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A Crows Eye View Of Port GrahamAs told by xxxx to xxxx
16 pt
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Imagine that you are a crow flying over Port Graham.
As you look down, you will see many buildings, vehicles and other objects of
interest. Included in this section are
explanations of some of Port Graham’s features in English and Alutiq, the language of the Aleut people. Mountains Port Graham is surrounded by beautiful
mountains. There is one particular
mountain south of the village which many people like to climb. In the summer you can sometimes see
mountain goats roaming around. The best time to tour the mountains is
in the summer when everything is green and in bloom. You can climb the trails just to hike, have
a picnic, fish the creeks or go camping. Looking out toward the west, one can see
Mr. Iliamna in the distance adding to grandeur of
the scenery.
Pond A pond is at the west end of the
airstrip. It is approximately 60 feet long and 40 feet wide. In winter it freezes and is good for
skating and ice hockey Summer finds children playing with boats
on the pond. Port Graham’s Pond Port Graham Corporation The Port Graham Corporation is the
village entity within Chugach Native Incorporated,
the regional corporation. A profit making organization, the Port
Graham Corporation owns the Corporation building and rents space to the
Public Health Service, Some heavy equipment is also owned by
the Corporation and is available or rent.
The Clinic Medical service for everyone in Port
Graham is provided at the clinic in the Corporation building. The health aide handles all medical
needs and is in close contact with doctors and hospitals in Homer and Clinic hours are Community Center Built in 1979, the Community Center
provides for many of the needs of the citizens of Port Graham. The post office, telephone, library,
Recreation room, Kitchen, Village book keepers office, Alcohol and drug
counseling room, Village Council meeting room, President’s room, laundry and
a rental apartment are part of the center. The recreation room has a large area for
dancing, receptions, parties, and provides a place for people to enjoy pool, foos ball, ping pong, and a juke box and a pop machine. A room at the east end of the uilding is used for Craft shop and provides many
activities for anyone interested in macramé, bead work, weaving, ceramics,
woodworking, leather craft, candle making and many other crafts. The main meeting place in Port Graham, the Community
Center Port Graham Library The library was first opened in 1979. It
was first funded by J.O.M. monies, but is now part of the Revenue Sharing
Program. All books were donated to the library
which is next to the post office in the Community Center. The hours of operation depend on who
ever is in charge of the library. Movies Since 1977, movies have been set up for
local entertainment at the Community Center. When a movie is to be shown, an
announcement is made over the C.B. giving the name and time. The present admission prices are Adults
- $2.00; High School and Collage Students - $1.75; Grade School Students -
$1.25. The movies are sponsored by the Village
Council. Telephone Service Port Graham has one telephone which is
located in the Community Center. The number is (907) 433-8001. The telephone hours are Reservations for using the phone can be
made by contacting the monitor to set up an appointment. When calls come in for someone who is not
at the Center, they are notified over the C.B. or given a written message.
All calls are made with operator assistance. Time and charges must be asked for or calls
have to made collect, charged to another number or
billed to a credit card. A local fee of fifty cents per completed
call is charged.
Fran Meganack answers the
phone while on duty at her position of bookkeeper and daytime phone monitor. Indoor Sports Indoor Sports in Port Graham are few in
number because of limited facilities. The multi-purpose room at the school is
available for volleyball and basketball with portable nets. Only one basket
ball can be used so the game is more of a scrimmage than a whole court event. The Community Center has tables for ping
pong, foos ball, and pool table. Many residents resort to armchair sports
such as T.V. watching, T.V. Games, and Card Playing. The Airstrip Without Port Graham’s airstrip, we would
be much more isolated. The airstrip is
our connection with other towns, medical services, food, mail and
transportation. The airstrip was built twenty-three
years ago. Before its construction,
people had to take a skiff across the bay and pick up whatever was needed in Seldovia or Homer.
When the water was rough, no one could get to the other side. At present, two air services from Homer
provide daily services, weather permitting. Mail comes in three times a week on a
Cook Inlet Air Service Plane. Passenger and freight services can be arranged
through Homer Air or
Port Graham’s link to the rest of the world Sea Foods Many good seafood’s
are available in fish, Bidarkies, Crab, Clams,
Mussels, Octopus, Shrimp, and Snails. Bidarkies, Snails, and Mussels are usually found sticking
to rocks at low tide. Clams are dug at
low tide. Crab, Shrimp, and Fish are cought in deeper water. Larger animals providing meat from the
sea are Seals and Sea Loins. Recipes for many of the above mentioned
seafood’s can be found elsewhere in the issue of Cillqaq. Port Graham Hunting Some people go hunting all year round
for seal, sea loin, grouse and porcupine. Seasonal game includes black bear,
ducks, mountain goats, and moose ( rarely seen ). Too many noisy activities like motor
bikes, outboard motors, and airplanes keep the game far away from Port
Graham. Our parents and grandparents lived on
game because nobody scared them away. They were nearby and easy to get. Smoke House’s Many villagers have built smoke houses
or smokeries for smoking and drying fish. The smell of cotton wood burning is a
sure sign that something good is being prepared for later treats. Fishing boat with skiff tied up at dock at Whitney-Fidalgo cannery. Boats And Dock Many boats are in Port Graham. Local
fishermen and the cannery have boats tied up at the dock or on the pilings at
ht east end of the cannery. All of the boats are under
40’ in length. Many skiffs can be seen
tied to the docks, on the beach or tied to pilings. Bonya A bonya,
sometimes spelled bania, is another name for
bath-house. It’s built 9’x9’x5’ for easy heating. A
fifty gallon drum cut in half makes a good stove. A hole should be cut in the
top for a smoke stack. A cooling room is needed outside of the
steam room. It si
also used as a dressing room. To relax sore muscles, alder beaters are
good. Alder leaves are picked before they get sticky, with new shoots
preferred. Break into 18 to 20 inch
lengths and put together with the leaves facing each other till the stems
fill up your fisted hand. Tie it up
with a string and hang them up in pairs to dry. When they are ready to use, pour hot
water over them and soak in that hot water till all leaves are soaked. Keep a container of hot water on top of
the stove. For scrubbing you need grass roots from
the beach. Clean them out before
using. The more you use them, the finer they become, so pick a lot of them to
start a new one from time to time. Sports Fishing In and around Port Graham, many people
go fishing for halibut, salmon, bullheads, tom cod, kelp cod, flounder,
trout, herring, ling cod, Irish lords, black bass, and red snapper as
entertainment or for food. These fish can be caught with a fishing
rod from a boat or skiff or off the dock. Bob
McMullen’s truck with snow plow attached to the front. Snow Removal Bob McMullen uses his truck with a
snowplow on the front to clear the airport and the roads. His son, Robert McMullen plows the airport
with the cat. Usually Bob plows the
airport when the snow gets too deep for the planes to land. ********************************************************************** Vehicles In Port Graham* Lull
#
( 1
) Backhoe ##
( 2 ) Tractor ### ( 3 ) Three-Wheeler ################################### ( 35 ) Motorcycle ##
( 2 ) Bicycle ##############
( 14 ) Truck ######### (
9 ) Car #
( 1 ) Snowmobile ##############
( 14 ) Odyssey
##
( 2 ) * As of **************************************************************** Churches There are two church buildings in the
village. St. Herman’s Alaska Orthodox shurch is located next to the airstrip. It is easily recognized by the domes on top
and the Orthodox cross over the door. The Port Graham Baptist Chapel is
located on the north side of
St. Herman’s Orthodox Church Port Graham Elementary/ High School Port Graham Elem/High School Port Graham Elem/High
School is one of the remote
( must be flown into ) schools in the There are three teachers, one of whom
acts as teacher-in-charge. Local residents help greatly in the
positions of Title IV aid, Bilingual aide cook, janitor, and secretary. Twenty-eight students in grades
kindergarten in the three room school. The school year usually starts in late
August and ends during the last week in May. Port Graham’s Waterhouse Port Graham’s water system has been carefully
watched over for the past year by Debbie McMullen. Debbie keeps track of how many pounds of
water go into the pumphouse, the water temperature,
the incoming and outgoing pounds of water into the tank, the fluoride and
chlorine levels in the water and makes weekly bacteriological test. Other duties include backwashing the
water lines, cleaning screens and making monthly meter readings. There are several responsibilities for a
village using approximately one million gallons of water every month, Dump The first dump for Port Graham was at
the east end of the airstrip. All
available space was used up there so the dump was moved to the west end of
town. The land-fill site is cleared frequently
to keep the town neat. |
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Copyright
1983, |
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