culture & heritage
Village History
The original village of Chenega was founded in the 1770s and was the oldest continuously inhabited village in Prince William Sound. The name of the village was first recorded in the 1880 census by Ivan Petroff. It is also known that Vitus Bering, the Danish explorer who discovered Alaska for the Russian Empire, stayed off the shores of Chenega Island during his travels. When Alexander Baranov, governor of the Russian colony and chief of the Russian American Company, attempted to develop trade around Prince William Sound and establish friendly ties with the Alaska Native communities, he married Anna of Chenega.
On Good Friday, March 27th, 1964 an earthquake hit Alaska. The tsunami that immediately followed destroyed the village and killed one third of the residents of Chenega. The survivors temporarily resettled in villages throughout Prince William Sound.
In 1971, under the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSCA), the original residents of Chenega received title to 70,000 acres of land in Prince William Sound, which enabled them to re-establish the village of Chenega and form Chenega Corporation.
In 1984 the new village of Chenega Bay was established on Evans Island, in Prince William Sound. In the summer of that year, twenty-one homes, an office building, community hall, school, two teacher's houses, church and community store were constructed.
On Good Friday, March 24th, 1989 the Exxon Valdez oil tanker struck a reef off Bligh Island, spilling millions of gallons of oil into Prince William Sound. Today, the village of Chenega Bay still feels the impact of the oil spill, particularly with the harmful effects on the wildlife and subsistence lifestyle of the villagers.
Chenega Bay today is a Native community practicing a subsistence way of life, as well as commercial fishing and oyster farming. The village is home to approximately sixty residents. The community has extensive infrastructure including an oil spill response/ferry dock, which is utilized by the Alyeska Pipeline Service Company to store oil spill response equipment and by the State of Alaska Marine Highway system as a regularly scheduled ferry whistle stop. The community also has a small boat harbor with slips for approximately twenty boats, float plane accessibility, a modern airport with a gravel runway, a three-generator power system, and a fuel tank supply system.
Alaska Native Corporations
The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANSCA) was established to provide for the economic well being of the Alaska Native people.
Alaska Native Corporations (ANCs) fund an annual budget that insures tribal rights, village resources, and protection of cultural historic sites. ANCs also provide shareholder education, scholarships and training, as well as corporate donations to Chenega Bay Community School students and the Russian Orthodox Church. Funds are also designated for the preservation of Prince William Sound region, culture and language.
ANCs pay a higher percentage of their net income as dividends than publicly held business corporations, and they make substantial philanthropic contributions in the form of scholarships and charitable contributions.
