St. George (Aleut: Anĝaaxchalux̂ or Sangiurgiix̂, Russian: Сент-Джордж) is a city in Aleutians West Census Area, Alaska, United States. It is the main settlement of St. George Island in the Pribilofs, a small island group in the Bering Sea. At the 2010 census, the population was 102, down from 152 in 2000.
St. George
Anĝaaxchalux̂ | |
|---|---|
 Aerial view of St. George harbor | |
  St. George Location in Alaska | |
| Coordinates: 56°36′20″N 169°33′35″W / 56.60556°N 169.55972°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Alaska |
| Census Area | Aleutians West |
| Incorporated | September 13, 1983[1] |
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Mark Merculief[2] |
| • State senator | Lyman Hoffman (D) |
| • State rep. | Bryce Edgmon (I) |
| Area | |
• Total | 182.31 sq mi (472.17 km2) |
| • Land | 34.78 sq mi (90.08 km2) |
| • Water | 147.52 sq mi (382.09 km2) |
| Elevation | 197 ft (60 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• Total | 67 |
| • Density | 1.93/sq mi (0.74/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-9 (Alaska (AKST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-8 (AKDT) |
| ZIP code | 99591 |
| Area code | 907 |
| FIPS code | 02-65800 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1419161 |
| Website | www |
History
editThe island was discovered by Gavriil Pribylov on June 25, 1786, during a search for the breeding grounds of northern fur seals. The island is named after Pribylov's ship, the St. George. St. George Island was the first of the Pribilofs to be discovered.[4]
Built in 1935, the sole church on the island is St. George Church, an Eastern Orthodox Church in the Diocese of Alaska of the Orthodox Church in America.
On February 29, 1996 the crab-fishing vessel All American ran aground on the island without loss of life.[5]
Geography
editSt. George is located at 56°36′20″N 169°33′35″W / 56.60556°N 169.55972°W (56.605546, −169.559584).[6]
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 182.4 square miles (472 km2), of which, 34.8 square miles (90 km2) of it is land and 147.6 square miles (382 km2) of it (80.94%) is water.
The city is served by an airport with scheduled service to St. Paul Island Airport and Unalaska Airport provided by Grant Aviation. Alaska Central Express also offers flights to Anchorage.
Climate
edit| Climate data for St. George, Alaska (1991–2020) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 43 (6) |
44 (7) |
44 (7) |
48 (9) |
63 (17) |
62 (17) |
71 (22) |
66 (19) |
59 (15) |
52 (11) |
47 (8) |
44 (7) |
71 (22) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 38.9 (3.8) |
39.0 (3.9) |
39.5 (4.2) |
42.6 (5.9) |
50.7 (10.4) |
54.5 (12.5) |
58.9 (14.9) |
58.3 (14.6) |
53.8 (12.1) |
48.8 (9.3) |
43.8 (6.6) |
41.4 (5.2) |
61.0 (16.1) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 30.3 (−0.9) |
31.5 (−0.3) |
31.4 (−0.3) |
35.4 (1.9) |
41.7 (5.4) |
47.2 (8.4) |
51.2 (10.7) |
52.4 (11.3) |
49.6 (9.8) |
43.3 (6.3) |
37.9 (3.3) |
33.7 (0.9) |
40.5 (4.7) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 26.5 (−3.1) |
27.7 (−2.4) |
27.3 (−2.6) |
31.5 (−0.3) |
37.6 (3.1) |
43.3 (6.3) |
47.8 (8.8) |
49.3 (9.6) |
46.0 (7.8) |
39.5 (4.2) |
34.1 (1.2) |
29.8 (−1.2) |
36.7 (2.6) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 22.8 (−5.1) |
24.0 (−4.4) |
23.3 (−4.8) |
27.6 (−2.4) |
33.5 (0.8) |
39.4 (4.1) |
44.4 (6.9) |
46.2 (7.9) |
42.4 (5.8) |
35.7 (2.1) |
30.4 (−0.9) |
25.9 (−3.4) |
33.0 (0.6) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | 9.3 (−12.6) |
9.5 (−12.5) |
10.9 (−11.7) |
15.0 (−9.4) |
25.2 (−3.8) |
32.4 (0.2) |
38.5 (3.6) |
39.9 (4.4) |
32.7 (0.4) |
25.8 (−3.4) |
20.1 (−6.6) |
11.2 (−11.6) |
4.1 (−15.5) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 0 (−18) |
−6 (−21) |
−4 (−20) |
−3 (−19) |
15 (−9) |
26 (−3) |
30 (−1) |
32 (0) |
27 (−3) |
16 (−9) |
14 (−10) |
3 (−16) |
−6 (−21) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 1.17 (30) |
1.06 (27) |
0.80 (20) |
0.89 (23) |
1.01 (26) |
1.26 (32) |
1.97 (50) |
2.66 (68) |
2.53 (64) |
3.00 (76) |
2.25 (57) |
1.78 (45) |
20.38 (518) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 13.8 | 14.1 | 11.1 | 12.3 | 13.1 | 11.5 | 14.5 | 17.2 | 19.1 | 22.9 | 21.0 | 18.7 | 189.3 |
| Source: NOAA[7] | |||||||||||||
Demographics
edit| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880 | 92 | — | |
| 1890 | 93 | 1.1% | |
| 1910 | 90 | — | |
| 1920 | 138 | 53.3% | |
| 1930 | 153 | 10.9% | |
| 1940 | 183 | 19.6% | |
| 1950 | 187 | 2.2% | |
| 1960 | 264 | 41.2% | |
| 1970 | 163 | −38.3% | |
| 1980 | 158 | −3.1% | |
| 1990 | 138 | −12.7% | |
| 2000 | 152 | 10.1% | |
| 2010 | 102 | −32.9% | |
| 2020 | 67 | −34.3% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[8] | |||
St. George first appeared on the 1880 U.S. Census as an unincorporated Aleut village. Of its 92 residents, 88 were Aleut and 4 were White.[9] It returned again in 1890 with 93 residents, reporting 49 Natives (presumably Aleut), 36 Creoles (Mixed Russian & Native), and 8 Whites. It did not report on the 1900 census. From 1910 to 1940, it reported as "St. George Island." In 1950, it reported as St. George. In 1960, it reported again as "St. George Island." From 1970-onwards, it has reported as St. George. It formally incorporated in 1983.
As of the census[10] of 2000, there were 152 people, 51 households, and 42 families residing in the city. The population density was 4.4 inhabitants per square mile (1.7/km2). There were 67 housing units at an average density of 1.9 units per square mile (0.73 units/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 92.11% Alaska Native and 7.89% White.
There were 51 households, out of which 47.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.9% were married couples living together, 15.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 17.6% were non-families. 15.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and none had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.98 and the average family size was 3.29.
In the city, the age distribution of the population shows 36.8% under the age of 18, 5.3% from 18 to 24, 31.6% from 25 to 44, 19.7% from 45 to 64, and 6.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.4 males. For every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were 113.3 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $57,083, and the median income for a family was $60,625. Males had a median income of $50,625 versus $31,250 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,131. About 4.9% of families and 7.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.0% of those under the age of eighteen and none of those 65 or over.
Education
edit
St. George is served by the Pribilof Island School District. In 2004, the district began offering 9–12th grade to St. George students via video conference. Students have a choice: they can live at home and attend distance education classes or they can leave home and attend a boarding school like Mt. Edgecumbe High School.
In 2017, St. George School was closed entirely due to low enrollment. The district now offers a correspondence program for grades K-10.[11]
Geography and wildlife
editThe island is notable as being the breeding site of over 75% of the known population of red-legged kittiwakes.[12]
In 2016, a new species of beaked whale, Berardius beringiae, was discovered near the island.[13]
St. George Island is considered part of the Bering Sea Volcanic Province.[14]
References
edit- ^ 1996 Alaska Municipal Officials Directory. Juneau: Alaska Municipal League/Alaska Department of Community and Regional Affairs. January 1996. p. 128.
- ^ 2024 Alaska Municipal Officials Directory. Juneau: Alaska Municipal League. 2024.
- ^ "2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on October 28, 2021. Retrieved October 29, 2021.
- ^ "Pribilof Islands Restoration Project Historical Overview". NOAA. November 10, 2005. Archived from the original on May 8, 2009. Retrieved January 22, 2009.
- ^ "alaskashipwreck.com Alaska Shipwrecks (A)". Archived from the original on February 6, 2021. Retrieved June 7, 2019.
- ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Archived from the original on August 24, 2019. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
- ^ "NOWData – NOAA Online Weather Data". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Archived from the original on February 16, 2022. Retrieved February 16, 2022.
- ^ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Archived from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
- ^ "Report on Population and Resources of Alaska at the Eleventh Census: 1890" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 29, 2017.
- ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on December 27, 1996. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
- ^ Kraegel, Laura (September 8, 2017). "Low Enrollment Forces St. George Island To Shut Down Its School". www.kucb.org. Archived from the original on August 11, 2019. Retrieved November 29, 2019.
- ^ Byrd, G. V.; Williams, J. C. (1993). "Red-legged Kittiwake". Birds of North America Online. Archived from the original on August 26, 2018. Retrieved August 26, 2018.
- ^ Rosen, Yereth (July 27, 2016). "New and rare whale species identified from carcass found in Pribilofs". Alaska Dispatch News. Archived from the original on July 28, 2016. Retrieved July 27, 2016.
- ^ "The 40Ar/39Ar chronology and eruption rates of Cenozoic volcanism in the eastern Bering Sea Volcanic Province, Alaska". Archived from the original on June 3, 2012. Retrieved April 11, 2017.
External links
edit
- Official website[dead link]
- St. George Tanaq Corporation
- Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) No. AK-63, "Village of St. George, St. George, Aleutians West Census Area, AK"
- Historic American Engineering Record (HAER) No. AK-25, "Sealing Plant, St. George Island, Pribilof Islands, Saint George, Aleutians West Census Area, AK", 7 photos, 1 photo caption page