Revillagigedo Island ( es, Isla Revillagigedo, , , locally Revilla,
) is an
island
An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
in the
Alexander Archipelago
The Alexander Archipelago (russian: Архипелаг Александра) is a long archipelago (group of islands) in North America lying off the southeastern coast of Alaska. It contains about 1,100 islands, the tops of submerged coastal m ...
in
Ketchikan Gateway Borough
Ketchikan Gateway Borough is a borough located in the U.S. state of Alaska. As of the 2020 census its population was 13,948, up from 13,477 in 2010. The borough seat is Ketchikan. The borough is the second most populous borough in Southeast A ...
of the
southeastern region of the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
of
Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S. ...
. Running about 89 km (50 mi) north-south and 48 km (35 mi) east-west, it is 2,754.835 km² (1,063.65 mi²) in area, making it the
12th largest island in the United States and the
167th largest island in the world. Its center is located near .
The island is separated from the Alaska mainland to the east by
Behm Canal, from
Prince of Wales Island to the west by the
, and from
Annette Island to the south by
Revillagigedo Channel and Nichols Passage. The island is traditional
Tlingit
The Tlingit ( or ; also spelled Tlinkit) are indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast of North America. Their language is the Tlingit language (natively , pronounced ), territory, and by the nineteenth century was divided between the Saanyaa Ḵwáan and Taantʼa Ḵwáan tribes or subdivisions.
The first
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...
an recorded as having sighted it was Spanish explorer
Jacinto Caamaño
Jacinto Caamaño Moraleja (1759–September 8, 1829 Guayaquil) was the leader of the last great Spanish exploration of Alaska (then Russian America) and the Coast of British Columbia. He was a Knight of the Military Order of Calatrava.
Early life ...
in 1792; it was named the following year by British naval officer
George Vancouver for
Juan Vicente de Güemes, 2nd Count of Revillagigedo
Juan Vicente de Güemes Padilla Horcasitas y Aguayo, 2nd Count of Revillagigedo (Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spai ...
, then viceroy of
New Spain (Mexico).
The island's population was 13,950 as of the
2000 census. The only cities on the island are
Ketchikan
Ketchikan ( ; tli, Kichx̱áan) is a city in and the borough seat of the Ketchikan Gateway Borough of Alaska. It is the state's southeasternmost major settlement. Downtown Ketchikan is a National Historic District.
With a population at the 20 ...
and
Saxman, although the unincorporated community of
Ward Cove and the historical community of
Loring are also on the island. The principal industries are
fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...
,
canning,
logging and
tourism
Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mor ...
. In addition to the cities, several logging communities are based on barges, which move about the waterways. These serve the unconnected system of logging roads that dot the island and have access to waterfront.
References
Revillagigedo Island: Blocks 1075 to 1112, 1115 to 1120, 1122 and 1123, 1127 to 1130, 1137 to 1143, Block Group 1; and Block Groups 2 to 4, Census Tract 1; Census Tracts 2 to 4; Ketchikan Gateway Borough, AlaskaUnited States Census Bureau
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Islands of the Alexander Archipelago
Islands of Ketchikan Gateway Borough, Alaska
Islands of Alaska