Editing Seldovia, Alaska (section)

==History==
[[File:Seldovia in the early 1900s.jpg|thumb|left|Seldovia as it appeared in the early 20th century.]]
The native residents are mixed [[Dena'ina people|Dena'ina]] [[Alaskan Athabaskans|Athabaskan]] Indian and [[Alutiiq people|Alutiiq (Sugpiaq)]] Eskimo. In 1787 or 1788 a Russian [[fur trade]] post named Aleksandrovskaia was established at today's Seldovia by hunting parties under [[Evstratii Ivanovich Delarov]], of the [[Grigory Shelikhov|Shelikhov-Golikov company]], precursor of the [[Russian-American Company]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Haycox|first=Stephen W.|authorlink=Stephen Haycox|title= Alaska: An American Colony |year= 2002 |publisher= University of Washington Press |isbn= 978-0-295-98249-6 |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=8yu3pYpzLdUC |page= 74}}</ref>
Although there has been little definitive archeological evidence of human habitation at Seldovia prior to  the 1800s,{{Citation needed|reason=this and subsequent paragraphs are unsupported|date=March 2019}} it is said {{by whom|date=March 2019}} the early Russian [[St. Nicholas Chapel (Seldovia, Alaska)|St. Nicholas Orthodox Church]], started in 1820, was built on top of an older aboriginal [[Inuit]] village site. The town's original Russian name, Seldevoy, translates to "Herring Bay", as there was a significant herring population prior to rampant overfishing early in the 20th century.

[[File:Beach at Seldovia, Alaska, June 21, 1908 (COBB 175).jpeg|thumb|Main Street before the Old Boardwalk, June 1908]]
Until the development of a more complete road system in Alaska, Seldovia was an important "first stop" for ships sailing from Seward, Kodiak and other points outside [[Cook Inlet]].  At one time Seldovia was home to over 2,000 residents, but today fewer than 300 persons reside year round.

The town was one of many communities along the shores of Cook Inlet, noted for having one of the most severe tidal movements in North America. Similar to the dramatic tides of [[Bay of Fundy]], the Cook Inlet's waters prior to 1964 would rise or fall 26 feet every six hours during the peak tides.

After the [[1964 Alaska earthquake|Good Friday earthquake]] on March 27, 1964, which registered 9.2 on the [[moment magnitude scale]], the surrounding land mass dropped six feet.  Seldovia's "boardwalk" before the earthquake was thick wooden plank and piling, and the town's main street was built almost entirely along the waterfront. Most of the community's businesses, and many homes were similarly constructed upon pilings on either side of this "street".  The sudden sinking of the land caused higher tides, peaking at 32 feet, to completely submerge the boardwalk and flood the homes and businesses along the waterfront.

The waterfront was rebuilt (known at the time as "urban renewal") using fill from Cap's Hill, which was demolished to rebuild the town on higher ground. There is only one small portion of the boardwalk left; this section of the boardwalk was built decades after the original boardwalk and it is known to the townfolk as "the new boardwalk", even though it is now the only boardwalk. The original boardwalk is completely gone, destroyed during the urban renewal process, along with many homes and businesses.

Seldovia has been home to many industries, including fox farming, berry picking and commercial fishing, including King Crab fishing. Logging and mining have also featured in local history. Today charter boats keep busy bringing the visiting sport fishermen to the fishing grounds of Kachemak Bay and other nearby waters.