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 ...
Tlingit
The Tlingit or Lingít ( ) are Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America. , they constitute two of the 231 federally recognized List of Alaska Native tribal entities, Tribes of Alaska. Most Tlingit are Alaska Natives; ...
who came from the northern winter village of Tuxekan. They used it as a fishing camp for the summer period, and called it by several different names: Klawerak, Tlevak, Clevak, and Klawak. The name "Klawock" is derived from the
Tlingit
The Tlingit or Lingít ( ) are Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America. , they constitute two of the 231 federally recognized List of Alaska Native tribal entities, Tribes of Alaska. Most Tlingit are Alaska Natives; ...
name , the man who founded the community. In 1853 a Russian navigator referred to the village as "Klyakkhan", and in 1855 as "Thlewakh".
In 1868, European Americans opened a
trading post
A trading post, trading station, or trading house, also known as a factory in European and colonial contexts, is an establishment or settlement where goods and services could be traded.
Typically a trading post allows people from one geogr ...
and a
salmon
Salmon (; : salmon) are any of several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the genera ''Salmo'' and ''Oncorhynchus'' of the family (biology), family Salmonidae, native ...
saltery; some years later, in 1878, a San Francisco firm opened the first cannery in Alaska. In the following decades, several others were established. A United States
post office
A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...
was established in 1882. The 1890 census recorded the town's population as 260.
The
Alaska Native Brotherhood
The Alaska Native Brotherhood (ANB) and its counterpart, the Alaska Native Sisterhood (ANS), are two nonprofit organizations founded to address racism against Alaska Native peoples in Alaska. ANB was formed in 1912 and ANS founded three years lat ...
Alaska Natives
Alaska Natives (also known as Native Alaskans, Alaskan Indians, or Indigenous Alaskans) are the Indigenous peoples of Alaska that encompass a diverse arena of cultural and linguistic groups, including the Iñupiat, Yupik, Aleut, Eyak, Tli ...
, were established by residents in 1912. Its founders and many volunteers built the Town Hall and a community center in 1939, during the
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...
.
In 1929 the town was incorporated as a city, and in 1934
Congress
A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...
awarded federal funding for the expansion of the cannery, on the condition that the community remains liquor-free. At the same time, the Klawock Cooperative Association (a nonprofit organization) was formed to manage the cannery.
In 1931
John Barrymore
John Barrymore (born John Sidney Blyth; February 14 or 15, 1882 – May 29, 1942) was an American actor on stage, screen, and radio. A member of the Drew and Barrymore theatrical families, he initially tried to avoid the stage, and briefly a ...
looted a Totem pole from the abandoned village of Tuxekan; in 2015 the pole was returned to the
Tlingit
The Tlingit or Lingít ( ) are Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America. , they constitute two of the 231 federally recognized List of Alaska Native tribal entities, Tribes of Alaska. Most Tlingit are Alaska Natives; ...
.
Geography
Klawock is located at . 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 city has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it (34.83%) is water.
Climate
Klawock has a warm summer
oceanic climate
An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen climate classification, Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of co ...
.
Demographics
Klawock first appeared on the 1880 U.S. Census as the unincorporated Tlingit village of "Klawak." It continued to report as Klawak in 1890–1910, with the alternative spelling of "Klawock" first appearing in the latter census. In 1920, it was reported exclusively as Klawock. In 1929, it was officially incorporated.
As of the census of 2000, there were 854 people, 313 households, and 215 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 368 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 40.98%
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 ...
Pacific Islander
Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...
, 0.12% from other races, and 7.38% from two or more races. 1.41% of the population were
Hispanic
The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...
or Latino of any race.
There were 313 households, out of which 36.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.2% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.0% were non-families. 25.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 3.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.73 and the average family size was 3.25.
In the city, the age distribution of the population shows 30.1% under the age of 18, 7.4% from 18 to 24, 29.9% from 25 to 44, 26.1% from 45 to 64, and 6.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 124.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 134.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $35,000, and the median income for a family was $38,839. Males had a median income of $38,977 versus $23,036 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 city was $14,621. About 13.6% of families and 14.3% 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 ...
, including 16.5% of those under age 18 and 5.0% of those age 65 or over.
Tourism
Klawock has the oldest
hatchery
A hatchery is a facility where eggs are hatched under artificial conditions, especially those of fish, poultry or even turtles. It may be used for ''ex situ'' conservation purposes, i.e. to breed rare or endangered species under controlled ...
in Alaska. This industry enhances the runs of salmon, including sockeye,
coho COHO, short for Coherent Oscillator, is a technique used with radar systems based on the cavity magnetron to allow them to implement a moving target indicator display. Because the signals are only coherent when received, not transmitted, the concept ...
, and
steelhead
Steelhead, or occasionally steelhead trout, is the Fish migration#Classification, anadromous form of the coastal rainbow trout or Columbia River redband trout (''O. m. gairdneri'', also called redband steelhead). Steelhead are native to cold-wa ...
. A sawmill and area
logging
Logging is the process of cutting, processing, and moving trees to a location for transport. It may include skidder, skidding, on-site processing, and loading of trees or trunk (botany), logs onto logging truck, trucksElizabeth Peratrovich Celebration" with ceremonies and a potluck, honoring the anniversary of the passage of the landmark legislation. The city also sponsors a summer festival, the "Celebration by the Sea."
A Totem Park has 21
totem pole
Totem poles () are monumental carvings found in western Canada and the northwestern United States. They are a type of Northwest Coast art, consisting of poles, posts or pillars, carved with symbols or figures. They are usually made from large t ...
s, one of the largest collections in Alaska: it displays original and replica totems from the old village of ''Tuxekan''. The city built a carving shed to house the poles during restoration, which can be visited. In 1998 the city commissioned the construction of a Long House (named ''Gaanì Ax Adi'') with a new totem pole.
Law and government
Klawock's local government consists of a mayor and council; as the settlement is within the Unorganized Borough, the next highest authority is the state government. The local government manages the water, wastewater, refuse collection, trailer court, landfill, boat harbor, liquor store, and boat ramp utilities. There is a local sales tax of 5.5%, of which 0.5% is devoted to education, and no property tax.
There are four full-time police officers. There is also a volunteer fire department with 27 members, an EMS squad of 6-8 trained volunteers, and a search and rescue office (serving all of Prince of Wales Island) with 57 members.
Education
There is a school with grades K-6 and a
high school
A secondary school, high school, or senior school, is an institution that provides secondary education. Some secondary schools provide both ''lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper secondary education'' (ages 14 to 18), i.e., ...
with grades 7-12 both administered by the Klawock City School District. On average, 200 students are enrolled yearly. The Head Start school (three- to four-year-olds) is run by the Tlingit and Haida Central Council.
Transportation
Airport
The 5,000 foot and paved Klawock Airport is the only airport on Prince of Wales Island and serves as the air transport gateway for nearby Craig as well. It receives charters and daily scheduled passenger service from Ketchikan from Island Air Express. Alaska Seaplanes provides flights from Juneau and Sitka.
A cruise ship port opened in Klawock in May, 2024. The first ship to dock there was the Seabourn Odyssey, on an 80 day cruise that began in
Sydney
Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...
. The facility is owned and operated by
Tlingit
The Tlingit or Lingít ( ) are Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America. , they constitute two of the 231 federally recognized List of Alaska Native tribal entities, Tribes of Alaska. Most Tlingit are Alaska Natives; ...
companies.
Notable people
* Frank Peratrovich (1895–1984), then-mayor of Klawock and later president of the ANB, became one of the 55 delegates to the Alaska Constitutional Convention in 1955
* Elizabeth Peratrovich (1911–1958), sister-in-law of Frank, president of the Alaska Native Sisterhood (ANS), worked in the 1940s on anti-discrimination legislation. She is credited with gaining Senate approval in 1945 due to her passionate testimony about the effects of discrimination. The state has recognized her contribution, naming February 16 and Gallery B of the State Capitol in her honor