Alaska- America's Last Frontier

“To the lover of wilderness, Alaska is one of the most wonderful countries in the world.” ~ John Muir ~

The Arctic has a call that is compelling. The distant mountains [of the Brooks Range in Alaska] make one want to go on and on over the next ridge and over the one beyond. The call is that of a wilderness known only to a few...This last American wilderness must remain sacrosanct." ~William O. Douglas~

Outsiders first discovered Alaska On August 20th, 1741 when Danish explorer Vitus Jonassen Bering sighted it on a voyage from Siberia. I have never been to Alaska but I know people who have. The Army sent my brother, David, there many years ago. He hasn't said it to me in the exact words but I hear in his voice when he talks about it that he would love to go there again. One fellow who has been there many times in his life says to me that "it gets in a man"s blood, that beauty; that something special that never leaves you after you have been there."
I would love to see it someday for myself. I have seen pictures and even have video filmed by My dear Hubby's Dad when he was working there. I almost understand the idea of it seeping into your bloodstream and calling you back again and again. Happy Birthday Alaska!

Alaskan fast facts

~Russian whalers and fur traders on Kodiak Island established the first settlement in Alaska in 1784.


~In 1867 United States Secretary of State William H. Seward offered Russia $7,200,000, or two cents per acre, for Alaska.

~On October 18, 1867 Alaska officially became the property of the United States. Many Americans called the purchase "Seward's Folly."


~Joe Juneau's 1880 discovery of gold ushered in the gold rush era.

~In 1943 Japan invaded the Aleutian Islands, which started the One Thousand Mile War, the first battle fought on American soil since the Civil War.


~Alaska officially became the 49Th state on January 3, 1959.

~Nearly one-third of Alaska lies within the Arctic Circle.

~The Alaska Highway was originally built as a military supply road during World War II.


~The discovery of gold in the Yukon began a gold rush in 1898. Later gold was discovered at Nome and Fairbanks.

~Alaska is a geographical marvel. When a scale map of Alaska is superimposed on a map of the 48 lower states, Alaska extends from coast to coast.


~Alaska is the United State's largest state and is over twice the size of Texas. Measuring from north to south the state is approximately 1,400 miles long and measuring from east to west it is 2,700 miles wide.

~Alaska's name is based on the Eskimo word Alakshak meaning great lands or peninsula.


Alaska
America's Largest State.
Land of the Midnight Sun.
An Anglers Dream.
Scenic; filled with wonderful beauty.
Kodiak Island; Alaska's Emerald Isle
America's Last Frontier

written by: Patricia Sawyer
8-20-2008

Enjoy the beauty of our world. Preserve it in every way that you can. Take the time to look at the sky and the trees. Be thankful that beauty surrounds us. Enjoy life. Have a great day!
Patsy