Editing Sitka, Alaska (section)

===World War II===
In 1937, the United States Navy established the first seaplane base in Alaska on [[Japonski Island]], across the [[Sitka Channel]] from the town.<ref name="RayHistDist">{{Citation|last=Yarborough |first=Michael R. |title=Statement of Significance for the Fort Ray Historic District (Charcoal and Alice Islands) and the Mermaid Cove Mausoleum |publisher=Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities |date=April 10, 2009 |url=https://www.nps.gov/akso/history/PDF/Fort%20Ray%20Historic%20District%20CRC%20Report.pdf |access-date =October 24, 2016 |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20161025112834/https://www.nps.gov/akso/history/PDF/Fort%20Ray%20Historic%20District%20CRC%20Report.pdf |archive-date =October 25, 2016 |url-status =live}}</ref> In 1941, construction began on Fort Ray, an army garrison to protect the naval air station.<ref name="RayHistDist"/> Both the army and navy remained in Sitka until the end of WWII, when the army base was put into caretaker status. The naval station in Sitka was deactivated in June 1944.<ref name="RayHistDist"/>  A shore boat system was then established to transfer the approximately 1,000 passengers a day until the O'Connell Bridge was built in 1972.{{r|yesterday}}