Moving to Skagway, Alaska

About Skagway, Alaska
Skagway

The Municipality and Borough of Skagway is a first-class borough in Alaska on the Alaska Panhandle. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,240, up from 968 in 2010. The population doubles in the summer tourist season in order to deal with the large number of summer tourists each year. Incorporated as a borough on June 25, 2007, it was previously a city (urban Skagway located at 59°27′30″N 135°18′50″W) in the Skagway-Yakutat-Angoon Census Area (now the Hoonah–Angoon Census Area, Alaska). The most populated community is the census-designated place of Skagway.

Skagway, on the Taiya Inlet, was an important saltwater port during the Klondike Gold Rush. The White Pass and Yukon Route narrow gauge railroad, part of the area's mining past, now in operation purely for the tourist trade and running throughout the summer months, has its starting point at the port of Skagway. Skagway is a popular stop for cruise ships, and the tourist trade is a big part of the business of Skagway.

Skagway is also the setting for part of Jack London's book The Call of the Wild, Will Hobbs's book Jason's Gold, and Joe Haldeman's novel, Guardian. The John Wayne film North to Alaska (1960) was filmed nearby.

The name Skagway (historically also spelled Skaguay) is the English divergent of sha-ka-ԍéi, a Tlingit idiom which figuratively refers to rough seas in the Taiya Inlet, which are caused by strong north winds. (See, "Etymology and the Mythical Stone Woman", below.)

Gender
Gender Skagway Alaska Country
Female 44.7% 47.8% 50.8%
Male 55.3% 52.2% 49.2%
Gender

Household Income


Income Skagway Alaska Country
Less than $10,000 1.4% 3.8% 5.8%
$10,000 to $14,999 0.6% 2.9% 4.1%
$15,000 to $24,999 4.5% 6.2% 8.5%
$25,000 to $34,999 6.8% 6.7% 8.6%
$35,000 to $49,999 12.7% 10.1% 12.0%
$50,000 to $74,999 25.2% 18.3% 17.2%
$75,000 to $99,999 16.1% 14.2% 12.8%
$100,000 to $149,999 26.1% 19.3% 15.6%
$150,000 to $199,999 4.5% 9.6% 7.1%
$200,000 or more 2% 8.8% 8.3%
Education


Education Skagway Alaska Country
< 9th Grade 3% 3% 5.0%
9-12th Grade 3% 4% 7.0%
High School or GED 28% 28% 27.0%
Other College 31% 26% 20.0%
Associate's Degree 6% 9% 9%
Bachelor's Degree 25% 19% 20.0%
Master's Degree 4% 8% 9.0%
Professional Degree 0% 2% 2.0%
Doctorate Degree 0% 1% 1.0%
Household Income
Education
Race / Ethnicity


Ethnicity Skagway Alaska Country
White 82.2% 59.7% 60.1%
African American 3.5% 3.1% 12.2%
American Indian 5.1% 14.1% 0.6%
Asian 0.8% 6.2% 5.6%
Hawaiian 0% 1.4% 0.2%
Other 0% 0.4% 0.3%
Multiracial 2.5% 7.9% 2.8%
Hispanic 5.9% 7.2% 18.2%
Race / Ethnicity