Baranof Island

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Islands of the Pacific Northwest Coast

Baranof Island, also sometimes called Baranov Island or Sitka Island, is an island in the Alexander Archipelago in the Alaska Panhandle, in Alaska. It was called Sheet’-ká X'áat'l (often expressed simply as "Shee") by the native Tlingit Clan. It is one of the ABC islands of Alaska.

The Island has a land area of 1,584.36 square miles (4,103.47 square kilometers), which is approximately the same as the State of Delaware, and measures 100 miles (160 kilometers) by 30 miles (48 kilometers) at its longest and widest points respectively. Baranof Island is the most mountaneous island in the Alexander Archipelago, the eighth largest island in Alaska, the ninth largest island in the United States (excluding Puerto Rico), and the 135th largest island in the world. Its center is near 57°0′N, 135°0′W. The population of the island was 8,532 at the 2000 census.

Almost the entire area of the Island is part of the City and Borough of Sitka (Sitka also extends northward onto Chichagof Island); the only part of Baranof that is not in Sitka is a tiny sliver of land (9.75 km²) at the extreme southeast corner, which is in the Wrangell-Petersburg Census Area, and includes the town of Port Alexander. This section had a 2000 census population of 81 persons. The towns of Baranof Warm Springs, Port Armstrong, and Port Walter are also located on the eastern side of the island. Goddard, a now-abandoned settlement about 16 miles south of Sitka, features a few private homes and hot springs with two public bathhouses. There are also three year-round salmon hatcheries, one located just north of Port Alexander at Port Armstrong, another located just north of Baranof Warm Springs at Hidden Falls, the other just south of Sitka near Medvejie Lake. The latter is accessible by private road from Sitka. All of these communities, except for Port Alexander, are under the jurisdiction of the City and Borough of Sitka, of which, Sitka serves as the borough seat.

Fishing, seafood processing, and tourism are important industries on the island, which is also famous for brown bears and Sitka deer.

The first European settlement on island was established in 1799 by Alexandr Baranov, Chief Manager and first Governor of the Russian-American Company, for whom the Island and Archipelago are named. Baranof Island was the center of Russian activity in North America during the period from 1804–1867 and was the headquarters of the Russian fur-trading interest.

Around 1900, Baranof Island was subject to many small-scale mining ventures, especially centered around Sitka and on the north side of the Island around Rodman Bay. Canneries, whaling stations, and fox farms sprung up on all sides of the Island, though most had been abandoned by the outbreak of World War II. The remains of these outposts are still evident, though most exist in a dilapidated condition.