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As voices became hushed and the crowd waited for the ceremony to begin, a toddler mumbled an inaudible question to their mother. Amid a sea of people packed into the Nolan Center, the woman's response was clear and without question. "The Army killed our people here," she said, "and now they're going to say sorry." The U.S. Army apologized for the 1869 bombardment of the Tlingit village called Ḵaachx̱aana.áakʼw at a ceremony on Saturday, Jan. 11, in Wrangell. Of the seven Tlingit clans that rece...
Five months after their initial presentation to the community, a team of university landslide experts is returning to town to provide an update on their research surrounding the November 2023 landslides that hit Wrangell. Margaret Darrow and her team of experts will speak at 6 p.m. Saturday at the Nolan Center. The presentation is expected to run a couple hours and pizza will be provided. The event is free to the public. “It’s supposed to be another great presentation,” Nolan Center Director Jeanie Arnold said. “The last one was really inclusi...
Wrangell’s Senior Center may be on the move. Three months after the borough proposed that the Senior Center relocate to the community center’s multipurpose room, a change in plans may be in order as the center explores the possibility of a new home: the American Legion Hall. Recent discussions between Juneau-based Catholic Community Service, which operates the Senior Center, and Wrangell’s American Legion Auxiliary have propelled the Legion Hall into pole position for the center’s eventual landing spot. Staff at Catholic Community Service...
The Viking is no match for the Wolf, at least by the logic of Southeast high school boys basketball. The Wrangell High School boys basketball team triumphed over Petersburg in both their matches last weekend. On Friday, Jan. 10, the Wolves won 57-36, following up with a 45-35 win on Saturday, Jan. 11. The games put Wrangell in the winning column for the first time this season after a tough four-game skid against Metlakatla to open the season. The Wolves currently sit third in Southeast. Though...
After a slow start, the Wrangell High School girls basketball team secured their first win of the season in Petersburg on Saturday, Jan. 11. The Wolves split the two-game series with their rivals, dropping the Friday game 34-36 before rebounding on Saturday in a 47-33 triumph. Wrangell now sits third in Southeast (1-3) but will look to make up ground on Haines (1-1) in a two-game home stand Thursday and Friday. Though the Wolves dropped the first game by just two points, it wasn't because they...
On Saturday, Jan. 11, the U.S. Army will issue a formal apology to the community for its December 1869 bombardment of Wrangell's Tlingit village, Ḵaachx̱aana.áakʼw. This is the third recent military apology to Southeast communities after the Navy apologized last fall for its attacks on Kake (1869) and Angoon (1882). Given the rarity of these admissions of guilt, there is little precedent for the structure of the event, meaning the planning - at least for the Wrangell apology - was left up to loc...
Next time your friend asks for a ride to the airport, say yes. You might be their only hope. After two years in service, Tiny's Taxi turned off the ignition for the last time on Dec. 31. Tiny's has been the island's sole taxi service since Johnny Cab ceased operations last summer. "It's been an incredible journey," Tiny's founder Mike Lewis said. "I've met some amazing people and made some amazing friends. (I've) played catchup with a lot of the old-school locals after 30 years of being gone."...
In the 2022-2023 school year, over 70% of Wrangell students were chronically absent. That's nearly double the state average and nearly three times the national average. The Alaska Department of Education, which posts school district absenteeism numbers every year, defines chronic absenteeism as missing 10% of the school year. In Alaska, that amounts to 18 days of missed classes. "If a student misses those 18 days every year from kindergarten to 12th grade, that will add up to them being absent...
Wrangell students’ filmmaking efforts are going global — at least to Vancouver, British Columbia. This February, Wrangell high schoolers Jackson Pearson and Silje Morse will travel to the Vancouver International Mountain Film Festival alongside teacher Laura Davies. The trio was invited to attend the festival by See Stories — an Alaska nonprofit dedicated to building “inclusive communities with film and story.” See Stories and Wrangell’s high school documentary film club, Stikine Stories (whose program is modeled after See Stories), have collab...
The high school boys basketball team lost both games at Metlakatla on Jan. 3 and 4. The pair of away matchups was the second half of a four-game series against Metlakatla, dating back to Dec. 20-21 when the Chiefs came to town for Wrangell’s home opener. Despite a valiant third-quarter surge, Wrangell’s efforts were not enough to surpass Metlakatla’s early lead in the Friday game. After the Chiefs closed out the game with a strong fourth, Wrangell started off the weekend with a 41-55 loss. The Saturday matchup was more of the same. Wrang...
Wrangell’s high school girls basketball team has started the year at 0-4 after back-to-back losses at Metlakatla on Jan. 3-4. This is the second weekend in which the Wolves have dropped both games to their southern rivals, though this second round of games provided much more optimism for the young team. In what will probably be the toughest stretch of the season, the girls basketball team not only faced up against the Southeast stalwarts of Metlakatla, but did so without Alana Harrison, who will likely be one of the team’s most critical players...
No New Year’s resolution can possibly improve the condition of St. Michaels Street. After seven water main breaks in the past two years, the borough plans to give some much-needed love to St. Michaels in the spring. The road connects Front Street with Church Street and its surface resembles something of a wide-woven quilt — thanks to the numerous times that repair crews have needed to dig up the asphalt for repairs. Police Chief Gene Meek has even suggested that folks avoid the street during winter months due to ice hazards. Underground, thi...
The Wrangell high school girls basketball team opened their season with back-to-back home losses against Metlakatla. In the Dec. 20 game, Wrangell lost 64-22. The next day, the Wolves fell 62-24. Though neither game was much of a contest, head coach Christy Good understands that at this point in the season generating results comes second to building positive habits. She also noted that the Wolves were without four of their 11 rostered players, including star sophomore Alana Harrison. “We have a lot of things to work on,” Good said. “We neede...
The Wrangell boys basketball team lost both home games to Metlakatla in their first competition of the season on Dec. 20 and 21 but playing in Metlakatla this weekend will give the high school squad an opportunity to get even with their southern rivals after an early bye week. The two-game series (one game Friday and one game Saturday) started off with a bit of a rude awakening for Wrangell. Metlakatla won the Friday game 49-26 in a triumphant display in the Wolves’ home gym. On Saturday, Wrangell was far more competitive, though the Chiefs s...
Wrangell's Jackson Carney is a state wrestling champion. The sophomore finished atop the podium in the boys 140-pound bracket after beating Glennallen's Jake Stockhausen in a 7-1 decision. Carney was not the only Wolf with a strong showing at the high school state Division II championship in Anchorage on Dec. 20-21. Della Churchill finished fourth in the girls 120-pound division and Cody Barnes finished fourth in the boys 215-pound bracket. Everett Meissner finished sixth in the 152-pound...
It was 1869 and smoke filled the winter air. Cannon balls ripped through Tlingit homes while U.S. Army shells shrieked across the sky. The same type of artillery used against the Confederates just four years prior was now turned on the Tlingit people of Wrangell, in their homeland which they called Ḵaachx̱aana.áakʼw. One hundred and fifty-five years later, the U.S. Army is apologizing. The apology is scheduled to take place in Wrangell on Jan. 11, 2025. Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Army repr...
Jack Carney's maniacs on the mat aren't slowing down. At the Southeast wrestling championship in Haines on Dec. 13-14, Wrangell boasted three champions, four runners-up and five bronze medalists. Seven wrestlers qualified for the state tournament in Anchorage on Friday and Saturday, Dec. 20-21, but head coach Jack Carney hopes many more will receive an at-large bid. Wrangell's triad of top-step finishers were Della Churchill, Jackson Carney and Everett Meissner. Hailey Cook, Ian Nelson, Vanessa...
Heavy winds earlier this month caused several trees to fall near Zarembo Island’s popular public access point. One tree tore through the causeway that connects the dock to the island. Another barricaded a dirt ramp often used to load and offload vehicles at the beach landing. The nearby island is a hot spot for hunters and outdoor enthusiasts. U.S. Forest Service Wrangell District Ranger Tory Houser hopes to have the causeway repaired ahead of the 2025 deer hunting season, which begins Aug. 1. She said the Forest Service is actively working to...
What do you get when you mix a cross-country superstar, a couple of wrestling studs, one of the best basketball players in Southeast and a coach who believes in his system and his players? My guess? A damn good basketball team - but at the very least a really, really, really, really fun team to watch. And if you aren't quite convinced, add to the mix the following: a feisty freshman vying for a spot in the rotation and a high basketball-IQ senior leader unwilling to accept anything other than...
Last season, just two high schoolers signed up for cheerleading. This year, that figure exploded to 12. Head coach Tyla Nelson is thrilled, and you can expect to see Wrangell's cheer squad at every home basketball game this season. The cheerleaders began practices on Dec. 4, and their season will wrap on the same day as basketball regionals on March 5-8 in Ketchikan, where they will compete against other Southeast cheer teams. The top two teams will go on to state the following week. Nelson...
A Washington state-based bioenergy company is exploring potential development of the borough’s 6-Mile mill property. Next week, Dale Borgford and other members of Borgford BioEnergy will fly to Wrangell ahead of a Wednesday, Dec. 18, public workshop with borough officials. The workshop will explore whether Borgford is a good fit for the property and vice versa. The meeting is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. at City Hall. Since purchasing the mill site for $2.5 million in 2022, the borough has wanted to cater the property toward economic development. Bo...
Five, four, three, two, one - wooooooooooo. And just like that, the U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree was alit. Adorned with 10,000 Alaskan-made ornaments and glistening with the power of 5,000 LED bulbs, the 80-foot-tall spruce will remain lit from dusk to 11 p.m. through Jan. 1. While the tree obviously headlined its own lighting ceremony, the Dec. 3 event was equally a celebration of Wrangell and the state. Members of Alaska's congressional delegation, Rep. Mary Peltola and Sens. Lisa Murkowski...
For the first time since it shut down during the COVID-19 pandemic, Wrangell's indoor shooting range is up and running. One might even say it's ready to go - lock, stock and barrel. The range's first day of operation was Dec. 3, and it will be open on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 5 to 7 p.m. (dependent on the availability of range safety officers). Eventually, the range, located in the basement of the Public Safety Building, will open on Saturdays from 2 to 4 p.m., but that will not begin until...
This fall, social studies teacher Jack Carney hosted a mock election for his junior and senior students. The kids learned about the issues, ballot measures and candidates, asked questions and eventually cast mock ballots of their own. A newly updated school board policy will ensure such classroom efforts can continue in the future. “In social studies classes, for example, we want things about the election and about political parties,” Superintendent Bill Burr said. “We wanted to make sure that was allowed.” The new policy ensures this. Though...
According to Clark Griswold, you have two choices when it comes to selecting your Christmas tree. Your first option is to go to a tree lot: “They invented Christmas tree lots,” Griswold says in the 1989 movie “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation,” “because people forgot how to have a fun old-fashioned family Christmas and are satisfied with scrawny, dead overpriced trees that have no special meaning.” Instead, he advises, “to do what your forefathers did.” Which is, “walk into the woods, pick out that special tree and cut it down with your ba...
