Edna Bay is a city on

Kosciusko Island Kosciusko Island is an island in the Alexander Archipelago of southeastern Alaska, United States. It lies near the northwest corner of Prince of Wales Island, just across the El Capitan Passage from the larger island. The island is home to M ...

in the

unorganized borough The Unorganized Borough is composed of the portions of the U.S. state of Alaska which are not contained in any of its 19 organized boroughs. While referred to as the "Unorganized Borough", it is not a borough itself, as it forgoes that level o ...

, and for census purposes in the Prince of Wales-Hyder Census Area in 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 so ...

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

. The community was officially incorporated on October 13, 2014, and has a population of 51 permanent residents and 12 part-time residents as of January 2024. Edna Bay is the only populated town on

, and has both year-round and part-time residents. Year-round residents are either retired or work primarily in the fishing and logging industries. Some permanent residents also work seasonally off-island in various industries. Due to the very remote location of Edna Bay and the subsequent difficulty and expense of traveling between Edna Bay and larger

Southeast Alaska Southeast Alaska, often abbreviated to southeast or southeastern, and sometimes called the Alaska(n) panhandle, is the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Alaska, bordered to the east and north by the northern half of the Canadian provi ...

communities, subsistence hunting, fishing, and gathering comprise a large portion of the livelihood activities for residents of Edna Bay.

Geography

Edna Bay is located at (55.978539, -133.676356). According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the city of Edna Bay has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it (4.80%) is water.

Demographics

Edna Bay first appeared on the 1950 U.S. Census as an unincorporated village. It appeared again in 1960 and 1970, but did not appear on the 1980 census. In 1990, it was made a census-designated place (CDP). It formally incorporated in 2014. As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 49 people, 19 households, and 14 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 40 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 95.92%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, and 4.08% from two or more races. There were 19 households, out of which 36.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.2% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, and 26.3% were non-families. 26.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 10.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.14. Edna Bay AK General Store and Post Office

Edna Bay AK General Store and Post Office

In the city the population was spread out, with 28.6% under the age of 18, 6.1% from 18 to 24, 18.4% from 25 to 44, 40.8% from 45 to 64, and 6.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 157.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 133.3 males. The median income for a household in the city was $44,583, and the median income for a family was $49,063. Males had a median income of $40,625 versus $0 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the city was $58,967. There were 15.4% of families and 23.1% of the population living below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 29.4% of under eighteens and 50.0% of those over 64.

Economy

, Edna Bay hosts a combined general store and

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letter (message), letters and parcel (package), parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post o ...

, a non-denominational Christian church, several sawmills and two licensed building contractors. There is a small state-owned marina and float-plane dock which are unattended (self-service). At present there are cabin rentals and two lodges on Kosciusko Island. Visitors to Edna Bay without a local contact would be well advised to bring with them everything needed for remote outdoor survival, although food and a limited selection of non-food supplies can be purchased at the general store located approximately 3 miles by road from the marina. The general store and post office is open from 2PM to 4PM Tuesdays through Saturdays. Most land in and around Edna Bay is privately held and there are no public camping or day-use facilities. Unescorted visitors should first check with the local residents before attempting to trespass, camp, or hunt in the area. Residents of Edna Bay have available to them both land-line telephone and broadband internet. Cellular phone service in Edna Bay is rare and intermittent. There are two outdoor public phones (one at the marina inside the access ramp and another located on the opposite side of the bay from the marina). Starting in 2008, Edna Bay will also be home to an engineering and software development company, made possible due to the broadband-internet service brought to the community by the State of Alaska and AP&T.

References

External links

* {{authority control Cities in Alaska Cities in Prince of Wales–Hyder Census Area, Alaska Cities in Unorganized Borough, Alaska Former census-designated places in Alaska Populated places established in 2014 Populated coastal places in Alaska on the Pacific Ocean