Marshall is located on the Yukon River approximately 80 air miles to the north of Bethel and 140 miles upriver from the mouth of the Yukon on the Bering Sea. It is located on the north side of a high bank of the river which is referred to as Fortuna Ledge. This ledge affords Marshall protect-ion from flooding in the spring. However, the nature of the mountain and valley country to the east combined with the pattern of the winter winds make it a very breezy community to live in during the winter. Since most of the taller spruce trees were felled early in its history, this has contri-buted to its reputation as a windy village.

Marshall is surrounded by tundra and taiga on a gentle slope leading up to the flanks of Pilcher Mountain, named after a miner who used to live in the area. The geology is variable, although most of it is a green to dark grey sedimentary rock in various stages of metamorphosis.

The village was first organized in the early part of this century after the establishment of the gold mine at Willow Creek. Although at first it was composed of a large number of non-Natives, today it is an almost completely Native community with roots both up and down the Yukon River. The majority of the community is made up of people from the abandoned villages of Ohagamiut and Takshak with many also coming from present day Pilot Station and Russian Mission. There are also a few from Emmonak. The remainder are from other communities around the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. Its present population is approximately 300.

Marshall is a Second Class City with two governing bodies, a seven member City Council and a seven member Traditional Council. It has a City Manager hired by the City Council to take care of its business and a VPSO and VPO to enforce its ordinances. The Traditional Council President is also the Mayor of the City Council, and the City Manager is also a member of the Traditional Council. There is one other person who is both a member of the Traditional and City Councils. Finally, there is a village Chief, Vernon Evan, who was elected by the Traditional Council for life.

Marshall is unique among villages in Alaska because until Statehood it had Territorial status. This made it a headquarters for many state and federal agencies, including the Fish and Wildlife Service. Where other villages had B.I.A. schools, Marshall had its own Territorial elementary school. It even had its own U.S. Marshal. Today it is the only Alaska village that has two official names, Marshall and Fortuna Ledge.

F. Keim