Gravina Islands
Encyclopedia
The Gravina Islands are part of the Alexander Archipelago
in southeast Alaska
. They are bounded by the Clarence Strait
on the west and the Revillagigedo Channel
on the east.
The largest islands in the group are Gravina Island
, Annette Island
, Duke Island
, and Mary Island
.
The Spanish explorer Jacinto Caamaño
named the Gravina Islands group in 1792, in honor of Federico Carlos Gravina y Nápoli.
Alexander Archipelago
The Alexander Archipelago is a long archipelago, or group of islands, of North America off the southeastern coast of Alaska. It contains about 1,100 islands, which are the tops of the submerged coastal mountains that rise steeply from the Pacific Ocean. Deep channels and fjords separate the...
in southeast Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
. They are bounded by the Clarence Strait
Clarence Strait
Clarence Strait, originally Duke of Clarence Strait, is a strait in southeastern Alaska, in the United States in the Alexander Archipelago. The strait separates Prince of Wales Island, on the west side, from Revillagigedo Island and Annette Island, on the east side...
on the west and the Revillagigedo Channel
Revillagigedo Channel
Revillagigedo Channel is an ocean channel in the Alexander Archipelago of the U.S. state of Alaska. Extending 56 km northwest from the Dixon Entrance, it lies between the mainland to the east, Revillagigedo Island to the north, and Duke Island and Annette Island to the southwest...
on the east.
The largest islands in the group are Gravina Island
Gravina Island
Gravina Island is an island in the Gravina Islands of the Alexander Archipelago in southeastern Alaska. It is long and about wide, with a land area of . The island had a population of 50 people at the 2000 census....
, Annette Island
Annette Island
Annette Island, or Taak'w Aan, is an island in Gravina Islands of the Alexander Archipelago of the Pacific Ocean on the southeastern coast of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is at . It is about long and about wide. The land area is...
, Duke Island
Duke Island
Duke Island is an island in the Gravina Islands of the Alexander Archipelago in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Alaska. The island is just north of the Canadian border. It is 19 km long and wide...
, and Mary Island
Mary Island Light
The Mary Island Light Station is a lighthouse located on the northeastern part of Mary Island in southeastern Alaska, USA.-History:Mary Island Light Station was opened in 1903, and was one of a series of staffed lights established by the U.S. Government to guide ships through the treacherous waters...
.
The Spanish explorer Jacinto Caamaño
Jacinto Caamaño
Jacinto Caamaño Moraleja was the leader of the last great Spanish exploration of Alaska and the Coast of British Columbia. He was a Knight of the Military Order of Calatrava. Born in Madrid, he came from an aristocratic Galician family, whose homestead was near Santiago de Compostela...
named the Gravina Islands group in 1792, in honor of Federico Carlos Gravina y Nápoli.