King Island, Alaska
Encyclopedia
King Island (King's Island in early US sources) is an island in the Bering Sea
, west of Alaska
. It is about 40 miles (64.4 km) west of Cape Douglas and is south of Wales, Alaska
.
The island is about 1 miles (1.6 km) wide. It was once the winter home of a group of about 200 Inupiat who called themselves Aseuluk. The Aseuluk spent their winters engaging in subsistence hunting on King Island and their summers engaging in similar activities on the mainland near the location of present-day Nome, Alaska
. After the establishment of Nome, the islanders began to sell intricate carvings to residents of Nome during the summer. By 1970, all King Island people had moved to Nome year-round.
In 2005 and 2006 the National Science Foundation
(NSF) funded a research project which brought a few King Island natives back to the Island. Some participants had not been back to the island in 50 years. The King Island Community eagerly awaits the project's results.
James Cook
was the first Europe
an to sight the island in 1778 and named for Lt. James King, a member of his party. It is part of the Bering Sea unit of the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge
.
Bering Sea
The Bering Sea is a marginal sea of the Pacific Ocean. It comprises a deep water basin, which then rises through a narrow slope into the shallower water above the continental shelves....
, west of Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
. It is about 40 miles (64.4 km) west of Cape Douglas and is south of Wales, Alaska
Wales, Alaska
Wales is a town in the Nome Census Area, Alaska, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 152. It is the westernmost town on the American mainland.-Geography:...
.
The island is about 1 miles (1.6 km) wide. It was once the winter home of a group of about 200 Inupiat who called themselves Aseuluk. The Aseuluk spent their winters engaging in subsistence hunting on King Island and their summers engaging in similar activities on the mainland near the location of present-day Nome, Alaska
Nome, Alaska
Nome is a city in the Nome Census Area in the Unorganized Borough of the U.S. state of Alaska, located on the southern Seward Peninsula coast on Norton Sound of the Bering Sea. According to the 2010 Census, the city population was 3,598. Nome was incorporated on April 9, 1901, and was once the...
. After the establishment of Nome, the islanders began to sell intricate carvings to residents of Nome during the summer. By 1970, all King Island people had moved to Nome year-round.
In 2005 and 2006 the National Science Foundation
National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation is a United States government agency that supports fundamental research and education in all the non-medical fields of science and engineering. Its medical counterpart is the National Institutes of Health...
(NSF) funded a research project which brought a few King Island natives back to the Island. Some participants had not been back to the island in 50 years. The King Island Community eagerly awaits the project's results.
James Cook
James Cook
Captain James Cook, FRS, RN was a British explorer, navigator and cartographer who ultimately rose to the rank of captain in the Royal Navy...
was the first Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
an to sight the island in 1778 and named for Lt. James King, a member of his party. It is part of the Bering Sea unit of the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge
Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge
The Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge is a United States National Wildlife Refuge comprising 2,400 islands, headlands, rocks, islets, spires and reefs in Alaska, with a total area of , of which is wilderness)...
.
External links
- Ancient mask returned to Alaska ghost village, MSNBC, January 18, 2008
- Photogallery of traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) of King Island, Alaska, Oregon State University, October 28, 2008
- Munoz photographs - King Island early 1950s
- Survey of a King Island kayak