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Welcome to the Genealogy Trails website for the Dillingham Census Area in Alaska.
Our goal is to help you track your ancestors through time by transcribing genealogical and historical data and
placing it online for the free use of all researchers. This is a continuation of our original Illinois Trails History and Genealogy Project and we are excited about this opportunity to expand into other states.
We welcome your feedback and comments, and of course, your data contributions. If you have transcribed data that
you would like to have posted on this website, please send it to us.
If you would like to be kept informed of our state and county website updates, subscribe to our mailing lists
This Site is Available for Adoption!
We are looking for a coordinator for this site.... folks who share our dedication to putting data online and are
interested in helping this project be as helpful and useful to researchers as it can be. If you are interested
in joining our group as host of this site, view our Volunteer Page for further
information and contact Kim.
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Cities and towns
Aleknagik ~ Clark's Point ~ Dillingham ~ Ekwok ~ Koliganek
Manokotak ~ New Stuyahok ~ Portage Creek ~ Togiak ~ Twin Hills
Location and Climate
Dillingham is located at the extreme northern end of Nushagak Bay in northern Bristol Bay, at the confluence of
the Wood and Nushagak Rivers. It lies 327 miles southwest of Anchorage, and is a 6 hour flight from Seattle. The
community lies at approximately 59.039720° North Latitude and -158.457500° (West) Longitude. (Sec. 21,
T013S, R055W, Seward Meridian.) Dillingham is located in the Bristol Bay Recording District. The area encompasses
33.6 sq. miles of land and 2.1 sq. miles of water. The primary climatic influence is maritime, however, the arctic
climate of the Interior also affects the Bristol Bay coast. Average summer temperatures range from 37 to 66 degrees
Fahrenheit. Average winter temperatures range from 4 to 30 degrees Fahrenheit. Annual precipitation is 26 inches,
and annual snowfall is 65 inches. Heavy fog is common in July and August. Winds of up to 60-70 mph may occur between
December and March. The Nushagak River is ice-free from June through November.
History, Culture and Demographics
The area around Dillingham was inhabited by both Eskimos and Athabascans and became a trade center when Russians
erected the Alexandrovski Redoubt (Post) in 1818. Local Native groups and Natives from the Kuskokwim Region, the
Alaska Peninsula and Cook Inlet mixed together as they came to visit or live at the post. The community was known
as Nushagak by 1837, when a Russian Orthodox mission was established. In 1881 the U.S. Signal Corps established
a meteorological station at Nushagak. In 1884 the first salmon cannery in the Bristol Bay region was constructed
by Arctic Packing Co., east of the site of modern-day Dillingham. Ten more were established within the next seventeen
years. The post office at Snag Point and town were named after U.S. Senator Paul Dillingham in 1904, who had toured
Alaska extensively with his Senate subcommittee during 1903. The 1918-19 influenza epidemic struck the region,
and left no more than 500 survivors. A hospital and orphanage were established in Kanakanak after the epidemic,
6 miles from the present-day City Center. The Dillingham townsite was first surveyed in 1947. The City was incorporated
in 1963.
A federally-recognized tribe is located in the community -- the Curyung Native Village Council. The population
of the community consists of 60.9% Alaska Native or part Native. Traditionally a Yup'ik Eskimo area, with Russian
influences, Dillingham is now a highly mixed population of non-Natives and Natives. The outstanding commercial
fishing opportunities in the Bristol Bay area are the focus of the local culture.
Dillingham is the economic, transportation, and public service center for western Bristol Bay. Commercial fishing,
fish processing, cold storage and support of the fishing industry are the primary activities. Icicle, Peter Pan,
Trident and Unisea operate fish processing plants in Dillingham. During spring and summer, the population doubles.
The city's role as the regional center for government and services helps to stabilize seasonal employment. Many
residents depend on subsistence activities and trapping of beaver, otter, mink, lynx and fox provide cash income.
Salmon, grayling, pike, moose, bear, caribou, and berries are harvested.
Dillingham can be reached by air and sea.
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