 The "Nautaagmiut" (called "Noatagamut" in the 1880 census), Inupiaq for "inland river people", lived upriver, and the "Napaaqtugmiut", meaning "people of the trees", lived downriver.By the early 20th century, the missionaries Robert and Carrie Samms settled in what they called "Noatak".A United States post office was established in 1940.