| Alaska (Anchorage County), Fort Richardson — Fort Richardson National Cemetery-Gate |
| | This gate is dedicated to men of the Armed Forces of the United States who died while serving their country in war and in peace.---In Memory of Kermit Roosevelt. Born 1859-Died 1943-Who fought in the British and American Armies during World Wars I and II
(bronze plaque below the marker): Acknowledgement this National Cemetery has been made possible through the cooperation of Eklutna, Inc. in yielding its native claim and legal rights to the land, for this noble and patriotic gesture . . . — Map (db m62653) WM |
| Alaska (Fairbanks North Star Borough), Fairbanks — "The Line" |
| | Noticeable among the earliest pioneers settling in Fairbanks were prostitutes, women of the demimonde who stampeded to the new Fairbanks gold camp from Dawson, Circle City, Rampart and points beyond. In a city where men far outnumbered women, earnings from prostitution were normally higher than wages for other, more respectable jobs available to women. Still the prostitute’s life and work were hard. Pimps and hangers-on lived off some of the women and squandered their money.
Tales of the . . . — Map (db m47404) HM |
| Alaska (Fairbanks North Star Borough), Fairbanks — Alaska's Gold Rush Era |
| | Gold discoveries brought Alaska and the Yukon to the attention of the world. A series of stampedes occurred over more than three decades. Drawn by dreams of gold, men and women from many places and all walks of life participated in an adventure that would change their lives. Only a few would become wealthy.
Early Discoveries
Prospectors made the first significant gold discovery in Alaska at Juneau in 1880. This discovery encouraged others to look throughout Alaska and the Yukon for . . . — Map (db m59836) HM |
| Alaska (Fairbanks North Star Borough), Fairbanks — James A. Maple — P. E. Arctic Pipeline Pioneer — 1937 - 2001 |
| | Dr. Maple was a structural engineer and principal designer of the trans-Alaska pipeline. He holds three patents for his development of innovative pipe supports that enabled the warm oil pipeline to safely traverse areas of permafrost. He pioneered the use of sophisticated structural analysis for pipelines, now used on arctic pipelines worldwide. A graduate of Purdue University, he was a major contributor not only during design and construction but also continued to provide engineering expertise . . . — Map (db m58949) HM |
| Alaska (Fairbanks North Star Borough), Fairbanks — Lacey Street Theater (1939) — 504 Second Avenue — (the corner of 2nd & Lacey St) |
| | Construction of the Lacey Street Theater began in 1939, and this Art Deco style building opened in 1940. Austin E. “Cap” Lathrop, Fairbanks businessman and financier, was its owner. The Lacey Street Theater, with its distinguished neon sign, ornamental concrete details, and architectural style is a prominent building in downtown Fairbanks. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 14, 1990, the theater is a popular social center in town, showing movies into the . . . — Map (db m58989) HM |
| Alaska (Fairbanks North Star Borough), Fairbanks — Tanana Valley Gold |
| | The gold deposit found in 1902 north of present-day Fairbanks proved to be the richest in Alaska. Prospector Felix Pedro and trader E.T. Barnette played key roles in the discovery and initial rush. A second strike made the following summer catapulted a temporary trading post into the largest city in the territory.
A Prospector and Trader Meet
Felix Pedro, an Italian immigrant, claimed he made a rich gold strike in 1898 in the Tanana Valley foothills. While trying to find it again in . . . — Map (db m59826) HM |
| Alaska (Fairbanks North Star Borough), Faribanks — Barnette's Landing |
| | Captain E.T. Barnette, a passenger on the riverboat Lavelle Young, debarked near this site on August 26, 1901, and established a trading post which in 1902 became known as Fairbanks.
Alaska Centennial 1867-1967
State of Alaska
Governor Walter J. Hickel
Alaska Centennial Commission — Map (db m59831) HM |
| Alaska (Fairbanks North Star Borough), Faribanks — Clay Street Cemetery |
| | In Memoriam
From 1905 to 1916 at least 83 men died and 400 were injured in gold mining accidents in the Fairbanks area. Underground mining was dangerous during this pioneer era. Most died from cave-ins, falling down shafts, being struck by material while in the shaft and by gas asphyxiation. The miners were often young, single, foreign-born “pick and shove” laborers. They were far from home. Those with an asterisk (*) are buried here in the Fairbanks Clay Street Cemetery.
- . . . — Map (db m47383) HM |
| Alaska (Fairbanks North Star Borough), Faribanks — Cushman Street |
| | “Instead of row after row of empty houses (Dawson), they are building new stores. The place is alive and busy-a little too crowded when we got there.” – a tourist in Fairbanks, 1928 — Map (db m47406) HM |
| Alaska (Fairbanks North Star Borough), Faribanks — Fairbanks Public Schools |
| | In the winter of 1904, the first Fairbanks Public School was opened. Ten students finished the spring term. In the fall of 1905, the school enrolled 50 students. The next year, 150 students attended.
Construction of a much-needed new school on the corner to Turner and Cushman streets between Eighth and Ninth avenues, was started in the last half of October 1907. The school was completed the night before it opened on December 3. Designed by Aloysius Friedrich, it was the pride of the community. . . . — Map (db m47407) HM |
| Alaska (Fairbanks North Star Borough), Faribanks — Harding Car |
| | Used by President Warren G. Harding on his trip to Alaska in 1923 to drive the Golden Spike for the Alaska Railroad. “Denali is the Indian name fro Mt. McKinley, the “Great One.” — Map (db m47352) HM |
| Alaska (Fairbanks North Star Borough), Faribanks — Suter House |
| | Suter, “The Live Jeweler” and E.R. Peoples, owner of E.R. Peoples General Merchandise, married two sisters in 1910.They built these two adjoining houses, together one of the first modern homes in town. — Map (db m47408) HM |
| Alaska (Fairbanks North Star Borough), Faribanks — The Founding of Fairbanks |
| | Captain E.T. Barnette, whose trading post on the Chena River became the city of Fairbanks, arrived here on the sternwheeler Lavelle Young with Captain Adams on August 26, 1901.
Felix Pedro and partners, mining for gold in the hills above town, saw the Lavelle Young on the river, some twenty miles away ferrying supplies. Once they struck gold, the future of the trading post was assured.
Fairbanks eventually won out over the City of Chena on the Tanana River when Judge Wickersham chose . . . — Map (db m47382) HM |
| Alaska (Fairbanks North Star Borough), Faribanks — Wickersham Cabin |
| | This is the site of the original cabin of James J. Wickersham. He was an author, pioneer judge, congressional delegate and Alaska Visionary.
Alaska Centennial 1867-1967
State of Alaska
Governor Walter J. Hickel
Alaska Centennial Commission — Map (db m47384) HM |
| Alaska (Fairbanks North Star Borough), Fox — Pipeline History |
| | On November 16, 1973, through Presidential approval of pipeline legilation, Alyeska Pipeline Service Company received
permission to begin construction of the 800-mile trans Alaska pipeline, its pump stations and the Marine Terminal at
Valdez. The 360-mile road from the Yukon River to Prudhoe Bay was built, and construction of the Valdez Terminal was
begun in 1974.At the same time, work started on pump stations and the pipeline work pad.
The lengths of pipe were placed under the . . . — Map (db m20215) HM |
| Alaska (Fairbanks North Star Borough), North Pole — "The North Pole" |
| | This pole is one of two poles manufactured in 1951 as part of a campaign to properly mark the top of the Earth. After a grand tour of the United States, its twin was pushed out of the tail hatch of an Alaska Airlines DC-4 over the geographic North Pole on the arctic night of December 11th. After being rediscovered in 1972 (in an old junkyard), this pole has been prominently displayed in its current location since the dedication of the park on July 4th, 1976, by the North Pole Jaycees. — Map (db m58912) HM |
| Alaska (Fairbanks North Star Borough), Wiseman — Welcome to Coldfoot Camp |
| | This Sign Greeted New Arrivals As They Arrived At The Pipeline Construction Camp Located One Mile West Of Here. We Salvaged This Sign When The Camp Was Being Dismantled.
You are about 55 miles north of the Arctic Circle on the East Bank of the Middle Fork Koyukuk River at the mouth of Slate Creek, which drains to the east.
—> ——— <—
This is the site of the former gold mining community of Coldfoot, which was built here at the turn of the century. . . . — Map (db m49597) HM |
| Alaska (Juneau Borough), Juneau — 3 — Alaska Juneau Mill |
| | At the Alaska Juneau mill from 1917-1944, ore was sorted, crushed, and treated to extract gold. Electric-powered engines hauled trains of 40 ore cars along the main haulage route form the mine two miles away in Silver Bow Basin to the AJ mill, steepest in the world. Ore fell between levels. Water came via flume from Gold Creek; in winter, the steam power plant pumped sea water from Gastineau Channel. Mill tailings or waste rock built the airport, Egan Drive, and one-third of downtown Juneau. . . . — Map (db m42823) HM |
| Alaska (Juneau Borough), Juneau — Archie Van Winkle — Medal of Honor — Colonel U.S. Marine Corps |
| | Born: 17 March 1925 Juneau, Alaska. Died: 22 May 1986 Ketchikan, Alaska
Sudong, Korea 2 November 1950-For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty as a platoon sergeant in Company B-1-7, 1st Marine Division, S/Sgt. Van Winkle boldly spearheaded a determined counter attack though numerically superior enemy forces. Grenades and automatic weapons fire, wounded, he organized the remnants of his platoon and succeeded in enabling them to hold . . . — Map (db m61871) WM |
| Alaska (Juneau Borough), Juneau — Hard Rock Miners |
| | This bronze sculpture was commissioned by the city and borough of Juneau during its centennial anniversary year, and is dedicated to the mine whose work provided the lifeblood of Juneau during it first six decades.
In the late 1800’s, compressed – air machine drills replaced hand drills as the principle tools of hard rock miners. This development enabled miners to handle great quantities of ore at an acceptable low cost. As a result, lodes containing low-grade ore deposit, such as . . . — Map (db m42809) HM |
| Alaska (Kenai Peninsula Borough), Moose Pass — Gold Discoveries Trigger Stampede |
| | Prospectors found gold in 1895 under the present Canyon Creek Highway Bridge and on Mills Creek. Those discoveries launched a rush to Turnagain Arm more than a year before the Klondike Gold Rush.
Prospectors Poke Around
After gold was discovered near Hope in 1890, prospectors organized the Turnagain Arm Mining District. The number of gold seekers grew to 300 by 1895. Some searched along Sixmile Creek, and its tributaries. Sanford J. Mills and Benedict C.[bullet hole] found gold . . . — Map (db m49599) HM |
| Alaska (Ketchikan Gateway Borough), Ketchikan — Creek Street — ‘Cat’houses & Sporting Women |
| | Ketchikan’s notorious Creek Street, early Alaska’s most infamous red-light district, still retains traces of the gaudy rouge of a half-century of speakeasies and sporting women. Here the fame of Black Mary, Thelma Baker and Dolly Arthur outlived the turnover of many of the girls with “stage” names such as Frenchie, Prairie Chicken, Deep Water Mary and Dirty Neck Maxine. The glow of their porch light globes—inscribed with their names—lured the crews of the North . . . — Map (db m42631) HM |
| Alaska (North Slope Borough), Barrow — Paġlagivisi! — Welcome to the Ancient Village of Ukpiaġvik — “The Place Where We Hunt Snowy Owls” |
| | Sharing Food, Sharing Life – Then and Now
Ukpiaġvik, which means ‘the place where we hunt snowy owls,’ was one of several ancient villages in the Barrow area. Our ancestors settled here primarily to hunt the great bowhead whales. But their diet – just like ours today – was supplemented by the harvest of Nature’s other gifts, including the highly valued snowy owl. Even with the conveniences of the 21st century, it is the gathering and sharing our Native foods that . . . — Map (db m49595) HM |
| Alaska (Sitka Borough), Sitka — 250th Anniversary of the Bering- Chirikov Expedition — 1741-1991 |
| | [Top rim]:
К 250 летию экспедиции В. И. Беринга и А.И. Чирикова
Commemorating the 250th Anniversary of the Bering-Chirikov Expedition
(English version on left):
May the wheel of change forever turn with peace, justice and opportunity
(Russian . . . — Map (db m8448) HM |
| Alaska (Skagway County), Skagway — Arctic Brotherhood Camp Skagway |
| | Built in 1899 as headquarters for the Arctic Brotherhood Camp Skagway No. 1. The Brotherhood was established February 26, 1899 for the purpose of fraternal enjoyment and mutual aid. Over 30 camps were established throughout Alaska and the Yukon and Northern British Columbia.
Alaska Centennial 1867 – 1867
State of Alaska
Governor Walter J. Hickel
Alaska Centennial Commission — Map (db m42949) HM |
| Alaska (Skagway County), Skagway — Jeff. Smith’s Parlor |
| | The building before you is an historical structure known as “Jeff. Smith’s Parlor.” It has recently been acquired by Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, a unit of the National Park Service. Jeff. Smith’s Parlor, a part of the extensive Rapuzzi collection, was very generously donated to Skagway and the National Park Service by the Rasmuson Foundation. It was once the saloon and headquarters for Jefferson Randolf [sic] Smith, better known as “Soapy.” Soapy Smith . . . — Map (db m44866) HM |
| Alaska (Skagway County), Skagway — Mollie Walsh — 1872-1902 |
| | Mollie was a resourceful and independent young woman with a wanderlust and love of frontiers. In 1890, she left home at 18 for Butte, Montana where she spent seven years. Landing in Skagway in 1897, Mollie became popular as a waitress and member of humanitarian activities of the Union church. When her efforts crossed Jefferson “Soapy” Smith, she feared retaliation and moved up the White Pass Trail near a Canadian Mountie station where she established a grub tent.
Over the . . . — Map (db m43017) HM |
| Alaska (Skagway County), Skagway — Skagway Centennial Statue — 1897 |
| | Skagway was originally spelled S-K-A-G-U-A, a Tlingit Indian word for “windy place.” The first people in the area were Tlingits from the Chilkoot and Chilkat villages in the Haines-Klukwan area. From a fish camp in nearby Dyea, they used the Chilloot Trail for trading with the First Nations people of the Yukon Territory. The windy Skagway valley was favored for hunting mountain goats and bear, but no one settled here until 1887. That June, Skookum Jim, a Tlingit from the . . . — Map (db m43007) HM |
| Alaska (Skagway County), Skagway — Skagway Remembers |
| | The citizens of Skagway, Alaska wish to forever remember the sacrifices of our military servicemen who died in wartime. These young men left home and community to answer the call to help preserve peace and freedom in the world.
World War I
Vincent Dortero • Lenard Haslett
World War II
Bill Phelps • Harry Lee • Harry Dallas • Ed Kast
Korean Conflict
Lloyd Sullivan • Michael Tierney — Map (db m43379) WM |
| Alaska (Skagway County), Skagway — The Vining and Wilkes Warehouse |
| | Measuring 50’ X 100’, this was once the largest buildings in Dyea. I was built on pilings for fear of high tide coming up that far in 1898. Warehouses were used to sort out massive piles of mining supplies and bring order to the chaos that had previously occurred on the beachfront.
Caution: Wooden pieces and rusting metal bits that you see are important reminders of the Gold Rush stampede. Please avoid handling or stepping on these fragile pieces.
[Photo caption:]
Today, the . . . — Map (db m43016) HM |
| Alaska (Skagway County), Skagway — Trail of '98 Museum — Alaska Centennial 1867 - 1967 |
| | Built as McCabe College for Women in 1899-1900. This is the first granite building in Alaska. It served as a Federal Court House from 1901 until statehood when it was purchased by the city of Skagway for a museum. — Map (db m43008) HM |
| Alaska (Skagway Hoonah Angoon Borough), Skagway — Fatal Duel |
| | Frank Reid, guarding the approach to Sylvester's Wharf, where the vigilantes were meeting to restore law and order, shot "Soapy Smith" who failed to stop when challenged, July 8, 1898. — Map (db m43009) HM |
| Alaska (Skagway Hoonah Angoon Borough), Skagway — Skagway and White Pass |
| | has been designated a
Registered National
Historic Landmark
Under the provisions of the Historic Sites Act of August 24, 1935, this site possesses exceptional value in commemorating and illustrating the history of the United States — Map (db m5051) HM |
| Alaska (Southeast Fairbanks Borough), Big Delta — Gold Rush Crossroads |
| | The community of Big Delta began during the Gold Rush era as a trading post and roadhouse serving prospectors and travelers.
Known for many years as McCarty, Big Delta was a link in the paths of travel and trade. It was located at the intersection of waterways, trails and telegraph lines.
Opening a Trading Post
Prospectors and traders blazed a trail through here in 1903 to the new town of Fairbanks following gold discoveries in the interior. Travelers crossed the Tanana River at . . . — Map (db m49598) HM |
| Alaska (Southeast Fairbanks Borough), Delta Junction — Delta Junction, Alaska — Northern Terminus of the "Alcan" Highway |
| | This highway was constructed during World War II as a military supply route for interior Alaska Military and Airfields in 1942. 7 Army regiments and 42 Contractors and Public Roads Administrators working from Delta Junction South and Dawson Creek North completed it when they met at Soldiers’ Summit at Kluane Lake Yukon Territory in November 1942. At the peak of construction, 77 Contractors employed 15,000 men and 11,000 pieces of road building equipment. The total construction cost for 1422 miles was $115,000,000. — Map (db m59840) HM |
| Alaska (Southeast Fairbanks Borough), Tok — Taylor Highway |
| | The Taylor Highway leads through some of the earliest and richest gold mining country in Alaska to the City of Eagle on the Yukon River. Gold was discovered by Franklin in 1886 and the old town of Forty Mile was located on the Yukon River at the mouth of the Forty Mile River. A river boat trip from Eagle will take you to this historic town. The Chicken Creek area was also a rich gold mining area at about the same time. Wade Creek was another rich area and the remains of an old dredge still . . . — Map (db m49596) HM |
| Alaska (Valdez Cordova Borough), Valdez — Goat Trail |
| | The U.S. Army arrived at Valdez during the Gold Rush to build a trail into the interior. They found the Valdez Glacier impassable much of the year. To bypass the glacier, they cut a narrow trail along the walls of rugged Keystone Canyon. The “Goat Trail” quickly became a popular route to the interior.
There Must be a Better Way
In 1898 the Army found a route though Keystone Canyon as an alternative to Valdez Glacier. Despite dense vegetation, high walls, and a fast, icy . . . — Map (db m49611) HM |
| Alaska (Valdez Cordova Borough), Valdez — Horse and Sled Trail |
| | On the far side, just above the water are the remains of the old sled trail, used in the early days. It was cut out of the rock, just wide enough for 2 horses abreast. 200 ft. above can be seen the old goat trail. This road was used till 1945. — Map (db m49610) HM |
| Alaska (Valdez Cordova Borough), Valdez — Old Railroad Tunnel |
| | “The Iron Trail” by Rex Beach describes these events and this area.
This tunnel was hand cut into the solid rock of Keystone Canyon and is all that is left of the “railroad era” when nine companies fought to take advantage of the short route from the coast to the Copper Country. However a feud interrupted progress. A gun battle was fought and the tunnel was never finished. — Map (db m49609) HM |
| Alaska (Yukon Koyukuk Borough), Nenana — First Presidential Visit |
| | President Warren G. Harding, first U.S. President to visit Alaska traveled here to pound the Golden Spike signalling completion of the Alaska Railroad from tidewater to the interior July 15, 1926.
State of Alaska
Governor Walter J. Hickel
Alaska Centennial Commission — Map (db m42948) HM |
| Alaska (Yukon Koyukuk Borough), Nenana — Golden Spike |
| | A Golden Spike was
driven at this point by
President Harding
on completion of
the Alaska Railroad
July 15 1923 — Map (db m4286) HM |
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