Flags were flown at half-staff across the state on Sept. 2 to honor former state Rep. Carl Morgan, who died at the age of 76 in August.
From 1999 to 2004, Morgan represented a large swath of the Interior and Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta as a Republican in the Alaska House of Representatives.
Morgan was born in the Kuskokwim River community of Upper Kalskag. He moved to Aniak at a young age and left to attend boarding schools in Wrangell and later Stika. He graduated from Mt. Edgecumbe High School in 1969.
Morgan pursued a long career as an electrician in Anchorage, where he raised a family. Eventually he returned to his his home region and the community of Aniak before he joined the Alaska Legislature.
Tom Wright, a political veteran who served as chief of staff to four speakers of the Alaska House, remembered Morgan as a vocal supporter of communities off of the road system.
"He was always advocating for rural sanitation, bulk fuel, energy, and he did a good job trying to address those needs," Wright said.
Wright said that Morgan was someone who never let you forget he was from rural Alaska.
"I got to know Carl real well when I was working for Speaker [Mike] Chenault. And one story I remember in particular, they were having a debate on the floor about predator control, and Carl went on to talk about his experiences in Aniak. One thing that he said was that ‘Yes, we do have predator controls. We had a dog named Fluffy, and the wolves came out and ate Fluffy,’" Wright said.
Morgan also served as mayor of Aniak, and in leadership positions with the Aniak Traditional Council, as well as with the Alaska Native village and regional corporations he was a shareholder of.
According to a post from the Calista Corporation, Morgan served four consecutive terms on the corporation's board.
Aniak Traditional Chief Wayne Morgan said that his older brother was a role model whose public service inspired his own career as a tribal leader. Wayne said that one of his brother’s most important achievements was helping Aniak’s tribe secure 140 acres of land within the community.
"He was very instrumental in making that happen. He leaves a lot. I know that he felt like he accomplished what he needed to," Wayne said.
Morgan is preceded in death by his wife Angela “Angie” Morgan, parents Carl Morgan Sr. and Nancy Morgan, as well as numerous family members and friends from across the state.
