Refuge Establishment

The Alaska Maritime Refuge was given its current name and extensive acreage in 1980, but its origins date back to the time of President Teddy Roosevelt and the beginnings of the National Wildlife Refuge System in the early 1900s.

The Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) of 1980 combined 11 previously established refuges (totaling about 3 million acres) with 1.9 million acres of additional lands to form the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge.

The 5 Purposes of the Refuge

Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge
Established: December 2, 1980
Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act
Signed by President Jimmy Carter

Previously Established Refuges Included in Alaska Maritime Refuge

Afognak Forest & Fish Culture Reservation
Established: December 24, 1892
Signed by President Benjamin Harrison
(only adjacent waters and rocks are included today)

Bering Sea Refuge (St. Matthew, Hall, and Pinnacle islands)
Established: February 27, 1909
Signed by President Theodore Roosevelt
Designated Wilderness: October 23, 1970

Pribilof Islands Refuge (Otter & Walrus islands)
Signed by President Theodore Roosevelt
Established: February 27, 1909

St. Lazaria Refuge
Established: February 27, 1909
Signed by President Theodore Roosevelt
Designated Wilderness: October 23, 1970

Tuxedni Refuge (Egg, Duck and Chisik islands)
Established: February 27, 1909
Signed by President Theodore Roosevelt
Designated Wilderness: October 23, 1970

Bogoslof Refuge
Established: March 2, 1909
Signed by President Theodore Roosevelt
Designated Wilderness: October 23, 1970

Forrester Island Refuge (Forrester & Lowrie islands & Wolf Rock)
Established: January 11, 1912
Signed by President William Howard Taft
Designated Wilderness: October 23, 1970

Hazy Islands Refuge
Established: January 11, 1912
Signed by President William Howard Taft
Designated Wilderness: October 23, 1970

Chamisso Refuge (Chamisso Island & Puffin Islets)
Established: December 7, 1912
Signed by President William Howard Taft
Designated Wilderness: January 1975

Aleutian Islands Refuge (from Unimak Island west to Attu Island)
Established: March 3, 1913
Signed by President William Howard Taft
Designated Wilderness: December 2, 1980

Semidi Island Refuge
Established: June 17, 1932
Signed by President Herbert Hoover
Designated Wilderness (68%): December 2, 1970

Simeonof Island Refuge
Established: October 30, 1958
Signed by President Dwight Eisenhower
Designated Wilderness: October 1976

Last updated:September 8, 2008