Funny River is a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the count ...

(CDP) in

Kenai Peninsula Borough Kenai Peninsula Borough is a borough of the U.S. state of Alaska. As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,799, up from 55,400 in 2010. The borough seat is Soldotna, the largest city is Kenai, and the most populated community is the ce ...

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. At the 2010 census the population was 877, up from 636 in 2000. It is best known for the Funny River Fire in May 2014.

Geography

Funny River is located on the northwestern side of the

Kenai Peninsula The Kenai Peninsula ( Dena'ina: ''Yaghenen'') is a large peninsula jutting from the coast of Southcentral Alaska. The name Kenai (, ) is derived from the word "Kenaitze" or "Kenaitze Indian Tribe", the name of the Native Athabascan Alaskan trib ...

at (60.493952, -150.781743). It is bordered to the west by

Soldotna Soldotna is a city in the Kenai Peninsula Borough in the U.S. state of Alaska. At the 2020 census, the population was 4,342, up from 4,163 in 2010. It is the seat of the Kenai Peninsula Borough. Soldotna is located in the Southcentral portion ...

and to the north by the

Kenai River The Kenai River called ''Kahtnu'' in the Dena'ina language, is the longest river in the Kenai Peninsula of southcentral Alaska. It runs westward from Kenai Lake in the Kenai Mountains, through the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge and Skilak Lak ...

, across which is the CDP of Sterling. Road access to the community is only from Soldotna, as there are no bridges across the Kenai River between Funny River and Sterling. The Funny River, for which the community is named, enters the CDP from the south and joins the Kenai River upstream from (east of) Soldotna. Browns Lake is in the eastern part of the CDP. According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of t ...

, the Funny River CDP has a total area of , of which are land and , or 7.70%, are water.

Demographics

Funny River first appeared on the 2000 U.S. Census as a census-designated place (CDP). As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

of 2010, there were 877 people, 278 households, and 182 families residing in the CDP. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: Stock (disambiguation), standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical ...

was 23.4 people per square mile (9.0/km²). There were 621 housing units at an average density of 22.8/sq mi (8.8/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was 93.71%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White o ...

, 1.73% Native American, 1.10%

Asian Asian may refer to: * Items from or related to the continent of Asia: ** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia ** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia ** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...

, 1.42% from

other races Other often refers to: * Other (philosophy), a concept in psychology and philosophy Other or The Other may also refer to: Film and television * ''The Other'' (1913 film), a German silent film directed by Max Mack * ''The Other'' (1930 film), a ...

, and 2.04% from two or more races. 0.47% of the population were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race. There were 278 households, out of which 22.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.9% were married couples living together, 3.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.5% were non-families. 25.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.80. In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 20.1% under the age of 18, 3.8% from 18 to 24, 25.9% from 25 to 44, 38.7% from 45 to 64, and 11.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females, there were 114.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 119.9 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $43,047, and the median income for a family was $51,518. Males had a median income of $29,821 versus $21,875 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the CDP was $22,648. About 3.2% of families and 3.5% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for t ...

, including 5.9% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.

References

{{authority control Census-designated places in Kenai Peninsula Borough, Alaska Census-designated places in Alaska