Chichagof Island (russian: Остров Чичагова), or Shee Kaax, is an island in the

Alexander Archipelago The Alexander Archipelago (russian: Архипелаг Александра) is a long archipelago (group of islands) in North America lying off the southeastern coast of Alaska. It contains about 1,100 islands, the tops of submerged coastal m ...

of the Alaska Panhandle. At long and wide, it has a land area of , making it the fifth largest island in the United States and the 109th largest island in the world. Its coastline measures 742 miles. There was a 2000 census population of 1,342 persons. It is one of the ABC islands of Alaska. Chichagof Island has the highest population of

bears Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family Ursidae. They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the Nor ...

per square mile of any place on

Earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

.Carol Healy
Brown Bear Management Report
Alaska Department of Fish & Game, Dec. 2003 Chichagof Island is directly north of

Baranof Island Baranof Island is an island in the northern Alexander Archipelago in the Alaska Panhandle, in Alaska. The name Baranof was given in 1805 by Imperial Russian Navy captain Yuri Lisyansky, U. F. Lisianski to honor Alexander Andreyevich Baranov. It ...

, with

Peril Strait Peril Strait or Shee Káx’ is a strait in the Alexander Archipelago in southeastern Alaska. It is between Chichagof Island to its north and Baranof Island and Catherine Island (Alaska), Catherine Island to its south. The strait is long and r ...

separating the two islands. It is bounded by

Chatham Strait Chatham Strait, or Shee ya xhaak in the Tlingit language, is a narrow passage of the Alexander Archipelago in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of Alaska. It separates Chichagof Island and Baranof Island to its west from Admiralty Island ...

to the east,

Icy Strait The Icy Strait is a strait in the Alexander Archipelago in southeastern Alaska, at about . The strait separates Chichagof Island to the south and the Alaska mainland to the north. The strait is from its west side at the intersection of the Cro ...

to the northeast,

Cross Sound Cross Sound is a passage in the Alexander Archipelago in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of Alaska, located between Chichagof Island to its south and the mainland to its north. It is long and extends from the Gulf of Alaska to Icy Strai ...

to the northwest, and the

Gulf of Alaska The Gulf of Alaska (Tlingit: ''Yéil T'ooch’'') is an arm of the Pacific Ocean defined by the curve of the southern coast of Alaska, stretching from the Alaska Peninsula and Kodiak Island in the west to the Alexander Archipelago in the east, ...

to the west. Idaho Inlet 4315

The communities of

Hoonah Hoonah ( tli, Xunaa or ''Gaaw Yat’aḵ Aan'') is a largely Tlingit community on Chichagof Island, located in Alaska's panhandle in the southeast region of the state. It is west of Juneau, across the Alaskan Inside Passage. Hoonah is the only f ...

Pelican Pelicans (genus ''Pelecanus'') are a genus of large water birds that make up the family Pelecanidae. They are characterized by a long beak and a large throat pouch used for catching prey and draining water from the scooped-up contents before s ...

, Tenakee Springs, and

Elfin Cove Elfin Cove (Lingít: ''X̱’óot’k’'') is a census-designated place (CDP) near the northwestern corner of Chichagof Island in Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, Alaska, United States. The population was 20 at the 2010 census, down from 32 at the 20 ...

are all located on the northern half of Chichagof Island, in the Hoonah-Angoon Census Area. The southern half of the island comprises the northern part of the City and Borough of

Sitka russian: Ситка , native_name_lang = tli , settlement_type = Consolidated city-borough , image_skyline = File:Sitka 84 Elev 135.jpg , image_caption = Downtown Sitka in 1984 , image_size ...

. Only eight persons were counted in this portion of Sitka at the 2000 census. The primary economic sources for all these communities come from either Chichagof Island or the waters and fjords surrounding it.

Commercial fishing Commercial fishing is the activity of catching fish and other seafood for commercial profit, mostly from wild fisheries. It provides a large quantity of food to many countries around the world, but those who practice it as an industry must often ...

, guided hunting trips, charter fishing and logging are all vital economic facets of the local economies. This island is named after Admiral

Vasili Chichagov Vasili Yakovlevich Chichagov (russian: Василий Яковлевич Чичагов; 28 February 1726 – 4 April 1809) was an admiral in the Russian Navy and an explorer. He was the father of Pavel Chichagov, a Russian admiral during the ...

, a

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

n Arctic explorer who never visited Alaska. The entire island lies within the limits of

Tongass National Forest The Tongass National Forest () in Southeast Alaska is the largest U.S. National Forest at . Most of its area is temperate rain forest and is remote enough to be home to many species of endangered and rare flora and fauna. The Tongass, which i ...

. The western coastal portion has been officially designated as the West Chichagof-Yakobi Wilderness.

References

Chichagof Island Census Blocks, Sitka City and Borough and Skagway-Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, Alaska
United States Census Bureau {{Authority control Islands of the Alexander Archipelago Islands of Sitka, Alaska Islands of Hoonah–Angoon Census Area, Alaska Tongass National Forest Islands of Alaska Islands of Unorganized Borough, Alaska Tlingit