Thane is a neighborhood in the City and Borough of Juneau in the U.S. state of 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...

. Located along Gastineau Channel

Gastineau Channel

Gastineau Channel is a channel between the mainland of the U.S. state of Alaska and Douglas Island in the Alexander Archipelago of southeastern Alaska. It separates Juneau on the mainland side from Douglas , on Douglas Island. The first European to sight the channel was Joseph Whidbey early in...

, it begins one mile (1.6 km) south of downtown Juneau and consists of approximately two dozen homes spread over five miles (8 km). All the homes are located on Thane Road, which comes to a dead end about six miles (10 km) from downtown; there are no side streets. It was named for Bartlett L. Thane

Bartlett L. Thane

Bartlett Lee "Bart" Thane was an American mining engineer who pioneered hydroelectric power in Juneau, Alaska. The world's first thin arch dam, Salmon Creek Dam, was constructed by Thane.-Early years:...

, Manager and Director of the Alaska-Gastineau Mining Company

Alaska-Gastineau Mining Company

The Alaska-Gastineau Mining Co. had its offices in 25 Broad St., New York City, New York, USA. It was the operating company for the Alaska Gold Mines Co. in Alaska, USA. It worked the Alaska-Gastineau Mine/Perseverance Mine in the Silver Bow Basin, approximately from Juneau and processed its ore...

.

The only electric link for Juneau travels through Thane from the Snettisham hydroelectric dam

Snettisham hydroelectric dam

The Snettisham hydroelectric power plant is a 78,210 kw power plant located 28 miles south of central Juneau, Alaska and accessible only by boat or seaplane. The power plant is fed by two lakes that are tapped from below, negating the need for a traditional dam. It supplies most of the electricity...

. Avalanches knock out this power line somewhat routinely http://www.aelp.com/Projects/snowslide.htm, forcing the local power company, Alaska Electric Light & Power

Alaska Electric Light & Power

Alaska Electric Light & Power, also known as AEL&P, is the power utility for Juneau, the capital city of Alaska. AEL&P gets their electricity primarily through the Snettisham hydroelectric dam, located in an uninhabited region some distance to the south, accessible only by boat and seaplane...

, to keep a series of reserve diesel generator

Diesel generator

A diesel generator is the combination of a diesel engine with an electrical generator to generate electrical energy....

s on standby.

History

Thane was founded in 1881 as a result of mining operations in the vicinity. Since World War II the population has steadily declined with the curtailment of mining activities. It is now a residential area (DeArmond, 1957, p43-44).

Etymology

The community was named in 1914 for Bartlett L. Thane, 1878–1927, general manager of the Alaska Gastineau Mining Co. which had its mill here. Thane was born in California and went to Alaska in 1897. The name Sheep Creek, which was the original miners' name for the town, was published by United States Coast and Geodetic Survey in the 1901 Coast Pilot

Coast Pilots

United States Coast Pilots is a nine-volume American navigation publication distributed yearly by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Office of Coast Survey. The purpose of the publication is to supplement nautical charts of United States of America waters. Information comes...

, but was later changed to Thane by the United States Board on Geographic Names

United States Board on Geographic Names

The United States Board on Geographic Names is a United States federal body whose purpose is to establish and maintain uniform usage of geographic names throughout the U.S. government.-Overview:...

.

Geography

Thane lies on the eastern shore of Gastineau Channel

Gastineau Channel

Gastineau Channel is a channel between the mainland of the U.S. state of Alaska and Douglas Island in the Alexander Archipelago of southeastern Alaska. It separates Juneau on the mainland side from Douglas , on Douglas Island. The first European to sight the channel was Joseph Whidbey early in...

, 4 miles (6.4 km) southeast of Juneau

Juneau, Alaska

The City and Borough of Juneau is a unified municipality located on the Gastineau Channel in the panhandle of the U.S. state of Alaska. It has been the capital of Alaska since 1906, when the government of the then-District of Alaska was moved from Sitka as dictated by the U.S. Congress in 1900...

 and 6 miles (9.7 km) northwest of Point Salisbury, Coast Mountains

Coast Mountains

The Coast Mountains are a major mountain range, in the Pacific Coast Ranges, of western North America, extending from southwestern Yukon through the Alaska Panhandle and virtually all of the Coast of British Columbia. They are so-named because of their proximity to the sea coast, and are often...

.

Government

Juneau

Juneau, Alaska

The City and Borough of Juneau is a unified municipality located on the Gastineau Channel in the panhandle of the U.S. state of Alaska. It has been the capital of Alaska since 1906, when the government of the then-District of Alaska was moved from Sitka as dictated by the U.S. Congress in 1900...

 assesses personal property and real estate taxes, and distributes a portion of collections to settlements within the Borough. Tax rates are generally low.

Media

Radio and television broadcast are available either via satellite or from local broadcasts in Juneau, Alaska

Juneau, Alaska

The City and Borough of Juneau is a unified municipality located on the Gastineau Channel in the panhandle of the U.S. state of Alaska. It has been the capital of Alaska since 1906, when the government of the then-District of Alaska was moved from Sitka as dictated by the U.S. Congress in 1900...

.