This oral history is part of the West Side Stories project of the Kodiak Historical Society. West Side Stories is a public humanities and art project that intended to document the history of the west side of Kodiak Island through oral history, photography, and art. The oral histories chart the personal stories of individuals with a longtime connection to the west side of Kodiak Island, defined for the scope of this project as the area buffeted by the Shelikof Strait that stretches from Kupreanof Strait south to the village of Karluk.

Lacey Berns was interviewed by Anjuli Grantham in Bern Pile, Viekoda Bay,  Alaska, on July 6, 2015, as part of the Kodiak Historical Society’s West Side Stories project. Lacey was born around 1955 and grew up in California, spent several of her teenage years in Anchorage with her family, returned to California, and moved back to Alaska to Kodiak in 1977. She began setnetting for a cannery in Uganik Bay, learning how to fish and work with the gear without any previous experience.

Linda Lindberg was interviewed by Anjuli Grantham in Village Islands, Alaska, on June 22, 2015, as part of the Kodiak Historical Society’s West Side Stories project. Linda was born in Vancouver, Washington, in 1943 and moved to Alaska in 1957 when her father found logging work at the Dal Valley Sawmill. She describes life at the logging camp, how she had to stop going to school at a young age, and the impact of alcohol on her father’s employment when she was a child.

Mark and Sheila Beardsley were interviewed by Anjuli Grantham in Larsen Bay, Alaska, on June 13, 2015 as part of the Kodiak Historical Society’s West Side Stories project. Mark and Sheila were born in Hood River, Oregon. Mark’s uncle owned a cannery in Kodiak, he has been visiting the area since 1974 and started fishing in 1980 in Uyak Bay when he was around 11. Sheila worked in the cannery as a teenager and college student, and has been fishing with Mark since they bought a permit together 21 years ago.

Mark Thissen was interviewed by Anjuli Grantham in Larsen Bay, Alaska, on June 13, 2015, as part of the Kodiak Historical Society’s West Side Stories project. Mark was born in Minnesota in 1957 and followed his siblings for summer work in the canneries when he was around 14. He describes his work at the canneries, the Kodiak connections to Mankato, Minnesota, and how he started fishing and tendering when he was 20.

Pam and David Pingree were interviewed by Anjuli Grantham in Quartz Creek Lodge, Alaska, on June 20, 2015, as part of the Kodiak Historical Society’s West Side Stories project. Pam was born in Kodiak in 1959. Her father was a mechanic and had come to Kodiak through his service in the Navy. She describes the appeal of the area as a wild west, and a hard-working, drinking man’s town. David was born in Newburyport, Massachusetts, and came to Alaska in 1980 as part of the US Coast Guard.

Richard Lather was interviewed by Anjuli Grantham in  Shark Cove, Uganik Bay, Kodiak, Alaska, on  June 19 and 20, 2015, as part of the Kodiak Historical Society’s West Side Stories project. Richard was born in Chicago in 1945 and came to Alaska in 1959 with his family when his father got a job teaching in Ketchikan. Richard spent summers working in fishing and, after high school in 1964, joined the Coast Guard, where he worked for twenty years, stationed in Homer, Alaska, and locations on the mainland before returning to Kodiak in 1977.

Roy Madsen was interviewed by Anjuli Grantham in Kodiak, Alaska, on June 11, 2015 as part of the Kodiak Historical Society’s West Side Stories project. Roy was born in 1923 in Alaska in the village of Kanatak on the Shelikof (now abandoned), where his Danish father ran a general store for the oil industry. He describes how his father established the Mush Bay bear camp on the west side of the island in 1929, as well as the other residents and canneries in operation then.

Sandra Earle was interviewed by Anjuli Grantham in Bird Rock, Uyak Bay, Alaska, on 1 August, 2015 as part of the Kodiak Historical Society’s West Side Stories project. Sandra was born in Los Angeles, California, in 1945. She and her now-husband Dan moved from Baltimore to Alaska in 1969, where her older sister had already relocated. She recalls her experiences on her first job teaching at the Munsey Bear camp on Kodiak Island and her positive impressions of the self-sufficiency and helpfulness of local residents.

Tollef Monson was interviewed by Anjuli Grantham in Uganik Bay, Alaska, on June 19, 2015 as part of the Kodiak Historical Society’s West Side Stories project. Tollef was born in Minneapolis, in 1979 and moved to Alaska at the age of 20 for a winter job handling sled dogs, and soon began seasonal fishing on the west side of Kodiak. He describes the work ethic that was instilled in him by locals and the working in Kodiak as a style of life different from a job, and his decision to buy a site in 2007.