Page Contents for Hollis, Alaska

Statistics & Facts

Location

Weather & Climate

History & History-related items

City Attractions

Chamber of Commerce.

Libraries.

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Statistics & Facts

The Alaska state capital is Juneau.
The population of Hollis is approximately 111 (1990), 112 (2010).
The approximate number of families is 71 (1990), 44 (2010).
The amount of land area in Hollis is 123.627 sq. kilometers.
The amount of surface water is 34.681 sq kilometers.
The distance from Hollis to Washington DC is 2918 miles.
The distance to the Alaska state capital is 204 miles. (as the crow flies)
Hollis is positioned 55.55 degrees north of the equator and 132.63 degrees west of the prime meridian.
Hollis average annual rainfall is 60-220 inches per year
The average winter temperature is 30's to low 50's degrees F.
The average summer temperature is high 50's to high 70's degrees F.

Location

on the east coast of Prince of Wales Island in southern southeast Alaska. This island is the third largest island in the United States! The two larger islands are Kodiak Island and the big island of Hawaii. To the south of Prince of Wales Island lies British Columbia, Canada. To the west is the Pacific Ocean. The island, itself, is only 140 miles long from north to south and the average width is about 30 miles.
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Climate

cool and moist
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Weather

usually cool and comfortable. The area has plenty of rain. July is usually the driest month and November the wettest of the year, though every month has rain.
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History & History Related Items

Hollis is frequently the first stop for island visitors; it is the site of the only ferry terminal on Prince of Wales Island. The only ferry terminal on the island is at Hollis, which makes it the first stop for any ferry travelers to Prince of Wales Island. Hollis was a mining town during its beginnings around 1900. Both gold and silver were mined here. The mining continued until about 1915 when the mines closed. The closure of the mines caused the town to literally be abandoned.

Ketchikan Pulp Company received a 50 year timber contract and placed its first logging camp at Hollis. This camp served as the base for their operations on Prince of Wales Island. In 1962, the camp was moved to Thorne Bay. From a high of around 1,000 residents in 1900, Hollis now has about 100 residents. The ferry terminal and the floatplane dock are the services available in Hollis.

History for Prince of Wales Island:

The island has a long history from at least 8,000 years ago. The Haida lived in the southern third of the island about 300 years ago. The northern portion was inhabited by three Tlingit kwans (or tribes). The Haida and Tlingit people were very different, but both highly developed.

The Europeans first came here in 1775 with the arrival of Don Juan Francisco Bodega Quadra of Spain. Soon after came the British explorers. Captain James Cook and Captain George Vancouver both explored the area in the late 1700's. Vancouver charted much of the area. Wide-spread commercialism did not really begin until the 1800's. The mainstays of that economy were fishing, mining and logging. With the addition of tourism, they remain much the same today. Among the ores mined on the island were gold, silver, zinc, lead uranium and palladium.
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Attractions

It is the location of the Alaska Marine Highway System ferry terminal. Hollis is an unincorporated community accessible by road, ferry, boat or float plane
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Hollis Chamber

Prince of Wales Chamber of Commerce
Phone: 907-826-3870
Find information for any of the Prince of Wales Communities at the Chamber.

Hollis Organizations

Prince of Wales Chamber of Commerce
Phone: 907-826-3870
Find information for any of the Prince of Wales Communities at the Chamber.

Hollis Libraries

Hollis Public Library
Phone: (907) 530-7112