A Story Told by Our Totem Pole

A Story Told by Our Totem Pole. . , The carving at the bottom of the pole is a representation of the mythical American Indian creature Dsonoquo with a baby, a traditional totem pole motif., The second level stands for a beaver, an animal once common along the Susquehanna River., A fish jumping from the water below a series of steps was carved on the third level at the request of museum personnel, to commemorate the origin of the site now known as Indian Steps., The fourth level of the pole shows a turtle, a symbolic creature of early Native Americans who previously lived in the area., A raven and an Indian figurehead are expressed on the fifth and sixth levels of the pole., The top level is shaped like a thunderbird, a mythical creature that stands for power, strength and battle., Indian Steps , Totem Pole History , Totem poles were originally created by the American Indians of the Pacific Northwest, and were intended to tell stories or describe family lineages. The first totem pole at Indian Steps was a 28 ft. tall cedar monument made by a Blackfoot Indian, Red Fox Skihushu, aided by his cousin Te-Da-De-Wen-Ren in the early 1920's and was replaced in 1957 by an 18 ft. tall pole, carved by Gordon Hanna, a Sioux Indian from Maryland., The present 36 ft. tall totem pole was crafted in 1989 by seven members of Yorkcarvers, a local woodcarving group, who followed traditional patterns of northwest American Indian carvings.