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Homer Homer is located at 59°38'35" North, 151°31'33" West
(59.643059, -151.525900).[2]
Homer is on the shore of Kachemak Bay on the southwest side of
the Kenai Peninsula. Its most distinguishing feature is the Homer
Spit, a narrow 4.5 mile (7 km) long gravel bar that extends into
the bay, on which is located the Homer Harbor.
Coal was discovered in the area in the 1890s. The Cook Inlet Coal
Fields Company built a town, dock, coal mine, and a railroad at
Homer. Coal mining in the area continued until World War II. There
are an estimated 400 million tons of coal deposits still in the
area.
Homer was named for Homer Pennock, a gold mining company promoter,
who arrived in 1896 on the Homer Spit and built living quarters
for his crew of 50 men. However, gold mining was never profitable
in the area.
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