Anchorage Daily News

COLD BAY

POPULATION: 87 (2006)

LOCATION: In the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge at the western end of the Alaska Peninsula, 634 miles southwest of Anchorage and 180 miles northeast of Unalaska.

DESCRIPTION: A fishing-industry center and home to a number of federal offices with services focused on Aleutian transportation and wildlife protection. Because of its central location and modern airport, Cold Bay serves as the regional center for air transportation on the Alaska Peninsula and as an international hub for private aircraft. Subsistence and recreational fishing and hunting are a part of the local culture. Fewer than one in five residents is Alaska Native or part Native. There is one school, attended by about 15 students.

HISTORY: Archaeological sites dating to the last ice age indicate the area around Cold Bay was once inhabited by a large Native population. It was used by European hunters and trappers throughout the 19th century. Izembeck Lagoon was named in 1827 by Count Feodor Kutke, after Karl Izembeck, a surgeon aboard the sloop Moller. During World War II, Cold Bay was the site of the strategic air base Fort Randall. At that time, the airport was the largest in the state, with a 10,000-foot runway. The city was incorporated in 1982.

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