Iliamna, Alaska
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Iliamna ( Dena'ina: ) 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 counte ...
(CDP) in Lake and Peninsula Borough,
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 ...
,
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. The population was 108 at the 2020 census, slightly down from 109 in 2010.


History

Iliamna was originally the name of an
Athabaskan 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, ...
village at the point where the Iliamna River flows into
Iliamna Lake Iliamna Lake or Lake Iliamna ( ; ; ) is a lake in southwest Alaska, at the north end of the Alaska Peninsula, between Kvichak Bay and Cook Inlet, about west of Seldovia, Alaska. It shares a name with the Iliamna River, which flows into it, and th ...
, about east of present-day Iliamna. That site is now called Old Iliamna ( Dena'ina: ''Nuch'ak'dalitnu’''). In 1935, the residents of Old Iliamna moved to the present-day location. The first sport fishing lodge in Iliamna was built in the 1930s, and the second was built in the 1950s. Many more were built later in the 20th century. Iliamna's economy has two main elements:
subsistence A subsistence economy is an economy directed to basic subsistence (the provision of food, clothing and shelter) rather than to the market. Definition "Subsistence" is understood as supporting oneself and family at a minimum level. Basic subsiste ...
fishing and hunting and
sport fishing Recreational fishing, also called sport fishing or game fishing, is fishing for leisure, exercise or competition. It can be contrasted with commercial fishing, which is occupational fishing activities done for profit; or subsistence fishing, ...
lodges. Year-round residents largely pursue subsistence activities, while summer workers from other areas work in the lodges. Around 1913, Herman Gartelmann, Jack Kinney, and Ed Ahola built a
roadhouse Roadhouse may refer to: Premises * Roadhouse (premises), a mixed-use premise to service passing travellers * Receiving house or roadhouse, a theatre for touring theatre companies * A truck stop in rural Australia Arts and entertainment Film * '' ...
here, taking advantage of air travel through Lake Clark Pass. Jack and Ed were from Old Iliamna village. Frederick Roehl purchased the roadhouse around 1917, and when he died in 1923, Hans Seversen took over and the facility became known as Seversen's Roadhouse. He started hosting big game hunters in 1921 and the first sport fishermen in 1937. Martin Seversen ran the operation from 1946 and put up a new building. Mary Seversen Clark sold the operation in 1956. Iliamna faces the prospect of developing into a
mining town A mining community, also known as a mining town or a mining camp, is a community that houses miners. Mining communities are usually created around a mine or a quarry. Historical mining communities Australia * Ballarat, Victoria * Bendig ...
, as several multi-national companies plan to develop the area northwest of the village into one of North America's largest gold-copper-molybdenum mines. The first company to submit plans to the
State 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 norther ...
is Northern Dynasty Minerals, a wholly owned subsidiary of
Hunter Dickinson Hunter Ryan Dickinson (born November 25, 2000) is an American basketball player. He played college basketball for the Michigan Wolverines and the Kansas Jayhawks. Dickinson was named a consensus second-team 2021 NCAA Men's Basketball All-America ...
. The Lake and Peninsula Borough, the region's governing body, passed a strong resolution in support of the mine's development, but the majority of the surrounding villages adamantly oppose it. Two non-profit organizations are leading the fight against
open-pit mining Open-pit mining, also known as open-cast or open-cut mining and in larger contexts mega-mining, is a surface mining technique that extracts rock (geology), rock or minerals from the earth. Open-pit mines are used when deposits of commercially ...
in the Bristol Bay watershed - the Bristol Bay Alliance and the
Renewable Resources Coalition A renewable resource (also known as a flow resource) is a natural resource which will replenish to replace the portion depleted by usage and consumption, either through natural reproduction or other recurring processes in a finite amount of ti ...
. A study concluded in 2006 indicated the majority of Alaskans were opposed to the development.


Geography

Iliamna is located in southwest Alaska at (59.765135, -154.840312). It is bordered to the south by the city of Newhalen, to the west by the
Newhalen River The Newhalen River ( Dena'ina: ''Nughiltnu'') is a stream in the Lake and Peninsula Borough of the U.S. state of Alaska. Beginning at Six Mile Lake, the Newhalen flows south to enter Iliamna Lake about south of Iliamna. ''Alaska Fishing'' ...
, and to the southeast by
Iliamna Lake Iliamna Lake or Lake Iliamna ( ; ; ) is a lake in southwest Alaska, at the north end of the Alaska Peninsula, between Kvichak Bay and Cook Inlet, about west of Seldovia, Alaska. It shares a name with the Iliamna River, which flows into it, and th ...
. According to the
United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...
, the CDP has a total area of , of which are land and , or 1.23%, are water.


Climate

Iliamna has a
continental subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a continental climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer * Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan * Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...
''Dfc'') with mild summers and severely cold winters. Iliamna's year-round average temperature is , with five months averaging below freezing () and three months averaging above , July is the warmest month with an average temperature of and January is the coldest month with an average temperature of . Winters are sometimes very cold, and in some years there are even low temperatures below , usually 32 days have a minimum or below annually, and the coldest temperature in a year can drop to , so Iliamna falls in USDA Plant Hardiness Zones 4b. The coldest day of the year averaged in the 1991 to 2020 normals, while the warmest night average was at . The coldest daytime maximum on record is on January 19, 1947, while, conversely, the record warm daily minimum is on August 13, 2019. Extreme temperatures have ranged from on January 22, 1947, up to on June 27, 1953. The coldest month has been January 1947 and December 1942 with a mean temperature of , while the warmest month was July 2019 at ; the annual mean temperature has ranged from in 1956 to in 2019. Iliamna receives of annual precipitation, mostly between
summer Summer or summertime is the hottest and brightest of the four temperate seasons, occurring after spring and before autumn. At or centred on the summer solstice, daylight hours are the longest and darkness hours are the shortest, with day ...
and
fall Autumn, also known as fall (especially in US & Canada), is one of the four temperate seasons on Earth. Outside the tropics, autumn marks the transition from summer to winter, in September (Northern Hemisphere) or March ( Southern Hemispher ...
. September 1961 was the wettest month, with of precipitation, and there were many months without recorded precipitation. The wettest year was 1985 with of precipitation, while the driest was 1968 with .


Note


Demographics

The current Iliamna first appeared on the 1940 U.S. Census as an unincorporated village. It was made a census-designated place (CDP) in 1980. Prior to 1940, the Iliamna listed on the census was for the former village of (Old) Iliamna, located on the east side of the lake, which is no longer in existence. As of the
census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
of 2000, there were 102 people, 35 households, and 26 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 58 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 39.22%
White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...
, 50.00% Native American, and 10.78% from two or more races. There were 35 households, out of which 45.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 62.9% were
married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...
living together, 5.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 25.7% were non-families. 20.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 2.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.91 and the average family size was 3.42. In the CDP, the population was spread out, with 34.3% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 28.4% from 25 to 44, 28.4% from 45 to 64, and 2.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 32 years. For every 100 females, there were 112.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.0 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $60,625, and the median income for a family was $61,250. Males had a median income of $38,333 versus $36,667 for females. The
per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...
for the CDP was $19,741. There were no families and 3.1% of the population living 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 ...
, including no under eighteens and none of those over 64.


References


External links


Bristol Bay Alliance

Renewable Resources Coalition

Subsistence harvests and uses of wild resources in Iliamna, Newhalen, Nondalton, Pedro Bay, and Port Alsworth, Alaska, 2004 / by James A. Fall ... [et al.].
Hosted b
Alaska State Publications Program
{{authority control Census-designated places in Lake and Peninsula Borough, Alaska Census-designated places in Alaska Road-inaccessible communities of Alaska