Bethel, Alaska
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Bethel, Alaska Mamterillermiut Orutsararmuit |
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| City | |
| City of Bethel | |
Aerial view of Bethel on the Kuskokwim River
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 Location of Bethel within the state of Alaska |
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| Coordinates: 60°47′32″N 161°45′21″W / 60.79222°N 161.75583°WCoordinates: 60°47′32″N 161°45′21″W / 60.79222°N 161.75583°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Alaska |
| Borough | Unorganized |
| Census Area | Bethel |
| ANCSA regional corporation | Calista |
| Incorporated | August 1957 |
| Government | |
| • Type | 2nd Class City |
| • Mayor | Richard Robb |
| • Manager | Ann Capela |
| • State senator | Lyman Hoffman (D) |
| • State rep. | Zach Fansler (D) |
| Area | |
| • Total | 48.7 sq mi (126.1 km2) |
| • Land | 43.2 sq mi (111.8 km2) |
| • Water | 5.5 sq mi (14.3 km2) |
| Elevation | 3 ft (1 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 6,080 Ranked 9th |
| • Density | 54.4/sq mi (21.0/km2) |
| • Alaska Native | 62% |
| Time zone | AKST (UTC-9) |
| • Summer (DST) | AKDT (UTC-8) |
| ZIP code | 99559 |
| Area code | 907 |
| FIPS code | 02-06520 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1398908 |
| Website | www |
Bethel (Mamterilleq in Central Alaskan Yup'ik) is a city located near the west coast of the U.S. state of Alaska, approximately 400 miles (640 km) west of Anchorage. Accessible only by air and river, Bethel is the main port on the Kuskokwim River and is an administrative and transportation hub for the 56 villages in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta.
Bethel is the largest community in western Alaska and in the Unorganized Borough, as well as the 9th largest in the state, with a population of 6,080 as of the 2010 Census. Bethel is home to the lone detention center in southwestern Alaska, the Yukon Kuskokwim Correction Center.
Annual events in Bethel include a noted dogsled race, the Kuskokwim 300, Camai, a traditional Yup'ik dance festival held each spring, and the Bethel Fair held in August.
Southwestern Alaska was the traditional place of Yup'ik people and their ancestors for thousands of years. They called their village Mamterillermiut, meaning "Smokehouse People", after their nearby fish smokehouse. It was an Alaska Commercial Company trading post during the late 19th century, and had a population of 41 people in the 1880 U.S. Census.
In 1885, the Moravian Church established a mission in the area under the leadership of Rev. William Weinland and Caroline (born Yost) and John Henry Kilbuck, Jr., a Lenape, and his wife Edith, a daughter and granddaughter of Moravian missionaries in Kansas. They both learned Yup'ik, which greatly enhanced their effectiveness as missionaries. He made Yup'ik the language of the Moravian Church in the community and region, and helped translate scripture into the people's language. The missionaries moved Bethel from Mamterillermiut to its present location on the west side of the Kuskokwim River. A United States post office was opened in 1905.
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