Seward

Sister cities

• Obihiro

History

In 1793, Alexander Baranov of the Shelikhov-Golikov company (precursor of the Russian-American Company) established a fur trade post on Resurrection Bay where Seward is today and had a three-masted vessel, the Phoenix, built at the post by James Shields, an English shipwright in Russian service. The 1939 Slattery Report on Alaskan development identified the region as one of the areas where new settlements would be established through Jewish immigration. This plan was never implemented. Seward was an important port for the military buildup in Alaska during World War II. Fort Raymond was established in Seward along the Resurrection River to protect the community. An Army airfield built in Seward during the war later became Walseth Air Force Base. Both of the military facilities were closed shortly after the end of the war. A large portion of Seward was damaged by shaking and a local tsunami during the 1964 Alaska earthquake, destroying all evidence of one radio station. Seward borders the Kenai Fjords National Park, which was granted national park status in 1980 to protect the glaciers of the Harding Icefield. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and (32.93%) is water. The northern city limits are demarcated by the lower reaches of the Resurrection River, but extend east past the river's mouth at the northern end of Resurrection Bay to include parts of the bay's extreme northeastern shore, including the beach at the mouth of Fourth of July Creek and the grounds of Spring Creek Correctional Center just inland. To the south, the city limits extend to the unincorporated community of Lowell Point, while the east and west sides of the city are constrained by Resurrection Bay and the steep slopes of Mount…

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Bald Eagle

  Haliaeetus leucocephalus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  6,438
• Glaucous-winged Gull

  Larus glaucescens J.F.Naumann, 1840 · Aves
  5,420
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  3,856
• Black-legged Kittiwake

  Rissa tridactyla (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  3,665
• Short-billed Gull

  Larus brachyrhynchus Richardson, 1831 · Aves
  3,664
• Common Raven

  Corvus corax Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  3,487
• Black-billed Magpie

  Pica hudsonia (Sabine, 1823) · Aves
  3,433
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  2,779

Largest nearby schools

• William H. Seward Elementary School
  Elementary · Seward · 235 students · 12.4:1 ratio
• Seward High School
  High · Seward · 140 students · 15.6:1 ratio
• Seward Middle School
  Middle · Seward · 113 students · 14.1:1 ratio

Most recent

• M 2.6 — 2026-09-18
  19 km N of Cooper Landing, Alaska
• M 2.5 — 2026-09-16
  18 km SE of Fox River, Alaska
• M 2.5 — 2026-09-14
  18 km N of Moose Pass, Alaska
• M 2.7 — 2026-09-12
  21 km SSW of Sunrise, Alaska
• M 2.7 — 2026-09-06
  2 km SSW of Chenega, Alaska
• M 2.5 — 2026-08-27
  2 km N of Sterling, Alaska