Delta Junction (; ) is a

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

in Southeast Fairbanks Census Area, Alaska, United States. As of the 2020 census, its population was 918. The city is located a short distance south of the confluence of the Delta River with the Tanana River, which is at Big Delta. It is about south of Fairbanks. Native inhabitants are Tanana Athabaskans.

History

For at least 10,000 years,

Athabascan Athabaskan ( ; also spelled ''Athabascan'', ''Athapaskan'' or ''Athapascan'', and also known as Dene) is a large branch of the Na-Dene language family of North America, located in western North America in three areal language groups: Northern, ...

indigenous peoples have inhabited portions of the interior of

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

. Early inhabitants survived by hunting and fishing. The early history of non-native settlement in the area occurred at the river crossing at Big Delta and is found at the entry, Big Delta, Alaska. In 1904, the location first served as a telegraph station. In 1928, a herd of 23

bison A bison (: bison) is a large bovine in the genus ''Bison'' (from Greek, meaning 'wild ox') within the tribe Bovini. Two extant taxon, extant and numerous extinction, extinct species are recognised. Of the two surviving species, the American ...

were brought from the National Bison Range in

Montana Montana ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota to the east, South Dakota to the southeast, Wyoming to the south, an ...

to an area south of Big Delta to provide an additional game species for hunters. Buffalo Center, a small community near the center of present-day Delta Junction, was named because of their presence, especially during the winter months. The huge animals were troublesome, and sometimes made landings dangerous at nearby Allen Field.

World War II (1941–1945)

During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the United States aided the Soviet Union against Germany by sending airplanes and supplies authorized by the

Lend-lease Lend-Lease, formally the Lend-Lease Act and introduced as An Act to Promote the Defense of the United States (),3,000 Hurricanes and >4,000 other aircraft) * 28 naval vessels: ** 1 Battleship. (HMS Royal Sovereign (05), HMS Royal Sovereign) * ...

Act to the Soviet Union through Alaska into the Russian Far East. The

Alaska Highway {{DEFAULTSORT:Delta Junction, Alaska Bison herds 1957 establishments in Alaska Cities in Alaska Cities in Southeast Fairbanks Census Area, Alaska Cities in Unorganized Borough, Alaska Populated places established in 1957 Russian diaspora in the United States Tanana Athabaskans Ukrainian diaspora in the United States