Thursday, December 26, 2013

The Chisna Mining and Improvement Company

Editor’s note: The following is excerpted from Hazelet’s Journal, a new book by George Cheever Hazelet and John Clark previously mentioned here on this blog.

“The Chisna Mining and Imp. Company, of which G. C. Hazelet is manager, and A. J. Meals is superintendent, has expended in the last two years one hundred thousand dollars in machinery, supplies, etc., besides the labor of twenty-five men in opening their property. This property lies well up towards the head waters of the Copper River, on a creek called Chisna, and is about 225 miles almost due north from Valdez. Messrs. Hazelet and Meals went in with the rush of 1898 to the Copper River country, reaching what is now the town of Valdez the first March of that year.

“They had with them a two year’s supply of provisions and at once set out over the glacier, transporting their supplies on hand sleds to the foot of the Klutena or Abercrormbie lake, reaching that point on the first day of May. In company with A. H. McNeer of West Virginia they build a boat at this point and proceeded down the Klutena river to its junction with the Copper, where is now located the pretty little town of Copper Center….


“To Messrs. Hazelet and Meals is due the credit of discovering the Chistochina ‘diggings’ and their company has done more towards developing the country than any other similar organization.” (A Guide for Alaska Miners, Settlers and Tourist, 1902)

The Chisna Mining and Improvement Co., a.k.a. the Hazelet-Meals Party, c. 1900.


Diston at the “Nozzle”, c. 1900. Hazelet and Meals were among the first to use hydraulic mining in Alaska.

Sunday, December 22, 2013

Guided by the Light

Editor’s note: This essay was written a few years ago by AHS President Katie Ringsmuth and is being republished here as a special solstice / holiday greeting to the readers of this blog. Happy Holidays from AHS!

By Katie Ringsmuth

To celebrate winter solstice this year, Eric, Ben, Tom and I joined several of our Eagle River neighbors for a “Lantern Walk,” through the boreal forest at the Nature Center. Instead of the bone-chilling coldness of 10 below we experienced last year, on this night a Chinook windstorm brewing somewhere out in the Pacific blew into Prince William Sound, over the Chugach Mountains, and down the river valley, causing the primordial cottonwood, birch, and spruce trees to bend and screech furiously. Torch lights, along with our homemade lanterns, fought gallantly against the hostile gusts, but the windy darkness greedily consumed the light. Our guides instructed us to walk silently and in peace through the void, to forget the hustle and bustle of the past and the daunting tasks looming in the future. To simply be. Indeed, with restless five-year-old Ben and napless two-year-old Tom, this night was bound to be anything but silent. Eric held my hand valiantly, giving it a hopeful squeeze. For he understood that the goal of serenity for his always stressed out wife was highly optimistic. Like the forest itself, I simply felt old.


As a historian and mother I am both a dweller in the past and a worrier about the future. Each Christmas it seems as if winter darkness seeps deeper into my world, affecting everything around me, even my own children. My blue-eyed Tom is apparently developing a dark sense of humor: his favorite character in the Lion King is Scar, he was Darth Vader for Halloween, and his beloved Christmas show this year is the Grinch. Ben’s entry into public school this fall has provoked not one but two requests to know whether I am Ben’s mom or his grandma. Although the aim of the Lantern Walk was to embrace the present, my eyes kept darting toward the gnarled woods for apparitions. I half expected Scrooge’s ghosts of Christmas Past and Christmas Future to appear and fly me away because of my darkening views.

Maybe it’s the historian in me, but as our feet slid down the icy, illuminated trail my thoughts drifted deeper into the ancient woods. Like the forest, and me, I suppose, Christmas is old—and dark. The Old English word for Christmas, Cristes Maesse—the Mass of Christ—dates back to 1038. But rituals celebrating the darkest days of winter predate the birth of Jesus by thousands of years. The Mesopotamians spent 12 days in winter celebrating their god, Marduk, who they believed battled the “Monsters of Chaos” (something, I think, most parents can relate). Eric’s ancestors, the Scandinavians, rejoiced during the Yuletide, which recognized the return of the sun. On December 21, the Norse burnt a Yule Log, believing that each spark meant new life. They feasted on their remaining livestock, and to remind them of spring’s return, hung apples on trees. Northern Europeans honored the spruce tree, for it represented life at time when the Little Ice Age held the world in a frozen, deathly grip. My ancestors signaled the start of winter with a strange Celtic festival that combined traditions of Halloween and New Year’s Eve called Samhain. Souls and spirits from the past rose from the dead on Samhain Night, while prophets shared the promise of the future with eager Irish youth. The ancient Celts chose to celebrate Samhain sometime between summer and winter, during an interval that they believed existed outside of ordinary time, where the past and the future, lightness and darkness, merged.

The Romans celebrated the winter solstice honoring their many gods during lively festivals, including the rambunctious Saturnalia. They also celebrated Juvenilia, the feast honoring Roman children, as well as the birth of Mithra, the god of the unconquerable sun, born on December 25. Here in Alaska, the tradition of “Starring” celebrates the journey of the magi who, by following the Christmas Star, found another infant born likely in the spring, but whose birthday is also celebrated on December 25. The Russians brought the ritual of Starring to Russian-America in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Alaska Natives, who were folded into the Orthodox Church, embraced the tradition, which is now considered a traditional Alaska custom. And, of course, it was Raven, born of a virgin birth, who, during a time when the earth was covered in darkness, stole the sun from a powerful chief in order to shed the world and heavens in light. That is why, instead of an angel or star, a black, hairy Raven sits atop our Christmas tree.

My ponderings of past solstices traditions and our ancestors’ universal reliance on—and hope for—the future, reminded me that History is old, but Life is not. Feeling lighter both inside and out, I conceded that my kids were neither silent nor very serene that solstice night, but they certainly were living in the present. When we arrived at the bonfire, Eric continued to hold my hand. In the warmth of the burning spruce logs my dim thoughts began to focus on my boys, whose happy faces glowed as they sang carols and ate cookies. Like our ancestors, I saw each blazing ember, torch, and lantern as a hopeful wish for a happy future.

On the way home, we sang Tom’s favorite song from the Grinch: “Welcome Christmas while we stand/Heart to hear and hand in hand/Christmas day will always be/Just so long as we have we.”

Perhaps we need the darkness to appreciate that light. Just as we need the wax and the wane of the moon, the ebb and flow of the tide, the secular and the spiritual, the material and the mystic, and the dread and the delight of winter. I suppose that’s why tales of Scrooge, the Grinch—even Darth Vader—are so appealing to us. They are lessons in redemption; how one goes from the dark to the light. But like the ancient Celts, Dickens understood that we also need a mixture of the past, present and future to illuminate what is important in our lives. Reminders of what came before and signs of what might be help guide us through life. Allowing us to truly appreciate what we have and with whom we share it in the present. To simply be is hard. For most of us live neither in the dark or the light. Most of us live somewhere in between.


Happy Reveling this Solstice!

Friday, December 20, 2013

End of the Aleutian Goose

By Jeff Dickrell

The Grumman Goose was designed in 1937, originally to be a commuter limousine for Long Island businessmen. Technically a ‘flying boat’ as opposed to a float plane, the Goose can carry eight passengers. WWII intervened and it became a widely-used patrol and liaison craft. A total of 345 were built with production ending in 1945. With the war over, many of these sturdy little planes were used by airlines that operated island routes. They were popular in the Caribbean, Hawaii, and, of course, Alaska.

In 1947, Reeve Aleutian Airlines was born. The former bush pilot Bob Reeve saw a niche and began serving the small villages and military bases on the chain. In 1948 he brought in a couple Grumman Gooses (yes, Gooses not Geese) to service those places without runways. R.A.A. used these versatile aircraft until 1977, when they passed the torch to Peninsula Airways. PenAir used their two Grummans to fly the local routes out of Unalaska until the autumn of 2013.


Today, there are only a handful of communities in the Aleutians. Outside of Unalaska/ Dutch Harbor (pop. 4,000) are Nikolski (pop. 20), Adak (100), Atka (70), and Akutan (30 residents, 800 fish processors). All of these villages have runways except Akutan. It is Akutan that kept the Goose in business all those years. Twice a year, January and June (and again at the end of the season), the Trident fish processing company needs to get its 800 workers from Unalaska, where there is regular air service from Anchorage to its plant located on Akutan Island, some 40 miles east. The bulk of these workers, from all over the globe, were transported, eight at a time, via the Goose. When things are really hectic, PenAir would use both of their Grummans simultaneously. These two planes were the last remaining scheduled airline Gooses in the world.


In 2012, the State of Alaska began constructing an $80 million airport on the island of Akun, four miles from the community of Akutan. Getting to the village from the new airport requires a $100 four-passenger helicopter ride. With the cessation of the sea-plane service, PenAir decided to sell -off its two Gooses. So now, for the first time in 65 years, the Aleutian residents no longer gaze up to see their own little piece of flying history.

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Take Action to Protect Historic, Archaeological, and Cultural Resources

Editor’s note: The following letter was sent earlier this month by AHS Vice President Anjuli Grantham to Gary Knell and David Lyle, the CEOs of National Geographic Society and National Geographic Channels, respectively. Please read the letter and consider signing an online petition asking National Geographic and Spike TV networks to stop airing (or at least add a statement of caution to) the show “Diggers.” As Grantham’s letter points out, the show encourages amateur treasure hunters to disturb and potentially loot historic and archaeological sites. The petition is available here: www.change.org/petitions/the-national-geographic-channel-the-travel-channel-spike-tv-stop-airing-their-digger-programs-3

Dear Mr. Lyle:

I am writing on behalf of the Alaska Historical Society’s Board of Directors. We are a board comprised of historians, archivists, anthropologists, and educators, and similar to National Geographic, we are dedicated to advancing both scholarship about, and stewardship towards, our shared heritage.

It is due to the National Geographic Society’s history of espousing the values of scholarship and stewardship that we are dismayed by the show, Diggers. We understand that the show’s producers have consulted with archaeologists, yet nonetheless, the take away message for viewers is that metal detecting is a non-destructive activity. This is not the case, and this is not in line with the National Geographic’s own history. National Geographic is an organization trusted for its professional ethics. In fact, National Geographic expeditions have uncovered rich archaeological finds and introduced the public to these discoveries in a manner that encourages both stewardship and respect. As a result, we contend that Diggers is not within the ethos of the National Geographic brand.

Without a serious effort to educate viewers about the legal, scientific, and ethical repercussions of amateur digging, the show is training individuals to vandalize and ransack our cultural heritage. For these reasons, the board of directors of the Alaska Historical Society asks that National Geographic include a warning at the beginning and end of each show, telling viewers about the negative consequences of metal detecting. Moreover, we ask that you use Diggers as an opportunity to educate viewers about cultural resource management and the laws and practices that professionals adhere to. This way, viewers will understand that it is illegal to dig on public land and that it causes irreparable damage if done without the guidance of a trained archaeologist.

Please work to ensure the protection and measured study of cultural and historic sites rather than their destruction. We encourage you to continue to advance the value of stewardship by including statements against looting and vandalism in each show.

Sincerely,

Anjuli Grantham
Vice President

Alaska Historical Society Board of Directors

Saturday, December 14, 2013

Fairbanks Event – Lecture by Bill Schneider, Wednesday 12/18

The Tanana Yukon Historical Society invites the public to “On Whose Terms? Indian Chiefs and White settlement in the Tanana Valley,” a lecture by Bill Schneider.

Wednesday, December 18
7:00 p.m.
Pioneer Hall at Pioneer Park
Fairbanks


For a long period, Native residents along the Yukon River had contact with Western travelers. Those living farther south on Tanana River drainages continued to pursue much of their traditional yearly cycle. There were few Whites passing through the Tanana Valley, and no White inhabitants until the turn of the 20th Century. Until then, Native land was relatively free of competing claims.

What was the impact of this extended period of indirect contact? Did it prepare them for the eventual onslaught of gold seekers, military construction projects, trading posts, missions and competing demands for the land? How did the history of involvement with Native groups influence the government's perception of the Natives and their rights?

Schneider will suggest some answers to these questions by referencing the experiences of Chief Joseph and Chief Jarvis, whose lives were intertwined with the events and influences that mark the early years of the 20th Century.

Bill Schneider is Professor Emeritus and founding Curator of Oral History at the Alaska and Polar Regions Department, Elmer Rasmuson Library, University of Alaska Fairbanks. In retirement, he continues his decades-long research into the history of Alaska and Yukon.


For more information about this and other lectures sponsored by the Tanana Yukon Historical Society, please call 488-3383, or e-mail <tyhs@alaska.net>

Thursday, December 12, 2013

New Book Announcement - Hazelet’s Journal


Old Stone Press announces the publication of Hazelet’s Journal by George Cheever Hazelet and J. H. Clark (editor). Based on three journals written in 1898, the book tells the story of George Cheever Hazelet, a prospector who explored the Copper River region and figured prominently in the early history of Valdez and Cordova. The book features over 150 photographs, maps, and illustrations, many never before published from private collections.


For more information, please visit: hazeletsjournal.com

Monday, December 9, 2013

Pipeline Games


Over the past several weeks we’ve shared with you images of Alaska- and Arctic-themed board games. Today, in the final installment of the series…

The PIPELINE!

Here’s “Alaska Pipeline: The Energy Crisis Game,” produced by an Anchorage company called Pipeline Games, Ltd., in 1973:

Each of the game’s four characters—the roughneck, the professor, the tycoon, and the bespectacled woman—teach important facts about the pipeline, all designed to engender support for the project that was then still in its pre-construction planning phase.

Here’s the “Alaska Oil Game”:

In this game, produced in 1978 when the pipeline was up and running, players draw cards to move either forward or backward. When oil is moving down the line, move forward nine spaces:


When an environment review is required, go back three. (In this game, environmental protection is obviously a losing strategy…)

There are, of course, dozens if not hundreds of other Alaska board games that have been produced and played over the decades. This series has focused on board games, but we’ve all seen Alaska-themed playing cards, dominoes, puzzles, etc. A few years ago the Alaska State Museum exhibited “Jeff Brown’s Great Alaska Game Show.” Visit the online exhibit here: museums.alaska.gov/online_exhibits/AlaskaGameShow.html

Previous posts in this board game series can be found here:

http://49history.blogspot.com/2013/11/gaming-for-arctic-adventure.html

http://49history.blogspot.com/2013/10/gaming-for-gold-part-ii.html

http://49history.blogspot.com/2013/09/gaming-for-gold.html