Petersburg

Petersburg is a census-designated place (CDP) in Petersburg Borough, Alaska, United States. The population was 2,824 according to 2009 Census Bureau estimates.

The borough encompasses Petersburg and Kupreanof, plus mostly uninhabited areas stretching to the Canada–US border and the southern boundary of the City and Borough of Juneau. While the city of Petersburg ceased to exist as a separate administrative entity (the borough assembly created a service area to assume operation of the former city's services), the tiny city of Kupreanof remains separate within the borough.

History

Tlingits from Kupreanof Island had long used a summer fish camp at the north end of Mitkof Island. Earlier cultures of indigenous people also used the island: remnants of fish traps and some petroglyphs have been carbon-dated back some 1,000 years.

European explorers to Mitkof Island encountered the Tlingit. In the nineteenth century, Peter Buschmann, a Norwegian immigrant, settled here, building a cannery, sawmill, docks and early structures. The settlement was named Petersburg after him, and it flourished as a fishing port. (Icebergs from the nearby LeConte Glacier provided a source for cooling fish). Petersburg originally incorporated as a town on April 2, 1910. The town had attracted mostly immigrants of Scandinavian origin, thus giving Petersburg the nickname "Little Norway". The Sons of Norway hall was built on one of the piers. Three other canneries were built and the four have operated continuously since. With the establishment of the cannery, Alaskan Natives, including Chief John Lott, began to work there and live year-round at the site.

The 1939 Slattery Report on Alaskan development identified the region as one of the areas where new settlements would be established through Jewish immigration. This plan was never implemented.

Fisheries were the mainstay of the economy. In 1965, Petersburg fishermen founded Icicle Seafoods. Fishermen Gordon Jensen and Magnus Martens teamed up with managers Tom Thompson and Bob Thorstenson, Sr. to organize a group of fishermen to purchase the Pacific American Fisheries (PAF) plant (the original Buschmann cannery) at a time when the seafood industry seemed in decline. PAF was traded on the NYSE and had been one of the largest processors in Alaska for a half century. The shareholders, including Board members Fred File, Fred Haltiner, Jr., Robin Leekley, Jeff Pfundt, Aril Mathisen, Bud Samuelson and many others (Hofstads, Otness, and Petersons to name a few) began their work to create, improve and institute the fisheries that sustain Petersburg and many other coastal communities in Alaska today. The company was originally known as PFI but in 1977 changed its name officially to Icicle Seafoods.

Petersburg incorporated as a borough in January 2013, encompassing Petersburg and Kupreanof, plus mostly uninhabited areas stretching to the Canada–US border and the southern boundary of the City and Borough of Juneau. While the City of Petersburg ceased to exist as a separate entity (the borough assembly created a service area to assume operation of the former city's services), the tiny city of Kupreanof remains separate within the borough.

Geography

Petersburg is located on the north end of Mitkof Island, where the Wrangell Narrows meets Frederick Sound. Petersburg is halfway between Juneau, 190 km (120 mi) to the north, and Ketchikan, 180 km (110 mi) to the south.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 46.0 square miles (119 km2), of which, 43.9 square miles (114 km2) of it is land and 2.2 square miles (5.7 km2) of it (4.74%) is water.

Mitkof Island is largely covered by low mountains. The lowlands are mainly made up of muskeg, a type of soil made up of plants in various states of decomposition. It is approximately 20 miles from its north end to its south. The western side of the island borders the Wrangell Narrows, one of the six listed in Southeast Alaska. The Narrows provides a somewhat protected waterway for boats, and opens on the south end of the island into Sumner Straits. Mitkof Island has many creeks that empty into the Narrows, including Blind Slough, Falls Creek, Twin Creeks, and Spirit Creek.

According to the National Marine Fisheries Service, the town is the 15th-most lucrative fisheries port in the United States by volume. In 2011, 101 million pounds of fish and shellfish passed through Petersburg, with a dockside value of $65 million. That year Petersburg ranked as 13th in the nation in terms of the value of its catches.

Transportation

Located on an island with no bridges to the mainland, Petersburg can be accessed only by air or sea.

Marine transportation

Petersburg receives service from the Alaska Marine Highway. Petersburg is a stop on its Inside Passage route that sees scheduled service both southbound and northbound to other Southeast Alaskan communities, Bellingham, Washington and Prince Rupert, British Columbia Canada.

Air transportation

Jet carrier Alaska Airlines serves Petersburg with both cargo and passenger service from the Petersburg James A. Johnson Airport from Wrangell and Juneau daily, with service ultimately reaching Anchorage and Seattle. Three charter air companies operate here.

Culture

• Petersburg celebrates Norwegian Constitution Day in a celebration called "Mayfest," on the third weekend in May. It is a huge celebration. Generally four days of festivities are planned, with the major events occurring early in the weekend. "Little Norway" celebrates the 17th of May with a longer and more enthusiastic celebration than any known Norwegian-American settlement or community. Recently Petersburg residents have traveled to Norway and have found that their American celebration of Norwegian Constitution day (Norwegian: grunnlovsdag) is longer than that in Norway, where they celebrate only on May 17.
• The Petersburg Marine Mammal Center is located here. It is a teaching center and supports research into new discoveries.
• Established in 1968, the Clausen Memorial Museum is dedicated to preserving the history, and telling the story of those who have lived and worked in Petersburg and the surrounding area.