TheAleut (Unangan) people have lived on Unalaska Island for thousands of years.[6] The Unangan, who were the first to inhabit the island of Unalaska, named it "Ounalashka", meaning "near the peninsula". Theregional native corporation has adopted this moniker, and is known as theOunalashka Corporation.[7] The Russianfur trade reached Unalaska whenStepan Glotov and his crew arrived on August 1, 1759. Natives, Russians and theirAlaskan Creole descendants comprised most of the community's population until the mid-20th century, when the involvement of the United States inWorld War II led to a large-scale influx of people and construction of buildings all along the strategically located Aleutians.
Almost all of the community's port facilities are on Amaknak Island, better known asDutch Harbor or just "Dutch". It is the largest fisheries port in the U.S. by volume caught. It includesDutch Harbor Naval Operating Base and Fort Mears, U.S. Army, a U.S.National Historic Landmark. Dutch Harbor lies within the city limits of Unalaska and is connected to Unalaska by a bridge. Amaknak Island is home to almost 59 percent of the city's population, although it has less than 3 percent of its land area.
As a result of the town's strong fishing industry, Unalaska has also become notable for its large population ofbald eagles, which number in the hundreds and were attracted to the area by human activity.[8]
The port of Unalaska in 1816.Aerial view of the Point Kadin vents, a series of post-glacial explosion pits and small cinder cones that occur along a fracture zone northwest of the summit of Makushin Volcano.
The island of Unalaska was first inhabited by theAleut people.
Unalaska and Amaknak islands contained 24 settlements with more than 1,000 Aleut inhabitants in 1759, when the first Russian group under Stepan Glotov came and started trading for three years onUmnak and Unalaska. Between 1763 and 1766, a conflict between the Russian fur traders and the Unalaska Natives occurred; the Aleuts destroyed four Russian ships and killed 175 hunters/traders. In the 1760s, Unalaska was temporarily used as a Russianfur trading post.[9] The post was permanently established in 1774,[10] and was eventually incorporated into theRussian-American Company. It was there that CaptainJames Cook encountered the navigatorGerasim Izmailov in 1778.
In 1788, the Spanish made contact with the Russians in Alaska for the first time. An expedition byEsteban José Martínez andGonzalo López de Haro visited several Russian settlements. Their westernmost visit was to Unalaska. On August 5, 1788, they claimed Unalaska for Spain, calling itPuerto de Dona Marie Luisa Teresa.[11]
On October 18, 1867, the United Statespurchased Alaska, which made Unalaska part of the U.S. territory.
In 1880, theMethodist Church opened a school and a clinic for orphans in Unalaska. Between 1899 and 1905, theGold Rush brought many ships through Dutch Harbor, where the North American Commercial Company had acoaling station.
Unalaska, June 1906
During the first half of the century, the island was touched by numerous epidemics. The first epidemic occurred in 1900; in 1919, theSpanish flu touched the island. These epidemics contributed to a dramatic decrease of the population in Unalaska.
Fearing the threat fromImperial Japan duringWorld War II, theneutral United States began fortifying Dutch Harbor in 1940, resulting in the construction of theDutch Harbor Naval Operating Base and Fort Mears. Construction finished entirely by September 1941, three months before the surpriseattack on Pearl Harbor that caused the U.S. to enter the war. On June 3, 1942, the town was attacked by Japanese air forces in theBattle of Dutch Harbor, part of theAleutian Islands Campaign. After the attack and the Japanese occupations ofKiska andAttu, almost all of the native residents of Amaknak Island were evacuated. Many were held under poor conditions in camps inSoutheast Alaska for the duration of the war; a substantial number of the internees died during the imprisonment.[13]
Beginning in the 1950s, Unalaska became a center of theAlaskan king crab fishing industry; by 1978, it was the largest fishing port in the United States. A 1982 crash in king crab harvests decimated the industry, and the mid-1980s saw a transition tobottom fishing.[14]
On October 25, 1977, an extremely intenseextratropical system struck the area. A pressure of 926 millibars was recorded at Dutch Harbor, which was the lowest non-tropical pressure ever recorded in the United States until December 31, 2020, when another system struck the islands with a pressure of 924.8 millibars.[15] Winds in excess of 100knots caused the shipwreck ofMV Kuroshima in 1997.
Unalaska view in 1972 with the collapsed buildings of the closed naval base in the foreground
The city has struggled with problems likealcoholism andunemployment in the past; while these problems still persist, the situation has improved in recent years.[16] One example is the Elbow Room, a bar which locally, and later abroad, became infamous for its raucousness. It was closed in 2005.[16]
Satellite shot of the islands of Umnak (left) and Unalaska (right).
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 212.3 square miles (549.9 km2), of which 111.0 square miles (287.5 km2) is land and 101.3 square miles (262.4 km2) (47.71%) is water.
Makushin Volcano (5,691 ft/1,735 m) is located on the island; it is not quite visible from within the town of Unalaska, though the steam rising from its cone is visible on the rare clear day. By climbing one of the smaller hills in the area, such asPyramid Peak orMount Newhall, it is possible to get a good look at the snow-covered cone.
A major find was announced in 2015 after scientists examined a group of giant tusked quadruped marine mammal fossils. The species had been unearthed during excavation for the construction of a school. They are unique shore dwellers belonging to the extinct orderDesmostylia, and possibly related toProboscidea orSirenia.[18] A rendition of a group was drawn by Alaskan artistRay Troll.[19]
As in all of the Aleutian islands in the south ofAkutan Island (32 °F or 0 °C isotherm) the climate of Unalaska issubpolar oceanic (Cfc),[20] with moderate and fairly uniform temperatures and heavy precipitation. Winters are consistently cold, but relatively mild in comparison to other parts of the state. Summers are cool, with most afternoons only reaching highs of 54 °F (12 °C) to 70 °F (21 °C). Fog is often present even when it is not raining. Summer weather is around 5 °F (2.8 °C) cooler than Southeast Alaska (Sitka), but the winter temperatures are nearly the same, although despite the higher latitudes of cities such as Sitka and Ketchikan, both of the two cities have warmer winters than Unalaska.
The mean annual temperature for Unalaska is 41.6 °F (5.3 °C), being about 33.0 °F (0.6 °C) in January and 53.7 °F (12.1 °C) in August. The coldest recorded month was February 1984, with a mean temperature of 22.9 °F (−5.1 °C), while the warmest month was August 2019 at 57.3 °F (14.1 °C); the annual mean temperature has ranged from 38.0 °F (3.3 °C) in 1916 to 44.1 °F (6.7 °C) in 2016.[21] With about 225 rainy days a year, Unalaska is among the rainiest places in the United States. June through August are markedly the driest months of the year, with very rare thunderstorms. Precipitation is especially heavy from October to February, when frequent, often-intense storms from the North Pacific Ocean cross the area, bringing high winds and heavy precipitation in any form and sometimes changing forms (rain, freezing rain, sleet, snow). On average, December is the year's wettest month. Snowfall averages over 81 inches (210 cm) per winter season, and can be heavy from December to March.
Unalaska's recorded temperature range is from 82 °F (28 °C) in August 1982 to −8 °F (−22 °C) in January 1986.[21] The coldest daytime maximum recorded is 11 °F (−12 °C) and the annual mean coldest day is 24 °F (−4 °C).[21] The warmest night on record is well above the average daily summer high temperature, standing at 65 °F (18 °C), with the mean for the annual warmest night being 56 °F (13 °C).[21]
Climate data forDutch Harbor, Unalaska, Alaska (1991–2020 normals,[a] extremes 1915–present)
^Mean monthly maxima and minima (i.e. the highest and lowest temperature readings during an entire month or year) calculated based on data at said location from 1991 to 2020.
Unalaska first reported on the1880 U.S. census as the Aleut and Creole (mixed Russian & Aleut) village of Iliuliuk.[25] Of its 406 residents, 230 were Aleut, 162 were Creole (Mixed Russian & Native) and 14 were White. It was the 9th-largest community in Alaska.[26] In 1890, it returned as Unalaska, with 317 residents. This included a majority of 165 Creoles, 84 Natives, 66 Whites and 2 Asians (the total population included adjacent Dutch Harbor, and 5 docked vessels including the steamersArago andDora and schoonersNellie Martin,Pearl andMatthew Turner).[27] In 1900, it reported as Unalaska again, but did not present a racial breakdown. It reported again as Iliuliuk in 1910, but has reported from 1920 onwards as Unalaska. It was formally incorporated in 1942.
Unalaska city, Alaska – Racial and ethnic composition Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
In thecensus[32] of 2010, there were 4,376 people, 927 households, and 533 families residing in the city. There were 1106 housing units. The racial makeup of the city was 39%White, 7%Black or African American, 6%Native American, 33%Asian (28% Filipino, 3% Vietnamese, 1% Japanese, 1% Other Asian),[33] 2%Pacific Islander, 7% fromother races, and 6% from two or more races.Hispanic orLatino of any race were 15% of the population.
There were 927 households, out of which 34% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43% weremarried couples living together, 8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43% were non-families. 35% of all households had individuals under 18 and 5% had someone living who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.5 and the average family size was 3.2.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 15% under the age of 20, 6% from 20 to 24, 40% from 25 to 44, 36% from 45 to 64, and 3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40.7 years. For every 100 females, there were 194.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 218.7 males.
The port of Unalaska / Dutch Harbor is the main port and field base for the storied Bering Seaking crab fishery. The Dutch Harbor crabbing fleet is featured in the television showDeadliest Catch, a documentary-style show on theDiscovery Channel, and Dutch Harbor's facilities and local pub are featured prominently in numerous episodes.
Dutch Harbor has also been the largest fisheries port in the United States, in terms of volume of seafood caught, for nearly every year since 1981.[34][35] Until 2000, it also ranked first in terms of the dollar value of its catch; since 2000, however, the port ofNew Bedford, Massachusetts, has outranked Dutch Harbor in that category.[36]
A pilot project in Unalaska / Dutch Harbor, Alaska, is producingfish oilbiodiesel from the localfish processing industry in conjunction with theUniversity of Alaska Fairbanks. It is rarely economical to ship the fish oil elsewhere and Alaskan communities are heavily dependent on diesel power generation. The local factories process 3.5 milliongallons[37] of fish oil annually.
Unalaska's mayor Vincent M. Tutiakoff Sr., shown in June 2017
Unalaska has acouncil–manager form of government. The mayor is elected at large, and serves a three-year term; powers are mostly ceremonial.
The city council is the legislative body of the city; it is made up of six members, who are elected at large by a direct vote of the city's electorate. They also serve three-year terms. The city council has for its mission to "enact the laws of the city, set the mill rate for property taxes within the city, approve the annual budget for the city, and appropriate funds to provide for city services".[38]
The incumbent mayor is Vincent M. Tutiakoff Sr. Former mayor Frank Kelty served more terms than any other Unalaska mayor, with a total of six terms over the years.
Unalaska also maintains its own municipal police department.
Unalaska was home toCarl Moses, who moved there from King Cove in the mid-1960s and was a business and political leader in the community for decades until shortly before his death in 2014. Moses was the longest-serving member in the history of the Alaska House, serving a total of 22 years, from 1965 to 1973 and from 1993 to 2007. He also served under three different political parties, first as aRepublican, later switching to Democrat, and also served the majority of one term as a member of theAlaskan Independence Party. The only other Unalaska resident to serve in the legislature was Eric G. Sutcliffe, at the time owner of Stormy's Restaurant. Sutcliffe served a single term in the House, from 1981 to 1983.
As Unalaska is designated afirst-class city[39] and located within theUnorganized Borough, it is required under state law to operate its own schools rather than participate in a Rural Education Attendance Area. TheUnalaska City School District reported an enrollment of 418 students for the 2018–2019 school year, split roughly evenly between Eagle's View Elementary School (pre-elementary through 4th grade) andUnalaska Jr/Sr High School (5th through 12th grades).
UCSD was voted one of the best 100 school districts in the United States byOffspring Magazine, aForbes publication. It has also consistently been one of the highest-scoring schools in Alaska in both the Standards-based exams and Alaska Exit Exam. In 2006, the Alaska Association of School Boards awarded the school district with the Outstanding School Board Award and Superintendent of the Year award.[citation needed]
Unalaska Headstart also serves the community's pre-elementary education needs.
Previously theAleutian Region School District, which serves rural areas in the western Aleutian Islands, had its administrative headquarters in Unalaska;[40] the school board's mailing address was in Unalaska.[41]
TheUniversity of Alaska Fairbanks also has a campus in Unalaska, the University of Alaska, Aleutian Pribilof campus. This college is part of the College of Rural Alaska network and offers both conventional classroom and distance classes.[42] It offers university classes, community workshops, local courses, as well as dual credit for high school students.[43]
11% of Unalaska residents age 25 and older have a bachelor's or advanced college degree.[44]
Unalaska is connected to the rest of the state by air via theUnalaska Airport, a 4,500 by 100 ft (1,372 by 30 m)pavedrunway owned by the state of Alaska,[45] from which daily flights are scheduled. These flights consist of turboprop service to and from Anchorage.[46] A seaplane base is also available. In 2002, the state of Alaska changed the name of the airport to "Tom Madsen Airport", after a bush pilot killed in an accident that year, although the FAA still uses the airport's original name.
TheAlaska Marine Highway operates once every two weeks fromKodiak between April and October. Out of the ten majordocks in Unalaska, three are operated by the city. A World War II sub dock was refurbished and now offers ship repair services.[47]
There are approximately 7 miles (11 km) of paved road, and 38 miles (61 km) of road total in Unalaska.[42] According to traffic counts taken by theAlaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities, the most heavily traveled roads in Unalaska are Airport Beach Road between 5th Street and East Point Road, 5th Street between Broadway Avenue and Airport Beach Road, and Broadway Avenue between 5th Street and Steward Road. These roads recorded anannual average daily traffic volume of approximately 3,000 cars.[48]
^Inglis, Robin (2008).Historical Dictionary of the Discovery and Exploration of the Northwest Coast of America Front Cover. Maryland: Rowman and Littlefield Publishing. p. 219.ISBN9780810855519.
^Khlebnikov, K.T., 1973, Baranov, Chief Manager of the Russian Colonies in America, Kingston: The Limestone Press,ISBN0919642500
^Cole, Terrence M. (November 1992). "Jim Crow in Alaska: The Passage of the Alaska Equal Rights Act of 1945".The Western Historical Quarterly.23 (4):429–449.doi:10.2307/970301.JSTOR970301.S2CID163528642.
^Fried, Neal and Brigitta Windisch-Cole. "Public School Education: A Big Industry."Alaska Economic Trends. February 1998. Start: p. 2/17. CITED: p. 7/17. "Name of District[...]Aleutian Region District School Center[...]Location of Headquarters of District Office[...]Unalaska"
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