Seward, Alaska

Seward
Qutalleq
Aerial view of Seward
Nickname: 
"Gateway to the Kenai Fjords"
Motto: 
"Alaska Starts Here"
Location in Kenai Peninsula Borough, Alaska
Coordinates: 60°07′28″N 149°26′00″W / 60.12444°N 149.43333°W / 60.12444; -149.43333
CountryUnited States
StateAlaska
BoroughKenai Peninsula
Established1903
IncorporatedJune 1, 1912
Government
  TypeCouncil-manager
  MayorSue McClure
  State senatorGary Stevens (R)
  State rep.Louise Stutes (R)
Area
  Total
21.89 sq mi (56.69 km2)
  Land13.96 sq mi (36.16 km2)
  Water7.93 sq mi (20.54 km2)
Elevation
0 ft (0 m)
Population
 (2020)
  Total
2,717
  Density194.63/sq mi (75.15/km2)
Time zoneUTC−9 (Alaska)
  Summer (DST)UTC−8 (Alaska)
ZIP code
99664
Area code907
FIPS code02-68560
GNIS feature ID1414598
Websitewww.cityofseward.us
Source of coordinates

Seward (Alutiiq: QutalleqDena'ina: Tl'ubugh) is an incorporated home rule city in Alaska, United States. Located on Resurrection Bay, a fjord of the Gulf of Alaska on the Kenai Peninsula, Seward is situated on Alaska's southern coast, approximately 120 miles (190 km) by road from Alaska's largest city, Anchorage.

With a population of 2,717 people as of the 2020 census, Seward is the fourth-largest city in the Kenai Peninsula Borough, behind Kenai, Homer, and the borough seat of Soldotna. The city is named for former United States Secretary of State William H. Seward, who orchestrated the United States' purchase of Alaska from the Russian Empire in 1867 while serving in this position as part of President Andrew Johnson's administration.

Seward is the southern terminus of the Alaska Railroad and the historic starting point of the original Iditarod Trail to Interior Alaska, with Mile 0 of the trail marked on the shoreline at the southern end of town.