Alexander Archipelago

The Alexander Archipelago (English Alexander Archipelago ) is a group of islands ( archipelago ) in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Alaska Panhandle.

Geography

The islands are the peaks of a chain of steep submarine mountains along the Pacific coast of Canada and Alaska. The 1,100 islands are separated by deep straits from each other and from the mainland. The northern part of the Inside Passage runs through the archipelago.

The largest islands are the three ABC islands ( Chichagof Iceland, Iceland Admiralty, Baranof Iceland ), Wrangell Iceland, Iceland Revillagigedo, Kupreanof Iceland, Iceland Prince of Wales, Kuiu Iceland and Etolin Iceland.

All the islands are very rugged, heavily forested and have a great diversity of species of wildlife on.

Population

In the region of the Tlingit and Haida Indians live Kaigani. The Tsimshian living on Annette Iceland, not originally from the region, but have immigrated in the late 19th century British Columbia.

The biggest cities of the archipelago are Sitka on Baranof Iceland and Ketchikan on Revillagigedo Iceland. The largest city in the region and capital of Alaska, Juneau, is situated on the mainland.

Economy

The economy of the islands depends mainly on tourism, fisheries and forestry.

History

The archipelago was first explored in 1741 by Russians and later by British, Spanish and Americans. With the Alaska Purchase in 1867, the islands passed into American possession.

It was named after Alexander Andreyevich Baranov Archipelago (1747-1819), the head of the Russian Fur Company at the turn of the 18th to 19th century. He was from 1799 to 1818, the first governor of the Russian - American Company; the islands in 1799, he took formal possession. After him also Baranof Iceland is named.