Chefornak
Chefornak
is located on the south bank of the Kinia River, at its junction with
the Keguk River, in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. The village lies within
the Clarence Rhode National Wildlife Refuge, established for migratory
waterfowl protection. Chefornak is 98 air miles southwest of Bethel and
490 miles southwest of Anchorage. It lies at approximately 60° 13' N
Latitude, 164° 12' W Longitude (Sec. 19, T001N, R086W, Seward Meridian).
The community is located in the Bethel Recording District. The area
encompasses 32 sq. miles of land and 4 sq. miles of water.
The area has historically been occupied
by Yup'ik Eskimos. In the early 1950s, Alexie Amagiqchik founded a small
general store at the site. He had moved from a village on the Bering Sea
to the new location one mile inland to escape potential floodwaters.
Others from the original village followed and settled in Chefornak.
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