Chefornak, AK

Chefornak sits on the south bank of the Kinia River, sixteen miles upriver from its mouth in Etolin Strait, in the Yukon-Kuskokwim region of western Alaska. The city’s early story follows a move inland: in the 1950s Alexie Amagiqchik opened a general store at the site after leaving an older village near the Bering Sea, and other families followed. Chefornak incorporated in 1974, and the Village of Chefornak remains a federally recognized tribe in the community.

ATTRWcbpolish / Public domain

School life shares a building through Chaputnguak and Amaqigciq schools in Lower Kuskokwim School District. Chaputnguak is the original Yup’ik name for Chefornak; Amaqigciq honors Alexie Amagiqciq, the elder who selected the village site. The city lies within Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge, so river, tundra, school, and subsistence traditions all meet in the same local map. The river still makes the village’s first approach. The local scoop is a Yup’ik community that grew around an inland river site and still carries its original name into the classroom.