Orca Bay is a bay

Bay

A bay is an area of water mostly surrounded by land. Bays generally have calmer waters than the surrounding sea, due to the surrounding land blocking some waves and often reducing winds. Bays also exist as an inlet in a lake or pond. A large bay may be called a gulf, a sea, a sound, or a bight...

 in Prince William Sound

Prince William Sound

Prince William Sound is a sound off the Gulf of Alaska on the south coast of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is located on the east side of the Kenai Peninsula. Its largest port is Valdez, at the southern terminus of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System...

, Alaska.

Orca Bay is on the north west and west sides of Hawkins Island, extending westward to Johnstone Point of Hinchenbrook Island. Its northwestern corner is demarcated by Knowles Head, between Port Gravina and Fidalgo Bay on the mainland. Its eastern end can be reached from the port of Cordova

Cordova, Alaska

As of the census of 2000, there were 2,454 people, 958 households, and 597 families residing in the city. The population density was 40.0 per square mile . There are 1,099 housing units at an average density of 17.9 per square mile...

, Alaska on Orca Inlet

Orca Inlet

Orca Inlet is an arm of Prince William Sound in southern Alaska. The town of Cordova was founded on its coast in 1906. All marine traffic reaches the town through Orca Inlet.-Geography:...

. According to the US Board on Geographic Names, Orca Bay was named for the Orca salmon cannery

Salmon cannery

Salmon canneries conduct the commercial canning of salmon. This fish processing industry became widespread on the Pacific coast of North America in the nineteenth century.-List of salmon canneries:Notable salmon canneries and salmon canning settlements...

 of the Pacific Steam Whaling Company, which operated on the southeast shore of Orca Inlet and in turn was named for that company's ship Orca. Ultimately the name is derived from the orca

Orca

The killer whale , commonly referred to as the orca, and less commonly as the blackfish, is a toothed whale belonging to the oceanic dolphin family. Killer whales are found in all oceans, from the frigid Arctic and Antarctic regions to tropical seas...

 or killer whale.

The bay was named Puerto Córdova by the Spanish explorer Salvador Fidalgo

Salvador Fidalgo

Salvador Fidalgo y Lopegarcía was a Spanish explorer who commanded an exploring expedition for Spain to Alaska and the Pacific Northwest during the late 18th century.-Early career:...

, in 1790, with the English name “Cordova Bay” marked on charts. It was renamed by the early twentieth century, to avoid confusion with Cordova Bay

Cordova bay

Cordova Bay is a bay in the Alexander Archipelago of southeast Alaska. It opens onto Dixon Entrance to the south, between Cape Muzon on Dall Island and Point Marsh . The name Puerto Cordova y Cordova was given by the Spanish explorer Lieutenant Don Jacinto Caamaño in 1792, in honor of Admiral Luis...

 in Dixon Entrance

Dixon Entrance

The Dixon Entrance is a strait about long and wide in the Pacific Ocean at the International Boundary between the U.S. state of Alaska and the province of British Columbia in Canada. It was named by Joseph Banks for Captain George Dixon, a Royal Navy officer, fur trader, and explorer, who...

, at the eastern extreme of the Gulf of Alaska.

The United States Navy

United States Navy

The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

 seaplane tender

Seaplane tender

A seaplane tender is a ship that provides facilities for operating seaplanes. These ships were the first aircraft carriers and appeared just before the First World War.-History:...

 USS Orca (AVP-49)

USS Orca (AVP-49)

The second USS Orca was a United States Navy seaplane tender in commission from 1944 to 1947 and from 1951 to 1960.-Construction, commissioning, and shakedown:...

, in commission from 1944 to 1947 and from 1951 to 1960, was named for Orca Bay.