THE PEOPLE OF CHENEGA

The people of Chenega trace their roots to the South Central area of Alaska and specifically to the region of Prince William Sound. They are part of the Aleut/Eskimo family and the Alutiiq sub-culture of that family. They speak a dialect of Allutiiq called Suqcestun.

Chenega residents have certainly experienced their share of adversity. They have not only survived, but prospered. Their tidy village on the southern tip of Chenega Island was home for centuries. The rich waters of Prince William Sound provided well for the people.

These same waters, however, brought many changes. The first was the arrival of foreigners in sailing ships. In 1741 Vitus Bering, the Russian explorer, sailed into Prince William Sound. He stayed near Chenega Island for a time while exploring the area. What Bering thought of the Alutiiq village is not known. We do know that Lord Alexander Baranof, a Russian trader, thought well enough of the villagers to marry one of their Own, Anna of Chenega.

The waters of Prince William Sound brought other transformations to the village. The Russian Orthodox religion, practiced by the traders and explorers who came in contact with the village, was eventually adopted by the people. It is this faith that sustained many of the villagers in years to come.

Perhaps the most difficult period in the history of the Chenega people occurred in more recent times.

The island village was destroyed by a tsunami created by the Good Friday earthquake of 1964. Centuries of history were washed away, along with the Chenega village. The loss of life was catastrophic. One third of the people perished. With the village gone, the Chenega people dispersed to other parts of Alaska and Lower 48 states.

In 1971, the US Congress enacted the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA). As a result, the original residents of Chenega received title to 70,000 acres in western Prince William Sound paving the way for the Chenega Corporation to be established three years later in 1974.

For the twenty years following the earthquake and devastation of the village, the tides of Prince William Sound came and went without seeing a new home for the Chenega people.

In 1984, however, a group of Villagers established the village of Chenega Bay in Prince William Sound on Evan’s Island. In 1989, twenty-five years, from the tragedy of the tsunami, devastation of the village and loss of lives, the EXXON Valdez oil tanker ran aground in Prince William Sound, spilling millions of gallons of oil into the water. The tides carried the black oily substance to the beaches of the newly established Chenega Village. Damage to the surrounding habitat was crippling to both a commercial fishing livelihood and subsistence way of life for the Chenega People.

Chenega Corporation chose to participate in the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Trustee Council Habitat Restoration Program, where large blocks of land harmed by the spill could be protected.

In 1997, Chenega sold a portion of its land to the United States Forest Service and the State of Alaska, the “Habitat Transaction”, for $34,000,000. With this, the corporation developed its strategic plan, a part of which included business development in federal government contracting.

Today, the village of Chenega Bay continues to develop. There is a newly built and operating medical Clinic –the Father Nicolas Kompkoff Clinic; a beautiful Orthodox Church, a school, a community hall, a subsistence center, an airport and small harbor. A system of generators and fuel tanks keeps the residents in constant supply of power. A master plan for the continued development of the village guides efforts to chart necessary improvements. The community has a sophisticated response system for oil spills operated by the Alyeska Pipeline Service Company. There is also a ferry dock used by the State of Alaska ferry system as part of the Alaska Marine Highway System.