The Hatchery was established in 1976 by the State of Alaska and reached its peak in the late 1980’s, producing more than 15 million juvenile red salmon a year! Although the Big Lake Fish Hatchery was part of a thriving statewide network of hatcheries, lack of funding forced its closure in 1993. The facility is now under the control of Fort Alaska Company and today though the hatchery is gone, the fish still return. The Fort lives on providing more than just Wild Salmon; the Fort is one of the world’s last