Page Contents for Thorne Bay, Alaska

Statistics & Facts

Location

Weather & Climate

History & History-related items

City Attractions

Economy

Government

Chamber of Commerce.

Organizations, Churches, and Sports.

Schools.

Miscellany

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Statistics & Facts

The Alaska state capital is Juneau.
The population of Thorne Bay is approximately 584 (2000), 471 (2010).
The approximate number of families is 233 (1990), 214 (2010).
The amount of land area in Thorne Bay is 48.713 sq. kilometers.
The amount of surface water is 13.576 sq kilometers.
The distance from Thorne Bay to Washington DC is 2916 miles.
The distance to the Alaska state capital is 199 miles. (as the crow flies)
Thorne Bay is positioned 55.65 degrees north of the equator and 132.52 degrees west of the prime meridian.
Thorne Bay 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

38 air miles northwest of Ketchikan on the eastern side of Prince of Wales Island, accessible via ferry or float plane. 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.

Here is a map page for Thorne Bay.
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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

Here is a history page for Thorne Bay. Thorne Bay is a fairly new community, established in 1962 when Ketchikan Pulp Company moved its main logging camp here from Hollis.

The city was named for Frank Manley Thorn who was the superintendent of the US Coast Geodetics Survey from 1885 through 1889. When the charts were published, the name was misspelled, adding the "e" to the end of Thorn and was never corrected.

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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The incorporation of Thorne Bay

1982

Attractions

Check out this photo page for Thorne Bay.

Thorne Bay is the third largest city on the island.

Prince of Wales Fair & Logging Show - held the last weekend of July each year - Events include full scale logging competition, fair exhibits and vendor booths

Waterway for the Honker Divide Canoe Route
Site of significant archaeological find - 5,360 year old Thorne River Basket
Petroglyphs

More information on Thorne Bay.
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Economy & Industry

The timber industry, commercial fishing, and government and retail services.
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Thorne Bay City Government

Thorne Bay City Clerk
1200 Freeman Dr
Thorne Bay, AK 99919
Phone: 907-828-3380

Thorne Bay Chamber

Prince of Wales Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 497
Craig, AK 99921
Email Us: powcc@aptalaska.net
Phone: 907-826-3870
Fax: 907-826-5467
Find information for any of the Prince of Wales Communities at the Chamber.

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Thorne Bay Business Association
PO Box 19492
Thorne Bay, Alaska 99919
Email: tbba@thornebayalaska.net
to foster a better business climate in Thorne Bay and harness the civic potential of the business community.

Thorne Bay Organizations

Prince of Wales Chamber of Commerce
PO Box 497
Craig, AK 99921
Email Us: powcc@aptalaska.net
Phone: 907-826-3870
Fax: 907-826-5467
Find information for any of the Prince of Wales Communities at the Chamber.

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Thorne Bay Business Association
PO Box 19492
Thorne Bay, Alaska 99919
Email: tbba@thornebayalaska.net
to foster a better business climate in Thorne Bay and harness the civic potential of the business community.

Thorne Bay Schools

Thorne Bay School
1010 Sandy Beach Rd
Thorne Bay, AK 99919
Phone: 907-828-3921 Thorne Bay

Miscellany

The population of Thorne Bay was:
1990 - 569
2001 - 584