Popof Island facts for kids

A codfish station at Pirate Cove on Popof Island

Popof Island, known as Siitikdax̂ in the Aleut language, is an island in Alaska. It is part of the Shumagin Islands, located south of the main Alaskan landmass. The biggest town on the island is Sand Point. It sits on the northwest coast.

Popof Island is about 10 miles (16 kilometers) long and 5 miles (8 kilometers) wide. Its highest point reaches 1,550 feet (472 meters) above sea level. The island covers an area of about 36 square miles (93.65 square kilometers). In the year 2000, 952 people lived on Popof Island.

A codfish station at Pirate Cove in June 1912

A place called Pirate Cove on the island used to be a very important fishing spot. It was mainly used for catching and processing codfish.

On the part of the island where no one lives, there is a group of bison. These bison were brought to the island a long time ago. Today, there are about 120 bison living there.

Island History and People

Popof Island was first counted as its own place in the 1890 U.S. Census. At that time, 146 people lived there. Most of them were White, but there were also people of mixed Russian and Native heritage, Asian people, and Native people.

In 1890, there were three main settlements on the island:

• Pirate Cove: This was a station for catching codfish. It was on the northeast side of the island.
• Red Cove: This was another fishing station, located on the south side.
• Sand Point Station: This settlement was on the northwestern side of the island.

Census workers also counted the ships docked at these places. Many schooners, which are types of sailing ships, were counted at Pirate Cove and Sand Point.

Changes Over Time

After 1900, the villages on Popof Island started to be counted separately. Red Cove was eventually left empty. Pirate Cove was counted one more time in 1920, with 98 people, before it was also abandoned.

Sand Point became the most important village on the island. Its population grew from just 16 people in 1900 to 976 people by 2010. Sand Point officially became a city in 1966. In 1987, it became the main administrative center for the Aleutians East area. By 2000, everyone living on Popof Island lived within the city limits of Sand Point.