Welcome to Cangacit.com! I have great plans for this website but for now enjoy the text I stole from the
ACDCIS on Aleknagik.
PS I put some of my pics in the middle...
Marsh Mountain with sno-go tracks.
Wood River and Aleknagik Lake have been used historically as summer fish camps. Aleknagik means "Wrong Way Home,"
because Natives returning to their homes along the Nushagak River would sometimes become lost in the fog and find
themselves swept up the Wood River with the tide, inadvertently arriving at Aleknagik Lake. The 1929 U.S. Census
found 55 people living in the "Wood River Village" area to the south. In 1930, there were five families living on
the shores of the lake year-round: the Waskeys, Polleys, Hansons, Yakos, and Smiths. A log cabin territorial school
was built on the south shore of the lake in 1933, and Josie Waskey was the first teacher. Attracted by the school,
other facilities, and plentiful fish, game, and timber, a number of families from Goodnews, Togiak, and Kulukak
relocated to Aleknagik. A post office was established in 1937. A two-story framed school with a teacher apartment
was constructed in 1938. By 1939, Aleknagik had 78 residents, over 30 buildings, and a small sawmill. In the late
Kids sliding ;)
1940s, a Seventh-Day Adventist mission and school was established on the north shore. During the 1950s, a Moravian
church and a Russian Orthodox church were built in Aleknagik and over 35 families lived along the lake.
In 1959, the
state constructed a 25-mile road connecting the south shore to Dillingham. The road was passable only during the
summer months, until the late 1980s, when it was upgraded and maintained year-round. The city was incorporated in
1973. Over 24 additional square miles were annexed to the city in April 2000.
A federally-recognized tribe is located in the community -- the Native Village of Aleknagik. The population of the
community consists of 84.6% Alaska Native or part Native. It is a traditional Yup'ik Eskimo area, with historical
influences from the Seventh-Day Adventists, Russian Orthodox, and Moravians. Fishing and subsistence activities are
practiced. During the 2000 U.S. Census, total housing units numbered 107, and vacant housing units numbered 37. Vacant
housing units used only seasonally numbered 21. U.S. Census data for Year 2000 showed 69 residents as employed. The
unemployment rate at that time was 21.59 percent, although 51.75 percent of all adults were not in the work force. The
median household income was $22,750, per capita income was $10,973, and 40.77 percent of residents were living below
the poverty level.
Jeneva!