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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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 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
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
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
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
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
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
★ 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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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 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
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
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 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
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
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
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
Alaska's Pioneer Aviator Noel Wien, learned to fly in Minnesota in 1921. In eight hours, he learned to fly and soloed in a Curtiss JN-4 at the Curtiss Company Flying School. He then spent the next two years with the Federated Flying Circus doing . . . — — Map (db m256947) 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
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
Fairbanks
Fairbanks is the largest city in the Interior region of Alaska, and second largest in the state behind Anchorage. According to the recent census the population of the city was approximately 30,000 and the Fairbanks . . . — — Map (db m257461) HM
Our produce growing season in Fairbanks is fairly short about four blissful months, extending from May - September. However, while the season is short, the intensity of the
24-hour sunshine enables produce to grow at incredibly fast rates. . . . — — Map (db m257480) 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
This is a picture of Whiskers who was an early canine resident of Fairbanks. His career began in a bear trap, where he was caught and held captive for several days. Later, he was introduced to the canine society of Fairbanks in the very early . . . — — Map (db m257548) HM
Image captured from 16mm film of the 1941 annual spring float test of the Wien Fairchild 71 at Pike's Landing. According to Noel Wien's son Richard, the plane was towed from Weeks Field to Pike's Landing for the test run. He also said that Pike's . . . — — Map (db m257016) HM
Felix Pedro's gold discovery here in the summer of 1902 sparked a stampede to Fairbanks from other surrounding gold camps in Alaska and the Yukon. The first official stampeders to arrive in Fairbanks were William Salmon and Gus Conradt, who . . . — — Map (db m257537) HM
In the early days of Fairbanks, wood was the only fuel source available here in the Tanana Valley. It was used to generate power, for heating, cooking and construction. William "Woodsaw Bill" Sherwin was one of many men employed in the . . . — — Map (db m257496) 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
