Port Lions was built to house the inhabitants of Ag'waneq from the neighboring island of Afognak and Port Wakefield from Raspberry Island, after their villages were destroyed by the Good Friday earthquake in 1964.

[citation needed] Port Lions first appeared on the 1970 U.S. Census, having previously incorporated in 1966.

The racial makeup of the city was 34.77% White, 63.28% Native American, and 1.95% from two or more races.

13.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

About 12.7% of families and 12.1% of the population were below the poverty line, including 15.0% of those under the age of eighteen and 10.7% of those 65 or over.