St. George, AK - The Town

All of the permanent residents of the Island of St. George live in the "Town" of St. George. To me, "Village" seemed like a more appropriate moniker than "town". The locals estimated for me that fewer than 100 permanent residents now live there. The large majority are of the Aleut or Unangan cultures and their ancestors were brought to the island in the late 1700's as slaves by Russian fur traders. Their surnames are mostly of Russian origin. Temporary residents visit the island mostly during the summer months, and the majority are researchers studying and monitoring the tremendous wildlife populations located there. Other visitors include birders, some from other countries, and a few hunters. During my stay on St. George, I was provided with an 800-900 square foot, 2-bedroom house. It was a little rough looking on the outside due to harsh weather conditions, but was very nice and comfortable on the inside. Temporary visitors and some construction workers stay in either homes that are rented from residents or in the hotel. The latter has about 10 rooms and cooking facilities but does not serve meals. As mentioned is a previous post, the beautiful Russian Orthodox Church is the focal point of the village. The interior of this building is beautifully decorated and maintained. Other major buildings include the school which was undergoing some renovations while I was there and the Sealing Plant, locally called the "wash house", where the Northern Fur Seal harvest was processed prior to the cessation of that industry in the 1970's. Other large buildings include the municipal and maintenance facilities, the recreation center which also houses the "Traditional Council" offices, and the grocery store (canteen) which house the Post Office and the Tanaq Corporation, the native administrative office. The cliff located just behind that latter turned out to be one of the best locations I found for taking bird pictures. There are no restaurants, bars, banks, hardware stores or similar commercial business located on the island. All items of this nature must be ordered and shipped from the mainland. Planning ahead is a significant aspect of life on St. George.

Community activities of various sorts were held in the Recreation Center. Each year, at least several small cruise ships visit St. George and are treated to tours of the number of island attractions and then escorted to the rec center for a pot luck meal prepared by locals and native dances. The meals feature local foods such as seal, reindeer, and halibut, all delicious! One Friday evening while I was there, a three-person band of locals played music well into the early morning. I regret the fact that I was too tired to join in the festivities.Future posts on my St. George experiences will include: my duties at the airport, the spectacular flowers of the island, northern fur seals and arctic foxes, scenery, and, of course, a number of entries on the Birds of St. George.