Fish River (Alaska)

Fish River (Alaska)
River basin east of Nome
Fish River (Alaska) is located in Alaska
Fish River (Alaska)
Location of the mouth of the Fish River in Alaska
EtymologyEskimo–Aleut languages
Native nameIkalikhvik (Inupiaq)
Location
CountryUnited States
StateAlaska
RegionNome Census Area
Physical characteristics
SourceBendeleben Mountains
 • coordinates65°19′00″N 163°05′32″W / 65.31667°N 163.09222°W / 65.31667; -163.09222[1]
 • elevation2,384 ft (727 m)[2]
MouthGolovnin Bay
 • location
35 miles (56 km) east of Solomon
 • coordinates
64°55′10″N 163°21′00″W / 64.91944°N 163.35000°W / 64.91944; -163.35000[1]
 • elevation
0 ft (0 m)[1]
Length47 mi (76 km)[1]

The Fish River (Iġalugvik in Inupiaq) is a waterway in the U.S. state of Alaska. The 47-mile-long (76 km) river rises in the Bendeleben Mountains and flows south to Golovnin Lagoon, before emptying into Golovnin Bay, Norton Sound, and the Bering Sea.[1] The basin formed by the Fish River is known for its placer gold deposits, and in particular, the Niukluk River and its tributaries; production from this tributary valley is reported to be more than from any other place in the region.[3] A galena mine existed 40 miles (64 km) from the sea, worked on occasion by a San Francisco corporation with a few hundred tons of ore taken to the city for smelting and refining for silver.[4] Walter Curran Mendenhall found obscure fossils on Fish River at White Mountain.[5]

  1. ^ a b c d e "Fish River". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. January 1, 2000. Retrieved September 23, 2013.
  2. ^ Derived by entering source coordinates in Google Earth.
  3. ^ Philip Sidney Smith; Henry Miner Eakin (1911). A geologic reconnaissance in southeastern Seward Peninsula and the Norton Bay-Nulato region, Alaska. Government Printing Office. pp. 116–117. Retrieved 26 March 2013.
  4. ^ Porter, Robert P. (1893). Report on Population and Resources of Alaska at the Eleventh Census: 1890 (Public domain ed.).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Brooks1901 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).