Slana in Copper River Census Area, Alaska — Northwest (North America)
Allen's Incredible Journey
Gold Rush Centennial
Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., August 14, 2024
1. Allen's Incredible Journey Marker
Lieutenant Henry T. Allen led one of America's epic journeys of exploration in 1885. In five months, his expedition crossed 1,500 miles of largely unexplored territory including this valley. The information Allen collected about interior Alaska greatly benefitted the gold rushers who came later.
The U.S. Army Explores Alaska
Allen led the last of a series of Army expeditions to explore and map interior Alaska during the 1880s. His orders were to investigate the unmapped Copper and Tanana river valleys. Allen started up the Copper River in March 1885 with Sergeant Cady Robertson and Private Frederick W. Fickett.
Challenging the Copper River
The hardest part of the journey was ascending the Copper River. In the lower river, they encountered chunks of glacier ice, rushing torrents between vertical rock walls, and multiple braided channels. Delayed by winter's ice, the party made a side trip up the Chitina River to purchase food from the Natives and learn about copper deposits used by the Natives. Two months into their journey, they passed this point, then continued to the headwaters of the Copper River, and entered
this page online
Alaska's "Lewis and Clark Expedition"
The explorers descended the Tanana River. Robertson went to the Bering Sea coast while Allen and Fickett trekked from the Yukon to the headwaters of the Koyukuk River. They explored that drainage before joining Robertson on the coast and leaving Alaska. The expedition provided information on three major unexplored rivers--the Copper, Tanana, and Koyukuk. Historians have ranked Allen's expedition with the remarkable Lewis and Clark 1804-1806 round trip from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean. Gold seekers, who arrived in Alaska in the 1890s, used Allen's information about the Natives and the resources in the territory he explored.
Erected by Alaska State Parks and Others.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Exploration • Military. A significant historical month for this entry is March 1885.
Location. 62° 43.079′ N, 144° 5.503′ W. Marker is in Slana in Copper River Census Area, Alaska. It is on Glenn Highway (State Highway 1 at milepost 56.1), on the right when traveling east. Marker is at the Cobb Lake Scenic Viewpoint pulloff. Touch for map.
Photographed by William Fischer, Jr., August 14, 2024
2. Allen's Incredible Journey Marker
Regionally, this marker is on the American Pacific Coast. Globally, it is in North America, the Pacific Rim, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Russian Empire.
Also see . . . Journey Through the Wilderness: Lieutenant Henry T. Allens 1885 Exploration of Interior Alaska. (Submitted on August 29, 2024, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio.)
Credits. This page was last revised on August 29, 2024. It was originally submitted on August 29, 2024, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio. This page has been viewed 267 times since then and 34 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on August 29, 2024, by William Fischer, Jr. of Reynoldsburg, Ohio.
