Two Rivers 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 Fairbanks North Star 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 ...

. It lies between mile 13 (the Little Chena River) and mile 25 (the

Chena River The Chena River (; Tanana Athabascan: Ch'eno' "river of something (game)") is a tributary of the Tanana River in the Interior region of the U.S. state of Alaska. It flows generally west from the White Mountains to the Tanana River near the ...

) on the Chena Hot Springs Road, northeast of Fairbanks. As of the 2010 United States Census, the CDP had a population of 719, up from 482 in 2000.

Geography and climate

Two Rivers is located at (64.862366, -147.098884). 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 , all of it land. Two Rivers has a

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 ...

( Dfc) showing signs of seasonal lead, with June being warmer than August and May being warmer than September. Summers are warm and rainy, coupled with cool nights, while winters are severely cold and snowy, with annual snowfall averaging 62 inches (157 cm).

Demographics

Two Rivers first appeared on the 1980 U.S. Census as a census-designated place (CDP). 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 482 people, 177 households, and 124 families residing in the CDP. The population density was . There were 192 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 88.59%

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 ...

, 0.21%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 2.70% Native American, 2.49% Asian, 0.83% from other races, and 5.19% from two or more races. 1.24% 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 177 households, out of which 40.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 59.9% 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, 6.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.9% were non-families. 24.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 1.7% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.72 and the average family size was 3.19. In the CDP the population was spread out, with 31.1% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 34.6% from 25 to 44, 26.6% from 45 to 64, and 1.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 120.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 119.9 males. The median income for a household in the CDP was $58,571, and the median income for a family was $58,661. Males had a median income of $45,500 versus $21,736 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 $24,351. None of the families and none of the population were 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.

Economy

Most Two Rivers residents who are not self-employed work in Fairbanks,

North Pole The North Pole, also known as the Geographic North Pole or Terrestrial North Pole, is the point in the Northern Hemisphere where the Earth's rotation, Earth's axis of rotation meets its surface. It is called the True North Pole to distingu ...

or the area's military installations,

Eielson Air Force Base Eielson Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located approximately southeast of Fairbanks, Alaska, and just southeast of Moose Creek, Alaska. It was established in 1943 as Mile 26 Satellite Field and redesignated Eielson Ai ...

and

Fort Wainwright Fort Wainwright is a United States Army installation in Fairbanks, Alaska. Fort Wainwright is part of the Fairbanks North Star Borough and the coterminous Fairbanks Metropolitan Statistical Area. The installation is managed by U.S. Army Garrison ...

. Businesses in Two Rivers include one general store, restaurants, a post office, a laundromat and the former HIPAS Observatory, which closed in 2011. Most people who move to Two Rivers are attracted by the rural nature of the community and the extensive network of trails in the area. The trail system is popular with

dog sled A dog sled or dog sleigh is a sled pulled by one or more sled dogs used to travel over ice and through snow, a practice known as mushing. Numerous types of sleds are used, depending on their function. They can be used for Sled dog racing, dog sl ...

mushers, horseback, snowmachine, motorcycle and ATV riders, hunters, hikers, and others. Two Rivers borders the extensive Chena River State Recreation Area. Two Rivers is especially popular with both recreational and professional dog sled mushers. Sled dogs outnumber humans in Two Rivers by about 4 to 1. Notable Two Rivers mushers include 5-time

Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race The Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, more commonly known as The Iditarod (), is an annual long-distance sled dog race held in Alaska in early March. It travels from Anchorage to Nome. Mushers and a team of between 12 and 16 dogs, of which at lea ...

Champion Rick Swenson, the first Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race champion, Sonny Lindner, and only woman to win that race, Aliy Zirkle (2000) and her husband Allen Moore who won the 2013 Yukon Quest making them the only husband and wife team to have both won the race. In February, Two Rivers hosts a checkpoint for the Yukon Quest.

References

{{Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska Census-designated places in Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska