Believe it or not, there are some borders in this world that are not the best thought out. While North America has been spared some of the absurdities that one finds in Europe (like between Belgium and the Netherlands), or the Middle East (like Oman and the UAE border), or South Asia (like the former Indian and Bangladeshi exclaves), North America's borders are not without their idiosyncrasies.
The idiosyncrasies of the American/Canadian border include the Northwest Angle and Point Roberts. Further north there is a small settlement in Alaska of Hyder that can only be accessed from Canada. It is a former boomtown, maybe one day it will be a ghost town like Bannack in Montana.
Hyder: America's Canadian-accessible Town
Hyder is located in the southern part of Alaska's panhandle inland towards Canada. Its only access by road is from Stewart in British Columbia. Essentially it is a landlocked exclave of the United States. It is Alaska's easternmost town and is popular with motorists who wish to enter Alaska without having to drive all the way up the Alaska Highway.
- Population: 48 in the 2020 Census
- Peak: 254 In 1930
If one is going here, one can expect a typical Southeastern Alaskan oceanic climate with a humid continental climate.
The tiny settlement has been fluctuating for more than a hundred years. In 1930 its population was some 254 but that fell drastically to 75 in 1940 and then as low as 30 in 1950, by 1960 there were apparently two more people living there and in 1990 had rebounded to 99 before slipping down again to 48 in 2020.
In 2000 the 97 people included 93 white people. There were 47 households of which 9 had kids.
The NY Times notes that "daily life has bound them [Hyder and Steward] ever closer through marriages, blizzards and bears that fail to respect international boundaries."
Hyder's Inseparability from Stewart
Gold and silver were discovered in the region mostly on the Canadian side in 1898, but the settlement's boom years came in the 1920s when gold, silver, copper, zinc, tungsten, and lead were extracted from there. The mine closed in 1950.
In the "good" old days of their boomtown mining heyday, the twin towns of Stewart and Hyder were home to around 10,000 people. This was when Hyder was built on stilts over tidal flats and Steward was famous (infamous?) for its brothels.
- (Canadian) Stewart: Population 401 In 2016
- School: The American Kids Go Over the Border To The School in Steward
- Bank: Neither Town Has a Bank
It says a lot when the "big" neighboring town has one person north of 400 people.
An American Settlement Ruled By Canada
In 2016 the New York Times ran an article about Hyder entitled "An Alaskan Village Where Grizzlies Roam and Canada Rules (if Anyone Does)"
There are no roads connecting Hyder with other Alaskan communities and for many aspects of the folks living there, it functions as part of Canada. It is accessible by International Street coming in from Canada.
There was once a ferry (the AMHS Ferry) that connected the settlement to Ketchikan but that has long since stopped running. That means the only direct connection with the United States is the Taquan Air floatplane that arrives twice a week (weather permitting) with the US Mail at the Hyder Seaplane Base.
What To Expect In Hyder
If one is going there and looking for things to do. First, it would take about lunch break to learn everyone's names, and then a popular activity is reportedly bear-watching at Fish Creek during the salmon run.
- Time Zone: Officially Alaska Time Zone But In Practice Residents Set Their Clock to BC's Pacific Time
- Currency: Both USD and CAD Are Accepted - Except For the U.S. Post Office (USD)
If one does go there, there's not a lot in town - there's the US Postal Service, A US Forest Service Info Kiosk, the Sealaska Inn is open in the summer, and there are a couple of other services.
The settlement's utilities like electricity are imported from Canada - including groceries. Even Canadian ambulances and firefighters from Steward can operate in this American town. There is no American border patrol presence at the settlement.
A Libertarian Paradise
The New York Times stated:
"If libertarians had an earthly paradise, it would probably be here in Hyder, Alaska. Separated from American governments and bureaucracies by immense wilderness, Hyder has no property taxes or police, and citizens can carry firearms openly."
and
"What Hyder lacks in modern amenities it makes up for in epic wilderness — and unchecked liberty. Law enforcement appears just a few times a year, when an Alaska state trooper flies in with a radar gun to catch speeders..."
If one does choose to visit Hyder, be prepared to meet folks who are "an eclectic bunch of nature lovers, survivalists, folks who live off the grid and former miners with a penchant for quiet, if boozy, living." as the NY Times puts it.
If one wants to reach this American settlement from America it's essentially more or just as remote as the Bering Land Bridge National Preserve.