Timeline of Anchorage, Alaska

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

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by expanding it with reliably sourced entries.

A timeline of Anchorage on display in the city of Anchorage

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]
  • 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 M_w  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] ($0.73 billion in 2018 dollars).[13].
  • Nordic Skiing Association of Anchorage active.
• 1965 – Anchorage Youth Symphony organized.
• 1966 – Alaska Federation of Natives headquartered in Anchorage.
• 1967 – George M. Sullivan becomes mayor.
• 1968
  • Anchorage Museum and Alaska Children's Zoo open.
  • Kincaid Park established.
• 1969 – Sundowner Drive-In cinema opens.[14]
• 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;[15] Anchorage Assembly established Sullivan continues as municipal mayor.
• 1979 – Food Bank of Alaska established.
• 1980 – Population: 174,431.
• 1982
  • Tony Knowles becomes mayor.
  • Sister city relationship established with Darwin, Australia.[16]
• 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.[17]
• 1992
  • Mount Spurr volcano erupts.[18]
• 1993 – Alaska Botanical Garden opens.
• 1994
  • Anchorage Press in publication.[19]
  • Rick Mystrom becomes mayor.
• 1995 – Binky (polar bear) dies in the Alaska Zoo.[20]
• 1996 – City website online (approximate date).[21]
• 1997
  • Alaska Native Medical Center established.
  • Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium headquartered in city.
• 1998 – May: Alaska Natives political demonstration.[22]
• 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.[23]
• 2008
  • Alaska Dispatch begins publication.[24]
  • Dena'ina Civic and Convention Center[25] and Linny Pacillo Parking Garage open.
• 2009 – Matt Claman becomes mayor, succeeded by Dan Sullivan.
• 2010
  • Tikahtnu Commons cinema opens.[14]
  • Population: 291,826.[26]
• 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
• Timeline of Alaska

References

1. Federal Writers' Project 1939.
2. "Collections List". APU/UAA Consortium Library. University of Alaska Anchorage and Alaska Moving Image Preservation Association. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
3. LitSite Alaska. "Highlights from Alaska's History". Alaska Kids. University of Alaska Anchorage. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
4. Wilson 1967.
5. "US Newspaper Directory". Chronicling America. Washington DC: Library of Congress. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
6. Anchorage Public Library. "Anchorage Public Library Timeline". Municipality of Anchorage. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
7. Browne 1953.
8. Alaska State Library. "Historical Collections: Collections Database". State of Alaska. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
9. "Chronological History of Alaska". Statewide Library Electronic Doorway. Alaska State Library and the University of Alaska. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
10. UAA Community & Technical College. "History". University of Alaska Anchorage. 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. ISBN 0759100020.
12. https://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/nndc/struts/results?bt_0=1964&st_0=1964&type_7=Like&query_7=prince&d=7&t=101650&s=7
13. Thomas, Ryland; Williamson, Samuel H. (2019). "What Was the U.S. GDP Then?". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved April 6, 2019. United States Gross Domestic Product deflator figures follow the Measuring Worth series.
14. "Movie Theaters in Anchorage, AK". CinemaTreasures.org. Los Angeles: Cinema Treasures LLC. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
15. Scholl Center for American History and Culture. "Alaska: Individual County Chronologies". Atlas of Historical County Boundaries. Chicago: Newberry Library. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
16. "Home > Sister Cities > Homepage". Municipality of Anchorage. Archived from the original on August 7, 2007.
17. Population of the 100 Largest Cities and Other Urban Places in the United States: 1790 to 1990, US Census Bureau, 1998
18. "Alaskan Volcano Erupts Again, Showering Anchorage With Ash". New York Times. August 19, 1992.
19. "Chronologies of Alaska and Regional Newspapers: Anchorage". Alaska Newspaper Project. Alaska State Library. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
20. Partnow 1999.
21. "Municipality of Anchorage, Alaska". Archived from the original on December 1996 – via Internet Archive, Wayback Machine.
22. Lee 2003.
23. "Planning Division: Boards & Commissions". Municipality of Anchorage. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
24. "Alaska". CJR's Guide to Online News Startups. New York: Columbia Journalism Review. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
25. "A Dena'ina Chronology" (PDF). Anchorage Museum. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
26. "Anchorage (municipality), Alaska". State & County QuickFacts. U.S. Census Bureau. 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. 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 – 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, OL 4120668M
• George Thomas Kurian (1994), "Anchorage, Alaska", World Encyclopedia of Cities, 1: North America, Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO (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.
• "Anchorage, AK". U.S. City Open Data Census. Sunlight Foundation and Open Knowledge International. 2018. Archived from the original on November 18, 2018.

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).