Flat is a

census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a 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 counterparts of incorporated places, such ...

(CDP) in Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area,

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 territorie ...

. As of the 2010 Census, the population of the CDP was 0, down from 4 residents in 2000. Its post office closed in January 2004.

History

Prospectors John Beaton and W.A. Dikeman discovered gold on Otter Creek on 25 December 1908. News of the discovery spread slowly, but some miners arrived in the summer of 1909 and built a small camp they called Flat City. More gold was discovered on nearby Flat Creek and more miners arrived in 1910. Beaton,

Peter Miscovich Peter Miscovich (Petar Mišković/Pero Mišković) (1885-1950) was a Croatian-born American inventor. He was born in the village of Imotica in the Austro-Hungarian Kingdom of Dalmatia in 1885 and died in Alaska in 1950. His most well-known inve ...

, Lars Ostnes, and David Strandberg were prominent early arrivals who mined successfully long after the initial "boomtown" faded. By 1914, the community had grown to about 6,000 people, complete with an elementary school, a telephone system, two stores, a hotel, restaurant, pool hall, laundry and jail. However, a fire started by the "Durand Café" in 1924 caused the majority of the town to burn, thus starting a decline. By 1930, the population had declined to 124. No

plat In the United States, a plat ( or ) (plan) is a cadastral map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. United States General Land Office surveyors drafted township plats of Public Lands Surveys to show the distance and bear ...

was filed for Flat, and the town site rests on mining claims, so the existence of Flat may contravene the law, but the U.S. Post Office acknowledged the community and served its few residents with an office until the year 2000. Between 1986 and 2000, the primary year-round residents were a family of five who worked together to maintain the area in the winter for mining in the summer.

Wiley Post 1933 airplane crash

In July 1933, pioneering aviator

Wiley Post Wiley Hardeman Post (November 22, 1898 – August 15, 1935) was a famed American aviator during the interwar period and the first pilot to fly solo around the world. Also known for his work in high-altitude flying, Post helped develop on ...

undertook the first solo flight around the world. On July 20, en route to Fairbanks from a stop in Khabarovsk, Siberia, Post nosed over his high-wing, single-engine

Lockheed Vega The Lockheed Vega is an American five- to seven-seat high-wing monoplane airliner built by the Lockheed Corporation starting in 1927. It became famous for its use by a number of record-breaking pilots who were attracted to the rugged and very l ...

, the ''Winnie Mae'', in Flat. Local residents helped him right the aircraft. The only damage was a broken propeller. A replacement propeller was brought to Flat by pioneer Alaska flier Joe Crosson and the airplane was repaired by

John Miscovich John A. Miscovich (1918–2014) was an American inventor and gold miner. He and his family owned about 1400 acres of mining claims around Flat, Alaska and were active placer gold miners there. Miscovich was known as the "mayor of Flat". He was ...

. Post continued to Fairbanks, then on to Edmonton and New York, completing his solo flight around the world in under 8 days. 50 years later, Miscovich constructed a monument to commemorate Post's first solo flight around the world.

Geography

Flat is located at (62.454135, -158.008284), 7 miles southeast of

Iditarod The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, more commonly known as The Iditarod, is an annual long-distance sled dog race run in early March. It travels from Anchorage to Nome, entirely within the US state of Alaska. Mushers and a team of between 12 ...

. 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 the ...

, the CDP has a total area of , all of which of is land and none of it is covered by water.

Climate

Demographics

Flat first appeared on the 1920 U.S. Census as an unincorporated village. It would continue to appear until 1960. It did not appear again until 2000 when it was made a census designated place (CDP) with its boundaries including the former city of

and the former mining village of

Otter Otters are carnivorous mammals in the subfamily Lutrinae. The 13 extant otter species are all semiaquatic, aquatic, or marine, with diets based on fish and invertebrates. Lutrinae is a branch of the Mustelidae family, which also includes wea ...

. As of 2010, it has no residents. *Note that the population of 6,000 for 1914 during its peak year is speculative and not an official count by the U.S. Census Bureau.

2000 census

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 incl ...

of 2000, there were 4 people in 1 household (a married couple with children, in this case) and in 1 family residing in the town. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: 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 term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

was 0.0 people per square mile (0.0/km²). There were 3 housing units at an average density of 0.0/sq mi (0.0/km²). The racial makeup of the CDP was all

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 on ...

. In the CDP, the population was evenly spread out over the age categories under-18, 18 to 24, 25 to 44 and from 45 to 64. The median age was 33 years. There were as many males as there were females, but apparently the only person below 18 was a girl.

2010 census

By the 2010 census, the population was 0.

References

External links

Alaska Division of Community Advocacy - Community Information Summary
{{authority control Census-designated places in Alaska Census-designated places in Unorganized Borough, Alaska Census-designated places in Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska Ghost towns in Alaska Ghost towns in the United States Ghost towns in North America