Biohazard Cleanup Near Ruby Historic District Ruby, AK

Ruby is an incorporated town in the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, on the south bank of the Yukon River at the northwesternmost tip of the Nowitna National Wildlife Refuge, and it is accessible only by boat or air.

The 2020 census counted 139 people in Ruby, living in 56 households, with a median age of 38.5 years, and the town's nickname is The Gem of the Yukon.

Ruby was established in 1911 as the result of a gold rush, after gold was first discovered at the townsite in 1906 on Ruby Creek and word of a strike on Long Creek, 30 miles south, set off a stampede in 1910.

At its peak Ruby's population was near 3,000, but the town fell into steep decline by 1918 as men left to fight in World War I and several business families were lost in the sinking of the Canadian passenger liner Sophia.

A fire in 1929 destroyed much of Ruby's business district, and a flood in 1931 took out what was left of the buildings on the riverfront.

Ruby formally incorporated on September 25, 1973, after first appearing on the 1920 census as an unincorporated village.

The largest gold nugget ever found in Alaska, weighing 294.10 troy ounces, was found near Ruby in 1998 by Barry Clay, and the town is served by Ruby Airport.

After World War II, Native Americans from nearby Kokrines relocated to Ruby to take advantage of the abandoned homes, and today only a general store and post office remain as businesses.

The Koyukon name for Ruby is Tl'aa'ologhe, and about 90 percent of its 2020 residents were American Indian or Alaska Native.

The Yukon-Koyukuk School District operates the Merreline A. Kangas School in Ruby.