Updated on Apr 13, 2021
Anaktuvuk Pass (, , or , ) is a city in North Slope Borough, Alaska, United States. The population was 282 at the 2000 census and 324 as of the 2010 census.
Anaktuvuk Pass was named after the Anaktuvuk River. Anaktuvuk is the English way of spelling "anaqtuġvik", place of caribou droppings in Inupiaq, the language of the Inupiat.
A nomadic group of Inupiat called Nunamiut lived inland in northern Alaska, hunting caribou instead of the marine mammals and fish hunted by the rest of the Inupiat, who live on the coast. The Nunamiut traded with the coastal people for other items they needed. A decline in caribou populations around 1900 and in the 1920s caused many Nunamiut to move to the coast. In 1938, several Nunamiut families moved back to the Brooks Range, around Tulugak and the Killik River. In 1949 the Killik River group moved to Tulugak Lake, 15 miles north of where the village lies today. Anaktuvuk Pass is the only Nunamiut settlement.
This settlement attracted Inupiaq people from many other locations, and villagers today lead a somewhat more sedentary lifestyle than in nomadic times. The city was incorporated in 1959. A Presbyterian church was constructed in 1966.
A federally recognized tribe is in the community: the Village of Anaktuvuk Pass (a.k.a. Naqsragmiut Tribal Council). The community population is 88.3% Alaska Natives or part Native. Anaktuvuk Pass is a Nunamiut Eskimo community dependent upon subsistence activities. Sale, importation and possession of alcohol are banned in the village.
Anaktuvuk Pass post office was established in May 1951. The first postmaster was Homer Mekiana. As of 2009, its post office was considered the most isolated in the United States.
Anaktuvuk Pass is slightly north of the Brooks Range on the divide between the Anaktuvuk River and the John River, at an elevation of . Anaktuvuk Pass is the last remaining settlement of the Nunamiut (People of the Land) Iñupiat Inuit in Alaska.
The community lies at approximately . It is in Section 18, Township 15 South, Range 2 East, Umiat Meridian, within the Utqiaġvik Recording District. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of , of which is land and (1.63%) is water.
Anaktuvuk Pass has a typical subarctic climate (Köppen climate classification: Dfc ) bordering on a tundra climate (Köppen climate classification: ET ), with the average temperature in January while the warmest month, July, averages . Temperatures have ranged from . Anaktuvuk Pass receives about of rain yearly, with snowfall averaging about . The area is known for its intense winds and 50-below winters and the generic, framed houses built there in the 1970s. The houses are inefficient for such a climate, according to a Fairbanks Daily News Miner story. On June 28, 1971, the temperature fell to a record summer low of , though the data for that year is extremely sparse. The climate record as a whole is irregular, with data compiled only between 1953 and 1973, with most observations in the 1950s.
Anaktuvuk Pass first appeared on the 1950 U.S. Census as an unincorporated village. It formally incorporated (before statehood) in 1957.
As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 324 people living in the city. The racial makeup of the city was 81.2% Native American, 7.1% White, 0.3% Black, 0.3% Pacific Islander and 9.0% from two or more races. 2.2% were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
As of the census of 2000, there were 282 people, 84 households, and 57 families living in the city. The population density was . There were 101 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 9.57% White, 1.42% Black or African American, 87.59% Native American, 0.71% from other races, and 0.71% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.71% of the population.
There were 84 households, of which 44.0% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 40.5% were married couples living together, 15.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.1% were non-families. 28.6% of all households were made up of individuals, and 3.6% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 3.36 and the average family size was 4.26.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 38.7% under 18, 10.6% from 18 to 24, 28.4% from 25
More about ANAKTUVUK PASS under "Town Info"
This page uses material from the Wikipedia article Anaktuvuk Pass, Alaska , which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0.