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With a population of 3,493 people, Nome was built along the Bering Sea, on
the south coast of the Seward Peninsula, facing Norton Sound. It is
only 161 miles east of Russia and 102 miles south of the Arctic Circle.
January temperatures range from -3 to 11; July temperatures are typically 44
to 65. Average annual precipitation is 18 inches, including 56 inches of
snowfall. Nome is known as a Gold-mining town, a birding hub in northwest
Alaska, and terminus of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. The
population of Nome is a mixture of Inupiat Eskimos and non-Natives. Although
many employment opportunities are available, subsistence activities are
prevalent in the community. Former villagers from King Island also live in
Nome. It is the finish line for the 1,100-mile Iditarod Sled Dog Race
from Anchorage, held each March. Traveling to Nome is a truly unique and
unforgettable experience. Just remember "honeybuckets" are a way of
life in this region.
Malemiut, Kauweramiut and Unalikmiut Eskimos have occupied the Seward
Peninsula historically with a well-developed culture they have adapted to their
environment. Around 1870 to 1880, the caribou declined onto the Peninsula, and
the Eskimos changed their diets. Gold discoveries in the Nome area had been
reported as far back as 1865 by Western Union surveyors seeking a route
across Alaska and the Bering Sea. But it was a $1500-to-the-pan gold strike
on the tiny Anvil Creek in 1898 by three Scandinavians, Jafet Lindeberg, Erik
Lindblom, and John Brynteson, that brought thousands of miners to the "Eldorado."
Almost overnight an isolated stretch of tundra fronting the beach was
transformed into a tent-and-log cabin city of 20,000 prospectors, gamblers,
claim jumpers, saloon keepers, and prostitutes. The gold-bearing creeks had
been almost completely staked when an entrepreneur discovered the "golden
sands of Nome." With nothing more than shovels, buckets, rockers and wheel
barrows, thousands of idle miners descended upon the beaches. Two months
later the golden sands had yielded one million dollars in gold (at $16 an
ounce). A narrow-gauge railroad and telephone line from Nome to Anvil Creek
was built in 1900. The City of Nome was formed in 1901. By 1902 the more
easily reached claims were exhausted and large mining companies with better
equipment took over the mining operations. Since the first strike on tiny
Anvil Creek, Nome's gold fields have yielded $136 million. The gradual
depletion of gold, a major influenza epidemic in 1918, the depression, and
finally World War II, each influenced Nome's population. A disastrous fire
in 1934 destroyed most of the City.
Today,
Nome is the supply, service and transportation center of the Bering Strait
region. Government services provide the majority of employment. Retail services, transportation, mining,
medical and other businesses provide year-round income. Several small gold
mines continue to provide some employment. Subsistence activities contribute
to the local diet.
Nome is a regional center of transportation for surrounding villages. There
are two State-owned airports. The Nome Airport has two paved runways, one
at 6,000' and the other at 5,500'. An $8.5 million airport improvement
project is nearing completion. Scheduled jet flights are available as well
as charter and helicopter services. The City Field offers a 1,950' gravel
airstrip. The entire seaward side of the City is protected by a
3,350-foot-long sea wall of granite boulders. These huge rocks were trucked
in from Cape Nome, a 13 miles distance, at a cost of more than one million
dollars. A port and berthing facilities accommodate vessels up to 18 feet in
draft. Lighterage services distribute cargo to area communities. The Corps
of Engineers is currently designing a new harbor channel entrance and
breakwater. Local development groups and the City are funding harbor
dredging, two seasonal floating docks, and a boat launch. Local roads lead
to Teller, Council, and the Kougarok River.
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