Dan Jones’ father served at the Arctic Training Center at Fort Greely Alaska in the 1950’s. Dan commented on one of my stories a few days ago, asked what I knew about the Arctic Test Board. The answer was “nothing”. But I promised to investigate. I hope Dan will share some of his dad’s stories …
Tag Archives: Alaska
Glacier, the Valdez Glacier
Women Came to the Klondike Too The Valdez Glacier looked easy, and in 1897 and 1898 when promoters invited gold rushers to take “The All American Route” to the Klondike, they had yet to learn that hustlers offering helpful advice were just about the only people making money from the Klondike Gold Rush. They …
Rika Wallen’s Iconic Roadhouse
Rika followed her brother, Carl, to the United States from Sweden, lived for a time on his farm in Minnesota then moved on to San Francisco where she cooked for the fabulously wealthy Hills Brothers Coffee family. She came to San Francisco as Erica, but an affectionate estate staff shortened her name to Rika. The …
Twenty-something Mary, the Legend Continues
Twenty-something Mary moved to Alaska and never looked back. That doesn’t mean everything went smoothly. Legendary Alaskan, Mary Hanson In the early 1930’s Mary got pregnant; had a miscarriage; took herself to Nenana for medical treatment. Not by any means the Mayo clinic, whatever medical facilities Nenana had to offer did the trick. Twenty-something Mary …
Continue reading “Twenty-something Mary, the Legend Continues”
Opening Ceremony, the Publicity Machine Launched
Two bulldozers met in the woods and the publicity machine launched. Colonels and generals had got bulldozers from the 97th and the 18th in the same place, therefore they had completed the Alaska Highway. End of story. On to a dramatic opening ceremony. Two Bulldozers in the Same Place Secretary of War Henry Stimson …
Continue reading “Opening Ceremony, the Publicity Machine Launched”
Maternity Alaska Style
Maternity ward? A cabin in Eagle Alaska—in January. If the history of the subarctic north fascinates you, people who choose to live there especially fascinate you. The weather, the terrain, the geology, all downright hostile, draw utterly unique people who choose to live there because of the difficulty and danger, not in spite of …
D8 A Bucket of Olive Drab
“A Bucket of Olive Drab,’ the Caterpillar Company called the D8 Bulldozer they shipped to the Army. They also called it the “indispensable, all-purpose weapon of the Engineers”. The big crawlers made the Alaska Highway Project possible in 1942. The Big Machines Could be Delicate Too The D8 weighed in at twenty- three tons. Its …
Monte’s Legs
The story of Monte’s legs has Alaska all over it. Another unique Alaskan Life there is like nowhere else on the planet. It takes a unique kind of person to live there and love it. A few months ago, researching our work in progress, my partner and researcher, Chris, ran across a story that ran …
They lose Private Banks Remains
How do you lose the remains of an honorably buried soldier? It’s not easy. Last night I posted about Private Major Banks who, along with thousands of other soldiers, received a contaminated yellow fever vaccine in March 1942. In June Private Banks contracted serum hepatitis and at the end of June he passed away in …
The Pass opened on May 20.
Up to the Pass, the soldiers of Company D convoyed between towering cliffs of piled snow, rode benches on either side of a bouncing and sliding canvas covered truck bed, out into the valley beyond the Pass and on 50 miles to Tonsina. Six days later the soldiers of Company C followed them through the …