The most snowfall in one month was 45.1 inches (115 cm) in January 1971. “So, tell me – there seem to be a lot of different explanations or backgrounds as to the origin of Ketchikan’s name,” I said. Thanks for joining me for the first installment of Ketchikan Uncovered. In 2018, Ketchikan Harbour saw 40 different cruise ships making more than 500 stops in the harbour and bringing more than 1,073,000 visitors to Ketchikan. Ketchikan is located on the western coast of Revillagigedo Island. The mill closed in 1997 in the wake of the passage of the Tongass Timber Reform Act of 1990, which reduced timber harvest targets in the national forest. Ketchikan is named after Ketchikan Creek, which flows through the town. While other towns have their origins firmly rooted in the region’s gold rush years, Ketchikan’s connection with its native population is still at the heart of its community. My father’s family came here shortly after World War I to be fishermen, and ‘til the end of her life, my [maternal] grandmother referred to them as ‘those blow-ins.’”. The median age was 36.7 years. The Ketchikan International Airport serves as both a gateway for Alaska Airlines nonstop jet service to and from Seattle, Juneau, Sitka and Wrangell, with direct service to Anchorage, and as a bush carrier and charter aircraft hub for destinations such as Hyder, Metlakatla and Prince of Wales Island communities. It may mean "the river belonging to Kitschk"; other accounts claim it means "Thundering Wings of an Eagle". The Ketchikan Shipyard consists of two dry-docks (10,000 ton and 2,500 ton) owned and operated by Alaska Ship & Drydock, a subsidiary of Vigor Industrial. In Arthur Miller's play Death of a Salesman, Uncle Ben must leave Willy to go to Ketchikan, where he presumably made part of his fortune. I thought so, too. Let’s look at how Ketchikan became…Ketchikan. Most of the totems at Saxman Totem Park and Totem Bight State Park are recarvings of older poles, a practice that began during the Roosevelt Administration through the Civilian Conservation Corps. Civic boosters have dubbed the community the "Salmon Capital of the World. “I mean, you’ve heard the old line about… ‘When the story becomes better than the truth, print the story,’ or some variation on that. Ketchikan is named after Ketchikan Creek, which flows through the town. The Alaska Marine Highway System has its headquarters in Ketchikan.[28]. Due to its steep and forested terrain, Ketchikan is long and narrow with much of the built-up area being located along, or no more than a few city blocks from, the waterfront. Something you’ve always wondered, but never really had the chance to find out? Let Emma know by submitting your queries to KRBD’s Facebook page or by calling KRBD at 225-9655. The Ketchin family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1841 and 1920. And it’s the salmon that brought the first settlers to the area – the native Tlingit people, who gave Ketchikan its name, meaning ‘thundering wings of an eagle’. An educational exchange program has been active between the two towns since 1986. [9] Estimates put the 2017 population at 13,754 people. Kiffer knows this, too. "Ketchikan" comes from the Tlingit name for the creek, Kitschk-hin, the meaning of which is unclear. A 1995 joint EPA and FBI investigation of the company revealed it had dumped contaminated wastewater and sludge in the waters around Ward Cove, leaving them classified as "impaired" by the EPA. Do you have questions about Ketchikan? You are a unique individual. This was about 33% of all the recorded Locks's in the USA. KPC plead guilty to the charges and agreed to pay a $3 million fine. I asked Kiffer, a freelance writer, how he came to be such a Ketchikan history buff. "Ketchikan" comes from the Tlingit name for the creek, Kitschk-hin, the meaning of which is unclear. September 1963 gegründet. “And I’ve had some very good teachers, who were very interested as well.”. Embed. The average household size was 2.41, and the average family size was 3.07. Ketchikan is named after Ketchikan Creek, which flows through the town. Downtown Ketchikan is a National Historic District. When I finally stopped making jokes about the process by which plants get their food, we got down to business. During the first governorship of Walter Hickel in the 1960s, two members of his cabinet (Frank Murkowski and Robert W. Ward) held strong ties to Ketchikan. With a population at the 2010 census of 8,050,[4] it is the fifth-most populous city in the state, and tenth-most populous community when census-designated places are included. Ketchikan receives service from two separate ferry lines. Elevations of inhabited areas range from just above sea level to about 300 feet (91 m). Ketchikan also houses the publishing offices of the Ketchikan Daily News. Next week the series returns to Anchorage with the origin of the city’s name. [12], Ketchikan Creek served as a summer fish camp for Tlingit natives for untold years before the town was established by Mike Martin in 1885. When I asked Williams about the other stories I’d read – mostly online and in Ketchikan guide books – he laughed. Salmon Capital of the World, Rain Capital of Alaska, Alaska's First City, Learn how and when to remove this template message, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, Ketchikan Gateway Borough School District, List of twin towns and sister cities in the United States, National Register of Historic Places listings in Ketchikan Gateway Borough, Alaska, Alaska Department of Community and Regional Affairs, Alaska Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development, "Alaska Taxable 2011: Municipal Taxation - Rates and Policies", http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/02/02130.html6, "Ketchikan Gateway Borough QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau", http://www.sitnews.us/Kiffer/TongassPacking/040707_tongass_packing.html, "Eleven historic places in America that desperately need saving", "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Ketchikan city, Alaska", http://www2.census.gov/prod2/decennial/documents/1890a_v8-01.pdf, "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Ketchikan city, Alaska", "Ketchikan (city) QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau", "Profile of General Population and Housing Characteristics: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (DP-1): Ketchikan city, Alaska", "Selected Economic Characteristics: 2013-2017 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (DP03): Ketchikan city, Alaska", "Ketchikan city, borough election results certified - KRBD", HR 987, 101st Congress, Tongass Timber Reform Act, "#123 Ketchikan Pulp Co. Irishman Mike Martin bought up 160 acres of land and founded a salmon cannery and trading post. Dubbed E-Craft (for Expeditionary use), the Susitna will serve as the engineering and feasibility platform for a Navy vessel of approximately double the size to assist troops in landing at undeveloped beaches around the world. Name Poster; Keep scrolling for more . “My father’s side of the family’s ancestry came to this location because of Ketchikan Creek; come here for literally thousands of years, arrive here by mid-June, remain here through the end of September,” he said. The per capita income for the city was $30,474. [40], Several movies have been shot in Ketchikan, including The Silver Horde, Spawn of the North, Timber Tramps and Cry Vengeance, plus episodes of the television programs The Love Boat and Baywatch. House was built, which in 1909 became the Yates Memorial Hospital Tlingit name for the,... Salmon cannery and related housing had a larger population than Ketchikan. 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