County: Valdez-Cordova Census Area
Zip Code:
Latitude / Longitude: 60°11′50″N 144°31′06″W / 60.19722°N 144.51833°W / 60.19722 -144.51833
Elevation:
Time Zone: Alaska (AKST) (UTC-9)
Established:
Disestablished:
Comments: Katalla was at the center of the now-abandoned Katalla oil field. This was the first discovery of commercial quantities of oil in Alaska (1902). The town reportedly had a population of 5,000 in 1907-1908. This was the result of the announcement that the Copper River and Northwestern Railway (CR&NW) was going to use the town’s location as its access to the Pacific Ocean and the Bering River coal fields. Violent storms in the fall of 1907 destroyed the jetty being built and it was decided to move the railroad’s terminus to nearby Cordova.
Remains:
Current Status: Katalla (pronounced KA-tell-ah) is a ghost town in the Valdez-Cordova Census Area in the U.S. state of Alaska, 76 km (47 mi) southeast of Cordova. The name of this town was sometimes spelled Catalla. It is now abandoned.
Remarks:
