Anchorage Daily News

POPULATION: 35 (2007)

LOCATION: On the south bank of the Koyukuk River, adjacent to and south of the City of Allakaket, about 190 air miles northwest of Fairbanks.

DESCRIPTION: Mainly an Athabascan community; Kobuk Eskimos live across the river in Alatna. The entire population is Alaska Native, with two separate village councils. Traditional potlatches, dances and footraces attract visitors from area villages. Subsistence activities provide the majority of food sources and are the focus of the local economy. Most cash jobs are part time or seasonal. The primary employers are the local school, city and village corporation store. A few residents earn cash from trapping or selling traditional Native handicrafts. Construction and BLM emergency firefighting provide summer jobs.

HISTORY: Several Native groups have lived in the area, including Koyukon Athabascans and Kobuk, Selawik and Nunamiut Eskimos from the north and northwest. The various bands established joint settlements after 1851. The first mission on the Koyukuk River, St. John's-in-the-Wilderness Episcopal Mission, was established in 1906. A post office opened in 1925. In 1938, the name of the community was changed to Allakaket, and the name Alatna was assumed by the small Eskimo community across the river. In 1975, the City of Allakaket was formed and included both settlements of Allakaket and Alatna. In September 1994, flood waters destroyed and swept away nearly all buildings, homes and food caches for the winter. Residents rebuilt near the old city site, but some new homes and facilities are now located outside of the incorporated city boundaries. New Allakaket and Alatna are located outside the city limits.

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