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Wainwright

WainwrightAK

A town of 718, settled in 1904. Public schools that outperform most of Alaska.

Photo: Thester11 · CC BY-SA 3.0
Population
718
+12.9% since 2010
Median home value
$117K
Census ACS
Household income
$94K
median
Median age
28.4
years
Land area
43 sq mi

What makes Wainwright stand out

The thing Wainwright does most differently from other towns.

Picked automatically from the data
Small town

718 people, and everyone knows the way

In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.

Wainwright’s report card

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21°
Mostly Cloudy
H 23° · L 19°

Local news

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Upcoming events

Nothing on the calendar.

The data

Ordered by what stands out in Wainwright. Another town gets a different order.

Natural hazards

Very low risk, with cold waves at the top

Expected storm and flood damage is higher than in 1% of U.S. communities.

1risk score of 100
FEMA risk score
1Very low riskLowerHigher
Cold wavesInland flooding
FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMANatural hazards →
Schools

Wainwright’s public schools outperform 12% of Alaska districts

The public schools Wainwright’s kids attend, from kindergarten through graduation, trail 88% of Alaska’s districts on state tests and graduation. Among towns with similar incomes, they rank near the bottom.

DSchool Grade
SchoolGradesStudentsGrade
Alak SchoolPK–12138D−
NCES · EDFacts · graded within AK on state tests and graduationAll 1 schools →
Health

How healthy Wainwright is

Wainwright beats the Alaska average on 1 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 22.

32 measures vs. Alaska
1 better9 too close to call22 worse
What stands outWainwrightAK
Fewer adults who have had cancer4.6%7%
More adults facing food insecurity35.7%14.3%
2 of 3
care shortages: primary care, mental health
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSAFull health report →
Outdoors

0% of Wainwright is conserved land

2.2 miles of trails across 0 parks and preserves.

0%conserved
0%
conserved · 0 of 17,720 acres
2.2 mi
of trails · 0.1 per sq mi
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-USParks & trails →
Alaska
1917 · Alaska · Wikimedia Commons
Wainwright’s story

122 years in pictures

6 postcards, papers and photographs from public archives.

AlaskaRoald Amundsen and a pilot standing in front of a seaplane on the beach at Wainwright, Alaska, 1922 or 1923Roald Amundsen writing at a table and smoking a pipe, Wainwright, Alaska, 1922 or 1923
Explore the history →

About Wainwright

City in Alaska, United States

Wainwright (; Ulġuniq in Iñupiaq), also known as Ulguniq or Kuuk, is a city in North Slope Borough, Alaska, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 628, making it the third largest city in the North Slope Borough, up from 556 in 2010. The community was named after Wainwright Lagoon, which in turn was named after Lt. John Wainwright, an officer under Capt. F. W. Beechey, who were the first non-native people to travel to the lagoon in 1826. An unincorporated area known as Wainwright Inlet by 1890, Wainwright was founded as an incorporated municipality in 1962.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)

Established
1904
Population
628
Area
43 sq mi
Elevation
26 ft
ZIP code
99782
Area code
99782

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Photo of Wainwright

Wainwright, AK · Photo: Thester11 · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source ↗