Most of Hooper Bay was built recently: 0.0% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1993. Below: 11 old photos and papers, maps from 1952 on, and the census since 1880.
On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Hooper Bay is more historic than 11% of U.S. towns. Its age holds the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.
D
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Hooper Bay’s overall grade.
Alaska towns list more on the Register than most of the country (a typical Alaska town has 3.3 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Hooper Bay’s 0.0 sits below most of its state (25% of Alaska towns have fewer) while its 0 listings outnumber those of 23% of U.S. towns.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D− to C−. The pre-1940 share is a Census survey estimate (±4.4 points).
Founding year: the first census (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →
The story so far
Hooper Bay, in brief
Wikipedia doesn’t have a history of Hooper Bay yet. The photos, dates and memories neighbors add here are how it gets written.
Hooper Bay (Central Yupik: Naparyarmiut) is a city in Kusilvak Census Area, Alaska, United States. At the 2020 census the population was 1,375, up from 1,093 in 2010. On August 3, 2006, a major fire destroyed approximately fifteen acres of the city including thirty-five structures, twelve homes, the elementary school, middle school, high school, teacher housing complex, stores, offices and storage shelters, leaving 70 people homeless.
Its first post office opened in 1880. Between the 2010 and 2020 censuses its population grew from 1,093 to 1,375 (+26%).
Intro from Wikipedia. Population: U.S. Census Bureau.
Timeline
Hooper Bay, 1929 to 1968
Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
The Hooper Bay post office opened in 1880, the earliest record of the town by name (U.S. post office records). Wikidata gives 1966.
How does Hooper Bay rank for history?
Hooper Bay is more historic than 11% of U.S. towns. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.
How old are the homes in Hooper Bay?
0.0% of Hooper Bay’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate, ±4.4 points), against a typical 0.3% for an Alaska town; the median home was built in 1993.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).
From Wikimedia Commons (8), the Library of Congress (4), U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
1929
1929
1929
1968
1968
1969
1969
1969
2002