1955 Map of Wainwright

About this map

Wainwright sits prominently on the Arctic coast, serving as a focal point for this mid-century survey of the North Slope. The landscape is defined by the massive Naval Petroleum Reserve No 4 and a complex network of coastal features, including the expansive Kasegaluk Lagoon and Wainwright Inlet. The map documents several settlements noted as abandoned at the time of the survey, such as Pingasagruk, Atanik, and Kilimantavi, providing a valuable record of shifting habitation patterns along the Chukchi Sea. Inland, the terrain is a labyrinth of waterways like the Kuk River and Utukok River, occasionally intersected by a Winter Trail. These details, alongside localized mines and a coastal Radio Tower, illustrate the mid-20th-century intersection of traditional geography and emerging industrial interests in the Alaskan Arctic.