Boom and Bust in the Alaska Goldfields

Boom and Bust in the Alaska Goldfields PDF Author: Steven C. Levi
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 0313345457
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 269

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Book Description
In this lively narrative with its numerous illustrations and photographs, Steven C. Levi captures the color and the riches of the Alaska Gold Rush and tells the stories of the larger-than-life characters who lived the adventure. The Alaska Gold Rush at the end of the 19th century was the last great fit of gold fever in North America. Men and women—including African Americans, Portuguese, Japanese, Italians, and Chinese—all rushed north. Many of these adventurers died in the harsh Arctic winters or drowned in the leaky, rotting ships that ferried them to the gold fields. The Gold Rush created the geography of modern Alaska and brought its rich natural resources and large Native population under the eye of the American government. This book, says Levi, is not intended to be an overview of the Alaska Gold Rush. Rather, it is meant to provide a myriad of glimpses into the lives of people and events of the age. This is a book of popular history. If you find it interesting, don't thank the writer; credit the 100,000 men and women who rushed north in search of the precious yellow metal a century ago. Far to the north of the 48 contiguous states, writes Steven C. Levi, is a land shrouded with the miasma of adventure. It is a land of glaciers the size of some states and fish the size of some cities. Its history is steeped in intrigue, scoundrels abound, and things that could never occur anywhere else on earth happened here. It has everything one has come to expect of an exotic port-and more. This land is Alaska. The Alaska Gold Rush at the end of the 19th century was the last great fit of gold fever in North America. It promised untold riches to anyone who could get there, and created a last-ditch, wild-west culture of greed and sin—a perfect haven for dreamers and scoundrels alike. Men and women—including African Americans, Portuguese, Japanese, Italians, and Chinese—all rushed north. Many of these adventurers died in the harsh Arctic winters or drowned in the leaky, rotting ships that ferried the dreamers to the gold fields. The Gold Rush created the geography of modern Alaska. Strikes in Nome (where the gold lay on the beach and anyone could reach down and pick it up), Juneau, Fairbanks, Valdez, and Kotzebue helped put Alaska on the map and brought its rich natural resources and large Native population under the eye of the American government. In this lively narrative with its numerous illustrations and photographs, Steven C. Levi captures the color and the riches of the Alaska Gold Rush and tells the stories of the larger-than-life characters who lived the adventure. E. T. Barnette, for example, founded his own city (Fairbanks), established his own bank (Washington Alaska), and then absconded with every dime in the vault. George Hinton Henry, the father of Alaska journalism, was run out of every town where he tried to establish a newspaper. This book, says Levi, is not intended to be an overview of the Alaska Gold Rush. Rather, it is meant to provide a myriad of glimpses into the lives of people and events of the age. This is a book of popular history. If you find it interesting, don't thank the writer; credit the 100,000 men and women who rushed north in search of the precious yellow metal a century ago.

Boom and Bust in the Alaska Goldfields

Boom and Bust in the Alaska Goldfields PDF Author: Steven C. Levi
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN: 0313345457
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 269

Get Book

Book Description
In this lively narrative with its numerous illustrations and photographs, Steven C. Levi captures the color and the riches of the Alaska Gold Rush and tells the stories of the larger-than-life characters who lived the adventure. The Alaska Gold Rush at the end of the 19th century was the last great fit of gold fever in North America. Men and women—including African Americans, Portuguese, Japanese, Italians, and Chinese—all rushed north. Many of these adventurers died in the harsh Arctic winters or drowned in the leaky, rotting ships that ferried them to the gold fields. The Gold Rush created the geography of modern Alaska and brought its rich natural resources and large Native population under the eye of the American government. This book, says Levi, is not intended to be an overview of the Alaska Gold Rush. Rather, it is meant to provide a myriad of glimpses into the lives of people and events of the age. This is a book of popular history. If you find it interesting, don't thank the writer; credit the 100,000 men and women who rushed north in search of the precious yellow metal a century ago. Far to the north of the 48 contiguous states, writes Steven C. Levi, is a land shrouded with the miasma of adventure. It is a land of glaciers the size of some states and fish the size of some cities. Its history is steeped in intrigue, scoundrels abound, and things that could never occur anywhere else on earth happened here. It has everything one has come to expect of an exotic port-and more. This land is Alaska. The Alaska Gold Rush at the end of the 19th century was the last great fit of gold fever in North America. It promised untold riches to anyone who could get there, and created a last-ditch, wild-west culture of greed and sin—a perfect haven for dreamers and scoundrels alike. Men and women—including African Americans, Portuguese, Japanese, Italians, and Chinese—all rushed north. Many of these adventurers died in the harsh Arctic winters or drowned in the leaky, rotting ships that ferried the dreamers to the gold fields. The Gold Rush created the geography of modern Alaska. Strikes in Nome (where the gold lay on the beach and anyone could reach down and pick it up), Juneau, Fairbanks, Valdez, and Kotzebue helped put Alaska on the map and brought its rich natural resources and large Native population under the eye of the American government. In this lively narrative with its numerous illustrations and photographs, Steven C. Levi captures the color and the riches of the Alaska Gold Rush and tells the stories of the larger-than-life characters who lived the adventure. E. T. Barnette, for example, founded his own city (Fairbanks), established his own bank (Washington Alaska), and then absconded with every dime in the vault. George Hinton Henry, the father of Alaska journalism, was run out of every town where he tried to establish a newspaper. This book, says Levi, is not intended to be an overview of the Alaska Gold Rush. Rather, it is meant to provide a myriad of glimpses into the lives of people and events of the age. This is a book of popular history. If you find it interesting, don't thank the writer; credit the 100,000 men and women who rushed north in search of the precious yellow metal a century ago.

The Human Face of the Alaska Gold Rush

The Human Face of the Alaska Gold Rush PDF Author: Steve Levi
Publisher: Publication Consultants
ISBN: 1637470088
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 173

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Book Description
It is the land of the Alaska Gold Rush, where nuggets were said to be the size of goose eggs, where men froze to death in search of the elusive yellow metal, and dancehall girls lured overnight millionaire sourdoughs into marriage. Honky-tonk pianos punctuated the howl of the north wind in towns that were half-tent and half-ramshackle collections of driftwood, whalebone, and packing cases. It was a time of whiskey and gold and long, lonely trails behind a dogsled. It was, in a word, ALASKA. In cities, rugged men and women walked on planks set across streets so deep with spring mud horses could be swallowed. On the tundra, life was a living hell with mosquitoes, gnats, white socks, and biting flies descending in clouds on warm-blooded creatures. On the flip side of the season, temperature could drop to 50 or 60 degrees below zero, cold enough to freeze a can of oil so solid it could be cut in half with a saw. With wind blasting at 100 miles an hour, the chill factor could go down to 100 degrees below zero, cold enough to freeze a person to death in a matter of minutes if he could not find proper shelter. In whiteout conditions, visibility could diminish to a foot in a matter of minutes. It was, in a word, ALASKA.

History of Alaska , Volume I

History of Alaska , Volume I PDF Author: Jonathan M. Nielson, Ph.D.
Publisher: Academica Press
ISBN: 1680530585
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 398

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Book Description
As a unique, distant geographical region of the United States, Alaska has evolved from military insignificance to high strategic priority in the 142 years since its purchase from Russia in 1867. The reasons for this dramatic shift derive from a correlation of geography, foreign policy, domestic politics, and military technology. Historically the role of the armed forces in Alaska has been large and diverse. Alaska was one of the two principal territorial purchases made by the United States between 1803 and 1867 adding nearly 1.5 million square miles to America’s national domain. Smaller by the size of Texas than Jefferson’s Louisiana Purchase, Alaska, unlike all of the territories and states carved out of the former, languished in obscurity and isolation, and was administered as a colonial dependency by the military and other branches of the federal government, its official ‘territorial status’ and government notwithstanding. While sharing many common aspects of frontier settlement and Western history with territories such as Montana, the Dakotas, Wyoming, and Colorado, Alaska presented special challenges peculiar to a non-contiguous arctic and sub-Arctic environment, separated from the United States by a foreign power. Indeed, only the defeated South under Reconstruction experienced the same degree of military occupation and martial law. Alaska also has the unique distinction in the American experience of belonging to Imperial Russia before it became of interest to American expansionists. Still others found Alaska tempting and pursued their own designs North of '53. The Spanish, British, Canadians, and even the French plied Alaska’s waters and made their claims to Alyeska- the Great Land. And it is with these clashing imperial ambitions that this three-volume history begins.

Buffalo Soldiers in Alaska

Buffalo Soldiers in Alaska PDF Author: Brian G. Shellum
Publisher: U of Nebraska Press
ISBN: 1496228871
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 368

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Book Description
The town of Skagway was born in 1897 after its population quintupled in under a year due to the Klondike gold rush. Balanced on the edge of anarchy, the U.S. Army stationed Company L, a unit of Buffalo Soldiers, there near the end of the gold rush. Buffalo Soldiers in Alaska tells the story of these African American soldiers who kept the peace during a volatile period in America’s resource-rich North. It is a fascinating tale that features white officers and Black soldiers safeguarding U.S. territory, supporting the civil authorities, protecting Native Americans, fighting natural disasters, and serving proudly in America’s last frontier. Despite the discipline and contributions of soldiers who served honorably, Skagway exhibited the era’s persistent racism and maintained a clear color line. However, these Black Regulars carried out their complex and sometimes contradictory mission with a combination of professionalism and restraint that earned the grudging respect of the independently minded citizens of Alaska. The company used the popular sport of baseball to connect with the white citizens of Skagway and in the process gained some measure of acceptance. Though the soldiers left little trace in Skagway, a few remained after their enlistments and achieved success and recognition after settling in other parts of Alaska.

Bonfire Saloon

Bonfire Saloon PDF Author: Steve Levi
Publisher: Publication Consultants
ISBN: 163747105X
Category : Poetry
Languages : en
Pages : 143

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Book Description
The Alaska Gold Rush is the least studied era of United States history. If you pull up Alaska Gold Rush on Wikipedia, you will get the Klondike Gold Rush. The Klondike Gold Rush was centered around Dawson in Canada's Yukon Territory and lasted 14 months. The Alaska Gold Rush lasted 40 years, from 1880 to the end of the First World War, and covered an area one-fifth that of the Lower 48 states. Bonfire Saloon is not a work of narrative poetry. It is a book of history disguised as literature. The slang, words, terms, and expressions would be used in a saloon in 1903 in a gold rush. The names of the people are authentic, and the events in the book happened. Bonfire Saloon is a ground-level look at the events and personalities of 39 individuals on a single night in a Nome saloon.

The Alaska Gold Rush

The Alaska Gold Rush PDF Author: David Wharton
Publisher: Bloomington: Indiana University Press
ISBN: 9780253100610
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 320

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Book Description
Reconstructs the personalities, events, trading settlements and major strikes which produced the Alaska gold-mining boom.

The Art of Stereography

The Art of Stereography PDF Author: Douglas Heil
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 147662724X
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 355

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Book Description
Three-dimensional stereoviews were wildly popular in the mid-19th century. Yet public infatuation fueled highbrow scorn, and even when they fell from favor, critics retained their disdain. Thus a dazzling body of photographic work has unjustly been buried. This book explores how compelling images were made by carefully combining subject matter, composition, lighting, tonality, blocking and depth. It draws upon the fine arts, the mass media, humanities, history, and even geology. Throughout, overlooked photographers are celebrated, such as the one who found extraordinary visual parallels within nature, anticipating Cezanne and Seurat--or the one who refused to play favorites during a bitter war and found humanity on both sides--or the one who took a favorite American glen and found menace all about. Stereographers were actually more like film directors or television producers than large format photographers: the best ones fused artistry with commercial appeal.

Derelicts, Bummers, Scoundrels and Doves

Derelicts, Bummers, Scoundrels and Doves PDF Author: Steven C. Levi
Publisher: Zumaya Yesterdays
ISBN: 1612711162
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 214

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Book Description
The Alaska Gold Rush started in 1880 and lasted until World War II. What made it so unusual was that many of the sourdoughs never left. They stayed on, year after year, sloshing through the freezing waters of thousands of streams, looking for the elusive yellow metal. Some became wealthy, and most of those spent their lifetime’s-worth of gold in a few months of wild living. Most just made enough to feed themselves. They lived in squalid cabins and survived on beans, caribou and wild onions. These are tales of the men and women who preferred to stay in Alaska rather than return to the cities—and the families—left behind. Many of them had very good reason to not want to return. Besides, Alaska was a wild and wooly place where there were no rules—except for the ones you made up as you went along.

Gold in Alaska

Gold in Alaska PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Alaska
Languages : en
Pages : 36

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Book Description


Walrus With A Gold Tooth

Walrus With A Gold Tooth PDF Author: Steven Levi
Publisher: Publication Consultants
ISBN: 1594334862
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 192

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Book Description
In the two decades between the Second World War and the Great Alaska Earthquake, Anchorage grew by a factor of 10. Money was, quite literally, washing down the street. The economic boom was so great that all you needed to make a million dollars was a cash register. At the same time Anchorage was one of the few cities in America where organized crime never got a firm foothold. Uptown, downtown, out of town, the locals were clever enough to keep the East Coast families out. Walrus With A Gold Tooth is a fictionalized version of crime in Anchorage over these two decades and a step-by-step history of how the local squeezed out the mob before it ever made it in. And if you know your Anchorage history, you just might be able to determine which characters are actual people whose names have been changed to protect the guilty.