Sledge Island, or Ayak Island, (Inupiaq: Ayaaq; Yup'ik: Asaaq) is a small volcanic island in the Bering Sea. It is located 5.3 mi (8.5 km) from the southwestern shore of the Seward Peninsula, off the shores of Alaska.
Geography
Sledge Island is of volcanic origin and is only across. The average elevation is . Administratively this island belongs to the Nome Census Area, Alaska. The island is long and wide. The island is part of the Bering Sea unit of the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge. ==History==
History
This island was named on August 5, 1778, by Captain James Cook, who commented: "We found, a little way from the shore where we landed, a sledge, which occasioned this name being given to the island." ==Demographics==
Demographics
Sledge Island first appeared in the U.S. Census in 1880 as the unincorporated Inuit village of Aziak. All 50 of its residents were Inuit. It returned again in 1890 as Sledge Island, with 67 residents (all native). However, this included the residents of the island (listed as the village of "Ahyak") and three adjacent small villages on the mainland, including Okinoyoktokawik, Senikave & Sunvalluk. These were located approximately 19–20 miles west of present-day Nome, near a feature called West Point. It has not reported in any census since. ==References==