Editing Craig, Alaska (section)

==History==
Originally, Craig's townsite was a temporary fishing camp used for gathering herring.<ref name=FS-PoW-C>
  {{Cite web
  | title=Tongass National Forest - Prince of Wales Island communities - Craig
  | publisher=[[U.S. Forest Service]], [[United States Department of Agriculture]]
  | url=http://www.fs.fed.us/r10/tongass/districts/pow/island_info/communities.shtml
  }}
</ref>

===Name===
Craig was named after Craig Miller (also spelled Millar) who established a fish saltery on nearby Fish Egg Island in 1907<ref name=FS-PoW-C/> with the assistance of the local [[Haida people|Haida]] natives who moved onto [[Prince of Wales Island, Alaska|Prince of Wales Island]], being driven from [[Haida Gwaii]] ([[British Columbia]]'s [[Queen Charlotte Islands]]) starting in the 18th century.<ref name=NOAA-AFSC-C/><ref>
  {{Cite web
  | title=Craig, Alaska
  | publisher=SEATrails.Org
  | url=http://www.seatrails.org/com_craig/index.htm
  }}
</ref> Craig Miller constructed a cold storage plant and packing company at the present site of Craig,<ref name=NOAA-AFSC-C/> and in 1922 was instrumental in the incorporation of the city (originally as an Alaska second-class<ref name=AK-FS/> city within the [[Alaska Territory]], pre-statehood).

===Growth===
The [[commercial fishing]] [[fishing industry|industry]] was responsible for Craig's relatively large population compared to neighboring communities.<ref name=NOAA-AFSC-C/> In the 1930s, record pink salmon runs brought many new settlers.<ref name=NOAA-AFSC-C/> The 1950s saw a collapse of the fishing industry because of depleted salmon populations.<ref name=NOAA-AFSC-C/> In 1972, a large sawmill was established nearby providing a steady source of year-round employment.<ref name=NOAA-AFSC-C/> Today, Craig relies on commercial fishing, fish processing, and the timber industry.<ref name=NOAA-AFSC-C/>

===1982 murders===
On September 7, 1982, the fishing boat ''Investor'' was found burning off the coast of Craig, and the boat's passengers and crew were found to have been killed.<ref name="Tibbits">{{cite web|last=Tibbits|first=George|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1346&dat=19851011&id=ibkwAAAAIBAJ&sjid=YPsDAAAAIBAJ&pg=5551,4253964&hl=en|title=Suspect in murder living life on edge|publisher=[[Lakeland Ledger]]|agency=[[Associated Press]]|date=October 11, 1985|accessdate=November 7, 2015}}</ref><ref name="NYTimes">{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/04/26/us/ex-crewman-acquitted-in-8-boat-killings-in-1982.html|title=Ex-Crewman Acquitted in 8 Boat Killings in 1982|work=[[The New York Times]]|agency=Associated Press|date=April 26, 1988|accessdate=November 7, 2015}}</ref> Due to the badly burned state of the bodies, investigators were only certain that they had recovered the remains of seven bodies, but a coroner's jury ruled that all eight who were aboard the boat had been killed.<ref name="Tibbits"/> The boat's owner, Mark Coulthurst, from [[Blaine, Washington]], his wife Irene, and their two young children were among the victims. In September 1984, a suspect, John Kenneth Peel, from [[Bellingham, Washington]], was arrested for the murders.<ref name="Tibbits"/><ref name="NYTimes"/> Peel's first trial ended in a hung jury, and his retrial, in 1988, ended in his acquittal.<ref name="NYTimes"/> In 2017, Tim DeSpain, spokesman for the Alaska State Troopers stated that "the case is closed".<ref>People</ref>

=== 2004 murder of Lauri Waterman ===
On November 14, 2004, Robert Claus, a now retired Alaska state trooper, received a call in the police station that a hunter had found a burning van with potential human remains in it over on a logging road.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |date=2021-11-28 |title='My Family Is Going To Hate Me,' 16-Year-Old Weeps After Confessing She Had Her Mom Killed |url=https://www.oxygen.com/fatal-frontier-evil-in-alaska/crime-news/lauri-waterman-killed-after-daughter-rachelle-asked |access-date=2025-03-12 |website=Oxygen Official Site |language=en-US}}</ref> At the same time, a local man named Doc Waterman reported that his wife, Lauri Waterman, was missing, as she had been last seen at a Chamber of Commerce dinner 24 hours before and her [[Chrysler minivans|Chrysler minivan]] was also gone. They identified the burning van as the Chrysler and concluded that the human remains have been identified as being from Lauri Waterman.<ref name=":0" /> Doc was a decorated serviceman who had met Lauri in [[Utah]] before they moved to Alaska and were parents to two children. On November 18, 2004, Brian Radel, was arrested and charged with murder, as he explained that he had broken into Lauri's home and abducted her, tying her up with a synthetic robe. He forced her to drink wine so she would be intoxicated, then put her bound on the car's backseat.<ref name=":0" /> When he and Jason Arrant, his accomplice, reached an isolated spot, he dragged her out of her car, wrestling with her to snap her neck and simulate a car accident, but he strangled her instead after it failed. Rachelle Waterman, Lauri′s 16-year-old daughter, and Jason Arrant were arrested the next day, as they were charged with conspiracy to commit murder, kidnapping, burglary, and first degree murder.<ref name=":0" /> In June 2005, Brian Radel pleaded guilty and received a 99-year sentence. Arrant, meanwhile, as he didn't actually commit the murder, received 50 years. Rachelle went to trial in January 2006. Both Radel and Arrant testified against her, but the trial ended in a hung jury. A retrial was held in 2011, and she was only convicted of criminally negligent homicide and sentenced to three years in prison. Rachelle has since been released from prison and left Alaska behind.<ref name=":0" />

===2013 earthquake===
{{Main|2013 Craig, Alaska earthquake}}
On January 5, 2013, at 3:58 am ET Craig was hit by a 7.5-magnitude offshore earthquake 63 miles (102&nbsp;km) west of the town.<ref>{{cite web |url =http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/05/us/alaska-earthquake/index.html |title =7.5-magnitude earthquake strikes off coast of Alaska; tsunami warning canceled |publisher =CNN |date =January 5, 2013 |accessdate=January 6, 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url =https://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/eventpage/usc000ejqv#summary |title =M7.5 - 94km W of Craig, Alaska |publisher =United States Geological Survey |accessdate=January 6, 2013 }}</ref> Regional [[tsunami]] warnings and advisories were issued. Voluntary evacuations of the town occurred. Despite this, no fatalities, serious injuries, or incidents of damage were reported and the tsunami threat never materialized other than minor, localized sea level rises.