Palmer

Sister cities

• Saroma

History

The city was named after George Palmer, a trader. In the late 19th century, the U.S. government began to take interest in the Matanuska coal fields located north of Palmer. This interest sparked financiers to consider constructing the Alaska Central Railroad in 1904. The advent of World War I created a need for high-quality coal to fuel U.S. battleships, and by 1917 the US Navy had constructed rail from the port of Seward to the Chickaloon coal deposits. At the end of World War I, the U.S. Navy distributed land in the coal fields to war veterans and additional land was opened to homesteading. Farmers, miners and homesteaders began to populate the area. The Palmer Post Office was opened July 6, 1917, under the name of Warton. With railroad accessibility, new markets for agriculture began to open up for farmers in the Matanuska Valley. In one year, Palmer transformed from a mere whistle stop rail siding to a planned community with modern utilities and community services. Eleven million dollars from Federal Emergency Relief Administration was spent to create the town of Palmer and relocate 203 families from the hard hit Iron Range region of Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin. Families traveled by train and ship to Palmer, arriving in May 1935. Upon their arrival they were housed in a city tent during their first Alaskan summer. Each family drew lots for tracts and their farming adventure began in earnest. The failure rate was high, but many of their descendants still live in the area and there are still many operating farms in the Palmer area, including the Vanderwheele and Wolverine farms. In 1971, the National Outdoor Leadership School started operating wilderness education courses in the nearby Talkeetna and Chugach mountain ranges from a local historic farmhouse,…

Geography

Palmer is northeast of Anchorage on the Glenn Highway. It lies on the north shore of the Matanuska River, not far above tidewater, in a wide valley between the Talkeetna Mountains to the north and the Chugach Mountains to the south and east. Pioneer Peak rises over above the town, just a few miles south. East of Palmer is Lazy Mountain, and standing behind that is Matanuska Peak. Lazy Mountain, Matanuska Peak, and Pioneer Peak are all a part of the Chugach Range. North of Palmer are the Talkeetna Mountains. Hatcher Pass, a local favorite for hiking, skiing and other recreational activities, is located in this mountain range about from Palmer. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land. Palmer and Wasilla are the two major old-town cores of the Matanuska-Susitna Valley. Population of the area has grown dramatically in the past decade; Borough officials estimate the local population at 8,000. Apart from road access, Palmer can be accessed by the Palmer Municipal Airport and the Palmer Depot of the Alaska Railroad. Neither of these has regularly scheduled service. However, when the Alaska State Fair operates, the Alaska Railroad operates a special train from Anchorage to Palmer (though it did not operate in 2021). Palmer has a subarctic climate (Köppen climate classification: Dsc). Despite this classification, the city receives noticeably more precipitation in summer, with August being the wettest month. However, April, one of the six warmer months is sufficiently drier than October and December, hence the letter 's' is used instead of 'f' (as in Dfc). Palmer has a climate similar to that of Anchorage, although with low temperatures that are on average cooler and highs warmer. On average, over the course of a…

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  3,897
• Black-billed Magpie

  Pica hudsonia (Sabine, 1823) · Aves
  2,855
• Common Raven

  Corvus corax Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  2,629
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  2,545
• Dark-eyed Junco

  Junco hyemalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,200
• Yellow-rumped Warbler

  Setophaga coronata (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  2,095
• Red-breasted Nuthatch

  Sitta canadensis Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  2,055
• Common Redpoll

  Acanthis flammea (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,881

Largest nearby schools

• Colony High School
  High · Palmer · 1,117 students · 20.3:1 ratio
• Palmer High School
  High · Palmer · 760 students · 18.1:1 ratio
• Mat-Su Career & Tech Ed High School
  High · Wasilla · 743 students · 17.7:1 ratio
• Colony Middle School
  Middle · Palmer · 735 students · 20.4:1 ratio
• Teeland Middle School
  Middle · Wasilla · 719 students · 19.4:1 ratio
• Palmer Middle School
  Middle · Palmer · 594 students · 21.2:1 ratio
• John Shaw Elementary
  Elementary · Wasilla · 533 students · 18.4:1 ratio
• Pioneer Peak Elementary
  Elementary · Palmer · 513 students · 18.3:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 3.1 — 2026-09-30
  26 km N of Glacier View, Alaska
• M 2.5 — 2026-09-30
  7 km WSW of Willow, Alaska
• M 2.7 — 2026-09-28
  22 km SSW of Susitna, Alaska
• M 2.5 — 2026-09-28
  23 km SSW of Susitna, Alaska
• M 2.9 — 2026-09-27
  16 km NW of Fishhook, Alaska
• M 2.9 — 2026-09-27
  24 km WSW of Point MacKenzie, Alaska