Town of the Week

Sitka, Alaska
September 16, 2000

Head over to Sitka, Alaska; just listen in.

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At the base of snowcapped volcano, Mt. Edgecumbe, is the tourist center of southeast Alaska. Once the capital of Alaska in the days when it was part of the Russian Czar's empire is the town of Sitka.

The Slavic influence runs deep in this tlinget (kling-it) village. From Prehistoric times, this has been the home of the Sitka clan of the Kling-it people. The Russian-American company, chief rival of the Hudson Bay Company, made this town the center of it's fur industry. St. Michael's church, built originally in 1844, is a fine example of rural Russian church architecture. The original church was damaged by fire in 1966, but the present cathedral is an exact replica and many of the icons in the interior date to pre-1800. It's still an active parish serving Sitka's Russian Orthodox community.

Sitka is reached by ship with visitors headed to the manicured trails of the Sitka National Historical Park. The town's Sheldon-Jackson Museum focuses on the moment of Alaska's transfer from Russian to American affiliation, which concluded in Sitka in 1867.

The Chichagof Mine, one of the richest mines in the country, provided material to cast cannons and bells and build ships. Today, the town of 8,000 is known for its fisheries and lumber processing. Quaint, quiet and curious, this beautiful village is on the Alaskan marine highway, and is our Town of the Week, Sitka, Alaska.