Nenana
| Nenana | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Nenana |
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| Location in Alaska | |||
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| Basic data | |||
| Foundation : | November 17, 1921 | ||
| State : | United States | ||
| State : | Alaska | ||
| Borough : | Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area | ||
| Coordinates : | 64 ° 34 ′ N , 149 ° 6 ′ W | ||
| Time zone : | Alaska ( UTC − 9 / −8 ) | ||
| Residents : | 378 (as of 2010) | ||
| Population density : | 24.2 inhabitants per km 2 | ||
| Area : | 15.8 km 2 (about 6 mi 2 ) of which 15.6 km 2 (about 6 mi 2 ) is land |
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| Height : | 107 m | ||
| Area code : | +1 907 | ||
| FIPS : | 02-53050 | ||
| GNIS ID : | 1406940 | ||
Nenana is a location in the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area of the US state Alaska . At the United States Census 2000 it had 402 residents.
Nenana is in the Alaska Interior , at the mouth of the Nenana River in the Tanana River , 86 km southwest of Fairbanks on the George Parks Highway . The dog sled relay across Alaska in 1925, caused by a diphtheria epidemic in Nome , started in Nenana.
history
Nenana is the westernmost part of the Tanana - Athabasque Territory. The city of Tanana originally had the name "Tortella", which was derived from the Indian word "Toghotthele" and which means "mountain that lies next to the river". The first Europeans came to the region around 1875. The native inhabitants of Alaska who lived there had already had contact with Russian fur traders through trade.
Gold discoveries in Fairbanks brought many prospectors to Nenana in 1902 . In 1903 a trading post was established. In 1905 the first school in the region was built, which children from neighboring communities also attended. In 1908 a post office opened.
The construction of the Alaska Railroad led to a doubling of the population in 1915. In 1921 Nenana received city rights . The railroad station was completed in 1923, and after two unsuccessful attempts, US President Warren G. Harding hit the Golden Nail in the rails at the north end of the Mears Memorial Bridge over the Tanana River. Nenana was now connected by rail to Fairbanks inland and Seward on the Gulf of Alaska . However, the population decreased - caused by the departure of the railway workers - from around 5000 to 291 by 1930.
In 1961, the Clear Air Force Station was built 30 km southwest of the city , which attracted some civilian companies to Nenana. In 1967 the city was devastated by severe flooding. In the following year a car bridge was built over the Tanana River, which made a road connection to Fairbanks and made the ferry connection over the river superfluous. The George Parks Highway, completed in 1971, shortened the connection south to Anchorage .
