Old Harbor
Old Harbor is located on the southeast
coast of Kodiak Island, 70 miles southwest of the City of Kodiak and 322
miles southwest of Anchorage. It lies at approximately 57° 12' N
Latitude, 153° 18' W Longitude (Sec. 29, T034S, R025W, Seward Meridian).
The community is located in the Kodiak Recording District. The area
encompasses 20 sq. miles of land and 6 sq. miles of water.
The
area around Old Harbor is thought to have been inhabited for nearly
2,000 years. The area was visited by the Russian Grigori Shelikov and
his "Three Saints" flagship in 1784. Three Saints Bay became the first
Russian colony in Alaska. In 1788, a tsunami destroyed the settlement.
Two more earthquakes struck before 1792. In 1793, the town relocated on
the northeast coast to "Saint Paul's," now known as Kodiak. A settlement
was reestablished at Three Saints Harbor in 1884. The town was recorded
as "Staruigavan," meaning "old harbor" in Russian. The present-day
Natives are Alutiiq (Russian-Aleuts.) The Old Harbor post office was
opened in 1931. In 1964, the Good Friday earthquake and resulting
tsunami destroyed the community; only two homes and the church remained
standing. The community has since been rebuilt in the same location.
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