Historic Photos of Alaska - Book Review

By Nevine Zaki

Historic Photos of Alaska is a wonderful compilation of black and white photographs depicting Alaska's history, from the time of its purchase by the United States from Russia in the second half of the 1800's, through the building of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline in the 1970's.

The pictures have been chosen from national, as well as Alaskan collections, both private and public.

Throughout the book, you see many "firsts", such as the first basketball team of the Alaska Native Brotherhood in 1917. You'll also see many examples of Alaskan ingenuity, still present today, such as a picture of a Model T Ford automobile converted into a powerful circular saw used for cutting lumber and firewood in 1915.

Some of the pictures depict heart-wrenching events, such gold rush stampeders hard at work, digging many of their fellows out of the snow after the 1898 Palm Sunday avalanche at Chilkoot Pass.

Fourth of July celebrations in different towns and eras are seen frequently. Overall, it was hard not to come to the conclusion that the times may change, but the land and the people will always essentially be the same.

The 205-page book is divided into four chronologically arranged chapters, each portraying a separate era of Alaska's history. Dermot Cole, a long-time Alaskan, journalist, and historian, provides a concise description of each time period at the beginning of each chapter, as well as a caption under each photograph.

Although most Alaskans are fairly familiar with the history of Alaska, this book gave me an insight one can only get from seeing pictures of not only the major events of those eras, but of everyday life during those times. Historic Photos of Alaska does a great job of portraying the perseverance, determination, and resourcefulness of the hardy people who have chosen to make a life in a harsh, inhospitable, yet incredibly beautiful, vast, and bountiful land, who have made Alaska what it is today.

Historic Photos of Alaska is published by Turner Publishing Company, copyright 2008. The list price is $39.95.

Book Signing

A book signing with author Dermot Cole has been scheduled at the Fairbanks Barnes and Noble on Saturday, April 26th from 12pm-2pm.

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