Duwamish Longhouse and Cultural Center

A great way to learn more about the Duwamish Culture.

They have a small bit informative exhibition about their tribe and it's history that I enjoyed, with a small store. They also accept donations. Even though this is the tribe that inhabited the Seattle area (which borrowed the name of their chief at the time), they are not federally recognized and can't benefit from the benefits of the treaties they signed. They also offer guided visits to the area, linking the land, the plants and geography to their history, which we really enjoyed (went with 3 young kids).

Small, but very cool. The gift shop has a wide variety of items at a bunch of price points and styles. The exhibits are free.

I belong to a group called Great Old Broads for Wilderness. We do field trips to educate ourselves, the tour guide was excellent, sorry I forgot his name. The gift shop is very nice and I was able to get some cool stickers for my grandkids. Highly recommend and encourage your school to take kids on a field trip.

Despite the U.S. government's lack of acknowledgement of the Duwamish people/sovereignty, this longhouse and museum is a place where past, present and future kiss. Hope, resiliency, and healing ALL live here! An entire history/culture was nearly erased- but resiliency reigns in First Nations people! Do visit, with humility and curiosity. This is a sacred place.

What a neat place. The Longhouse portion is entirely wooden, with historical photos and artwork on the walls. I can only imagine how glorious it is to attend community functions in the Longhouse. There's a smaller museum right when you come in, and there are ancient artifacts and older photos showcasing the Tribe's long history, including the pained remembrance of their forced relocation, and being banned from their true homeland of Seattle. Just being there made me feel reverence toward the People, and I felt honored to be there.

Duwamish Grounds: Duwamish Blend of new artisinal artisanal coffee beans (Medium Roast) available now at the longhouse gift shop, just in time for the holidays; And view ancient beverage making implements on display in the adjacent exhibit space; Free Admission.

Learn about what they did not teach you in school. People had a good life way before they even saw a white man. The Duwamish natives had intelligence beyond what the trappers could understand. Impressive displays of wool clothing. The staff was most helpful. I appreciated the answers to our questions. Well stocked gift shop. Did I mention that this place is free to visit?

The Duwamish longhouse is an event space you can rent. A fair sized parking lot is behind the building. Located on a busy road, it's easy to drive past without noticing, but inside is the history of Puget Sound and the indiginous people who live here. There is no fee to enter. At first I thought it was a gift shop, but several displays with artifacts and photos are to your right. There is a lot of information regarding the original topography, before civil engineers rerouted rivers and installed dams. It also documents how this activity contributed to the demise of some Duwamish people who relied on these waterways for food.. Artifacts include hunting and fishing gear, hand made baskets, herbs used medicinally and fibers used to make cloth are on display with information on how they are used. Very interesting. A lesson on living off the land. Inside the longhouse are photographs and a canoe you can checkout. This longhouse is built as the communal longhouses of the past were with an elevated platform around the edges that would have been used for sitting and sleeping. It's a beautiful space. After we read all the info (there's a lot of info) and looked at all the artifacts we browsed the gift shop and made a few purchases. They have a variety of artisan made products including beautiful blankets, jewelry, note cards and wall art among other things. We chatted with the staff member as we made our purchases. She answered a few questions we had and we chatted about family. She was very pleasant. This is a good stop for learning local history and purchasing local art.

If you live in south Seattle then you know well about the proximity of the Duwamish tribal lands (right under your feet) and that the longhouse, where many events are held, is nearby. We had never gone until this past weekend, though, when they held a craft fair. The longhouse is located very near the industrial port area, on the opposite side of Marginal Way, and is very nicely built (wood) yet small. There are two rooms, that we know. The first houses a museum of sorts. In the second was where they put the crafts and behind that is a small kitchen where they were selling a few items, including the hottest item (basically everyone came for this), the frybread. We felt honored to be hosted by the Duwamish. We picked up a beautiful beaded hummingbird. The reason I do not give five stars is because the space was so small, which made browsing the crafts very difficult. Normally I would have liked to learn so much more about each vendor and their items yet here you were lucky if you could even squish close enough to see or buy anything. A couple of vendor spots were less populated, I think because what they had on offer was less of an "easy" sell - gorgeous ledger art and handmade drums. Recommend a visit.

Amazing place, free to enter, just check in at the kiosk. Bathroom was just cleaned and was awesome, along with free menstrual products in there. There's also a large selection of gifts and duwamish tribe shirts and other goodies, they were also super kind in there :)

The real and original tribe of Seattle. i've had the pleasure of participating in several events here at the Duwamish Long House, and I'm never disappointed.

the duwamish longhouse was the site for the jingledressproject visit today and i'm glad i finally got to see the inside of a gorgeous facility that should be more visited and upheld in the west seattle community. i've seen it from the outside multiple times but the exhibits and knowledge shared within are....priceless! anyone spending any length of time in the seattle area owes it to themself to learn about the people whose land they're on. plain and simple. i know i will come back and make it a point to bring visitors to help support the tribe. there are holiday artisan fairs and other events throughout the year and i was very impressed by the heartfelt welcome and generosity displayed to visitors today. i live in close proximity to the longhouse and to be able to see the interactions and gratitude between the visiting navajo family and the local duwamish representatives was special. it was a powerful reminder of how much we can all stand to learn when we open our hearts and minds to new experiences and ways of life. so thankful that the duwamish longhouse could receive them on their journey and that a large crowd turned out in support of both groups. NOTE: people can and should sign the circulating petition to have the duwamish earn federal recognition as a tribe. it's long overdue!

I love the culture and history of the indigenous people of this country, the only true "Americans." Why their history is filled with such oppression and racially motivated hatred escapes my understanding of humanity. The Duwamish people are still attempting to be recognized by the United States government as a viable Indian tribe, holding on to their only property left, the Duwamish Longhouse & Cultural Center on about one acre. We should all be paying "rent" to the Duwamish tribe, since here in Seattle, we are ostensibly living on their land. I purchased a piece of Duwamish artwork today, something representing their rich culture. The Longhouse and Cultural Center should be visited by every class in the Seattle area, so kids can learn more about the indigenous people of the city they are living in. These are the ancestors of America. Shouldn't we treat them well? Yes.

Every settler in Seattle should know more about the history of this beautiful land and the first peoples who live here. I wish the longhouse was even bigger, with more to see. But there is plenty in the museum, and I quite enjoyed the gift shop. I look forward to returning to learn more, to supporting the Duwamish people however I can, and to hopefully attending a future event in the gorgeous meeting space inside the Duwamish Longhouse.

Upon entering, we were greeted by the receptionist who offered us coffee or other hot beverage. What a nice, warm greeting! She then told us about the video presentation called, I believe, Princess Angeline (daughter of Chief Seattle), which we watched. It was really informative and quite sad at the same time, as it is tells the story of how the Duwamish people helped the settlers and in turn were mistreated by them over the years. Sadly, it's not a unique story, but we truly appreciated learning more about the Native Americans who inhabited the area originally and the struggles they endured. We went to check out the museum, which is very small--just a handful of artifacts interspersed with the gift store items. Hopefully, there will be an opportunity for this space to grow its exhibits. The Long House wasn't being used, so we were able to see it. They did a nice job of creating a modern space with traditional elements. I really didn't know what to expect as I had visited a long house in Michigan that was a replica of an actual long house that the indigenous people there lived in. The long house at the Duwamish Cultural Center is not a traditional one, but it would be a beautiful space for an event. This place is definitely worth checking out.

Learn the history of Seattle by knowing the Duwamish Tribe, the first people of Seattle. History gives us the opportunity to learn from other's past mistakes and intentions. Becoming more aware would help us all respect and understand our beloved city. Support by visiting (minimal fee to enter) - check out their exhibits, watch some films and shop for gifts from their gift shop.

I recently attended an event at the Duwamish Longhouse. It was a well attended event and the parking lot was quickly filled up and overflow has to just go down the street. It's a little difficult without proper sidewalks. But, that said, the facility is nicely done and the workmanship of the building itself is very cool. It's a great facility.

I entered the cultural center a little after 10 am, shortly after its opening. Although there were plenty of employees around, I was not greeted or spoken to at all. It was quiet with none of the lights turned on. Because it was my first time, I would have loved to listen to a back story on the facility and all it has to offer to the community. My intent to visit the museum was to gather some inspiration from Duwamish basket weaving, as I am a textile designer myself. After viewing some art, textiles, and display exhibits I left after starting to feel uncomfortable and unwelcome. Plenty of employees walked past me and said nothing, but just stared. I decided to wrap it up, exited and get in my car. A woman came out of the museum to my car and asked me why I was exploring places of the facility that I was not supposed to be. At one point during my visit, I did go up a flight of stairs that I expected was a continuation of the museum but quickly turned around after seeing that it was a series of offices. After explaining that it was an accident, the woman asked me my intentions of being there and I explained that I was gathering textile inspiration. She asked if I was Native American (no) and then told me that I needed to look up "cultural appropriation". Only in Seattle.

Great event space supporting a great cause! We'd visited the museum in the Longhouse before we decided to get married there -- lots of information in the displays and from the staff. We had a wonderful experience working with Linda to plan and hold our event. She has useful advice based on holding many events in the space, but was flexible enough to work with our and the caterer's ideas, too. The Longhouse has a huge and well-equipped catering kitchen. The bathrooms are nice and good-sized. The parks across the street are an intriguing mix of nature and industry -- cool for pictures. The parking lot is on the small side. We got a permit from the Seattle Parks Dept to use their big parking lot about 1/4 mile north as overflow. Painless. Our guests raved about the venue and had a great time.

If you have not heard of the Duwamish Tribe, visit the Longhouse and Cultural Center. The land we know as Seattle was inhabited by the Duwamish people and learning about the history of this area is a humbling experience. I recently went there for an event. It is a beautiful building full of culture that helps to educate us all about this Tribe. Although I was there for an event, I took the opportunity to look around during my breaks. While there are events held in the rooms, you can always go there to look around in the common spaces - for free. There are exhibits, art, and stories to read and even things to buy. I didn't arrange the event, but just attended so I can't talk about the logistics other than what I saw. The main room we were in was absolutely beautiful and the details from the light fixtures, to the wood work, to the functionality of the room was fantastic. When we arrived in the morning, staff was there to help with everything we needed. At one point during the day, the group was having problems hearing each other across the room. A staff member came in to help with a microphone and it worked perfectly. I saw a commercial kitchen in the back that was used by the caterer. The tables and chairs were comfortable and there was ample places to sit around the room when we were on our breaks. The heat in the room seemed to work well and I didn't hear any complaints about temperature from anyone. The bathrooms were very clean, as was the entire facility. All in all, it made for a great day. I appreciated being able to learn more about the Duwamish Tribe and was happy to have a great space for our event.

We just had our wedding here in May and found this to be a hidden gem. At first, I was hesitant because it is located pretty far south in a post-industrial area of Seattle. I warmed to the location because of its gorgeous wood interior and exterior and it's proximity to two parks for wedding pictures. The Longhouse easily accommodated 100 guests and because the staff and caterer were willing to work with our needs, we were able to have access to the entire dance floor for after dinner square dancing, which our guests seemed to enjoy. Linda was helpful in brainstorming aspects of set-up and facilitating our event. Our guests enjoyed poking around the attached museum and learning about the Duwamish Tribes history and legal fight for recognition. The sound system was more than adequate, and our caterers seemed to appreciate the kitchen space. They mentioned that it was one of the nicer kitchens that they had worked in in the greater Seattle area. If you are looking for an event space that was specifically created to host events--look no further. After all, the Longhouse was made to accommodate the Duwamish Tribes many gatherings and has a warmth and uniqueness to it that I didn't feel in the other event spaces that we scouted which we ended up finding to be just too generic to meet our needs. And bonus, we had to do minimal decorating as the Longhouse is so stunning on its own--hanging colored streamers or schlepping in faux walls would have looked ridiculous!

We were not able to see Longhouse as it was being used for private event. The exhibit area is small but worthwhile. The docent was very kind and engaging with our children and shared stories about the Duwamish people and their history. If you are visiting with children, be sure to watch the video which has children speaking in native language and invites viewers to try a few words.

I do not recommend the Duwamish Longhouse as a rental space for weddings or other similar events. I had my wedding at the Duwamish Longhouse and the service we received before, during, and after our wedding was extremely poor and brought an incredible amount of undue stress to our event. The longhouse is culturally rich, beautiful and interesting, however. I would recommend it as a place to stop in and visit.

After reading about the plight of the Duwamish tribe on their website and watching a video tour, I wanted to visit this FREE museum. They don't get many visitors and were thrilled that we sought them out. Cecile Hansen, Chairman of the Tribe, opened the door for us and we were able to visit with her for a few minutes. My heart went out to the Native Americans after hearing about the injustice and suffering of these people. Watch the video at http://www.duwamishtribe.org/index.html and go visit. It's a small museum, but the artifacts are interesting. While you're at it, pick up a few souvenirs or make a contribution to their legal fund. They're located in an industrial area - be sure to get directions or set your GPS. There's a park down the street and The Hill, a recently recovered sacred place on the river. We didn't visit either, but you might want to explore them.