The City and Borough of Yakutat (, ;

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; ...

: ''Yaakwdáat''; ) is a

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History ...

in 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 north ...

. Yakutat was also the name of a former city within the borough. The name in

is ''Yaakwdáat'' (meaning "the place where canoes rest"). It is derived from an

Eyak The Eyak are an Alaska Native people historically located on the Copper River Delta and near the town of Cordova, Alaska. They are Indigenous peoples of the Northwest Coast. Today, Eyak people live in Cordova, Yakutat, across Alaska, and the U ...

name, ''diyaʼqudaʼt'', and was influenced by the Tlingit word ''yaakw'' ("canoe, boat"). The borough covers an area about six times the size of the state of

Rhode Island Rhode Island ( ) is a state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Connecticut to its west; Massachusetts to its north and east; and the Atlantic Ocean to its south via Rhode Island Sound and Block Is ...

, making it one of the nation's largest counties or county equivalents. As of the 2020 census the population was 657. As of 2010, it was Alaska's least populous borough or census area, and the ninth-least populous county nationwide. The population declined from 680 in 2000. The Borough of Yakutat was incorporated as a non-unified Home Rule Borough on September 22, 1992. Yakutat was previously a city in the Skagway–Yakutat–Angoon Census Area (later renamed the Skagway–Hoonah–Angoon Census Area). 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 ...

has defined the former City of Yakutat as 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 ...

within the borough. The borough's only other significant population center is the community of Icy Bay, the site of the Icy Bay Airport which is in the west-central part of the borough.

History

The original settlers in the Yakutat area are believed to have been

-speaking people from the Copper River area.

people migrated into the region and the Eyak were assimilated into the tribe before the arrival of Europeans in Alaska. Yakutat was only one of a number of Tlingit and mixed Tlingit-Eyak settlements in the region. The others have been depopulated or abandoned. In the 18th and 19th centuries, English, French, Spanish, and Russian explorers came to the region. The

Shelikhov-Golikov Company The Shelikhov-Golikov Company (SGC) was a Russian fur trading venture, founded by Irkutsk entrepreneurs Grigory Shelikhov and Ivan Larionovich Golikov in 1783. Formed in Eastern Siberia during the 1780s along with several competing companies, t ...

, a precursor of the

Russian-American Company The Russian-American Company Under the High Patronage of His Imperial Majesty was a state-sponsored chartered company formed largely on the basis of the Shelikhov-Golikov Company, United American Company. Emperor Paul I of Russia chartered the c ...

, built a fort in Yakutat in 1795 to facilitate trade with the Alaska Natives in sea-otter pelts. The settlement became known as New Russia, Yakutat Colony, or ''Slavorossiya''. After the Russians cut off access to the fisheries nearby, a Tlingit war party attacked and destroyed the fort in 1805. By 1886, after the 1867

Alaska Purchase The Alaska Purchase was the purchase of Russian colonization of North America, Alaska from the Russian Empire by the United States for a sum of $7.2 million in 1867 (equivalent to $ million in ). On May 15 of that year, the United St ...

by the

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 ...

from the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

, the area's black sand beaches were being mined for gold. In 1889 the Swedish Free Mission Church opened a school and sawmill in the area. In around 1903, the Stimson Lumber Company constructed a cannery, another sawmill, a store, and a railroad. Many people moved to the current site of Yakutat to be closer to work at the Stimson cannery, which operated through 1970. 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

USAAF The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...

stationed a large aviation garrison near Yakutat and built a paved runway. The troops were withdrawn after the war. The runway is still in use as Yakutat Airport, which offers scheduled airline service. Fishing is the largest economic activity in Yakutat. In 2004, the Yakutat Tlingit Tribe (YTT) received a Language Preservation Grant from the Administration for Native Americans. With this, they have reinvigorated their efforts to teach the

Tlingit language The Tlingit language ( ; ' ) is an Indigenous language of the northwestern coast of North America, which is spoken by the Tlingit people of Southeast Alaska and Western Canada and is a branch of the Na-Dene language family. Extensive effor ...

to middle-aged and young people. YTT received another ANA grant in 2007 and is expanding its role in the schools. All the YTT Tlingit language revitalization work focuses on using communicative approaches to second-language teaching, such as TPR and

American Sign Language American Sign Language (ASL) is a natural language that serves as the predominant sign language of Deaf communities in the United States and most of Anglophone Canadians, Anglophone Canada. ASL is a complete and organized visual language that i ...

(ASLA). While working at a local cannery from 1912 to 1941, Seiki Kayamori extensively photographed Yakutat and its area; Yakutat City Hall holds a large set of prints of his work. Yakutat and Southern Railway was a rail operation in the area. It served several canneries south of Yakutat and primarily hauled fish to the harbor. Service ended in the mid-1960s.

Politics

Historically a swing borough, Yakutat has consistently voted Democratic since 2004.

Geography

According to the

, the borough has an area of , of which is land and is water. The 2010 census also defines a smaller

named Yakutat, which has an area of , of which is land and is water. Yakutat's population center is located at , at the mouth of

Yakutat Bay Yakutat Bay ( Lingít: ''Yaakwdáat G̱eeyí'') is a bay in the U.S. state of Alaska, extending southwest from Disenchantment Bay to the Gulf of Alaska. "Yakutat" is a Tlingit name reported as "Jacootat" and "Yacootat" by Yuri Lisyansky in ...

. It lies in an isolated location in lowlands along the

Gulf of Alaska The Gulf of Alaska ( Tlingit: ''Yéil T'ooch’'') is an arm of the Pacific Ocean defined by the curve of the southern coast of Alaska, stretching from the Alaska Peninsula and Kodiak Island in the west to the Alexander Archipelago in the ...

, ) northwest of

Juneau Juneau ( ; ), officially the City and Borough of Juneau, is the capital of the U.S. state of Alaska, located along the Gastineau Channel and the Alaskan panhandle. Juneau was named the capital of Alaska in 1906, when the government of wha ...

. Yakutat borders the

to the west, Valdez-Cordova Census Area, Alaska to the northwest, Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, Alaska to the southeast, Stikine Region, British Columbia to the northeast-east, and

Yukon Territory Yukon () is a territory of Canada, bordering British Columbia to the south, the Northwest Territories to the east, the Beaufort Sea to the north, and the U.S. state of Alaska to the west. It is Canada’s westernmost territory and the smallest ...

to the north. The borough contains part of the protected areas of

Chugach National Forest The Chugach National Forest is a United States National Forest in south central Alaska. Covering portions of Prince William Sound, the Kenai Peninsula and the Copper River (Alaska), Copper River Delta, it was formed in 1907 from part of a larger ...

Glacier Bay National Park Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States located in Southeast Alaska west of Juneau, Alaska, Juneau. President Calvin Coolidge proclaimed the area around Glacier ...

, Glacier Bay Wilderness,

Tongass National Forest The Tongass National Forest () in Southeast Alaska is the largest U.S. National Forest at , an expanse larger than 10 U.S. states and 75 U.N. member nations. Most of its area is temperate rain forest and is remote enough to be home to many s ...

, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve, Wrangell-Saint Elias Wilderness, and the Russell Fjord Wilderness. A unique feature in the borough is

Hubbard Glacier __NOTOC__ Hubbard Glacier ( Lingít: ''Sít' Tlein'') is a glacier located in Wrangell–St. Elias National Park and Preserve in eastern Alaska and Kluane National Park and Reserve in Yukon, Canada, and named after Gardiner Hubbard. Geograph ...

, North America's largest tidewater glacier. In 1986 and 2002, the glacier blocked the entrance to Russell Fjord. The resulting Russell Lake rose and until the glacial dam failed. If Russell Lake rises to , the water will spill over a pass and flow into the Situk River. That would have a major impact on a world-class fishery. Yakutat would not be affected unless the glacier advances to the townsite, which could take a thousand years. The area's vegetation indicates that water was flowing over the pass until about 1860.

Climate

Yakutat 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'') or a

subpolar oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring co ...

('' Cfc'') with characteristics such as high precipitation, absence of

permafrost Permafrost () is soil or underwater sediment which continuously remains below for two years or more; the oldest permafrost has been continuously frozen for around 700,000 years. Whilst the shallowest permafrost has a vertical extent of below ...

, and

temperate rainforest Temperate rainforests are rainforests with coniferous or Broad-leaved tree, broadleaf forests that occur in the temperate zone and receive heavy rain. Temperate rainforests occur in oceanic moist regions around the world: the Pacific temperate ...

vegetation of the climate zone of the Pacific Coast. It rivals Ketchikan as the wettest "city" in the United States, with an annual precipitation (1991−2020 normals) of , which falls on 240 days of the year, including of snow. Almost all of it falls from November through April and it occurs on 64 days annually. (However, with an annual precipitation of , the city of Whittier receives significantly more annual precipitation than both Yakutat and Ketchikan, which makes it the wettest city in Alaska and the United States, and Yakutat and Ketchikan the second- and third-wettest cities in Alaska, respectively.) September and October represent, on average, the year's primary "rainy season" with an average of over of precipitation for both months. On average, the year's driest period is late April through July, though no month qualifies as a true "dry season." The monthly daily average temperature ranges from in January to in July. Extreme temperatures have ranged from on December 30, 1964, up to on August 15, 2004, though on average, there are typically 3.9 days of minima reaching to or below and only 5.8 days of maxima at or above + highs annually. Unlike in South Central Alaska, a day with a high temperature under has never been recorded. ;Notes:

Demographics

Yakutat first appeared on the 1880 U.S. Census as an unincorporated Tlingit-Yakutat village. All 300 residents were listed as Tlingit. In 1890, it reported 308 residents including the populations of the native villages at Dry Bay & Lituya (Bay); 300 were listed as Native, 7 Whites and 1 Creole (Mixed Russian & Native). Yakutat formally incorporated in 1948. In 1992, it broke away from the Skagway-Yakutat-Angoon Census Area to form its own borough of Yakutat. It disincorporated at its formation and became a census-designated place (CDP).

2010 Census

At the census of 2010, there were 662 people, 502 households, and 201 families residing in Yakutat. The racial makeup was 50.37%

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 ...

, 0.12%

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 ...

, 39.60% Native American, 1.24% Asian, 0.74%

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 ...

, and 7.92% from two or more races.

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 were 0.74% of the population. It is reported that 5.78% of the population spoke

at home. Of the 265 households, 32.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.5% were married couples living together, 12.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 40.0% were non-families. 32.1% of households were one person, and 4.9% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.30. The population was spread out with 28.1% under the age of 18, 5.3% from 18 to 24, 32.5% from 25 to 44, 28.7% from 45 to 64, and 5.3% 65 or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 145.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 161.7 males. The median household income was in Yakutat was $46,786, and the median family income was $51,875. Males had a median income of $41,635 versus $25,938 for females. The per capita income was $22,579. About 11.8% of families and 13.5% 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 22.5% of those under age 18 and 8.3% of those age 65 or over.

2000 Census

At the census of 2000, central Yakutat was treated as a

(CDP), even though census-designated places "are not legally incorporated under the laws of the state in which they are located."United States Census Area Description
/ref> The area consisting of about , contained the vast majority of the population of the entire city-borough. At the 2000 census, there were 680 people, 261 households, and 157 families in the CDP. The population density was . There were 385 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the CDP was 41.47%

, 0.15%

, 47.06% Native American, 1.47% Asian, 0.88%

, and 8.97% from two or more races.

or Latino of any race were 0.88% of the population. Of the 261 households, 33.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.7% were married couples living together, 12.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 39.5% were non-families. 31.4% of households were one person, and 5.0% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.61 and the average family size was 3.30. The age distribution was 31.0% under the age of 18, 6.2% from 18 to 24, 31.3% from 25 to 44, 25.7% from 45 to 64, and 5.7% 65 or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females, there were 117.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 123.3 males. The median household income was $47,054 and the median family income was $51,875. Males had a median income of $42,404 versus $26,875 for females. The per capita income for the CDP was $21,330. About 11.8% of families and 15.7% of the population were below the

, including 22.5% of those under age 18 and 10.7% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

Alexander Andreyevich Baranov Alexander Andreyevich Baranov (; 1747 – 1819), sometimes spelled Aleksandr or Alexandr and Baranof, was a Russian trader and merchant, who worked for some time in Siberia. He was recruited by the Shelikhov-Golikov Company for trading in Rus ...

, (1747-1819), founded a Russian settlement at Yakutat Bay * Alison Bremner, Tlingit contemporary artist born in Yakutat * Byron Mallott, (1943-2020), mayor of Yakutat * Martin Sensmeier, (born 1985), actor * X'unéi, (late 18th-century), chief of the Tlingit

References

External links

City and Borough of Yakutat website

Yakutat Alaska Chamber of Commerce

Summary of the 2006 Yakutat area commercial salmon fisheries
/ by Gordon F. Woods. Hosted by th
Alaska State Publications Program
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yakutat City And Borough, Alaska Alaska boroughs Former cities in Alaska Populated coastal places in Alaska on the Pacific Ocean 1992 establishments in Alaska Populated places established in 1795 Census-designated places in Alaska