Hyder, Alaska
Unincorporated
Population: 89
Hyder Community Association, Inc.: 250-636-9148
Hyder is nestled at the head of Portland Canal, a 70 mile-long fjord which forms a portion of the U.S./Canadian border. Hyder is just 2 miles from Stewart, British Columbia, and 75 air miles from Ketchikan. In 1898 gold and silver lodes were discovered in the area, mainly on the Canadian side in the upper Salmon River basin. Hyder was originally called Portland city, and the name was changed in 1914 after Frederick Hyder, a Canadian mining engineer who predicted a bright future for the area. The community became the ocean port, supply point, and post office for miners by 1917. Hyders boom years occurred between the years 1920 and 1930, and the Riverside Mine extracted gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc and tungsten until 1953. In 1948, the town site, built on pilings, was destroyed by fire. By 1956, all major mining had closed except for Granduc Copper Mine in Canada, which operated until 1984. Hyder's economy is based primarily on tourism today.
