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Aleknagik
(uh-LECK-nuh-gik)
For Photos of Aleknagik click here
For a Map of Aleknagik click here
| Current Population: |
242
(2008 DCCED Certified Population)
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| Incorporation Type: |
2nd Class City |
| Borough Located In: |
Unorganized |
| Taxes: |
Sales: None,
Property: None, Special: None
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| Coastal Management District: |
Bristol Bay CRSA |
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| Location
and Climate |
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Aleknagik is located at the head of Wood River on the southeast end of Lake Aleknagik, 16 miles northwest of Dillingham. The community
lies at approximately 59.273060° North Latitude
and -158.617780° West Longitude.
(Sec. 31, T010S, R055W, Seward Meridian.)
Aleknagik is located in the
Bristol Bay Recording District.
The area encompasses 11.6
sq. miles of land and 7.2 sq. miles
of water.
Aleknagik is in a transitional climate zone. The primary influence is maritime, although a continental climate does affect the weather here. Average summer temperatures range from 30 to 66 °F. Average winter temperatures range from 4 to 30 °F. Annual precipitation is 20 to 35 inches and annual snowfall is 93 inches. Fog and low clouds are common during July and August and may preclude access. The lake and river are ice-free from June through mid-November. |
Topographic
map of
Aleknagik
area
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| History, Culture
and Demographics |
| Wood River and Aleknagik Lake have been used historically as summer fish camps. Aleknagik means "Wrong Way Home," because Natives returning to their homes along the Nushagak River would sometimes become lost in the fog and find themselves swept up the Wood River with the tide, inadvertently arriving at Aleknagik Lake. The 1929 U.S. Census found 55 people living in the "Wood River Village" area to the south. In 1930, there were five families living on the shores of the lake year-round: the Waskeys, Polleys, Hansons, Yakos, and Smiths. A log cabin territorial school was built on the south shore of the lake in 1933, and Josie Waskey was the first teacher. Attracted by the school, other facilities, and plentiful fish, game, and timber, a number of families from Goodnews, Togiak, and Kulukak relocated to Aleknagik. A post office was established in 1937. A two-story framed school with a teacher apartment was constructed in 1938. By 1939, Aleknagik had 78 residents, over 30 buildings, and a small sawmill. In the late 1940s, a Seventh-Day Adventist mission and school was established on the north shore. During the 1950s, a Moravian church and a Russian Orthodox church were built in Aleknagik and over 35 families lived along the lake. In 1959, the state constructed a 25-mile road connecting the south shore to Dillingham. The road was passable only during the summer months, until the late 1980s, when it was upgraded and maintained year-round. The city was incorporated in 1973. Over 24 additional square miles were annexed to the city in April 2000.
A federally-recognized tribe is located in the community -- the Native Village of Aleknagik.
The population of the community consists of 84.6%
Alaska Native or part Native.
It is a traditional Yup'ik Eskimo area, with historical influences from the Seventh-Day Adventists, Russian Orthodox, and Moravians. Fishing and subsistence activities are practiced.
During the 2000 U.S. Census,
total housing units numbered 107, and vacant housing units numbered 37.
Vacant housing units used
only seasonally numbered 21.
U.S. Census data for Year
2000 showed 69 residents
as employed. The unemployment rate at that time was
21.59 percent,
although
51.75 percent of
all adults were not in the work force. The median household
income was $22,750, per capita income was $10,973, and
40.77 percent of residents
were living below the poverty level.
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| Facilities,
Utilities, Schools and Health Care |
| The majority of residents (49 homes) have household plumbing, and most use individual wells. 12 homes do not have water or sewer service - some haul water from the community center, and a few are served by a spring water catchment system. Septic tanks, leechate fields and public sewage lagoons are used for sewage disposal. The North Shore uses eleven shared residential effluent pumps (REP units) which discharge into a piped system. There are three landfill sites. The North Shore landfill is being relocated; the South Shore landfill has an incinerator but is unfenced. A third landfill is located 2 miles from the South Shore, on the West side of the Aleknagik-Dillingham road. Nushagak Electric in Dillingham provides electricity to Aleknagik.
Electricity is provided by Nushagak Electric Cooperative.
There is one school located in the community,
attended by 33
students.
Local hospitals or health clinics include North Shore Health Clinic (907-842-5512), South Shore Health Clinic (907-842-2185) or Kanakanak Hospital in Dillingham.
Both, North and South Shore Clinics are Primary Health Care facilities. Aleknagik is classified as a highway village, it is found in EMS Region 2I in the Bristol Bay Region. Emergency Services have limited highway, air and aatellite access. Emergency service is provided by volunteers and a health aide
Auxiliary health care is provided by Aleknagik First Responders Group (907-842-2085); or Kanakanak Hospital in Dillingham (25 road miles).
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| Economy
and Transportation |
Many residents participate in commercial and subsistence activities on the Bristol Bay coast during the summer. 24 residents hold commercial fishing permits. Trapping is also an important means of income. Most families depend to some extent on subsistence activities to supplement their livelihoods. Salmon, freshwater fish, moose, caribou, and berries are harvested. Poor fish returns and prices since 1997 have significantly affected the community.
Aleknagik is the only regional village with a road link to Dillingham, a 25-mile road which connects the south shore. There are 4 runways in Aleknagik, one airport is a state-owned 2,040' long by 80' wide gravel airstrip located on the north shore, and regular flights are scheduled through Dillingham. The north shore of the lake is not road accessible; residents use skiffs to travel to town on the south shore. Moody's Aleknagik Seaplane Base, also on the north shore, accomodates float planes. The additional airstrips are private runways 12,00' by25 gravel dirt, located2 miles southeast of Aleknagik and 1,150 by 35' gravel runway. A breakwater, barge landing, boat launch ramp, and boat lift are available on the north shore. Vehicles, skiffs, ATVs, and snowmachines are the most frequent means of local transportation. |
Organizations
with Local Offices
City -
City of Aleknagik
P.O. Box 33
Aleknagik, AK 99555-0033
Phone 907-842-5953
Fax 907-842-2107
E-mail cityalek@gmail.com
Village Corporation -
Aleknagik Natives Limited
P.O. Box 1630
Dillingham, AK 99576-1630
Phone 907-842-2385
Fax 907-842-1662
Village Council -
Native Village of Aleknagik
P.O. Box 115
Aleknagik, AK 99555
Phone 907-842-2080
Fax 907-842-2081
E-mail newkgkvc@hotmail.com
Web http://www.bbna.com
Regional
Organizations
Regional Native Corporation - Bristol Bay Native Corporation
111 W 16th Ave, Suite 400
Anchorage, AK 99501-6299
Phone 907-278-3602
Fax 907-276-3924
E-mail jasonmetrokin@bbnc.net
Web http://www.bbnc.net
Regional Native Non-Profit - Bristol Bay Native Association
P.O. Box 310
Dillingham, AK 99576
Phone 907-842-5257
Fax 907-842-5932
E-mail randersen@bbna.com, vbraswell@bbna.com
Web http://www.bbna.com
Native Housing Authority - Bristol Bay Housing Authority
P.O. Box 50
Dillingham, AK 99576
Phone 907-842-5956
Fax 907-842-2784
E-mail dmcclure@bbha.org
Web http://www.bbha.org
CDQ Group - Bristol Bay Econ. Dev. Corp.
P.O. Box 1464
Dillingham, AK 99576-1464
Phone 907-842-4370
Fax 907-842-4336
E-mail sockeye1@nushtel.net
Web http://www.bbedc.com
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