Anchorage Daily News

POPULATION: 244 (2007)

LOCATION: On the north bank of the Kuskokwim River, two miles upriver from Lower Kalskag, 30 miles west of Aniak, 99 miles northeast of Bethel, 348 miles west of Bethel.

DESCRIPTION: A Yup'ik Eskimo village strongly influenced by the Roman Catholic Church. Nine of every 10 residents are Alaska Native, and subsistence activities form an important component of their lifestyle and economy. Most cash income in Upper Kalskag is derived from public employment at the school, city or clinic. Some trap or work as BLM firefighters. There is one school attended by about 15 students.

HISTORY: In 1898, Nicholas Kameroff Sr. and Olinga (Avakumoff) Kameroff and their eight children first settled the community. The village was a fish camp known as "Kessiglik." Around 1900, residents of "Kalthagamute" began to move to the village. In 1930, the BIA established a government school, and by 1932 residents of neighboring communities relocated to Kalskag. In 1940, Paul Kameroff Sr. established a general store, post office, coffee shop and a barging company. At this time, the community owned and worked a herd of 2,100 reindeer. During the 1930s, Russian Orthodox practitioners in the village relocated to establish Lower Kalskag, three miles to the southwest. The villagers who remained were primarily Roman Catholic practitioners.

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