Father Yakov

A day of Alaska exploration:

1st stop: The old Matanuska town site. There was not much here other than fallen buildings. Matanuska town was a growing concern for the homestead farming community until the colonists came in 1935 and the Matanuska River flooded the site 3 years in a row in the late 1930's. Now it is rubble.

2nd location: Colony farm sites. Found 11 more Colony barns, Whoopee!

3rd location: Wolverine and Lazy Mountain. High country residences and a few farms.

4th location (this location): Eklutna town site:

This is Father Yakov, a Russian Orthodox priest. Today, he is supervising the visitor center at the St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church and cemetery.

The St. Nicholas Orthodox Church was originally built in 1798. It is still standing adjacent to the newer church you see here, constructed in 1962 by Chief Maxim Alex.

Both churches are named after the same forth century Bishop, St. Nicholas, Archbishop of Mira in Lycia.

In the church courtyard the cemetery resides with its' many spirit house grave sites. I will be making several passes near Eklutna after work. Father Yakov has invited me back to take more photos of the spirit houses, so you will get to see them soon.


St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church, Eklutna, Alaska