THE ERUPTION OF .MOUNT KATMAI 



141 



town in southwestern Alaska. The town 

 had long lived upon the memories of its 

 former glories as capital during the early 

 Russian occupation and of the prosperous 

 sea-otter days. New activities have re- 

 cently come through the establishment of 

 salmon and halibut fisheries and of im- 

 portant agricultural industries. 



It was the sparse settlement of the 

 district which alone prevented great loss 

 of life during the recent eruption. 



The town of Katmai was deserted at 

 the time of the eruption, most of the in- 

 habitants being at Kaflia Bay, 30 miles 

 east of the volcano. 



TliE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SOCIETY'S 

 INVESTIGATION 



As soon as it became known that there 

 had certainly been a great eruption in 

 southwestern Alaska the Research Com- 

 mittee of the National Geographic So- 

 ciety made plans for the investigations 

 upon which this article is based. This 

 expedition is the beginning of a system- 

 atic study of the Alaskan volcanoes which 

 the National Geographic Society has in 

 view and which will be carried out by 

 some experienced authority on volcanism. 

 The writer was selected for this first 

 expedition not as a student of volcanism, 

 but as one who eight years before, in the 

 course of the U. S. Geological Survey's 

 investigations, had made a cruise of 300 

 miles in an open boat along this little- 

 known coast, and was consequently some- 

 what familiar with the local geographic 

 details. 



A hurried departure from Washing- 

 ton, a busy day of outfitting in Seattle, 

 and a leisurely voyage of 13 days past 

 all the windings of the sinuous southern 

 coast-line of Alaska preceded an arrival 

 in Kodiak just four weeks after the 

 eruption began. The protracted voyage 

 from Seattle had its compensation in 

 that it permitted visits to many places 

 which had been afifected by the eruption 

 and interviews with many eye-witnesses. 



On reaching Kodiak it was found that 

 the revenue cutter Manning was still in 

 port and was about to move the refugees 

 from the uninhabitable mainland villages 

 to a new location west of the affected 

 zone. Capt. K. W. Perry kindly wel- 



comed the writer as a passenger on this 

 and following cruises of the Mann'uis;. 

 The four weeks spent aboard the Man- 

 ning permitted the obtaining of vivid ac- 

 counts of the hours of darkness which 

 the officers of the cutter witnessed at 

 Kodiak, and of their subsequent obser- 

 vations in the vicinity of the volcano and 

 elsewhere, and also gave opportunity to 

 see parts of the coast which would other- 

 wise have been inaccessible. 



After leaving the Manning, the power 

 schooner Lina K. was chartered and 

 cruises were made along the southeast 

 shore of Afognak Island and the north- 

 west shore of Kodiak Island, the effects 

 of the eruption being thus studied in de- 

 tail. While in Shelikof Strait watch was 

 kept for a glimpse of the volcano, but 

 the clouds hung continuously upon the 

 mountain. 



On August 8 the clouds seemed break- 

 ing and the sea was smooth, so we 

 crossed to Amalik Bay on the mainland. 

 V^ast columns of steam could be seen ris- 

 ing through the clouds, but the latter 

 were not dispelled enough to permit a 

 satisfactory view. Two weeks were 

 spent on the mainland between .\malik 

 and Cold bays. During this time many 

 interesting phenomena, described below, 

 were observed, but the glimpse of the 

 volcano itself, which was desired most 

 of all, was not obtained. 



The part of Alaska in which Alount 

 Katmai is situated and the districts most 

 seriously affected by the eruption are so 

 thinly settled that the number of persons 

 who observed the eruption and its larger 

 eft'ect is comparatively small. The writer 

 has been able to get in touch directly or 

 indirectly with most of these people, and 

 they have furnished information of very 

 great value which could not otherwise 

 have been obtained. 



CONDITIONS PRECEDING THE ERUPTION 



Mount Katmai had been in a dormant 

 condition for an unknown length of 

 time, but for many months prior to its 

 outburst it must have been going through 

 the changes which a dormant volcano 

 alwavs undergoes prior to an eruption. 



A volcano consists of a vent extend- 

 ing from the surface of the earth to a 



