St. George, Alaska

St. George

Anĝaaxchalux̂
St. George Anĝaaxchalux̂
City
	Aerial view of St. George harbor
	St. George Location in Alaska
	Coordinates: 56°36′20″N 169°33′35″W / 56.60556°N 169.55972°W
Country	United States
State	Alaska
Census Area	Aleutians West
Incorporated	September 13, 1983
Government
• Mayor	Mark Merculief
• State senator	Lyman Hoffman (D)
• State rep.	Bryce Edgmon (I)
Area
• Total	182.31 sq mi (472.17 km2)
• Land	34.78 sq mi (90.08 km2)
• Water	147.52 sq mi (382.09 km2)
Elevation	197 ft (60 m)
Population (2020)
• Total	67
• Density	1.93/sq mi (0.74/km2)
Time zone	UTC-9 (Alaska (AKST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-8 (AKDT)
ZIP code	99591
Area code	907
FIPS code	02-65800
GNIS feature ID	1419161
Website	www.stgeorgealaska.com/index.asp

St. George (Aleut: Anĝaaxchalux̂ or Sangiurgiix̂, Russian: Сент-Джордж) is a city in Aleutians West Census Area, Alaska, United States. It is the main settlement of St. George Island in the Pribilofs, a small island group in the Bering Sea. At the 2010 census, the population was 102, down from 152 in 2000.

History

The wreck of the crab-fishing vessel All American shipwreck on St. George Island in 1996. She ran aground there without loss of life on February 29, 1996.

The island was discovered by Gavriil Pribylov on June 25, 1786, during a search for the breeding grounds of northern fur seals. The island is named after Pribylov's ship, the St. George. St. George Island was the first of the Pribilofs to be discovered.^[5]

Built in 1935, the sole church on the island is St. George Church, an Eastern Orthodox Church in the Diocese of Alaska of the Orthodox Church in America.

Geography

St. George is located at 56°36′20″N 169°33′35″W / 56.60556°N 169.55972°W / 56.60556; -169.55972 (56.605546, −169.559584).^[6]

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 182.4 square miles (472 km²), of which, 34.8 square miles (90 km²) of it is land and 147.6 square miles (382 km²) of it (80.94%) is water.

The city is served by an airport with scheduled service to St. Paul Island Airport and Unalaska Airport provided by Grant Aviation. Alaska Central Express also offers flights to Anchorage.

Climate

Climate data for St. George, Alaska (1991–2020)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °F (°C)	43 (6)	44 (7)	44 (7)	48 (9)	63 (17)	62 (17)	71 (22)	66 (19)	59 (15)	52 (11)	47 (8)	44 (7)	71 (22)
Mean maximum °F (°C)	38.9 (3.8)	39.0 (3.9)	39.5 (4.2)	42.6 (5.9)	50.7 (10.4)	54.5 (12.5)	58.9 (14.9)	58.3 (14.6)	53.8 (12.1)	48.8 (9.3)	43.8 (6.6)	41.4 (5.2)	61.0 (16.1)
Mean daily maximum °F (°C)	30.3 (−0.9)	31.5 (−0.3)	31.4 (−0.3)	35.4 (1.9)	41.7 (5.4)	47.2 (8.4)	51.2 (10.7)	52.4 (11.3)	49.6 (9.8)	43.3 (6.3)	37.9 (3.3)	33.7 (0.9)	40.5 (4.7)
Daily mean °F (°C)	26.5 (−3.1)	27.7 (−2.4)	27.3 (−2.6)	31.5 (−0.3)	37.6 (3.1)	43.3 (6.3)	47.8 (8.8)	49.3 (9.6)	46.0 (7.8)	39.5 (4.2)	34.1 (1.2)	29.8 (−1.2)	36.7 (2.6)
Mean daily minimum °F (°C)	22.8 (−5.1)	24.0 (−4.4)	23.3 (−4.8)	27.6 (−2.4)	33.5 (0.8)	39.4 (4.1)	44.4 (6.9)	46.2 (7.9)	42.4 (5.8)	35.7 (2.1)	30.4 (−0.9)	25.9 (−3.4)	33.0 (0.6)
Mean minimum °F (°C)	9.3 (−12.6)	9.5 (−12.5)	10.9 (−11.7)	15.0 (−9.4)	25.2 (−3.8)	32.4 (0.2)	38.5 (3.6)	39.9 (4.4)	32.7 (0.4)	25.8 (−3.4)	20.1 (−6.6)	11.2 (−11.6)	4.1 (−15.5)
Record low °F (°C)	0 (−18)	−6 (−21)	−4 (−20)	−3 (−19)	15 (−9)	26 (−3)	30 (−1)	32 (0)	27 (−3)	16 (−9)	14 (−10)	3 (−16)	−6 (−21)
Average precipitation inches (mm)	1.17 (30)	1.06 (27)	0.80 (20)	0.89 (23)	1.01 (26)	1.26 (32)	1.97 (50)	2.66 (68)	2.53 (64)	3.00 (76)	2.25 (57)	1.78 (45)	20.38 (518)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in)	13.8	14.1	11.1	12.3	13.1	11.5	14.5	17.2	19.1	22.9	21.0	18.7	189.3
Source: NOAA^[7]

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	%±
1880	92	—
1890	93	1.1%
1910	90	—
1920	138	53.3%
1930	153	10.9%
1940	183	19.6%
1950	187	2.2%
1960	264	41.2%
1970	163	−38.3%
1980	158	−3.1%
1990	138	−12.7%
2000	152	10.1%
2010	102	−32.9%
2020	67	−34.3%
U.S. Decennial Census^[8]

St. George first appeared on the 1880 U.S. Census as an unincorporated Aleut village. Of its 92 residents, 88 were Aleut and 4 were White.^[9] It returned again in 1890 with 93 residents, reporting 49 Natives (presumably Aleut), 36 Creoles (Mixed Russian & Native), and 8 Whites. It did not report on the 1900 census. From 1910 to 1940, it reported as "St. George Island." In 1950, it reported as St. George. In 1960, it reported again as "St. George Island." From 1970-onwards, it has reported as St. George. It formally incorporated in 1983.

As of the census^[10] of 2000, there were 152 people, 51 households, and 42 families residing in the city. The population density was 4.4 inhabitants per square mile (1.7/km²). There were 67 housing units at an average density of 1.9 units per square mile (0.73 units/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 92.11% Alaska Native and 7.89% White.

There were 51 households, out of which 47.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.9% were married couples living together, 15.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 17.6% were non-families. 15.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and none had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.98 and the average family size was 3.29.

In the city, the age distribution of the population shows 36.8% under the age of 18, 5.3% from 18 to 24, 31.6% from 25 to 44, 19.7% from 45 to 64, and 6.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 33 years. For every 100 females, there were 92.4 males. For every 100 females aged 18 and over, there were 113.3 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $57,083, and the median income for a family was $60,625. Males had a median income of $50,625 versus $31,250 for females. The per capita income for the city was $21,131. About 4.9% of families and 7.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4.0% of those under the age of eighteen and none of those 65 or over.

Education

St. George is served by the Pribilof Island School District. In 2004, the district began offering 9–12th grade to St. George students via video conference. Students have a choice: they can live at home and attend distance education classes or they can leave home and attend a boarding school like Mt. Edgecumbe High School.

In 2017, St. George School was closed entirely due to low enrollment. The district now offers a correspondence program for grades K-10.^[11]