Table of Contents:
Early Ketchikan.
Ketchikan’s early history begins with the Tlingit (KLING kit) natives who would fish Ketchikan Creek in the summer. The Haida (HIGH dah) and Tsimshian (SIM she ann) tribes were also in the vicinity.
It was possibly a stop for Spanish, English, and Russian ships. Due to fresh water, fish, and lumber availability, it is a choice stop, but there is no record.
During Alaska’s time as Russian American (1733 to 1867,) it may have been a fur trader’s temporary camp. George Vancouver went sailing by circa 1793, but just long enough to map the area.
The United States purchases the Alaskan Territory from Russia. The year is 1867.
Washington will take 45 more years to declare Alaska an organized incorporated territory.
So at this time, the only Americans with interest in Alaska are some trappers and traders.
It is not until 1879 when others begin taking notice.
The first outsider on record to come here was Mike Martin in 1885. Scouting the area for a canning company from Oregon, he found ideal conditions. He builds a salt company and a general store.
The location is ideal. The town sits at the southern entrance to Alaska’s Inside Passage. This navigational route passes through barrier islands. It allows ships to reach the Gulf of Alaska without having to go into the Pacific.
Just south of the Alaska Inside Passage are barrier islands along British Columbia. They create a protected route to Vancouver and Seattle.
As the first settlement in Alaska (Alaska’s 1st City) for boats coming north from British Columbia, it began growing immediately.
The Stream That Sparkles.
In the summer of 1880, something happens to put Alaska on the map. Tlingit Chief Kowee leads prospectors Joe Juneau and Richard Harris to a stream. They find gold nuggets lying in the stream bed. They mark off a 160-acre townsite they call Harrisburg because Richard was doing the writing.
Within a year, over 100 prospectors were panning and living in Harrisburg, later Rockwell. However, it will not become Juneau until 1881.
What does any of this have to do with Ketchikan, almost 300 miles to the south?
Now a small town sprouting up around the cannery, Ketchikan is the last place to buy supplies before pushing north.
By 1900 the city incorporates.
If there is gold in Juneau, there must be gold near Ketchikan as well. Many prospectors stay or return to the Ketchikan area in search of their fortunes. The area also attracts U.S. loggers due to the millions of acres of trees. Ketchikan harbor being the closest U.S. harbor to the lower 48, becomes the gateway to logging.
The Roaring 1900s.
Ketchikan, well, all of Alaska, was the new Wild West. Towns would spring up overnight and triple in population, sometimes in just a few weeks.
Predominantly, the first settlers are miners and lumberjacks happy to settle things with a fist instead of a law.
The Episcopal Church, hoping to bring some decency to the wild west town, opens a mission in 1905.
By 1909, they repurpose their clergy house as the 12-bed Yates Memorial Hospital.
With the growth of the port, the canning industry is now shipping seafood worldwide.
With the growth of Ketchikan, entrepreneurs begin supplying mining equipment, alcohol, and other “entertainment.”
Creek Street.
In its attempt to bring decency to Ketchikan, the city bans houses of Ill-repute east of the creek.
Within weeks, a boardwalk area on the west side and over the creek begins going up.
Another boom comes to the brothels when the women of Alaska rock the vote circa 1916. Under the Bone Dry Law, the territory of Alaska bans alcohol.
The brothels immediately begin importing Canadian whiskey. Then, during high tide at night, they smuggle alcohol up under trap doors in the brothel floors.
By the 1920s, there are more than 20 brothels in full operation.
In Alaska, still a territory, by 1934, they can drink legally.
Today, a staircase and wooden boardwalk connect Creek Street to Park Avenue. In the early 1900s, Married Man’s Trail is a muddy path men are following to reach the back doors of the brothels. Such chivalry. It was also handy as an exit during the occasional police raid.
The last brothel in Ketchikan (The Star #5 Creek Street) will close circa 1953 when the city outlaws prostitution.
Creek Street makes the National Register of Historic Places circa 2014.
A Change in Ketchikan’s Economics.
By the 1970s, Ketchikan’s canning industry was a ghost of its former self. Overfishing, buyouts from larger companies in the lower 48, and global competition weakened the local industry. In 1971, Ketchikan will not can a single case of salmon. Today, some smaller canneries, with modern technology and smart fishing practices, are once again thriving. But it is no longer a major industry.
Fishing, on the other hand, is still a part of the Ketchikan economy. Flash freezing and a commercial airport replace the need for canning everything.
The lumber industry, fighting global competition and growing protected lands, also drops. By the 1970s, much of the local lumber industry involves pulping, which turns wood chips into fiberboard. The last mill closes by 1996.
But the local forests are still a major employer in Ketchikan. Modern Forestry requires workers for conserving, managing, planting, and repairing forests and woodlands.
And there is tourism between May and September. Cruise ships bring more than one million guests to Ketchikan each season.
Most cruise days will see more than 10,000 passengers and crew streaming into the port. They buy everything from postcards to whale-watching tours. The revenue helps local businesses directly. In addition, the port and docking fees help the infrastructure.
True, it turns the downtown area into an outdoor mall, but that’s the price of fame. Save some time for shopping, but get out and see Alaska.
Ketchikan Today.
Although shopping is important for many people, that is not the reason you are coming to Alaska. The natural beauty and the possibility of wildlife sightings are the main reason.
Ketchikan is the gateway to a cornucopia of both.
What is in Ketchikan for Me?
See & Hear.
Get out and see the area’s natural beauty, whether at sea level or from a mountainside.
It is not unheard of to see whales, bears, and eagles just outside of town. So take a hike and listen to nature all around you.
Another option is to sit on a city bench, listening to life happening all around you.
Taste & Smell.
Alder wood and fresh Alaska salmon create a treat for the nose and the taste buds. It’s hard to eat salmon anywhere else after you try it in Alaska.
Feel.
Sip a glass of local fruit wine from the top of a mountain, watching the shadows stretch across the valley.
Go for a morning walk and sit by a lake. Just you and nature. That will have you believing in a higher power.
Sip a local beer and think back over your day of wildlife sightings and mother nature in all her glory.
There may be better ways to end your day, but this one doesn’t suck.
Should-see in Ketchikan.
Starting at the cruise pier:
Ketchikan Visitors Bureau.
The office sits right on the pier. Here you can find maps of the many hiking trails in the area. They also have information on other attractions.
Liquid Sunshine Gauge.
Besides being the Salmon Capital, Ketchikan is in the running for the rainiest town in Alaska. The city receives between 140 and 160 inches a year. So although it gets more during the fall and winter months, bring a raincoat anytime. The gauge is on the north side of the visitor’s bureau.
The Rock.
Also on the pier, north of the bureau, is this bronze statue of seven figures. At the top is Chief Johnson, representing the Tlingit Indians, Southeast Alaska’s first inhabitants. The other six figures represent others from the city’s past. A fisherman, a logger, a miner, an aviator, a Native woman drumming, and an 1890s lady.
Mission Street Sign.
The “Welcome to Ketchikan” sign is also near the bureau. Mission street meets Front street in front of the bureau. The sign is half a block up Mission from the bureau.
St John’s Church.
Walk up Mission Street, and at 503 Mission, you will find this church with a unique shape. At the time of its construction, it was on the waterfront. The church is still in the same place. The city has been expanding.
Tongass Historical Museum.
Two blocks from St Johns is the town’s historical museum. Take a walk, predominantly through photos, of the town’s history.
Chief Johnson Totem Pole.
A block from the museum is one of the town’s most famous totems. This 55’ pole marks the entrance to historic Creek Street.
Creek Street.
Now on the National Register of Historic Places, it began as the town’s red-light district. Circa 1903, the city banishes any brothels to the area east of the creek. Creek Street, a boardwalk over the river, became the center of the red light district. Prostitution remains legal until 1954, when the city finally outlaws it.
Today the buildings are tourist shops and a small museum in Dollys House, once a brothel by the same name.
On your way back to the waterfront, visit The Southeast Alaska Discovery Center, run by the United States Forest Service. This is a great introduction to what lies outside Ketchikan.
Outside Ketchikan.
Like most Alaska towns, Ketchikan is a gateway to scenic and wildlife wonders.
Tongass National Forest.
The United State’s largest national forest covers most of Southeast Alaska. As a result, people cruising along the Inside Passage spend much of their cruise in the Tongas.
And why not? This is the reason you are visiting Alaska. The scenery of Wild Alaska and the potential wildlife sightings.
Bear Viewing.
Ketchikan offers access to some of the best bear viewing areas in the Tongas. Black and Brown Bears are out between May and September. Salmon spawning in July-August really brings them out.
In addition, the Tongas is home to Anan Wildlife Observatory, Traitors Cove/Margaret Creek, Prince of Wales Island, and Neets Bay.
Trips depart by floatplane from Ketchikan during the season.
You can also reach Traitors Cove by boat, although it takes longer. Neets Bay has a boat option that motors past the bay, but you do not go ashore. This choice reduces your chances of sighting bears.
They also limit visits using permits. July and August, when the salmon are spawning, are the best periods. However, you cannot guarantee wildlife spotting.
Herring Cove is near Ketchikan, and you can drive there. That’s good and bad news. More civilization means fewer bears. I have seen a (one) bear only two times out of eight visits.
Misty Fjords National Monument.
This dramatic landscape is also part of the Tongass National Forest. Sometime, about 50 to 70 million years ago, glaciers gouged out the granite valleys in this area. They left walls that are near-vertical and may rise 2,000 to 3,000 feet out of the water. In some places, they drop 1,000 feet below the water surface.
Boats and floatplanes depart from Ketchikan to tour this incredible scenery. Weather permitting, some planes land on mountain lakes where it is so quiet, it almost hurts your ears. There is often mist, giving the whole area a fantastic feeling. This is a highlight of Southeast Alaska.
Take A Hike.
Ketchikan has numerous hiking options. There is an activity level for everyone, from an easy walk through the Alaska Rainforest Sanctuary to climbing Mt Deer.
You do not have to go far to be out in the wilderness. The visitor’s center has great information on hikes for all ages.
Visit Ketchikan’s Native Peoples.
With over 80 Native American Totem Poles in Ketchikan, it seems you can’t go a few blocks without seeing one! Totem Poles are just one attraction not to miss!
Saxman Native Village.
This village has the most extensive collection of standing Totem Poles in Ketchikan. The 25 totems here are replicas of original poles, many with too much damage to save them. There is also a Clan House, Native Carving Shed, and gift shop.
Totem Bight State Historical Park.
This is a recreation of a native village. In an attempt to save totems and artifacts left behind, they bring them to the site and make duplicates. Today, there is a Clan House and 14 Totems.
The Totem Heritage Center.
This is a museum of original Native American Totem Poles. The poles come from abandoned villages and are in various levels of deterioration. The collection also has artifacts, masks, and tools for making the poles. The building has climate control, preserving the artifacts from weather and pollution.
Ketchikan Alaska Summary
There is quite a bit to do in the Ketchikan area.
Alaska Airlines has daily flights to the “airport you have to take a boat to.”
The Alaska Marine Highway has a daily ferry service, and of course, there are cruise ships.
However, if booking a cruise, check the time you have in port. Many cruises cut the Ketchikan visit short to get to Juneau sooner.
There are things to do in Ketchikan, but make sure to see the things outside of the town.
Ketchikan has a wealth of natural beauty and wildlife waiting for you.