Sorted by date Results 201 - 208 of 208
Looking to the narrows on North Nordic Drive, the home of Floyd and Barbara Strand stands as a one-of-a-kind relic of Petersburg's Norwegian roots. From its humble beginnings, this house has expanded, evolved, and welcomed home new generations for more than a century. It is the single oldest house in Petersburg, owned and lived in by the same family for its entirety. Initially built in 1902, what sets this house apart from the rest constructed during that time is the remarkable fact that its...
Inside Mary Ellen Anderson's greenhouse, a sea of green leaves ripples in the breeze of a fan. Pigeons coo nearby, and the radio, almost always on, plays quietly on a shelf. The air is made fragrant by tomato vines laden with fruit, cucumber blossoms, greens and flowers, and even peppers. "Every night," Mary Ellen says, "we have a good salad." The greenhouse is situated on a hill overlooking the Wrangell Narrows. Its walls are windows that showcase the handsome timber of the post and beam... Full story
Mitkof Island experienced record breaking rainfall on Saturday, according to data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Petersburg recorded 3.09 inches of rain, surpassing the previous August 12 record of 2.15 inches back in 1961, marking the highest amount for that day since records began in 1924. The rainfall sent a landslide across the road at 27 mile Mitkof Highway. The swath measured an estimated 100 feet wide and 20 feet deep, including 6 to 8 feet of mud plus...
The town's most notorious seasonal visitors are back, and effort is needed to prevent their behavior from getting dangerously trashy. Petersburg Area Biologist Frank Robbins says bears coming to town is "always going to be an issue. We live in the middle of bear habitat ... It's very easy for a bear to follow a shrub area or a muskeg and waltz right into town, and they're more apt to do that if there's readily available food." The annual return of bears to Petersburg can be credited to their...
The Petersburg Office of Children's Services (OCS) has hired a new Protective Service Specialist (PSS), OCS caseworker Jennifer Ridgeway told the Pilot at the OCS Petersburg office Aug. 7. Ridgeway was there to help "set up" the new hire, who was three hours into her first day on the job. Once trained, the new PSS will be Petersburg's local caseworker. "She is the PSS," said Ridgeway. "So she is the OCS caseworker." When the OCS Wrangell office reopened in Feb. 2022, the OCS caseworker who had...
Gus Pennington will return to Stedman Elementary School this fall as the new fifth grade teacher. However, Pennington is no stranger to the Petersburg School District. His new teaching role comes on the heels of experience in the district as a substitute and student teacher - and as a pupil in Petersburg, himself. Pennington graduated from Petersburg High School with the class of 2019 and left for college at University of Alaska Southeast. He returned to town later that fall - just before...
Sharon Paulson moved her family from Juneau to Petersburg in July and will teach fourth grade at Stedman Elementary School this fall as one of several new additions to the Petersburg School District's roster of educators. This will be her fourth teaching position in Alaska, where her entire career as an educator has taken place. Paulson attended undergrad at the Savannah College of Art and Design in Georgia before moving back to her home town of Wakarusa, Indiana, where she wrote for the local...
The K-5th grade library program at Stedman Elementary School will welcome home a former Petersburg resident and long-time friend to the community, Debi Tice. One of several new hires to Petersburg School District, Tice now holds the title of Elementary Librarian and Intervention - the latter half reflecting a measure of the Alaska Reads Act. Tice started teaching in Petersburg in 1998, leaving and returning a few times, then ultimately taking her teaching career abroad to Brazil, China, and...
