The History of the Purple Heart
In 1783 during the American Revolution, General George Washington first awarded a decoration of embroidered purple fabric in the shape of a heart called the Badge of Military Merit. The decoration was . . . — — Map (db m282428) WM
From the outset, park vistors could opt for lodging that was a far cry from camping.
If you arrived at McKinley Station between 1925 and 1939, chance are the Mt. McKinley Tourist and Transportation Company was here to meet you. You . . . — — Map (db m283238) HM
These days, you'll have a hard time sighting Curry - a deserted station about 100 miles south of here, in the Talkeetna Mountains, But in 1923, it would have been hard to miss; Curry was where you spend the night - or lingered longer - as you . . . — — Map (db m283126) HM
"It's not fair to the rangers to ask them to patrol in the cold weather and then have to spend the night out in the open under a spruce tree."
-Ranger Fritz Nyberg, 1927.
Even during the short summer months, . . . — — Map (db m257623) HM
During World War II, thousands of servicemen left the war behind and spent a week in the park.
When Japanese forces attacked the Aleutian Islands in June 1942, vacation travel to Alaska ground to a halt. In the absence of full . . . — — Map (db m283780) HM
When you ride the rails, you hurdle yawning canyons
and wide rivers that challenged the engineering know-how of the day.
The Hurricane Gulch bridge, one of the marvels of the line,
crosses a gorge more than 900 feet across and . . . — — Map (db m283588) HM
The Nenana River, below you, joins up with the Tanana River 60 miles downstream. The waters of the Nenana and Tanana are part of the enormous Yukon River watershed, which ultimately empties into the Bering Sea. The Yukon River drainage . . . — — Map (db m257608) HM
"I shall never forget that, when he got through asking questions, he said, 'You're lacking in experience, but I think you can learn. I'll send you on a patrol trip alone. You will be gone a week. If you don't get back by then, I'll . . . — — Map (db m257613) HM
High above river valleys, at overlooks like this, Denalis first human visitors watch for mammoth, giant bison, and caribou. Ridge tops made the best game launching platforms; herds tend to follow sheltered stream corridors.
Hunters had to . . . — — Map (db m69724) HM
"Sun/Jan 8, 1939-Traveled down to the East Fork Ranger Cabin in the canyon. There was much overflow water from the mouth of the canyon down to the cabin. The rangers cabin was an awfull mess. The bear had been in the cabin. It took . . . — — Map (db m257625) HM
When the railroad station was built in 1922, on land then outside park boundaries, There was already a tiny settlement here. it came to be known as McKinley Park Station. The entrepreneurs who established it sought to profit from railroad . . . — — Map (db m283499) HM
Mountains in Motion
Though the visible glaciers appear remote - gleaming between distant peaks - the valley below is strewn with signs of masses glaciation: stranded boulders, gouged-out ponds, and gravel outwash plains. The last big . . . — — Map (db m71362) HM
How did you imagine the park before you had seen it for yourself? In years past, travelers' expectations were shaped by railroad brochures
that touted the marvels of Alaska and portrayed the park as
a wonderland. The words below are from a . . . — — Map (db m283937) HM
1915 Construction begins on the Government Railroad, later renamed the Alaska Railroad.
1917 Mount McKinley National Park is established. Enterprising pioneers have already built homesteads outside park boundaries, near . . . — — Map (db m283782) HM
"It is not only the outward beauty of Alaska that we must think about when considering
its future; we must also think of its native wildness-its wilderness spirit."
Park Biologist Adolph Murie
He laid the foundation of the National Park Service, defining and establishing the policies under which its areas shall be developed and conserved unimpaired for future generations. There will never come an end to the good that he has done. — — Map (db m195774) HM
Laying rail through a subarctic wilderness was no walk in the park.
The railroad builders were constantly reminded
that nature was beyond their control. South of
Anchorage, avalanches buried the route. In the
Nenana Canyon, . . . — — Map (db m283580) HM
Alaska Native place names have echoed from the hills since time immemorial and hold key elements for maintaining Alaska native connection to sacred sites, traditional resources, and cultural practices.
The Alaska Native people who live and . . . — — Map (db m284333) HM
Near this site, in July 1937, Alaska Railroad crews broke ground for the McKinley Park Hotel.
A Modern Wilderness Outpost
Despite financial setbacks and a contentious design (it was modern, not rustic), the hotel opened on June 1, . . . — — Map (db m294078) HM
As the number of ways to get to the park grew, so did the number of visitors.
If you wanted to visit the park prior to 1957, rail travel was not only a good option, it was about your only option. A few visitors arrived by chartered . . . — — Map (db m283550) HM
The first depot established in 1922, was a converted boxcar. It had once belonged to the Tanana Valley Railroad a Fairbanks-area outfit that became part of the Alaska Railroad. Presumably, the depot arrived by rail. It did double duty as the . . . — — Map (db m283266) HM
The fortunes of the park and the railroad have long been linked.
It could be said that the coming of the railroad was a catalyst for the creation of the park. In January 1917 Stephen R. Capps of the U,S. Geological Survey reported that . . . — — Map (db m283594) HM
Many things have changed since the park was created and the railroad was completed, but the route to the park remains the same. Whether you traveled the historic rail line or modern highway, you took the route taken by the park's first visitors. . . . — — Map (db m283503) HM
The train track along the Healy Canyon wall provides an exhilarating view down to the Nenana River below. Imagine the challenge of constructing this grade in 1921. Three tunnels at the south end of the canyon made the job a little easier by . . . — — Map (db m71361) HM
" if they don't sent in a warden pretty soon their won't be anything left to warden."
-Local Alaskan guide Harry Karstens in a letter to friend and conservationist Charles Sheldon, 1920. Karstens was hired as the Park's first . . . — — Map (db m257618) HM
The fish wheel is the major means of fishing the interior rivers, used by both the whites and the natives for commercial and subsistence purposes. It was developed in northern Europe, brought to New England, and then to the west coast, where fish . . . — — Map (db m282426) HM
For years this cabin was the property of Athabascan Chief, John Silas. It was built at the original Chena Indian Village, just downstream on the Tanana River. The Binkley family acquired the cabin in the 1980's as the old village had become . . . — — Map (db m257588) HM
This is a typical riverboat of the early and mid-1900's. The long, narrow shape is fashioned after the early pole boats. It is a non-planing displacement design that can carry large loads with minimal power and easily push against the swift . . . — — Map (db m257579) HM
Fish camps played an enormous role in the lives of native Alaskans. These small summertime
settlements were often set up about 30 miles from the village and served as the family's summer home. Salmon was caught using fishwheels, then were . . . — — Map (db m257597) HM
Howard Luke is a well-respected native elder and longtime friend of the Binkley family. He was born in 1923 near Nenana, Alaska and moved to the Fairbanks area in 1936. Howard grew up learning the traditional values and skills of his culture and . . . — — Map (db m257600) HM
Each fall bull moose all over the world enter their mating season, known as the rut. During this time, the velvet layer of the bull's antlers begin to shed, and they begin to spar with one another as a way to practice their fighting skills. In . . . — — Map (db m257590) HM
WHY DO MOOSE FIGHT?
[Photo caption reads] Two rutting bull moose begin to fight.
Each fall bull moose all over the world enter their mating season, known as the rut. Moose are primarily solitary animals that have little . . . — — Map (db m257591) HM
In Alaska, the remote areas of the state are know[n] as "The Bush" and the term "Bush Pilot" refers to the bold and adventuresome pilots who fly in and out of these remote locations. Even today, Bush Pilots provide an important lifeline to . . . — — Map (db m257582) HM
Nearly every village along the rivers of Alaska had a post office. They were only open when mail was delivered. Often the postmaster would start a fire in the post office stove to warm up the cabin, meet the airplane, dog team or riverboat that . . . — — Map (db m257599) HM
This smokehouse is a typical building you would find at a traditional
Athabascan fish camp. The smokehouse was a key component of every
fish camp, as it was the only means for the Athabascans to preserve the
thousands of salmon they caught . . . — — Map (db m257593) HM
As Westerners began to arrive in Alaska at the turn of the 19th century, the nomadic lifestyle of the Athabascans gave way to a life that centered around more permanent villages. One of the many ideas the Athabascans borrowed and adapted from the . . . — — Map (db m257568) HM
At the turn of the century the news of the Klondike Gold Rush brought thousands to Alaska to seek their fortune. Because there were no roads and a vast river system, sternwheel riverboats were the best way to haul the prospectors and their . . . — — Map (db m257592) HM
"I came to Alaska in 1975, hoping to find, my dream. I also found my challenge, the Iditarod."
-Susan Butcher
"I do not know the word 'quit." Either I never did, or I have abolished it."
-Susan Butcher
To . . . — — Map (db m257602) HM
By the late 1960's, snowmobiling had become the fastest growing winter sport. Each year, innovations and vast improvements in performance were showcased on race tracks across the snowbelt. By 1970, production topped 500,000 units with over 100 . . . — — Map (db m257576) HM
The "Iron Dog" or Snowmobile transformed village life in the 1960's when it began to replace dog teams as the main mode of winter travel.
In the late 50's, the Polaris Company of Minnesota released the original Sno-Traveler.
Although the . . . — — Map (db m257577) HM
Winter trapping was a considerable part of the Athabascans' subsistence lifestyle. Most trapping was done in the winter because that is when the animals had the warmest, thickest fur. The winter coats of so many different animals helped the . . . — — Map (db m257570) HM
As miners, traders and prospectors slowly made their way into the interior of Alaska in the early 1900's, small trading posts and settlements soon began to appear. Both the Westerners and Athabascans used these villages. Cabin such as the one you . . . — — Map (db m257571) HM
This corner reflector, owned by the Alaska Satellite Facility of UAF's Geophysical Institute, is named for its simple shape. Corner reflectors bounce the radar signal back to the sensor,
creating a bright, identifiable pattern easily seen as a . . . — — Map (db m256387) HM
Life in the boreal forest
Boreal forest forms a belt that circles the
northern part of the globe, including Canada,
Russia, Scandinavia and Alaska. The location
of boreal forest ecosystems is generally
determined by soil temperature, . . . — — Map (db m256286) HM
First President
Alaska Agricultural College
and School of Mines,
University of Alaska
Dec. 7, 1921 - Jul. 1, 1949
"Ad summum"
Sculptor: J. Bugbee Jackson — — Map (db m257448) HM
Battalion Chief Phil Rounds would like to invite you to have a seat
and put your feet up. Enjoy the view of this beautiful place we live in
and take a moment to reflect at all the awesomeness we have
around us.
Phil was a chief with the . . . — — Map (db m256391) HM
The Constitutional Convention
convened here November 8, 1955,
to draft a Constitution for Alaska.
The good work of this convention
was rewarded with the granting of
statehood on January 3, 1959. — — Map (db m257446) HM
Thermosyphons keep the permafrost frozen
Thompson Drive crosses areas of continually frozen ground, known as permafrost. If the permafrost thaws and settling occurs, the entire roadway structure, including sidewalks, curbs and the . . . — — Map (db m256289) HM
Air convection embankments keep the air moving
The rock layers along the sides of Thompson Drive are part of a system known as an air convection embankment. This special type of roadway embankment has large rocks that allow air to . . . — — Map (db m256288) HM
There came upon this campus in the year Nineteen Twenty Two the First Engineer, and this was good. Then over the place spread Idiots, and the Engineer saw this was bad. And he cast a great stone saying: Whensoever this stone shall be removed by . . . — — Map (db m257452) HM
★ For forty years of service to the ★
★ University of Alaska Fairbanks ★
Insightful, collaborative,
extraordinarily capable Helga
helped faculty, staff, and students
in the Institute of Arctic Biology, . . . — — Map (db m256296) HM
Archaeology is the field of anthropology that deals with the study of historic and prehistoric human activity. Within that branch, the subfield of historical archaeology combines information from artifacts, written records, and oral history to . . . — — Map (db m256347) HM
Blockhouse
Spruce, birch, tamarack, moss, weatherproof membrane, canvas
Kolmakovsky Redoubt, 1841
Collector: Al Walsh, 1929
In 2009, the University of Alaska Museum of the North was awarded a $75,000 Save America's
Treasures . . . — — Map (db m256342) HM
Convened here November 8, 1955 to draft a constitution for Alaska. The good work of this convention was rewarded with the granting of Statehood on January 3, 1959. — — Map (db m290380) HM
James Wickersham saw the cornerstone as key to keeping the idea of a college alive. "The interest of the people must not be permitted to lag," he wrote in June 1915, three months after he secured the land from Congress but two years before the . . . — — Map (db m257454) HM
On a June day in 1915, Alaska's territorial delegate to Congress, James Wickersham, and six companions cut a rough road to this hilltop site, set up a concrete pour and laid down a cornerstone.
The cornerstone's inscription, "A.A.C.S.M., July . . . — — Map (db m257459) HM
The Kuskokwim River (Kusquqvak in Central Yup'ik) runs 724 miles (1,130 km) through Southwest
Alaska and is the setting for dozens of communities and thousands of people. For several
millennia, indigenous people have fished these waters, . . . — — Map (db m256334) HM
UAF's Poker Flat Research Range, 30 miles (48 kilometers) northeast of Fairbanks, is owned and operated by the UAF Geophysical Institute. It launches rockets under contract to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Poker Flat is the . . . — — Map (db m256299) HM
In 1799, the Russian American Company (RAC) was established via a 20-year renewable charter
granting a monopoly over trading in Russia's North American holdings. The company focused
on exploiting fur resources in Alaska during the first charter . . . — — Map (db m256337) HM
What is a Land, Sea and Space Grant institution? Only a handful of institutions in the country can claim the triple crown status of Land, Sea and Space Grant institutionUAF is one of them.
Land Grant
Founded in 1917 as the Alaska . . . — — Map (db m256284) HM
This scale model of the solar system will take you on a one mile walk from the sun past all
the planets to Pluto and the Kuiper Belt. As you move east along Yukon Drive, nine signs
represent the sun, Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, . . . — — Map (db m256394) HM
UAF's Poker Flat Research Range has participated in a NASA program since 1969 that uses sounding rockets to collect information about the Sun, stars, galaxies and Earth's atmosphere and ionosphere. Sounding rockets are also used to develop and . . . — — Map (db m256301) HM
The blazing ball that is our sun blasts a constant stream of ionized gases into space. This solar
wind flows around Earth's magnetic field like a stream rushes around a boulder. Scientists
call the region within the windsock-shaped flow around . . . — — Map (db m256302)
Behind you is a Black Brant IX sounding rocket. Hundreds of similar rockets have been launched by NASA from the UAF Geophysical Institute's Poker Flat Research Range to study the aurora and near-Earth space. The 50-foot-long (15 meter), two-stage . . . — — Map (db m256303) HM
Jim Binkley was born in 1920 in Wrangell, Alaska. His father was a pioneer riverboat captain who came to Alaska during the gold rush of 1898. Captain Jim ran the entire length of the Yukon River and its major tributaries which supplied the . . . — — Map (db m257556) HM
The 1910 election season in Fairbanks was noteworthy because of an
eccentric wager placed by two local residents on the outcome of the
election for the Territorial Delegate to Congress. The candidates were
Judge James Wickersham, John . . . — — Map (db m257545) HM
"Two Step" Louis Schmidt without a doubt was the most consistently successful
prospector that ever mined in the Yukon and Alaska. Starting with his unorthodox
discovery of high bench pay on Cheechako Hill above Bonanza Creek in Yukon . . . — — Map (db m257535) HM
It appears that considerable amusement was furnished by "Wise Mike" Stepovich, whose 2 ½ tons of quartz ore ran through the Citizen's mill this week yielded $700.00. (about 43 oz.)[.] Wise Mike was so jubilant at the richness of the ore that he . . . — — Map (db m257502) HM
Our cabins are built of fire killed wood harvested by the Nenana Lumber Company after the Great 10,000 Acre Tok Fire of 1990. Tok is a town of 1,400 near the Athabascan village of Tanacross, between the Tanana River and the Alaska Range, 200 . . . — — Map (db m257555) HM
Alaska was purchased from the Russian Empire on March 30, 1867, for $7.2 million at about two cents per acre. The land went through several administrative changes before becoming an organized territory on May 11, 1912, and the 49th state of the . . . — — Map (db m257476) HM
Alphonso L'Kievicz was a man well calculated for frontier life, for to him all
things seem easy and nothing to be excited about. He came to Fairbanks in the
early days and brought the first suction dredge here in 1908, which he set up . . . — — Map (db m257540) HM
Bear Cache
A bear cache is a place designed to store food outdoors and prevents bears and other animals from accessing it. They are often used by campers when staying in bear habitat and can also be used by hunters for storing game. A . . . — — Map (db m257466) HM
Fairbanks Daily News Miner- April 2, 1924
"Some clever advertising man has shipped a glass parka on the "Klondike Cow," as many old timers call the red-and-white labeled can of Carnation milk. The old friend of sourdough and cheechaco . . . — — Map (db m257549) HM
On July 4, 1906 at Seward, Alaska the Hon. Cecil H. Clegg gave a speech in which he suggested that Alaskans should officially designate a day to be celebrated as Alaska Day within the Territory. At that time, Clegg was the deputy United States . . . — — Map (db m257533) HM
In the spring of 1905 a rash of armed robberies occurred along the trail that led from the gold mines into Fairbanks. Miners bringing their gold into Fairbanks to deposit into the bank suddenly found themselves looking down the barrel of a gun . . . — — Map (db m257550) HM
Baseball has always been a big deal here in Fairbanks. The famous Midnight Sun Baseball game has been played here for more than 100 years at midnight without artificial lighting. In the early days, one of the most popular teams was sponsored by . . . — — Map (db m257504) HM
Cordelia Karshner was a well-known seamstress here in Fairbanks who arrived in the Tanana Valley in 1904. She married John F. Karshner of Manley Hot Springs in 1910 and two years after his death in 1913, she made history:
HOT SPRINGS WOMAN . . . — — Map (db m257516) HM
The following story comes from the old mining camp of Chatanika which had a large population of miners, but no animal control, police or fire departments to call upon when things got out of hand with neighboring livestock.
Fairbanks Daily . . . — — Map (db m257538) HM
Probably more yarns are spun about Fannie Quigley, the "little witch of Denali," than any other female Alaska character. Here's the latest--and it's all wool and as wide as her won Kantishna Valley.
After felling a moose with a potshot from . . . — — Map (db m257553) HM
Felix Pedro changed his name from Felice Pedroni when he immigrated to America and then made his way to Alaska in his mid-30's. Felix discovered gold in the Tanana hills surrounding modern day Fairbanks in July 1902. Felix was E.T. Barnette's . . . — — Map (db m257493) HM
In the early days of our local history, a dog was a revered animal to many men. A good dog could help shoulder a load, provide an ear for a lonely miner, patrol mining camp perimeters and alerting of impending intrusion by either man or beast, . . . — — Map (db m257536) HM
Have you ever wondered where the slogan "Golden Heart City" came from, or how long we have been using that catchy phrase?
It all began on July 20, 1911 when the Fairbanks Commercial Club was formed, which was the predecessor of today's . . . — — Map (db m257514) HM
Transportation
As the transportation hub for Interior Alaska, Fairbanks features extensive road, rail, and air connections to the rest of Alaska and "The Outside". At Fairbanks' founding, the only way to reach the new city was . . . — — Map (db m257477) HM
Jessie Bloom came to Fairbanks from Ireland in 1912 and was married to Robert Bloom.
Back in Ireland she had been an active member of the Women's Freedom League and she believed in equal rights for women and men.
In 1916 she was active in a . . . — — Map (db m257552) HM
Miss Jewatha Brice arrived in Fairbanks with her mother, Mary Brice, before 1910. At that time, they represented two of the ten total women living in Fairbanks who were of African-American descent.
Jewatha, who was 15 years old in 1910, . . . — — Map (db m257534) HM
The following story occurred around 1910 at a wood camp on the Yukon river about 30 miles above Circle. A boat loaded with tourists stopped and marveled at John the Bearhunter's apparent unconcern about the millions of mosquitoes that were . . . — — Map (db m257544) HM
In April of 1902 it was reported in a Dawson City newspaper that E. A. Hensley had struck it rich on Baker Creek, which was located near Manley Hot Springs, and that he was "fairly shoveling out the gold."
Mr. Hensley had been driven to the . . . — — Map (db m257510) HM
My husband William Foster and I, decided to try our luck in the gold rush for Alaska, so set out in January 1898 aboard the vessel "Corona" on her maiden voyage. On the way North, she veered off her course, and struck a rock and sank in about . . . — — Map (db m257517) HM
LeRoy Tozier was a brilliant early day attorney in Fairbanks and a beloved
well-known character of both the Klondike and Alaska.
Among his great many accomplishments, Tozier was elected as the first
president of Igloo No. 4 of the Pioneers . . . — — Map (db m257506) HM
Fairbanks Daily Times October 2, 1906
Dome Creek Has a Woman Who Runs Hoist on the Claim
"Out on Dome Creek there is a devoted little woman who is a heroine in the eyes of the miners out there, and, perhaps, one could search all . . . — — Map (db m257495) HM
FAIRBANKS EVENING NEWS, AUGUST 8, 1906
Perhaps never in the north before, was so unique a party witnessed, as that given at the Fairbanks Natatorium last night, where a banquet with several courses, was served on a floating table in the . . . — — Map (db m257501) HM
In 1913, the Alaska Territorial Legislature gave women the right to vote. A few months later, the ladies of Fairbanks gathered in the district courtroom and decided to nominate two women from the group to run for the clerk seat on the local . . . — — Map (db m257551) HM
The "Mysterious Mr. Raffles" has come to town and it is up to you to find him. He arrived on the last boat and he reported at once to Fred Martin, at the California saloon, his one acquaintance in all Alaska.
The business of the "Mysterious . . . — — Map (db m257509) HM
Nellie Parsons was the daughter of the Reverend John Parsons who came to Fairbanks and built the first Methodist church here in 1905. Nellie used to accompany her father on his trips to the creeks where she played the organ and sang at the . . . — — Map (db m257542) HM
In 1912 Pete Bucholz purchased a calf moose that was originally caught in the Salcha area. For the next couple of years, the moose, whose name was Dick, was a regular sight in the Fairbanks area. He was also the mascot for the Moose Lodge here . . . — — Map (db m257512) HM
History
The Trans-Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) includes the trans-Alaska crude-oil pipeline, 11 pump stations, several hundred miles of feeder pipelines, and the Valdez Marine Terminal. TAPS is one of the world's largest . . . — — Map (db m257473) HM
Are they the same?
Reindeer and caribou look different, but they probably are the same species. Caribou are large, wild. elk-like animals which can be found above the tree-line in arctic North America. Because they can live on lichens in . . . — — Map (db m257471) HM
Long Tom
Long Toms were a type of sluice box that was very common in the old mining areas. They were set at a steeper angle than the standard sluice ox, so they were good for areas that had limited water. These were often very long and were . . . — — Map (db m257439) HM
Cliff Everts was a pilot and entrepreneur from a young age. His love of flying motivated him to get a paper route and other odd jobs to finance ground school, and flight training. He took his first lesson at age fourteen and soloed at sixteen, . . . — — Map (db m257019) HM
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