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Crooked Creek Alaska
61.52N - 158.06W
Population: 146
Location: Crooked Creek is located on the north bank of the Kuskokwim River at its junction with Crooked Creek. It lies in the Kilbuk-Kuskokwim Mountains 50 miles northeast of Aniak, 141 miles northeast of Bethel, and 275 miles west of Anchorage.
History: It was first reported in 1844 by the Russian explorer Zagoskin, who recorded the name of the creek as "Kvikchagpak," or "great bend" in Yupik, and as "Khottylno," or "sharp turn" in Ingalik Indian. He noted that the site was used as a summer fish camp for the nearby villagers of Kwigiumpainukamuit. In 1909, a permanent settlement was established as a way station for the Flat and Iditarod gold mining camps. The USGS reported it in 1910 as "Portage Village" because it was at the south end of a portage route up Crooked Creek to the placer mines. In 1914, Denis Parent founded a trading post upriver from the creek mouth, in what would become the "upper village" of Crooked Creek. A post office was opened in 1927 and a school was built in 1928. The "lower village" was settled by Eskimos and Ingalik Indians. By the early 1940s, there was a Russian Orthodox Church, St. Nicholas Chapel, and several homes. The upper and lower portions of the village remain today. Gold production continued through the late 1980s, when Western Gold Mining and Exploration went out of business."
Culture: Crooked Creek is a mixed Eskimo and Ingalik village with a lifestyle reliant on subsistence activities.
Economy: The economy is focused on subsistence activities. Salmon, moose, caribou and water fowl are staples of the diet. There are a few year-round positions with the school and local businesses. Some residents trap and sell pelts. Calista Corp., The Kuskokwim Corp., and Placer Dome U.S. signed an exploration and mining lease in June 1995 for Donlin Creek, north of Crooked Creek. Over $1 million will be spent on exploration in the area. If exploration is successful, a feasibility study will be conducted, requiring $10 to $15 million over a three to five year period.
Transportation: The Kuskokwim River is the local highway in both summer and winter. ATVs and snow machines are used by residents. The frozen river becomes an ice road in winter. Skiffs and barges provide cargo in summer. A State-owned and operated 2,100' gravel airstrip is southwest of the village, with scheduled weekday air services. A suspension bridge over Crooked Creek connects the upper and lower villages with the airport.
Climate: A continental climate prevails in the area. Snowfall measures 85 inches per year, with total precipitation averaging 17 inches per year. Temperatures range from -59 to 94. High winds often cause flight delays in the fall and winter. The Kuskokwim is ice-free from mid-June through October.
Facilities: The village is undergoing major sanitation improvements, including construction of a washeteria, well, watering point, sewage lagoon, and landfill with access road. A well at the washeteria/clinic complex currently provides treated water, but the facility is not yet completed. Honeybuckets are disposed of individually. Two-thirds of all homes lack plumbing. The school and store have individual wells and septic tanks, as do some homes.
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