Barrow, Alaska Overview

Barrow is situated 1,300 miles south of the North Pole, making it the northernmost community in the United States. Two-thirds of its approximately 4,500 residents are of Inupiat Eskimo descent. The local culture is an interesting mix of traditional lifestyles influenced by community investments from the profits of the Alaskan Pipeline. Rustic cottages still have animal skins drying outside, while on the inside, people enjoy cable TV and Internet access. Because of its location, the area is also a research center for climate change.

Visitors to Barrow can learn more about Inupiat culture and history at the Inupiat Heritage Center, or by visiting during the Nalukataq - the traditional spring whaling festival, usually held in June. Another unique Barrow attraction is the Will Rogers and Wiley Post Monument, a memorial dedicated to Will Rogers, famous American humorist, and Wiley Post, the first pilot to fly solo around the world. Their plane crashed just outside of town in 1935 as they were attempting to fly from Fairbanks to Siberia.