John Tizya Centre

The John Tizya Centre provides visitors to Old Crow with the opportunity to experience the park from afar, and to learn about Vuntut Gwitchin culture and other protected areas in the Vuntut Gwitchin Traditional Territory. It is also a place for community members to learn about their culture, land and language.   The centre houses the Vuntut Gwitchin Government Heritage offices where oral history research, traditional land mapping and cultural skills are part of the daily work.

The cultural centre is named after John Tizya, a respected Vuntut Gwitchin Elder, educator, trapper, catechist, and hunter, who raised his family on the land and built one of the first cabins at the site of present day Old Crow.  Take a guided tour of the exhibits, listen to audio recordings of elders’ stories, admire traditional bone and stone tools, learn about the magnificent Porcupine Caribou Herd, and find out what life was like in the ancient Beringian landscapes of the last ice age.

Monday to Friday:
9 am to 12 noon and 1 pm to 4:30pm

The John Tizya Centre was built through a partnership between Parks Canada and the Vuntut Gwitchin Government, with support from the Yukon Government.   In addition to the visitor centre and interpretive exhibits, Parks Canada and Vuntut Gwitchin Government Heritage Department offices are located here, along with the North Yukon Renewable Resources Council and other Yukon Government offices. 

Set in the heart of the old downtown Old Crow, originally a seasonal fishing camp, the John Tizya Centre blends modern innovation and traditional heritage as it presents Vuntut Gwitchin culture and the natural wonders of the national park and the northern Yukon region.   Specially engineered and built for life in a sub-arctic, permafrost setting and lined with solar photovoltaic panels, the building’s modern design provides a striking example of how the people of Old Crow choose to balance their strong connection to the past with their vision for the future.