Emmonak Community
Emmonak (black fish) is located at the north of the Yukon River on the north bank of Kwiguk Pass in
the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. Emmonak was originally called “Kwiguk,” a Yup’ik word meaning
“big stream”. Kwiguk Pass is one the “fingers” of water leading from the Yukon River above its mouth
to the sea. Emmonak is 175 miles northwest from Bethel.
George H. Putnam first reported the village in 1899. A post office was established in the village in 1920.
Later, commercial fishing became a major industry here.
In 1964, the floods washed away the cannery, as the rest of the village was experiencing increasingly
heavy flooding and erosion, as well. In 1964-65, the village was relocated 1.4 miles to the north of the
original site. The new location was renamed Emmonak and has become a center for commercial
fishing, purchasing, and processing on the Lower Yukon River. Approximate population 800.
| 
Key Links
District Home
