Timeline of Anchorage, Alaska

The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Anchorage, Alaska, United States.

20th century

• 1914 – Anchorage founded as a railroad construction camp.^[1]
• 1915
  • Chamber of Commerce^[2] and Anchorage Memorial cemetery established.
  • Alaska Railroad construction begins in Anchorage.^[3]
• 1916
  • Anchorage Hotel built.
  • Population: 3,332.^[4]
• 1917 – Anchorage Daily Times newspaper begins publication.^[5]
• 1920
  • Anchorage incorporated as a town.^[1]
  • Leopold David becomes mayor.
  • Population: 1,856.^[4]
• 1922 – Anchorage Public Library Association organized.^[6]
• 1924 – KFQD radio begins broadcasting.
• 1936
  • City Hall built.
  • Alaska State Fair begins near Anchorage.
• 1939 – Federal Building constructed.^[7]
• 1940 – U.S. military Elmendorf Field begins operating near Anchorage.
• 1941 – U.S. Army Fort Richardson built near Anchorage.
• 1943 – Fort Richardson National Cemetery established near Anchorage.
• 1946
  • Alaska News begins publication.
  • Anchorage Symphony Orchestra founded.
• 1947 – Fourth Avenue Theatre opens.
• 1950
  • Anchorage Philatelic Society founded.^[8]
  • Population: 35,651 metro.^[7]
• 1951
  • Anchorage Airport built.
  • Seward Highway (Seward-Anchorage) completed.
• 1953
  • KENI television begins broadcasting.^[9]
  • Anchorage High School opens.
• 1954 – Anchorage Community College established.^[10]
• 1955
  • Loussac Public Library opens.^[6]
  • Cook Inlet Historical Society founded.^[11][1]
  • U.S. military Kulis Air National Guard Base begins operating.
• 1959 – Anchorage becomes part of the new U.S. state of Alaska.
• 1964
  • January 1: Greater Anchorage Area Borough created.
  • March 27: The 9.2 Alaska earthquake affected anchorage with high intensity shaking that caused the control tower at Anchorage International Airport to collapse, and while the tsunamis (that were so destructive elsewhere) did not affect the city, landslides and other extreme ground deformation had significant impact, causing an estimated $116 million in damages ^[12] ($ billion in dollars)..
  • Nordic Skiing Association of Anchorage active.
• 1965 – Anchorage Youth Symphony organized.
• 1966 – Alaska Federation of Natives headquartered in Anchorage.^{[citation needed]}
• 1967 – George M. Sullivan becomes mayor.
• 1968
  • Anchorage Museum and Alaska Children's Zoo open.
  • Kincaid Park established.
• 1969 – Sundowner Drive-In cinema opens.^[13]
• 1970
  • Chugach State Park established.
  • Population: 48,081.
  • Alyeska Pipeline Service Company headquartered in Anchorage.
• 1971 – University of Alaska Anchorage established.^[10]
• 1973 – Don Young becomes U.S. representative for Alaska's at-large congressional district.
• 1975 – Municipality of Anchorage created;^[14] Anchorage Assembly established Sullivan continues as municipal mayor.
• 1979 – Food Bank of Alaska established.[2]
• 1980 – Population: 174,431.
• 1982
  • Tony Knowles becomes mayor.
  • Sister city relationship established with Darwin, Australia.^[15]
• 1983 – ARCO Tower and Hunt Building constructed.
• 1987
  • 5th Avenue Mall in business.
  • Tom Fink becomes mayor.
• 1988
  • Alaska Aviation Museum opens on Lake Hood.
  • Alaska Center for the Performing Arts opens.
• 1990 – Population: 226,338.^[16]
• 1992
  • Mount Spurr volcano erupts.^[17]
• 1993 – Alaska Botanical Garden opens.
• 1994
  • Anchorage Press in publication.^[18]
  • Rick Mystrom becomes mayor.
• 1995 – Binky (polar bear) dies in the Alaska Zoo.^[19]
• 1996 – City website online (approximate date).^[20]
• 1997
  • Alaska Native Medical Center established.
  • Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium headquartered in city.^{[citation needed]}
• 1998 – May: Alaska Natives political demonstration.^[21]
• 1999 – Alaska Native Heritage Center opens.^[9]
• 2000 – George Wuerch becomes mayor.

21st century

• 2001 – January: Anchorage paintball attacks.^[9]
• 2003 – Mark Begich becomes mayor.
• 2007 – Anchorage Historic Preservation Commission established.^[22]
• 2008
  • Alaska Dispatch begins publication.^[23]
  • Dena'ina Civic and Convention Center^[24] and Linny Pacillo Parking Garage open.
• 2009 – Matt Claman becomes mayor, succeeded by Dan Sullivan.
• 2010
  • Tikahtnu Commons cinema opens.^[13]
  • Population: 291,826.^[25]
• 2018 – A 7.0 earthquake strikes the city, along with several aftershocks, causing extensive damage.

See also

• History of Anchorage, Alaska
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Anchorage, Alaska
• List of mayors of Anchorage, Alaska

References

1. ^ Federal Writers' Project 1939.
2. ^ "Collections List". APU/UAA Consortium Library. University of Alaska Anchorage and Alaska Moving Image Preservation Association. Archived November 28, 2014 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
3. ^ LitSite Alaska. "Highlights from Alaska's History". Alaska Kids. University of Alaska Anchorage. Archived January 21, 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
4. ^ Wilson 1967.
5. ^ "US Newspaper Directory". Chronicling America. Washington DC: Library of Congress. Archived March 4, 2016 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
6. ^ Anchorage Public Library. "Anchorage Public Library Timeline". Municipality of Anchorage. Archived July 16, 2014 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
7. ^ Browne 1953.
8. ^ Alaska State Library. "Historical Collections: Collections Database". State of Alaska. Archived from the original on December 30, 2014. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
9. ^ "Chronological History of Alaska". Statewide Library Electronic Doorway. Alaska State Library and the University of Alaska. Archived April 2, 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
10. ^ UAA Community & Technical College. "History". University of Alaska Anchorage. Archived February 27, 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
11. ^ American Association for State and Local History (2002). "Alaska: Anchorage". Directory of Historical Organizations in the United States and Canada. Rowman Altamira. ISBN 0759100020. Archived 2021-10-27 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2016-10-26.
12. ^ "NCEI Global Historical Hazard Database". www.ngdc.noaa.gov. Archived from the original on 2017-08-25. Retrieved 2017-11-25.
13. ^ "Movie Theaters in Anchorage, AK". CinemaTreasures.org. Los Angeles: Cinema Treasures LLC. Archived September 20, 2016 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
14. ^ Scholl Center for American History and Culture. "Alaska: Individual County Chronologies". Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. Chicago: Newberry Library. Archived March 5, 2017 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
15. ^ "Home > Sister Cities > Homepage". Municipality of Anchorage. Archived from the original on August 7, 2007.
16. ^ "Population of the 100 Largest Cities and Other Urban Places in the United States: 1790 to 1990", US Census Bureau, 1998, archived 2017-09-02 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 2017-12-10
17. ^ "Alaskan Volcano Erupts Again, Showering Anchorage With Ash". New York Times. August 19, 1992. Archived July 14, 2017 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved February 20, 2017.
18. ^ "Chronologies of Alaska and Regional Newspapers: Anchorage". Alaska Newspaper Project. Alaska State Library. Archived December 20, 2014 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
19. ^ Partnow 1999.
20. ^ "Municipality of Anchorage, Alaska". Archived 1996-12-29 at the Wayback Machine. – via Internet Archive, Wayback Machine
21. ^ Lee 2003.
22. ^ "Planning Division: Boards & Commissions". Municipality of Anchorage. Archived December 16, 2014 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
23. ^ "Alaska". CJR's Guide to Online News Startups. New York: Columbia Journalism Review. Archived December 10, 2014 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
24. ^ "A Dena'ina Chronology". Anchorage Museum. Archived March 3, 2016 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
25. ^ "Anchorage (municipality), Alaska". State & County QuickFacts. U.S. Census Bureau. Archived September 5, 2012 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved December 30, 2014.

Bibliography

• Federal Writers' Project & Merle Colby (1939). "Anchorage". Alaska: a Guide to the Last American Frontier. American Guide Series. New York: Macmillan. p. 264+.
• Erik R. v. Kuehnelt-Leddihn (1946). "Cities and Towns of Alaska". Geographical Review. 36 (2): 270–290. Bibcode:1946GeoRv..36..270V. doi:10.2307/210880. JSTOR 210880
• Ralph Browne (1953), "Alaska's largest city, Anchorage; an analysis of its growth and future possibilities, 1951–1952", Juneau: Alaska Development Board, archived 2016-03-05 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 2014-12-01, – via HathiTrust
• William H. Wilson (1967). "Founding of Anchorage: Federal Townbuilding on the Last Frontier". Pacific Northwest Quarterly. 58 (3): 130–141. JSTOR 40441556
• Ory Mazar Nergal (ed.) (1980), "Anchorage", "Encyclopedia of American Cities", New York: E.P. Dutton
• George Thomas Kurian (1994), "Anchorage, Alaska", "World Encyclopedia of Cities", Vol. 1: North America, Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO, archived 2021-10-27 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 2019-12-26 (fulltext via Open Library)
• Patricia H. Partnow (1999). "Ursine Urges and Urban Ungulates: Anchorage Asserts Its Alaskanness". Western Folklore. 58 (1): 33–56. doi:10.2307/1500361. JSTOR 1500361
• Molly Lee (2003). "'How Will I Sew My Baskets?': Women Vendors, Market Art, and Incipient Political Activism in Anchorage, Alaska". American Indian Quarterly. 27 (3/4): 583–592. doi:10.1353/aiq.2004.0081. JSTOR 4138964. S2CID 154947883
• "Anchorage, AK". U.S. City Open Data Census. Sunlight Foundation and Open Knowledge International. 2018. Archived November 18, 2018 at the Wayback Machine.

External links

• Anchorage Public Library. "Alaska Collection Resources". Municipality of Anchorage.
• "(Items related to Anchorage, Alaska)". Alaska's Digital Archives. Alaska State Library and the University of Alaska.
• Items related to Anchorage, Alaska, various dates (via Digital Public Library of America).