View source for Bethel, Alaska

{{short description|City in Alaska, United States}}
{{Use American English|date=June 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2024}}
{{Infobox settlement
| name = Bethel, Alaska
| other_name = Orutsaraq
| native_name = Mamterilleq
| native_name_lang = esu
| nickname = 
| settlement_type = [[City (Alaska)|City]]
| motto = 
| image_skyline = Bethel Alaska aerial view.jpg
| image_caption = Aerial view of Bethel on the [[Kuskokwim River]]
| image_flag = 
| flag_size = 
| image_seal = 
| seal_size = 
| image_shield = 
| shield_size = 
| image_blank_emblem = 
| blank_emblem_size = 
| image_map = AKMap-doton-Akiak.png
| map_caption = Location of Bethel within the state of [[Alaska]]
| image_map1 = 
| map_caption1 = 
| subdivision_type = Country
| subdivision_name = United States
| subdivision_type1 = [[U.S. state|State]]
| subdivision_name1 = [[Alaska]]
| subdivision_type2 = [[List of boroughs and census areas in Alaska|Borough]]
| subdivision_name2 = [[Unorganized Borough|Unorganized]]
| subdivision_type3 = [[List of boroughs and census areas in Alaska|Census Area]]
| subdivision_name3 = [[Bethel Census Area, Alaska|Bethel]]
| subdivision_type4 = [[Alaska Native Regional Corporations|ANCSA regional corporation]]
| subdivision_name4 = [[Calista Corporation|Calista]]
| government_footnotes = <ref>City of Bethel. (October 27, 2006). [http://www.cityofbethel.org/index.asp?Type=B_BASIC&SEC={A87791AD-D1FD-47B2-B3DF-1D02CFC04573} "Bethel City Council Member List."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141012033148/http://www.cityofbethel.org/index.asp?Type=B_BASIC&SEC=%7BA87791AD-D1FD-47B2-B3DF-1D02CFC04573%7D |date=October 12, 2014 }} Retrieved on April 13, 2007.</ref><ref name="DCCED">[http://www.commerce.state.ak.us/dca/commdb/CF_CIS.htm Community Information Summaries: Bethel.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070402120839/http://www.commerce.state.ak.us/dca/commdb/CF_CIS.htm |date=April 2, 2007 }} Alaska Community Database Online, Alaska Department of Commerce, Community, and Economic Development. Retrieved on April 13, 2007.</ref>
| government_type = [[Council–manager government]]
| leader_title = [[Mayor]]
| leader_name = Rose Henderson<ref>{{Cite book|title=2023 Alaska Municipal Officials Directory|date=January 2023|publisher=Alaska Municipal League|location=[[Juneau, Alaska|Juneau]]|page=49|url=https://www.akml.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Bethel.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231113013352/https://www.akml.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/01/Bethel.pdf |archive-date=2023-11-13 |via=Wayback Machine}}</ref>
| leader_title1 = Vice-Mayor
| leader_name1 = Teresa Keller
| leader_title2 = [[Alaska Senate|State senator]]
| leader_name2 = [[Lyman Hoffman]] ([[Democratic Party (United States)|D]])<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.alaskasenate.org/2020/member/lyman-hoffman/ |title=Senator Lyman Hoffman |publisher=Alaskasenate.org |website=Alaska Senate Majority |access-date=November 16, 2019 |archive-date=April 8, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200408143501/https://www.alaskasenate.org/2020/member/lyman-hoffman/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>
| leader_title3 = [[Alaska House of Representatives|State rep.]]
| leader_title4 = City Council
| leader_name3 = [[Nellie Jimmie]] (D)
| leader_name4 = Mark Springer <br /> Pamela Conrad <br /> Alicia Miner <br /> Kelsi Kime<br /> Greg Schiedler
| established_title = [[Municipal corporation|Incorporated]]
| established_date = August 1957<ref>{{cite book|title=1996 Alaska Municipal Officials Directory|location=[[Juneau]]|publisher=Alaska Municipal League/[[Alaska Department of Commerce, Community and Economic Development|Alaska Department of Community and Regional Affairs]]|date=January 1996|page=32}}</ref>
| established_title2 = 
| established_date2 = 
| established_title3 = 
| established_date3 = 
| unit_pref = Imperial
| area_footnotes = <ref name="CenPopGazetteer2020">{{cite web|title=2020 U.S. Gazetteer Files|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2020_Gazetteer/2020_gaz_place_02.txt|publisher=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=October 29, 2021}}</ref>
| area_total_sq_mi = 50.11
| area_land_sq_mi = 44.51
| area_water_sq_mi = 5.60
| area_total_km2 = 129.78
| area_land_km2 = 115.27
| area_water_km2 = 14.51
| area_water_percent = 
| area_urban_sq_mi = 
| area_metro_sq_mi = 
| population_as_of = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
| population_est = 6270
| pop_est_as_of = 2021
| pop_est_footnotes = <ref name="USCensusEst2021"/>
| population_footnotes = <ref name="2020 Census (City)"/>
| population_total = 6325
| population_density_sq_mi = 142.11
| population_metro = 
| population_density_metro_sq_mi = 
| population_urban = 
| population_density_urban_sq_mi = 
| population_blank1_title = [[Alaska Native]]
| population_blank1 = 62%
| population_density_km2 = 54.87
| population_density_blank1_sq_mi = 
| timezone = [[Alaska Time Zone|AKST]]
| utc_offset = -9
| timezone_DST = AKDT
| utc_offset_DST = -8
| coordinates = {{coord|60|47|32|N|161|45|21|W|region:US-AK|display=inline,title}}
| elevation_footnotes = 
| elevation_ft = 3
| elevation_m = 1
| postal_code_type = [[ZIP code]]
| postal_code = 99559
| area_code = [[Area code 907|907]]
| area_code_type = [[North American Numbering Plan|Area code]]
| blank_name = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
| blank_info = 02-06520
| blank1_name = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
| blank1_info = {{gnis4|1398908}}
| website = {{URL|https://www.cityofbethel.org/|cityofbethel.org}}
}}

'''Bethel''' ({{langx|esu|Mamterilleq}}) is a city in the U.S. state of [[Alaska]], located on the [[Kuskokwim River]] approximately {{convert|50|mi|0}} from where the river flows into [[Kuskokwim Bay]]. It is the largest community in western Alaska and in the [[Unorganized Borough]], as well as the [[List of cities in Alaska|eighth-largest in the state]]. Bethel has a population of 6,325 as of the [[2020 United States census|2020 census]], up from 6,080 in 2010.<ref name="2020 Census (City)">{{cite web|title=Explore Census Data |url=https://data.census.gov/profile/Bethel_city,_Alaska?g=1600000US0206520 |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]] |access-date=January 14, 2023}}</ref>

Annual events in Bethel include the [[Kuskokwim 300]] dogsled race; Camai, a [[Yup'ik dance]] festival held each spring; and the Bethel Fair held in August.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://kyuk.org/bethel-city-council-overhauls-alcohol-laws-drops-protest-appeal/#more-41398 |title= Bethel City Council Overhauls Alcohol Laws, Drops Protest Appeal|website=kyuk.org |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222083641/http://kyuk.org/bethel-city-council-overhauls-alcohol-laws-drops-protest-appeal/ |archive-date=December 22, 2015}}</ref>

==History==
[[File:Alaska - Bethel - NARA - 23937517.jpg|thumb|right|Bethel in the 1940s, winter]]
[[File:Alaska - Bethel - NARA - 23937519.jpg|thumb|right|Bethel in 1941, summer]]
Southwestern Alaska has been the homeland of [[Yup'ik peoples]] and their ancestors for thousands of years. The residents of what became Bethel were called the Mamterillermiut, meaning "Smokehouse People", after their nearby fish [[smokehouse]].<ref name=orth>{{cite book |last1=Orth |first1=Donald J. |title=Dictionary of Alaska Place Names |date=1971 |publisher=USGS |isbn=978-0944780022 |page=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_0y48AQAAMAAJ/page/n140 128] |edition=2nd |url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_0y48AQAAMAAJ|quote=Bethel Alaska 41 population 1880 census.}}</ref> In the late 19th century, the [[Alaska Commercial Company]] established a trading post in the town, called Mumtrekhlogamute, which had a population of 41 people by the [[1880 United States census|1880 census]].<ref name=orth/>

In 1885, the [[Moravian Church]] established a mission in the area under the leadership of William and Caroline Weinland and [[John and Edith Kilbuck]].{{citation needed|date=November 2013}} He{{who|date=June 2023}} made Yup'ik the language of the Moravian Church in the community and region, and helped translate the Christian Bible into the language.{{citation needed|date=November 2013}} The missionaries moved Bethel from Mamterillermiut to its present location on the west side of the Kuskokwim River. A United States post office was opened in 1905.{{citation needed|date=November 2013}}

In 1971, Bethel established a community radio station [[KYUK (AM)|KYUK]],<ref name="Daley"/> the first Native-owned and -operated radio station in the U.S.<ref name="kyuk-radio">{{cite web|url=http://www.kyuk.org/radio.htm |title=Radio |publisher=Bethel Broadcasting |location=Bethel, Alaska |date=February 26, 2010 |access-date=May 19, 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100220160143/http://www.kyuk.org/radio.htm |archive-date=February 20, 2010 }}</ref> Similar stations were soon started in [[Kotzebue, Alaska|Kotzebue]], and by 1990, there were 10 stations in communities of fewer than 3,500 people.<ref name="Daley"/>

On February 19, 1997, [[1997 Bethel Regional High School shooting|a school shooting]] attracted widespread media attention to Bethel when 16-year-old Evan Ramsey, a student at Bethel Regional High School, shot and killed his principal and one student and wounded two others, for which he later received a 210-year prison sentence.<ref>Avila, Jim; Holding, Reynolds; Whitcraft, Teri; Tribolet, Beth. "[https://abcnews.go.com/TheLaw/Story?id=5040342&page=1 School Shooter: 'I Didn't Realize' They Would Die]". ''ABC News''. June 11, 2008. Retrieved February 28, 2014.</ref>

In 2009, Bethel opted out of status as a "[[Local Option]]" community, theoretically opening the door to allowing [[alcoholic beverage|alcohol]] sales in the city; residents and city officials maintained that all [[liquor license]] requests would be actively opposed. In October 2015, though, a vote for allowing alcohol sales in Bethel passed and two liquor licenses were approved for existing stores in the city.

In 2012, pranksters distributed flyers falsely announcing the launch of a [[Taco Bell]] restaurant in Bethel, prompting Taco Bell to airlift into the town a Taco Bell [[food truck]] loaded with ingredients for 10,000 tacos.<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Locker|first=Melissa|date=July 21, 2012|title=After Hoax, It's Taco Bell to the Rescue|language=en-US|magazine=Time|url=https://newsfeed.time.com/2012/07/04/after-hoax-its-taco-bell-to-the-rescue/|access-date=May 21, 2020|issn=0040-781X}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Taco Bell helicopters 10,000 tacos to Bethel, Alaska after hoax|url=https://www.latimes.com/business/la-xpm-2012-jul-03-la-fi-mo-taco-bell-alaska-20120703-story.html|date=July 3, 2012|website=Los Angeles Times|language=en-US|access-date=May 21, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Citation|title=The Taco Bell Hoax in Bethel, Alaska - Above and Beyond Delivery| date=July 2012 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wGjR-cGnXM| archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/-wGjR-cGnXM| archive-date=December 11, 2021 |url-status=live |language=en |access-date=May 21, 2020}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

On November 3, 2015, the Kilbuck building housing both the Ayaprun Elitnaurviat Yup'ik immersion school and the Kuskokwim Learning Academy caught fire, destroying the immersion school and damaging the boarding school.<ref>{{cite news|last=Demer|first=Lisa|title=Video: Kilbuck school building burns in Bethel|url=https://www.adn.com/video/video-kilbuck-school-building-burns-bethel|access-date=November 3, 2015|newspaper=[[Alaska Dispatch News]]|date=November 3, 2015}}</ref> Fire fighters demolished part of the building in an effort to save a media center containing Yup'ik artifacts and elder interviews.<ref name="Sewer">{{cite news|title=Fire tears through Bethel school building|url=http://www.adn.com/article/20151103/fire-tears-through-bethel-school-building|access-date=November 3, 2015|newspaper=[[Alaska Dispatch News]]|date=November 3, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Fire engulfs Bethel school|url=https://www.alaskapublic.org/2015/11/03/fire-engulfs-bethel-school/|access-date=November 3, 2015|newspaper=[[Alaska Public Radio Network]]|date=November 3, 2015}}</ref>

==Geography==
Bethel is located at {{coord|60|47|32|N|161|45|21|W|type:city_region:US}} (60.792222, −161.755833).<ref name="GR1">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/geographies/reference-files/time-series/geo/gazetteer-files.html|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=April 23, 2011|date=February 12, 2011|title=US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990}}</ref>  According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the city has a total area of {{convert|126.1|km2|order=flip}}, of which {{convert|111.8|km2|order=flip}} is land and {{convert|14.3|km2|order=flip}}, or 11.34%, is water.

Though the region is flat and generally treeless, Bethel lies inside the [[Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge]], the second largest [[wildlife refuge]] in the United States.

===Climate===
Bethel has a [[subarctic climate]] ([[Köppen climate classification|Köppen]]: "[[subarctic climate#Dfc distribution|Dfc]]"), with long, somewhat snowy, and very cold winters, and short, mild summers. Normal monthly mean temperatures range from {{convert|6.6|°F|1}} in January to {{convert|56.1|°F|1}} in July, with an annual mean of {{convert|30.7|°F|1}}. Warm days of above {{convert|70|°F|0}} can be expected on 14 days per summer.<ref name="NWS Fairbanks, AK (PAFG)"/> Precipitation is both most frequent and greatest during the summer months, averaging {{convert|18.5|in|0}} per year. Snowfall usually falls in light bouts, and is actually greater in November and December (before the sea freezes) than in January and February, averaging {{convert|45|in|cm|0}} a season. Extreme temperatures have ranged from {{convert|−52|°F|0}} on January 18–19 and 25, 1947 up to {{convert|90|°F|0}} on June 17, 1926.<ref name="NWS Fairbanks, AK (PAFG)"/>

{{Weather box
|location = Bethel, Alaska (1991−2020 normals,<ref>Mean monthly maxima and minima (i.e. the highest and lowest temperature readings during an entire month or year) calculated based on data at said location from 1991 to 2020.</ref> extremes 1923−present)
|single line = Y
| Jan avg record high F = 37.2
| Feb avg record high F = 39.8
| Mar avg record high F = 39.5
| Apr avg record high F = 52.8
| May avg record high F = 69.0
| Jun avg record high F = 76.1
| Jul avg record high F = 77.7
| Aug avg record high F = 73.0
| Sep avg record high F = 63.5
| Oct avg record high F = 51.4
| Nov avg record high F = 41.1
| Dec avg record high F = 38.2
|year avg record high F = 79.9
| Jan avg record low F = -24.9
| Feb avg record low F = -19.5
| Mar avg record low F = -15.0
| Apr avg record low F = 0.6
| May avg record low F = 22.6
| Jun avg record low F = 35.7
| Jul avg record low F = 41.9
| Aug avg record low F = 38.1
| Sep avg record low F = 27.9
| Oct avg record low F = 10.8
| Nov avg record low F = -8.6
| Dec avg record low F = -20.3
|year avg record low F = -29.7
|Jan record high F = 49
|Feb record high F = 51
|Mar record high F = 53
|Apr record high F = 63
|May record high F = 80
|Jun record high F = 90
|Jul record high F = 89
|Aug record high F = 87
|Sep record high F = 76
|Oct record high F = 65
|Nov record high F = 60
|Dec record high F = 49
|Jan high F = 12.7
|Feb high F = 20.1
|Mar high F = 22.0
|Apr high F = 36.9
|May high F = 52.0
|Jun high F = 62.1
|Jul high F = 63.6
|Aug high F = 60.5
|Sep high F = 52.7
|Oct high F = 37.9
|Nov high F = 24.3
|Dec high F = 16.3
|year high F= 38.4
| Jan mean F  = 6.9
| Feb mean F  = 13.3
| Mar mean F  = 14.5
| Apr mean F  = 29.0
| May mean F  = 43.0
| Jun mean F  = 53.3
| Jul mean F  = 56.3
| Aug mean F  = 53.9
| Sep mean F  = 46.1
| Oct mean F  = 32.2
| Nov mean F  = 18.5
| Dec mean F  = 10.0
| year mean F = 31.4
|Jan low F =  1.2
|Feb low F =  6.5
|Mar low F =  7.0
|Apr low F = 21.2
|May low F = 34.1
|Jun low F = 44.5
|Jul low F = 49.0
|Aug low F = 47.3
|Sep low F = 39.4
|Oct low F = 26.4
|Nov low F = 12.8
|Dec low F =  3.7
|year low F= 24.4
|Jan record low F = −52
|Feb record low F = −45
|Mar record low F = −42
|Apr record low F = −31
|May record low F =  −5
|Jun record low F =  28
|Jul record low F =  30
|Aug record low F =  28
|Sep record low F =  18
|Oct record low F =  −6
|Nov record low F = −31
|Dec record low F = −44
|precipitation colour = green
|Jan precipitation inch = 0.77
|Feb precipitation inch = 0.88
|Mar precipitation inch = 0.74
|Apr precipitation inch = 0.79
|May precipitation inch = 1.21
|Jun precipitation inch = 1.77
|Jul precipitation inch = 2.57
|Aug precipitation inch = 3.36
|Sep precipitation inch = 2.89
|Oct precipitation inch = 1.84
|Nov precipitation inch = 1.80
|Dec precipitation inch = 1.06
|year precipitation inch=19.68
|Jan snow inch = 9.4
|Feb snow inch = 8.1
|Mar snow inch = 8.8
|Apr snow inch = 6.0
|May snow inch = 1.9
|Jun snow inch = 0.0
|Jul snow inch = 0.0
|Aug snow inch = 0.0
|Sep snow inch = 0.5
|Oct snow inch = 3.9
|Nov snow inch = 13.2
|Dec snow inch = 12.2
|year snow inch = 64.0
| Jan snow depth inch  = 11 
| Feb snow depth inch  = 11
| Mar snow depth inch  = 12
| Apr snow depth inch  = 11
| May snow depth inch  = 9
| Jun snow depth inch  = 1
| Jul snow depth inch  = 0
| Aug snow depth inch  = 0
| Sep snow depth inch  = 0
| Oct snow depth inch  = 0
| Nov snow depth inch  = 2
| Dec snow depth inch  = 7
| year snow depth inch =
|unit precipitation days = 0.01 in
|Jan precipitation days = 9.2
|Feb precipitation days = 10.1
|Mar precipitation days = 8.6
|Apr precipitation days = 9.5
|May precipitation days = 12.0
|Jun precipitation days = 12.9
|Jul precipitation days = 16.2 
|Aug precipitation days = 18.1
|Sep precipitation days = 16.6
|Oct precipitation days = 13.3
|Nov precipitation days = 13.7
|Dec precipitation days = 10.9
|year precipitation days=
|unit snow days = 0.1 in
|Jan snow days = 9.3
|Feb snow days = 10.1
|Mar snow days = 9.1
|Apr snow days = 7.3
|May snow days = 2.7
|Jun snow days = 0.1
|Jul snow days = 0.0
|Aug snow days = 0.0
|Sep snow days = 0.5
|Oct snow days = 5.2
|Nov snow days = 11.2
|Dec snow days = 11.7
|year snow days = 
|Jan humidity = 76.2
|Feb humidity = 73.1
|Mar humidity = 77.8
|Apr humidity = 79.7
|May humidity = 76.2
|Jun humidity = 75.9
|Jul humidity = 80.4
|Aug humidity = 84.6
|Sep humidity = 83.3
|Oct humidity = 83.7
|Nov humidity = 81.6
|Dec humidity = 76.5
| Jan dew point C = −17.3
| Feb dew point C = −18.2
| Mar dew point C = −13.5
| Apr dew point C =  −7.7
| May dew point C =   0.1
| Jun dew point C =   5.6
| Jul dew point C =   8.9
| Aug dew point C =   8.7
| Sep dew point C =   4.3
| Oct dew point C =  −3.9
| Nov dew point C = −10.9
| Dec dew point C = −16.3
|source 1 = NOAA (relative humidity and dew point 1961–1990)<ref name="NWS Fairbanks, AK (PAFG)">
{{cite web
|url = https://www.weather.gov/wrh/climate?wfo=afc
|title = NOWData – NOAA Online Weather Data
|publisher = [[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration]]
|access-date = October 31, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web
|url = https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/attachments/CCD-2018.pdf
|title = Comparative Climatic Data For the United States Through 2018
|publisher = NOAA
|access-date = July 28, 2020
|archive-date = September 19, 2020
|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200919104105/https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/attachments/CCD-2018.pdf
|url-status = dead
}}</ref><ref name=NOAA>
{{cite web
|url=https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/services/data/v1?dataset=normals-monthly-1991-2020&stations=USW00026615&format=pdf&dataTypes=MLY-TMAX-NORMAL,MLY-TMIN-NORMAL,MLY-TAVG-NORMAL,MLY-PRCP-NORMAL,MLY-SNOW-NORMAL
|publisher=National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
|title= U.S. Climate Normals Quick Access
|access-date=September 11, 2022}}</ref><ref name= WMO>
{{cite web
|url = ftp://ftp.atdd.noaa.gov/pub/GCOS/WMO-Normals/TABLES/REG_IV/US/GROUP1/70219.TXT
|title = WMO climate normals for BETHEL/BETHEL AIRPORT, AK 1961−1990
|publisher = [[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration]]
|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230715013308/ftp://ftp.atdd.noaa.gov/pub/GCOS/WMO-Normals/TABLES/REG_IV/US/GROUP1/70219.TXT
|archive-date = 2023-07-15
|url-status = dead
|access-date = August 30, 2020
}}
</ref>
}}

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|1880= 29
|1890= 20
|1910= 110
|1920= 221
|1930= 278
|1940= 376
|1950= 651
|1960= 1258
|1970= 2416
|1980= 3576
|1990= 4674
|2000= 5471
|2010= 6080
|2020= 6325
|estyear=2022
|estimate=6276
|estref=<ref name="USCensusEst2021">{{cite web|url= https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/bethelcityalaska/PST045223 |title=United States Census Bureau QuickFacts|publisher=United States Census Bureau|accessdate=April 11, 2024}}</ref> {{decrease}}
|align-fn=center
|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<ref name="DecennialCensus">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial-census.html|title=Census of Population and Housing|publisher=Census.gov|access-date=June 4, 2015}}</ref><br>2020 Census<ref name="2020 Census (City)"/>
| align = right
}}

The first settlement at the location of Bethel reported on the 1880 U.S. Census as "Mumtrekhlagamute Station."<ref>{{cite web |title=Statistics of the Population of Alaska |url=https://www2.census.gov/prod2/decennial/documents/1880a_v1-17.pdf |website=United States Census Bureau |date=1880}}</ref> It had 29 Yup'ik. 1/2 mile away was the adjacent Mumtrekhlagamute Village (1880 population: 41 (all Yup'ik); 1890 population (as Mumtrekhlagamiut) was 33 (28 Yup'ik and 5 Whites).<ref>{{cite web |title=Report on Population and Resources of Alaska at the Eleventh Census: 1890 |url=https://www2.census.gov/prod2/decennial/documents/1890a_v8-01.pdf |website=United States Census Bureau |publisher=Government Printing Office}}</ref> Bethel was established at Mumtrekhlagamute Station in 1885 and supplanted it by the 1890 U.S. Census. It reported 20 residents (13 Yup'ik and 7 Whites). Mumtrekhlagamiut would later be absorbed into Bethel.<ref>{{cite book |title=Geological Survey Professional Paper, Issue 567 |date=1949 |publisher=U.S. Government Printing Office |page=128 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Rr9RAQAAMAAJ&q=%22Agaligamute%22&pg=PA128 |language=en |chapter=Bethel}}</ref> Bethel did not appear on the 1900 Census, but has on every census since 1910.<ref>{{cite web |title=Supplement for Alaska - Population, Agriculture, Manufactures, Mines, and Quarries |url=https://www2.census.gov/prod2/decennial/documents/41033927n358-359ch10.pdf |website=United States Census Bureau |date=1910}}</ref> It would formally incorporate as a city in 1957.

===2020 census===

As of the [[2020 United States census|2020 census]], Bethel had a population of 6,325. The median age was 30.3 years. 30.2% of residents were under the age of 18 and 7.9% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 109.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 111.2 males age 18 and over.<ref name="Census2020DP">{{cite web|title=2020 Decennial Census Demographic Profile (DP1)|url=https://api.census.gov/data/2020/dec/dp?get=NAME%2CDP1_0021P%2CDP1_0024P%2CDP1_0025C%2CDP1_0049C%2CDP1_0045C%2CDP1_0069C%2CDP1_0073C%2CDP1_0125P%2CDP1_0126P%2CDP1_0129P%2CDP1_0133P%2CDP1_0137P%2CDP1_0138P%2CDP1_0139P%2CDP1_0141P%2CDP1_0142P%2CDP1_0143P%2CDP1_0145P%2CDP1_0146P%2CDP1_0147C%2CDP1_0148C%2CDP1_0149C%2CDP1_0156C%2CDP1_0157C%2CDP1_0158C%2CDP1_0159P%2CDP1_0160P&for=place%3A06520&in=state%3A02|website=United States Census Bureau|year=2021|access-date=February 28, 2026|df=mdy}}</ref><ref name="Census2020PL">{{cite web|title=2020 Decennial Census Redistricting Data (Public Law 94-171)|url=https://api.census.gov/data/2020/dec/pl?get=NAME%2CP1_001N%2CP1_003N%2CP1_004N%2CP1_005N%2CP1_006N%2CP1_007N%2CP1_008N%2CP1_009N%2CP2_001N%2CP2_002N%2CH1_001N%2CH1_002N&for=place%3A06520&in=state%3A02|website=United States Census Bureau|year=2021|access-date=February 28, 2026|df=mdy}}</ref>

80.6% of residents lived in urban areas, while 19.4% lived in rural areas.<ref name="Census2020DHC">{{cite web|title=2020 Decennial Census Demographic and Housing Characteristics (DHC)|url=https://api.census.gov/data/2020/dec/dhc?get=NAME%2CP2_002N%2CP2_003N&for=place%3A06520&in=state%3A02|website=United States Census Bureau|year=2023|access-date=February 28, 2026|df=mdy}}</ref>

There were 1,912 households in Bethel, of which 44.2% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 40.6% were married-couple households, 22.9% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 25.1% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 24.6% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.<ref name="Census2020DP"/>

There were 2,184 housing units, of which 12.5% were vacant. The homeowner vacancy rate was 0.7% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.8%.<ref name="Census2020DP"/>

{| class="wikitable"
|+ Racial composition as of the 2020 census<ref name="Census2020PL"/>
! Race !! Number !! Percent
|-
| [[White Americans|White]] || 1,207 || 19.1%
|-
| [[African Americans|Black or African American]] || 74 || 1.2%
|-
| [[Native Americans in the United States|American Indian and Alaska Native]] || 4,158 || 65.7%
|-
| [[Asian Americans|Asian]] || 187 || 3.0%
|-
| [[Native Hawaiians|Native Hawaiian]] and [[Pacific Islander|Other Pacific Islander]] || 2 || 0.0%
|-
| Some other race || 53 || 0.8%
|-
| [[Multiracial Americans|Two or more races]] || 644 || 10.2%
|-
| ''[[Hispanic and Latino Americans|Hispanic or Latino]] (of any race)'' || 144 || 2.3%
|}

===2000 census===

As of the [[census]] of 2000, there were 5,471 people, 1,741 households, and 1,190 families residing in the city.  The population density was {{convert|125.0|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}.  There were 1,990 housing units at an average density of {{convert|45.5|/sqmi|/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}.  The racial makeup of the city was 26.8% [[White American|White]], 0.9% [[African American|Black or African American]], 61.8% [[Alaska Natives|Native American]], 2.9% [[Asian American|Asian]], 0.2% [[Pacific Islander American|Pacific Islander]], 0.5% from [[Race and ethnicity in the United States Census#Race|other races]], and 6.9% from two or more races.  [[Hispanic and Latino Americans|Hispanics or Latinos]] of any race were 1.7% of the population.

There were 1,741 households, out of which 44.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 42.6% were married couples living together, 15.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.7% were non-families. 24.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 3.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.  The average household size was 3.00 and the average family size was 3.65.

The age distribution was 35.5% under 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 32.7% from 25 to 44, 18.9% from 45 to 64, and 3.9% who were 65 or older.  The median age was 29 years.  For every 100 females, there were 110.4 males.  For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 109.6 males.

The [[median income]] for a household in the city was $57,321, and the median income for a family was $62,431. Males had a median income of $45,321 versus $39,010 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the city is $20,267.  About 10.6% of the families and 11.2% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 9.7% of those under the age of 18 and 18.3% of those ages 64 and over.

==Transportation and economy==
{{refimprove|section|date=April 2025}}
The state-owned [[Bethel Airport]] is the regional transportation hub, and is served by three passenger carriers, including [[Alaska Airlines]], [[Grant Aviation]], and Renfro's Alaskan Adventure. It also receives service from three major cargo operators: [[Everts Air Cargo]], [[Northern Air Cargo]], [[Lynden Air Cargo]], and numerous small air taxi services. The airport ranks third in the state for total number of flights. It offers a 6,400 foot (1,951-meter) asphalt runway, a 4,000 foot (1,219-meter) asphalt runway, and 1,850 foot (564-meter) gravel crosswind runway, and is currently undergoing a $7 million renovation and expansion. Three float plane bases are nearby: Hangar Lake, H Marker Lake, and the [[Kuskokwim River]].

The Port of Bethel is the northernmost, medium-draft port in the United States. River travel is the primary means of local transportation in the summer. A Bethel-based [[barge]] service provides goods to [[Kuskokwim River|Kuskokwim]] villages.

Within Bethel are approximately {{convert|16|mi|km}} of roads that are not connected to any contiguous highway system. Winter ice roads lead to several nearby villages, but their condition varies depending on temperature and snowfall. An extensive network of snow machine trails connects Bethel to villages all over the Delta, from the Bering Sea to the Yukon.

The town's single paved road, about 10 miles (16&nbsp;km), supports a taxicab industry. With 93 taxi drivers, the town has more cab drivers per capita than any other city in the US. Most local cab drivers are [[Albanians|Albanian]] or [[Demographics of South Korea|South Korea]]n immigrants.<ref>{{cite news |first=Tomas Alex |last=Tizon |title=America's Taxi Capital: Bethel, Alaska|url=http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-taxicabs30nov30,1,3238044.story?ctrack=1&cset=true|work=Los Angeles Times|date=November 30, 2007 |access-date=November 30, 2007}}</ref>

Bethel has the lone [[prison|detention center]] in southwestern Alaska, the Yukon Kuskokwim Correction Center.<ref>[http://www.correct.state.ak.us/corrections/institutions/ykcc/ykcc.jsf Alaska Dept of Corrections] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100113224104/http://www.correct.state.ak.us/corrections/institutions/ykcc/ykcc.jsf |date=January 13, 2010 }}</ref> This prison has the capacity to hold 207 incarcerated people of any gender, and a staff of 45.<ref name=ykcc>{{cite web|url=http://www.correct.state.ak.us/institutions/yukon-kuskokwim|title=Yukon Kuskokwim Correctional Center|date=2015|publisher=Alaska Department of Corrections|access-date=November 18, 2015}}</ref>

Bethel is also the site of a unique {{convert|8.5|mi|km|adj=on}} prototype [[single-wire earth return]] electrical [[intertie]] to [[Napakiak, Alaska]], constructed in 1981.<ref name="SWGR Transmission">{{cite web | url=http://www.alaska.edu/uaf/cem/ine/aetdl/conferences/2002_sept_docs/singlewiregroundreturn.pdf | title=SWGR Transmission | author= Bettine, Frank | date=September 2002 | access-date= November 7, 2011 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20081029050440/http://www.alaska.edu/uaf/cem/ine/aetdl/conferences/2002_sept_docs/singlewiregroundreturn.pdf |archive-date=October 29, 2008 |work= University of Alaska }}</ref>

==Government==
{{see also|List of mayors of Bethel, Alaska}}

==Education==
[[Lower Kuskokwim School District|Lower Kuskokwim School District (LKSD)]] operates five schools in Bethel:
* Gladys Jung Elementary School - Bethel
** Jung, previously known as the Kilbuck School, serves grades 3–6. {{As of|2018}} its enrollment was about 345.<ref>"[http://gje.lksd.org/about/gladys_jung_elementary_school/ Gladys Jung Elementary School]." Gladys Jung Elementary School. Retrieved on July 13, 2018.</ref> 
* Mekelnguut Elitnauriviat School - Bethel
** Nicknamed the "M.E. School," it serves grades Kindergarten through 2. {{As of|2018}} it has 260 students and 18 teachers.<ref>"[http://me.lksd.org/about/mikelnguut_elitnaurviat Welcome to M.E. School!]" Mekelnguut Elitnauriviat School. Retrieved on July 13, 2018.</ref>
* Ayaprun Elitnaurvik School - Bethel
**It is a K-8 (K-6 prior to 2022) Yup'ik-English bilingual program that originated from a total immersion language program established in 1995. {{As of|2002}}, the school had 197 students. The school occupied space in Mekelnguut Elitnauriviat and Gladys Jung schools, with kindergarten and 1st grade in the former and the other grades are in the latter.<ref>"[http://ayaprun.lksd.org/about/ayaprun_elitnaurvik Ayaprun Elitnaurvik]." Ayaprun Elitnaurvik. Retrieved on July 13, 2018.</ref>
**In 2015, the buildings that housed Ayaprun Elitnaurvik and Kuskokwim both burned down.<ref>{{Cite web |last=MacArthur |first=Anna Rose |date=2016-11-08 |title=Ayaprun Elitnaurvik One Year After The Kilbuck Fire |url=https://www.kyuk.org/education/2016-11-08/ayaprun-elitnaurvik-one-year-after-the-kilbuck-fire |access-date=2025-12-28 |website=KYUK |language=en}}</ref> Students were sent to other schools in the district before moving into a former grocery store for the 2016-2024 school years. At the beginning of the 2024-2025 school year, students and teachers were finally able to have class in their new school building.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Smiley |first=Sage |date=2024-09-12 |title=For the first time, students attend classes in Bethel’s new Ayaprun Elitnaurvik |url=https://www.kyuk.org/education/2024-09-11/for-the-first-time-students-attend-classes-in-bethels-new-ayaprun-elitnaurvik |access-date=2025-12-28 |website=KYUK |language=en}}</ref>
**The school expanded to include 7th and 8th grades at the beginning of the 2022-2023 school year.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-05-04 |title=Ayaprun Elitnaurvik to Include 7th & 8th Grades |url=https://deltadiscovery.com/ayaprun-elitnaurvik-to-include-7th-8th-grades/ |access-date=2025-12-28 |website=The Delta Discovery, Inc. |language=en-US}}</ref>
**For 2023-2024, there were 184 students and 12 teachers.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Request Rejected |url=https://education.alaska.gov/compass/ParentPortal/SchoolProfile?SchoolID=319010 |access-date=2025-12-28 |website=education.alaska.gov}}</ref>
* Bethel Regional High School - Bethel
**Known locally as "Bethel High School", it serves grades 7–12. {{As of|2019}}, there were approximately 540 students enrolled, and 34 staff members.<ref>"[http://brhs.lksd.org/home Bethel Regional High School]." Bethel Regional High School. Retrieved on September 6, 2019.</ref> For the 2023-2024 school year, there were 434 students enrolled with 37 teachers.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Request Rejected |url=https://education.alaska.gov/compass/ParentPortal/SchoolProfile?SchoolID=310070 |access-date=2025-12-28 |website=education.alaska.gov}}</ref>
* Kuskokwim Learning Academy (alternative)

Other institutions:
* [[University of Alaska Fairbanks]] 
* Yuut Elitnaurviat

==Sports and recreation==
Bethel is home to a noted, mid-distance [[dogsled]] race, the Kuskokwim 300. Held every January since 1980, the race commemorates an early mail route that once tied the settlement to the outside world. Top [[mushing|mushers]] and hundreds of [[sled dog]]s participate in the race for a purse of $100,000, the largest offered by any {{convert|300|mi|km|adj=on}} sled dog race.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://k300.org|title=Kuskokwim 300|access-date=November 30, 2007}}</ref>

Local recreational activities include snow machining, skiing, bicycling, kayaking, [[caribou]] hunting, and salmon fishing.

Bethel is an established starting point to Float Alaska wilderness rivers in the Kisaralik, Kwethluk, Aniak, Kanektok, Arolik, Goodnews, Eek and Holitna River systems.

==Arts and culture==
Traditional dancers from all over Alaska and beyond participate every March in the Cama-i [[Yup'ik dancing|dance]] festival. Hundreds of costumed dancers, drummers, and singers perform traditional [[Yup'ik]] story dances during the three-day festival, sponsored by the Bethel Council on the Arts. "Cama-i" (pronounced Cha-Mai) translates as "a warm hello."<ref name="bethelarts">{{cite web | year = 2011 | url = https://bethelarts.com/ | title = Cama=i Dance Festival | author = Bethel Council on the Arts | location = Bethel, Alaska |access-date=November 7, 2011}}</ref>

The [[Yupiit Piciryarait Cultural Center]] also hosts a bimonthly "Saturday Market" where artisans and crafters from the Yukon Kuskokwim Delta come to sell their crafts.  There is a variety at the market, but many of the crafts include traditional Yup'ik [[qaspeq]], story knives, woven baskets, [[ulu]] knives and more.

==Health care==
[[File:YKHC-Hospital.JPG|right|thumb|Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta Regional Hospital in Bethel, Alaska]]
Bethel and the smaller communities surrounding it are primarily served by Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta Regional Hospital, a 50-bed general acute care medical facility. Services located in the hospital include an adult medical-surgical ward, a pediatric ward, an obstetric ward, as well as outpatient family medicine clinics, an emergency room, pharmacy, lab, X-ray, and specialty clinics. The facility is accessible by road for those individuals living in or visiting the city of Bethel. Depending on weather and the season, road access to the hospital may also be available to some of the surrounding communities. If not, individuals must be airlifted into the facility via helicopter or air ambulance. Also, there are five sub-regional primary care clinics located in some of the more remote and less populated cities neighboring Bethel ([[Emmonak, Alaska|Emmonak]], [[St. Mary's, Alaska|St. Mary's]], [[Aniak, Alaska|Aniak]], [[Toksook Bay, Alaska|Toksook Bay]], and [[Hooper Bay, Alaska|Hooper Bay]]). Many of the services found at the hospital in Bethel are also available at these sub-regional clinics, such as urgent care, diagnostic review, physical exams, prenatal care, minor surgery, laboratory tests, X-rays, and distribution of medications. The hospital, sub-regional clinics, and additional village clinics are all part of [[Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ykhc.org/about-ykhc/medical-facilities/|title=Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation - Medical Facilities|access-date=October 28, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141028075624/http://www.ykhc.org/about-ykhc/medical-facilities/|archive-date=October 28, 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ykhc.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/srcmap-09.pdf|title=Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corporation - Service Area Map|access-date=October 28, 2014}}</ref>

==Media==
Bethel has a public television station, [[KYUK-LD]], and three radio stations, public [[KYUK (AM)|KYUK]], private, non-profit [[KYKD]], and commercial [[KEDI (FM)|KEDI]]. Since the founding of its [[community radio]] station in 1970, the media has become part of Yup'ik development in southwest Alaska and important to the people's self-definition.<ref name="Daley">{{cite journal |last1=Daley |first1=Patrick |last2=James |first2=Beverly |title=Warming the Arctic Air: Cultural Politics and Alaska Native Radio |journal=Javnost - the Public |date=1998 |volume=5 |issue=2 |pages=49–60 |doi=10.1080/13183222.1998.11008674|url=http://www.javnost-thepublic.org/media/datoteke/1998-2-daley.pdf}}</ref> The city is also home to the weekly regional newspapers ''[[Delta Discovery]]'' and ''[[Alaska Newspapers, Inc.|Tundra Drums]]''.

==Sister City==
Bethel has one official [[town twinning|sister city]].

*{{flagdeco|Russia}} [[Anadyr (town)|Anadyr]], [[Chukotka Autonomous Okrug]], Russia<ref>{{cite web|url=http://bethel.govoffice.com/vertical/Sites/%7B86032ACB-92B0-4505-919A-3F45B84FECD9%7D/uploads/%7BEFEDEA86-3466-4370-A7D0-E88B43BA40CF%7D.PDF |title=The Official Joining of the City of Bethel with Anadyr, U.S.S.R. as Sister Cities |date=October 30, 1989 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110812094031/http://bethel.govoffice.com/vertical/Sites/%7B86032ACB-92B0-4505-919A-3F45B84FECD9%7D/uploads/%7BEFEDEA86-3466-4370-A7D0-E88B43BA40CF%7D.PDF|url-status=dead|archive-date=August 12, 2011|access-date=April 3, 2018}}</ref>

==Notable people==
{{alumni|people|date=April 2025}}
* [[John Binkley]] (born 1953), businessman, [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] politician
* [[Valerie Davidson]] (born 1967), politician
* [[Nora Guinn]] (1920–2005), judge
* [[Lyman Hoffman]] (born 1950), politician
* [[Peter Kaiser (musher)|Peter Kaiser]] (born 1987), [[Mushing|musher]]
* [[Oscar Kawagley]] (1934–2011), [[anthropologist]], teacher, actor
* [[Richard LaFortune|Richard LaFortune (Anguksuar)]], Two spirit, language revitalization and social justice activist
* [[Marie Meade]] (born 1947), dancer
* [[Don Page (physicist)|Don Page]] (born 1948), physicist; noted for being a doctoral student of [[Stephen Hawking]]
* [[Buzzy Peltola|Eugene "Buzzy" Peltola]] (1965–2023), politician
* [[Mary Peltola|Mary Sattler Peltola]] (born 1973), politician
* [[Tiffany Zulkosky]] (born 1984), politician

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Bethel, Alaska}}
*{{wikivoyage inline|Bethel (Alaska)|Bethel, Alaska}}
*{{official website|http://www.cityofbethel.org/}}

{{Bethel Census Area, Alaska}}
{{Alaska}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Bethel, Alaska| ]]
[[Category:Cities in Alaska]]
[[Category:Cities in Bethel Census Area, Alaska]]
[[Category:History of the Alaska Province of the Moravian Church]]
[[Category:Cities in Unorganized Borough, Alaska]]
[[Category:Road-inaccessible communities of Alaska]]
[[Category:Populated places established in 1957]]
[[Category:1957 establishments in Alaska]]