The city has experienced two natural disasters in the 20th century: a volcanic ashfall from the 1912 eruption of Novarupta and a tsunami from the 1964 Alaska earthquake.

After the Alaska Purchase by the United States in 1867, Kodiak became a commercial fishing center which continues to be the mainstay of its economy.

The Alaska Department of Fish and Game maintains an office in the city and a website to help hunters and fishermen obtain the proper permits and learn about the laws specific to the Kodiak area.

An antenna farm at the summit of Pillar Mountain above the city historically provided communication with the outside world before fiber optic cable was run.

Transportation to and from the island is provided by ferry service on the Alaska Marine Highway as well as local commercial airlines.

The first Europeans to sight Kodiak Island were the explorers Vitus Bering and Aleksei Chirikov, during the 1741 Second Kamchatka Expedition.

[14] In 1779 the Spanish explorers Arteaga y Bazán and Bodega y Quadra reached Afognak in the Kodiak Archipelago.

[15] In 1792, the Russian Shelikhov-Golikov Company chief manager Alexander Baranov moved the post at Three Saints Bay (established in 1784) to a new site in Paul's Harbor (Свято-Павловской гавани, Svyato-Pavlovskoy Gavani).

When Russia sold Alaska to the United States in 1867, Kodiak developed as a center for commercial fishing, and canneries dotted the island in the early 20th century until global farm-raised salmon eliminated these businesses.

During the presidency of Theodore Roosevelt, animals such as the mountain goat, Sitka deer (black tail), rabbits, muskrats, beavers, squirrels, and others were introduced to the island and the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge was created.

[19] Though situated 160 miles (260 km) southeast of the eruption center, the town was covered with 1 foot (30 cm) of ash over a short period of time.

[19][20] As Kodiak was incorporated in 1941, the U.S. feared attack from Japanese during World War II, and turned the town into a fortress.

[21] In March 1964, a tectonic tsunami struck the city during the 1964 Alaska earthquake with 30-foot (9.1 m) waves that killed 15 people and caused $11 million in damage.

Both the department and the city maintain websites and publish brochures in order to help communicate these strictly enforced laws.

The United States Navy operates a small training base near the city called Naval Special Warfare Cold Weather Detachment Kodiak which trains United States Navy SEALs in cold weather survival and advanced tactics.

Organized by the Kodiak Chamber of Commerce, the event takes place over Memorial Day weekend.

It includes a county fair-style main event, with carnival rides, food and game booths, and group activities.

Students from villages all over southern and southwestern Alaska study at St. Herman's in order to become readers or clergy in the Orthodox Church.

Kodiak Airport attracts both local and regional airlines, air taxis, and charter floatplanes and helicopters which provide transportation to residents and tourists traveling on and off the island.

Floatplane and bush plane companies regularly take tourists to remote areas and wilderness lodges both on the various islands of the Kodiak Archipelago and the Katmai coast for bear viewing, hunting, and hikes.

The city business community also has a fleet of privately owned taxis as well as kayaks, mountain bikes, and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) for rent.

Individuals located in the smaller surrounding communities are cared for in small village clinics and, when critically ill, may be airlifted into Kodiak via helicopter or air ambulance due to remoteness and lack of roads.

An orchestrated internet campaign urged people to vote for the most remote location imaginable, Kodiak, resulting in a sizable lead for that store.

[34] Pitbull visited on July 30, where he received a Key to the City from mayor Branson and then made an appearance before a crowd of hundreds at the Coast Guard base.