Saint Nicholas Orthodox Church

Russian Orthodox and Denaina Heritage in Eklutna Village

Saint Nicholas Orthodox Church sits within Eklutna Village, the oldest continuously inhabited Dena'ina Athabascan settlement in Alaska, dating back to 1650. Two churches stand on the grounds: an old log church, built around 1870 in Knik and later moved here - one of only a handful of surviving 19th-century Russian Orthodox churches in Alaska - and a new church built in 1962, where services are still held today.

Behind the church sits what is likely the best-known feature of the site - a cemetery of "spirit houses," where each grave is marked with a small, brightly painted wooden house or shelter instead of a traditional cross or headstone, a rare and moving example of how local families wove the Orthodox faith of their ancestors together with Dena'ina traditions of honoring the dead. The 1962 church was built by the people of Eklutna themselves, led by tribal elder Mike Maxim.

Today the church grounds and cemetery can be visited as part of a guided tour run by the Native Village of Eklutna, the federally recognized tribe that owns this land. It is a rare chance to see two spiritual traditions still living side by side on the same ground after more than three centuries.