Iliamna

History

Iliamna was originally the name of an Athabaskan village at the point where the Iliamna River flows into Iliamna Lake, about east of present-day Iliamna. That site is now called Old Iliamna (Dena'ina: Nuch'ak'dalitnu’). In 1935, the residents of Old Iliamna moved to the present-day location. The first sport fishing lodge in Iliamna was built in the 1930s, and the second was built in the 1950s. Many more were built later in the 20th century. Iliamna's economy has two main elements: subsistence fishing and hunting and sport fishing lodges. Year-round residents largely pursue subsistence activities, while summer workers from other areas work in the lodges. Around 1913, Herman Gartelmann, Jack Kinney, and Ed Ahola built a roadhouse here, taking advantage of air travel through Lake Clark Pass. Jack and Ed were from Old Iliamna village. Frederick Roehl purchased the roadhouse around 1917, and when he died in 1923, Hans Seversen took over and the facility became known as Seversen's Roadhouse. He started hosting big game hunters in 1921 and the first sport fishermen in 1937. Martin Seversen ran the operation from 1946 and put up a new building. Mary Seversen Clark sold the operation in 1956. Iliamna faces the prospect of developing into a mining town, as several multi-national companies plan to develop the area northwest of the village into one of North America's largest gold-copper-molybdenum mines. The first company to submit plans to the State of Alaska is Northern Dynasty Minerals, a wholly owned subsidiary of Hunter Dickinson. The Lake and Peninsula Borough, the region's governing body, passed a strong resolution in support of the mine's development, but the majority of the surrounding villages adamantly oppose it. Two non-profit organizations are leading the fight…

Geography

Iliamna is located in southwest Alaska at (59.765135, -154.840312). It is bordered to the south by the city of Newhalen, to the west by the Newhalen River, and to the southeast by Iliamna Lake. According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of , of which are land and , or 1.23%, are water. In the 1991 to 2020 normals the coldest day of the year averaged , while the warmest night average was . The coldest daytime maximum on record is on January 19, 1947, while, conversely, the record warm daily minimum is on August 13, 2019. |source 2 = Western Regional Climate Center (dew point 1998–2011) }}

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Bald Eagle

  Haliaeetus leucocephalus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  11
• Golden-crowned Sparrow

  Zonotrichia atricapilla (J.F.Gmelin, 1789) · Aves
  11
• Common Raven

  Corvus corax Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  10
• Fox Sparrow

  Passerella iliaca (Merrem, 1786) · Aves
  10
• American Wigeon

  Mareca americana (J.F.Gmelin, 1789) · Aves
  10
• Violet-green Swallow

  Tachycineta thalassina (Swainson, 1827) · Aves
  10
• Bonaparte's Gull

  Chroicocephalus philadelphia (Ord, 1815) · Aves
  10
• Red-breasted Merganser

  Mergus serrator Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  9

Largest nearby schools

• Newhalen School
  Other · Iliamna · 87 students · 10.9:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 3.1 — 2026-09-28
  44 km E of Pedro Bay, Alaska
• M 2.7 — 2026-09-24
  34 km ESE of Pedro Bay, Alaska
• M 3 — 2026-09-18
  44 km E of Pedro Bay, Alaska
• M 2.7 — 2026-09-14
  38 km E of Pedro Bay, Alaska
• M 2.9 — 2026-09-12
  46 km E of Pedro Bay, Alaska
• M 2.5 — 2026-08-26
  28 km ENE of Igiugig, Alaska