About Our Community

General Information (For more detailed information, click here!)

Community Info

  • Incorporation Type: City, First Class
  • Borough: Unorganized
  • Census Area: Hoonah-Angoon
  • Local Tax: 4% Sales Tax
  • Current Population: 98 (per 2020 U.S. Census Data)

Location and Climate

Pelican is located on the northwest coast of Chichagof Island on Lisianski Inlet. It lies 80 miles north of Sitka and 70 miles west of Juneau. Pelican is located 10 miles down Lisianski Inlet from its mouth at Cross Sound. Most of the community is built on pilings over the tidelands. Sunnyside and Phonograph are two residential areas on either side of Pelican with close ties to the community.

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Economy and Transportation

Pelican's economy is primarily tourism-driven, with local businesses surrounding a summer influx of visitors to the region. This includes both travel tourism, and sport fishing/charter tourism. In the past, Pelican's economy was fueled by the commercial fishing industry, but with downturns in the industry and the closure of Pelican Seafoods, local grew to rely on tourism. Currently there is still one commercial fish processing business in operation.

Being remote and isolated, Pelican is reliant on commercial air and sea travel for transportation. Air taxi services run from the state capital, Juneau, to Pelican on a daily basis, and the Alaska Marine Highway System has month sailings from Juneau to Pelican. For larger scale shipping barge services are procurable.

The Origins of Pelican

Pelican, known as "Pelican City" on U.S. Census documents until the 1970 census, grew up around the commercial fishing industry - although small-scale mining operations were also present in the area. Originally a cold storage facility and buying station in the late 1930's, the city borrowed it's name from the boat of the person (Kalle Raataikainen) who began buying fish in the area, the Pelican. As Mr. Raataikainen's business grew, the city of Pelican grew up around the operation of the Post Office and School forming between 1939 and 1943. In 1943, Pelican became an incorporated village, growing into its first-class city status in the decades to follow.