Chirikof Island
| Geography | |
|---|---|
| Location | Pacific Ocean |
| Coordinates | 55°49′30″N 155°37′19″W / 55.82500°N 155.62194°WCoordinates: 55°49′30″N 155°37′19″W / 55.82500°N 155.62194°W |
| Archipelago | Kodiak Archipelago |
| Area | 114.787 km2 (44.320 sq mi) |
| Highest elevation | 300 m (1,000 ft) |
| Highest point | Highest Point |
| Administration | |
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United States
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| State | Alaska |
| Borough | Kodiak Island |
Chirikof Island is located in the Gulf of Alaska approximately 80 miles (130 km) southwest of Kodiak Island.
Chirikof Island consists of 33,000 acres (13,000 ha) of grasses and sedges. Treeless, it lies west of the western tree line in Alaska. The island is shaped like a webbed duck foot with the heel to the north and the webbing to the south. The seas around Chirikof are treacherous and the island has a history of shipwrecks. The south shore has a wide beach suitable for aircraft landings and cautious watercraft landings. The island is open to general public access. Commercial carriers need a permit to visit; personal planes or boats need no permit.
The first human inhabitants of the island were the Old Islanders, 4000-2000 BP (before present, i.e., before 1950.) A subsistence village existed up to the late 19th century, when it was succeeded first by fox farming and then by cattle farming. There has generally been continuous human habitation of Chirikof, relieved by short periods of abandoment. In 1980, the island became part of the Alaska Maritime Wildlife Refuge. The only inhabitants now are a herd of perhaps 700-800 feral cattle. Cattle have been present on the island since the late 19th century. In the 21st century, the herd has become the subject of an ongoing controversy between a small group of Kodiak ranchers and the US Fish and Wildlife Service, which manages the refuge. (See National interest lands below.)
Vitus Bering, captain of the St. Peter, and Alexei Chirikov, captain of the St. Paul, sailed from Kamchatka in 1741 with charts that called the island Tummenoi, a Russian word meaning foggy. The log of the St. Peter recorded a sighting of the island on August 2, 1741, which was St. Stephen's day. For this reason, Bering renamed the island St. Stephen Island. Bering's ship and Chirikof's had become separated early in the voyage and Chirikof never saw the island. Nonetheless, in 1794, explorer George Vancouver renamed the island Chirikof Island, observing that Capt. Chirikof’s “labors in the arduous task of discovery do not appear to have been thus commemorated.” Alutiiqs of the area still call the island Ukamok (ooo-KA-mok) for the ground squirrels common there.
In 1799 the Russian-American Company was given a charter by Tsar Paul I to govern the territory of Alaska and manage the exploitation of its resources. The company had already established a permanent colony for European settlers on Kodiak Island. Supported at first by the infamous fur trade, the Kodiak colonists later pursued cattle ranching and fox farming. During the Russian period (i.e., 1740's to 1867) a population of 60-100 villagers lived a subsistence life on nearby Chirikof. The villagers were Alutiiq, Tlingit, Russian and western Europeans. Some were creoles, the Alaskan word for mixed race. They worshiped in a small Russian orthodox church. The village was abandoned soon after the Russian church called the only priest on the island back to Kodiak in 1870.
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Wikipedia