island where she resumed teaching. 

As a well-respected local with previous official 

government and census experience, Kathryn stood out 

as a perfect candidate for census taker and received the 

assignment to enumerate parts of Kodiak Island in 1940. 

Despite Census Day falling on April 1, 1940, for most of 

the United States, the census of Alaska commenced on 

October 1, 1939, or as soon after that date as 

enumerators could be assigned and trained. From 

previous experience, the U.S. Census Bureau realized that the distances and difficulties of 

enumerating Alaska’s sparse population required significantly more time, and census officials 

allocated a year for the completion of census schedules.

The 1940 Census marked the start of a 

separate schedule for housing questions. 

Although previous censuses had recorded 

information on dwellings, the new 

schedule expanded on previous questions. 

The late adoption date of the housing 

schedule meant that some enumerators 

found themselves compelled to complete 

two rounds of questioning after waiting on delayed schedules. Despite these potential difficulties,

which compounded those provided by the Alaskan environment, Kathryn commenced taking the 

population census on November 5, 1939, and finished on December 16, 1939, during which time 

she enumerated 82 people. 

Kathryn retired from teaching in 1948. Although she moved to California to be near her remaining 

children, Kathryn never forgot her roots. Long known as one of the best basket weavers among 

the Aleutians, Kathryn continued to educate and share her native culture with others during her 

retirement. In 1950, the U.S. Department of the Interior recognized her life of public service and

Congress awarded Kathryn a medal. Kathryn passed away in San Francisco on June 17, 1980. In 

2017, Alaska honored her with induction 

into the Alaska Women’s Hall of Fame as 

“an outspoken advocate and strong 

activist for the rights and culture of her 

people...In her career, she influenced 

thousands of adults and children across 

Alaska.”

The Census Bureau is thankful for 

Kathryn’s contributions to our nation and 

her community.

Kathryn and her children, c. 1922

Sunset Magazine (Dec 1922), Vol 49, No. 6

Kathryn, left, weaving baskets, 1924

Alaska State Museum Concepts (Jul 1994) No. 8

Kathryn’s self-enumerated 1939 Census

HB-18-0002