Module V - Fish, Furs, Whales, and Seals

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Essential Questions 

• 

  Cape Smythe Whaling and Trading Stations, 
  Northern AK ca. 1930  VILDA ASL-P262-14

  What have been the major components of the Alaska economy during the American period of 1867-present?

• How are the major components of the economy interconnected? 

• How is the Alaska economy a reflection of diverse, and sometimes conflicting, perspectives of the natural landscape?

Akutan Whaling Station ca. 1920's
VILDA ASL-Industry-Whales-Whalers

ENGAGE
After the Alaska purchase, the first American economic ventures followed the Russian practice of the trade of furs and supplies. 

Commercial whaling, which had begun by Americans in Arctic waters as early as the 1840's, continued unabated. Gradually shore-based whaling stations were built in coastal regions which increased contact between whalers, traders, and the Alaska Natives.   

Seal Harvest, St. Paul Island late 1800's
VILDA  UAF-728-15

Private companies were established for trade, and one,  the Alaska Commercial Company which had taken over Russian America Company inventory and trading posts,  soon came to be a major player.  

The AC Company was granted a franchise to operate the fur seal harvest in the Pribilof Islands in return for royalties paid to the U.S. government. 

Arctic Whaler Trapped in Ice, early 1900's
VILDA ASL-P48-070

By the late 1800's commercial whaling had passed its peak and  commercial fishing and  mining began to dominate the economic activity in Alaska.  

The fish rush for cod and then salmon, and the major gold rushes to Juneau, the Klondike, Nome, Fairbanks, and  the smaller gold rushes to the AK Interior and the Kenai Peninsula brought thousands of migrants to Alaska.   

Thlinket Packing Company Salmon Trap
Funter Bay ca. 1907
VILDA  ASL-P39-1000

The commercial fisheries grew to include salmon, cod, crab, herring, halibut, and shrimp. Whalers, having devastated the resource, turned to walrus.   Prospectors supplemented summer mining income with winter trapping income.  More trading companies were established.

The socio-cultural changes and the changes to the natural landscape of the late 1800's -1930's  laid the foundation for much of the image of Alaska today. 


Boom and Bust
Alaska's economy was largely based on extraction of natural resources. This put those working in Alaska at the mercy of market forces outside Alaska - the diminution of non-renewable hard rock minerals, high infrastructure and transportation costs, the vagaries of the Alaska climate and short production season; in other words, a boom-bust economic cycle.  

The historical record of production and income in the minerals industries and in the commercial fisheries document an up/down pattern typical of economies dominated by natural resource development .


WWII 
World War II was a watershed event for Alaska.  Much of Alaska's history, and in particular its economic history, is bench-marked by pre-WWII and post-WWII developments, including:

• Commercial whaling by the U.S. had ended, 
• Increased establishment of military infrastructure,
• Development of new  air, sea and road transportation corridors,
• Technological changes impacted all areas of resource development, 
• Conservation concerns and control of the fisheries by Alaska - rather than the federal government and commercial interests outside Alaska -  influenced the movement for statehood. 

Statehood

Sunny Point Packing Company, Ketchikan

ca. 1920's  VILDA ASL-P18-317

Statehood put most fisheries management in the hands of the state.  Commercial fish traps were outlawed.   Fishing seasons, gear and permit regulations, market conditions, production methods, and marketing strategies evolved throughout the latter decades of the twentieth century under the sustainable yield principle enshrined in the state constitution.

State and private salmon hatcheries were created. Newer fisheries of pollock and sablefish expanded opportunities and the fleet.   In 1990 fin fish farming was outlawed in Alaska. 

Tom and Joe With Season's Catch

Interior Alaska ca. 1920's

VILDA UAF-1985-72-84

The commercial seal harvest in the Pribilof Islands came to an end in 1985.  The remaining fur trade in Alaska is under under state management and continues to be a small, but important, source of cash income for rural residents. Subject to market forces and availability of furs, income varies significantly from year to year.

Today, the Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game manages for four distinct, often overlapping, user groups:

• Commercial, 
• Sport, 
• Guided Sport (Charter)
• Subsistence 

Tug-O-War Continues

The rights of subsistence harvesters, and conflicting language between federal law and the state constitution have been the subject of long, serious, and often contentious debates in Alaska since the 1980's. The result is now a system of dual state/federal management in those lands/waters under the jurisdiction of each.  This subject will be covered more in a future module.

EXPLORE

Please read these two chapters from Alaska's Heritage:

• Chapter 4-14: Trading and Trapping

• Chapter 4-16: Fishing and Sea Hunting

EXAMINE

• What has been, over time, the pattern of development for Alaska's fur trapping and trading, commercial sealing, whaling, and fishing?
• What are some links between these components of the Alaska economy?
• What is the current status of these components of the Alaska economy?

EXTEND

Commercial Boats in Ketchikan 2010
juneautek.com

Interested in the latest on the state of Alaska's fisheries and trapping?  Do you want more detail on how fish and game are managed in Alaska? Do you like analyzing data?  

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game keeps detailed harvest records for the various resources that it manages. The Board of Fish and the Board of Game serve as venues for public input on management issues and provide policy setting for the department.  

Here are some links that will be useful: 

Alaska Dept. of Fish and Game homepage  - There are many documents available by using the search engine on this page.  One example is to search "seafood harvest record" and open the document entitled  Commercial Fisheries of Alaska. 
  
Alaska Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development:
Division of Economic Development Office of Fisheries Development


Understanding Alaska: People, Economy, and Resources   This is a document from the Institute of Economic and Social Research (ISER) at UAA.  Go to publication ID:1147 to download and read pages 18-20 about Alaska fisheries. 

What's Next?

From  Fins to Fine Furs to Silver Salmon, now let's turn our attention to the roles of Alaska's  Minerals.