ca 5,000 B.C.
Earliest known settlers of Cook Inlet arrive. They are descendants of original Natives who migrated across the Bering Land Bridge from what is now Siberia some 29,000 years ago.
ca 1743
Russian sailors led by the Dane Vitus Bering came upon Alaska’s mainland and established trading posts in Western and Southcentral Alaska.
May 30, 1778
Captain James Cook is the first non-Native person to discover the area bordering the shores of what is now Anchorage and named the water “River Turnagain.” This was Captain Cook’s third attempt at finding the elusive Northwest Passage under the funding of the British Admiralty. What Captain Cook discovered was not actually a river, but an inlet. The area is now known as the “Turnagain Arm” of the Cook Inlet.
March 30, 1867
United States purchases Alaska Territory from Russia. Secretary of State William Seward prompted the United States Government to purchase the territory from the Russians for $7.2 million (about 2 cents per acre). It took 101 years and the first major oil discovery for “Seward’s Folly” to be recognized as an asset to the country.
1888
Cries of “Gold!” echo in the Turnagain Arm area. The discovery of gold started the “Gold Rush” of Alaska which brought thousands north in search of fame and fortune. Abandoned mines remain in the Turnagain Arm area; many are open as visitor information centers.
1896
James Girdwood stakes placer claim at Crow Creek, just 40 miles south of what is now downtown Anchorage. Crow Creek mine ended up being a boon for James Girdwood and the township is now known as Girdwood.
1912
Alaska becomes a United States Territory.
March 12, 1914
United States Congress authorizes the construction of the Alaska Railroad, clearing the way for the only railroad in history to be owned and operated by the U.S. Government.
April 10, 1915
President Woodrow Wilson authorizes funds for the construction of the Alaska Railroad and selects the railroad’s route. The Alaska Railroad runs from the Port of Seward through the coalfields of the Interior to the gold claims near Fairbanks. That year, 2000 Americans flooded the Ship Creek valley (near present-day downtown Anchorage) looking for federal employment. The rapidly expanding settlement was named “Anchorage.” Other name options included “Woodrow” or “Anchorage’s Knik”.
1915
The Greater Anchorage Chamber of Commerce was formed.
July 10, 1915
Pioneer School is established as Anchorage’s first school. President Wilson authorizes the “Great Anchorage Lot Sale”, a land auction in which the first plots of land in Anchorage were sold. Businesses began spreading across the newly organized Fourth Avenue, where they remain today. Residents began to expand north and south from the original tent city. One month later, the town formalizes its name by going to the polls and votes to name the city “Alaska City”. The federal government decides to retain the existing name: Anchorage.
October 1, 1918
First train between Anchorage and Seward marks the completion of the southern half of the Alaska Railroad line.
November 23, 1920
After lengthy negotiations, Anchorage citizens vote to incorporate. Leopold David begins first of three terms as Mayor of Anchorage.
1923
President Warren G. Harding drives “Golden Spike” to complete the Alaska Railroad line from Seward to Fairbanks.
William Mulcahy establishes the Anchorage Baseball League. Mulcahy was a baseball fan who was working as the Alaska Railroad station auditor assistant and established the baseball league in his spare time. Later in life, Mulcahy introduced Little League baseball and established the city’s YMCA. The Mulcahy Park stadium and ball field were named in his honor for his contributions to early Anchorage.
May 2, 1927
The Alaska Legislature adopted Benny Benson’s design as the official flag for the Territory of Alaska. Thirteen-year-old Benson won a contest conducted for Alaska students and his design became the official flag of the State of Alaska.
1930
The small airport Merrill Field opens, named after Alaskan pilot Russel Merrill. Merrill flew countless medical rescue missions in Alaska. In 1929, Merrill died in a crash during a solo flight to Bethel and the small airport was named in his honor.
1937
First Fur Rendezvous Festival is held by Anchorage Chamber of Commerce. Today, the “Fur Rondy” Festival, held in conjunction with the Iditarod sled dog race, includes Grand Prix races, snow sculptures, blanket tosses, dog sled races and a carnival. “Fur Rondy” continues to attract visitors from across the globe.
1940
Construction begins at Fort Richardson Army Post and Elmendorf Air Force Base. Today Fort Richardson Army Post and Elmendorf Air Force Base are home to 47 percent of the more than 20,000 military men and women stationed in Alaska. Alaska played a strategic role in World War II and witnessed an extreme growth in both infrastructure and population during those years. Anchorage entered the war years with a population of 7,724 and emerged with 43,314 residents.
1942
Japan invades and occupies the Aleutian Islands of Attu and Kiska.
The Alaska/Canada Highway (ALCAN) is completed as a World War II emergency route in response to the Japanese invasion of Attu and Kiska. Amazingly the 1,400 mile highway was built in only eight months and 12 days. For the first time, Anchorage is accessible by road to the Continental United States.
December 10, 1951
Anchorage establishes itself as the “Air Crossroads of the World” when Anchorage International Airport opens with transpolar airline traffic flying between Europe and Asia. On Saturday, July 8, 2000, the airport was renamed “Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport” in honor of Alaska’s longest-serving United States Senator.
1956
Anchorage named is "All-American City" for the first time.
January 3, 1959
President Dwight D. Eisenhower names the Alaska Territory the 49th state of the Union.
March 3, 1964
On Good Friday, 1964, the largest earthquake ever recorded in North America, measuring 9.2 on the Richter Scale, ripped through Southcentral Alaska and shook for more than 4 minutes in some areas. The earthquake released 10 million times more energy than an atomic bomb and created the largest tsunami to hit the West Coast and Canada with waves measuring 220-feet in height.
1965
Anchorage again named “All-American City” due in part to earthquake restoration efforts.
1968
The largest oil field in North America was discovered at Prudhoe Bay. Prudhoe Bay’s first year earned $900 million in North Slope oil lease sales. Within two years Alaska’s gross products doubled.
March 3, 1973
The first Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race starts from downtown Anchorage with 34 mushers. Twenty-two mushers finished the race with the last one arriving in Nome one-month after he left the starting line. In recent years, winners have finished the race in less than 10-days.
1974
Construction begins on trans-Alaska Pipeline System. The oil discovery and pipeline construction fueled a modern-day boon in Anchorage when oil and construction companies set up headquarters here. The pipeline was completed in 1977 at a cost of more than $8 billion.
1984
Anchorage named “All-American City” for third time.
1985
State of Alaska purchases Alaska Railroad from federal government. The Alaska Railroad remains the only state-run railroad in the nation.
April 21, 1990
Mount Redoubt erupts in August, covering Anchorage in more than 2-inches of volcanic ash. Mt. Redoubt is 105-miles southwest of Anchorage and is one of 40 active volcanoes in the Aleutian volcanic arc which stretches some 1,550 miles across the north Pacific.
1994
Alaska’s Tommy Moe wins a gold medal in downhill skiing and the silver medal in the super-G event at Winter Olympics and becomes the first U.S. man to win two Alpine Olympic medals in one year. In 2003, there were 10 Alaskans on the U.S. Winter Olympic Team.
1996
Arctic Winter Games held in Chugiak/Eagle River for the first time. The Arctic Winter Games placed Alaska in the international spotlight as athletes traveled from across the globe to compete.
2002
Anchorage named an “All American City” for the fourth time due in part to its celebration of the many indigenous cultures in the state.
Additional information can be found at the Anchorage Convention and Visitors Bureau (http://www.anchorage.net/) and the Municipality of Anchorage (http://www.muni.org/).
