Alaska Film Archives

[Alaska travel]
[Alaska travel]
This film contains scenes of mountains, the AJ Mine in Juneau, the state capitol building in Juneau, boat travel along the Inside Passage, a large steamship with three smokestacks or funnels, aerial views of glaciers and mountains, the Mendenhall Glacier, signs for White Pass and the Trail of ’98, Miles Canyon on the Yukon River near Whitehorse in Canada, Robert Service Camp, a brief glimpse of the sternwheeler S.S. Tutshi, men waving in front of a Lockheed Electric airplane (NC14906), aerial views of landscapes, aerial views of Fairbanks and landing at Weeks Field, the Old Main building at the University of Alaska campus in Fairbanks, a car driving on railroad tracks, a sign for the golden spike along the Alaska Railroad near Nenana, Alaska Railroad Engine No. 1 on display, a White Pass and Yukon Route train, the entrance to Mt. McKinley National Park, a red tour bus in the park, black and white scenes of Alaska wildlife, a large placer mining operation with a dredge, a log cabin, men at work using hydraulic giants and steam points, a gold mining operation near the ocean, totem poles at Stanley Park in Vancouver in Canada, Alaska Native people and homes in Nome, fishermen unloading halibut from a boat (possibly at Prince Rupert in Canada according to Stevens's notes - he adds that the halibut heads were cut off and used for fertilizer), adults and children playing shuffleboard on a ship deck, a man playing accordion aboard the ship, and aerial views of landscapes including rivers and mountains.
[ALCAN Highway construction]
[ALCAN Highway construction]
This footage was filmed by John R. Swanson during the time that he worked on construction of the Alaska Highway. Scenes include a sign for the Robert Lowe Bridge across Miles Canyon near Whitehorse, river rapids, a small boat on a river or lake, a muddy roadbed, cars traveling on a muddy road, a tracked vehicle, a campsite, road construction activities, views of the road from a ridge top, a dump truck and steam shovel at work, autumn colors, men walking on the road, a man driving, vehicles on the road, men wearing orange or red hats, men at a camp, and a row of canvas tents.
[Arnie M. Lee and Family collection - 2]
[Arnie M. Lee and Family collection - 2]
This film is labeled “Alaska Steamship, Alaska RR, Ice Carnival Chatanika 1942, Fisher[?], Eldorado and skiing in Fairbanks.” A note inside the film can says “AK Steamship Port of Seattle to Valdez?, Alaska Railroad - Nenana, Weeks Field Fairbanks, Mother and Dad skiing, Winter Carnival, dog racing, parade, Leonard Seppala, Second Avenue, mining - gold dredge, Dad Guri[?] Lealand, Fairbanks Creek.” Writing inside film can says “Drilling and hauling ice Chatanika Birch Lake, Alaska steamship from Seattle, ARR Seward to Fairbanks, skiing in Fairbanks, Carnival 1940, Fish Creek, Cleary Creek, Eldorado.” The film contains images of the Alaska Steamship Company dock in Seattle, the Seattle waterfront as seen from aboard a ship, a Port of Seattle sign, Alaska Pacific Salmon Company buildings, the Alaska Steamship Company dock in Juneau, the AJ Mine in Juneau, a small vehicle on railroad tracks in winter, snowy mountains, Alaska Railroad steam engine 614, scenic views from travel via the Alaska Railroad, the train station in Nenana, the Nenana Bridge, a couple skiing, a musher and dogs, Pollack Flying Service hangars in Fairbanks, ice hockey in downtown Fairbanks, a Pacific Alaska Airways Lockheed Electra airplane, crowds of people watching dog mushers on the Chena River, the 1940 Winter Carnival parade with floats, a dog yard, a sign for the 1940 Fairbanks Dog Derby, a welcome sign over downtown Fairbanks, Leonhard Seppala, a panorama of downtown Fairbanks in winter, Pollack Flying Service, men driving thaw points for a dredge mining operation, a mining camp, hydraulic giants being used to clear muck, men testing the ground with a drill rig, a mining camp, tailings piles, an old wooden mine shaft revealed as muck is cleared away by hydraulic giants, a dredge in operation, ice being removed from a dredge pond, a drilling rig in operation, small log cabins, a group skiing, a mining operation with buckets emptying onto a large pile of pay dirt, a sluice, a mining camp, a bulldozer, and a building at Chatanika Gold Camp(?).
[Arnie M. Lee and Family collection - 8]
[Arnie M. Lee and Family collection - 8]
Notes with this film say “1949 Charlotte Ames and Bob, Don, Mrs. Wiener, and Lee Family at Airport, Pan Am DC4; 1949 Norman and Ingrid at Badger Road cabin, 1962 Boat Races, Chena River in Fairbanks, Christmas 1961 Arne Jergen; 1962 Boat Races in Chena Rover; 1962 Norman’s second car 1956 Pontiac; 1962 Hydraulic mining Ester Alaska; 1962 Cleanup at Hassel’s Mine; 1962 Golden Days Fairbanks and Ingrid home in 1972; 1962 Arne and Arnold Nordale, Ferry at Nenana.” The film contains footage of a Pan American World Airways airplane, children playing, children hoisting one another with a rope and pulley system, children skiing, a Christmas tree in a home, a family meal in a home, the Chena River in downtown Fairbanks, power boats on the river, crowds gathered along the riverbank to watch boats, a Fairbanks home, hydraulic giants and a mining operation, men cleaning up a sluice box, dancing in downtown Fairbanks, Monty’s Department Store and Lacey Street Theater signs, views from aboard the Sternwheeler Yutana, the Nenana bridge, a fishwheel, highway travel, and Fielding Lake.
[Fairbanks ice carnivals and aviation]
[Fairbanks ice carnivals and aviation]
This footage features the 1929 Fairbanks Ice Carnival Queen contest, a flight with Ed Young, a film shot by Dan Lhamon, Howard Hughes in Fairbanks in August 1938 during his 1938 Around the World Flight in a Lockheed Super Electra, a Pan American airplane, a Pacific Alaska Airways airplane, a Wien Alaska Airlines airplane, and the 1948 Ice Carnival sled dog races. According to George Lounsbury, approximately the first five minutes of footage is a Lounsbury family film, and it contains images of George's mother in the late 1920s. Scenes of Howard Hughes were from a film obtained from Earl Pilgrim. Scenes of Russian airplanes, Juneau, and Nome were films from Dan Lhamon and Rod Wolff. The remainder is film George Lounsbury received from his brother, but the origin is unknown, and the Lounsbury family does not appear in that part of the film.
Fairbanks Yesterday Today Tomorrow
Fairbanks Yesterday Today Tomorrow
This program presents the history of Fairbanks from its geological formation through 1974. Credits are as follows: host, Dave Geesin; pre-history, Florence Weber; miner, Tim Ames; mining discussion, Dr. Earl Beistline and Bruce Thomas; readings, Mark Bergeson, Pamela Buckway and Tom Duncan; narration, Charles Creamer, Tom Duncan, Don Hering, Clara Rust and Marion Wood; director, Frank Herriott; Hering segment director, Myron Tisdel; producer, Patrick Moore; production assistant, Frank Henry; research, Kit Jensen; cinematography, Mark Badger; graphics, Nancy Van Veenen; audio, Tom Saxton; video, Dave Walstad and John Reisinger; production, Carolyn Dowling, Pat Fitzgerald, John Ryan, Jim Schneider and Pat Thrasher; photos provided by Mrs. V.K. Brickley, CamerAlaska, Fabian Carey, William Cashen, Florence Collins, Roger Cotting, Mary Hansen, Nelson’s Studio, University of Alaska, and United States Air Force; furnishings provided by Nerlands; parka provided by Martin Victor Furs; produced through the facilities of KUAC-TV and the Division of Media Services at University of Alaska.
[Fort Chilkoot region]
[Fort Chilkoot region]
The first section includes intertitles is titled "Transportation in Alaska." Footage includes a car on a narrow road and being pulled through snow by horses, Native men in a small boat poling on a river, a boat identified as a "war canoe," men with horses in a pack-train, a man on snowshoes, sled dog teams pulling sleds, ocean travel on a ship in rough seas, a White Pass and Yukon Railroad rotary snowplow working and travel on the route, a flying boat, aerial views of the A-J mine in Juneau, a puppy pulling a child on a small sled followed by an intertitle of "the end". Additional footage includes a young boy and man walking a black bear on a chain, troops on snowshoes and skiis in parade grounds at Fort Chilkoot, a child playing in snow, a man shovelling snow, a child sledding, people riding in a dogsled and mushing through a town and woods, men with a horse drawn sled, children sledding and skiing, a young girl, people with a baby during baptism, family scenes with children inside a home, and couples including a military officer dancing and mugging for the camera.
[Gold mining, Alaska travel and activities 1]
[Gold mining, Alaska travel and activities 1]
Footage features a bulldozer caught in ice on the Chena River in downtown Fairbanks, a large Service Motor Company fire in downtown Fairbanks, mining activities, a man holding a large gold nugget, a bulldozer and dragline in operation at a large placer mine operation, men walking toward camp, a sluice, tailings piles, a bulldozer stuck in the Chena River after breaking through ice, people in parkas ice skating, a man photographing people on skates as well as a man ice fishing with a net, people weighing fish with a scale, Chena River and Cushman Street bridge, the railroad depot in Fairbanks, chained black bear cubs being fed, river views, people in a small boat and a man with a duck, a cow and pig, St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox church and graves in Eklutna, women feeding a baby moose with a milk bottle, a man in a small boat, a tent and campsite, a family at a camp or picnic, men and women posing by a Birch Lake sign, a woman outside of a log post office, placer mining operations, aerial views of a mine area, a man operating a dragline, and people posing near an airplane. Handwritten notes on the film boxes are as follows: “Service Motor.” “Tractor and Gold Mine.” “Alaska, trip to Palmer, grave house, baby moose, skating, Birch L. “Bert P[?].” “Trip to Ophir, [?] Barrow trip.”
[Gold mining, Alaska travel and activities 2]
[Gold mining, Alaska travel and activities 2]
Footage features people aboard a boat outside of Alaska, dog mushing, a tractor pulling a load of timber or logs with the Cushman Street Bridge visible in the distance, small girls at a birthday party, a girl with a dog, a bridge and road, people posing for the camera, a Farmall tractor pulling a boat out of the river at Cushman Street Bridge, hay piles, mountain scenes, Savage Rock at Denali or McKinley National Park, a large coal chute near Healy, a truck loaded with coal, mining operations, men and women in a boat, a waterfall, mountains and a sunset, aerial views of a river and mountains, airplanes and a camp on a rocky beach in northern Alaska, men posing by an airplane, aerial views of wildfires and mountains, men with cameras posing along with children in a northern Alaska coastal village (Barrow?), children in parkas posing, village homes, a woman chopping wood, a caribou, children in parkas with a small dogsled in Fairbanks, a brief glimpse of Leonhard Seppala with a dog team in Fairbanks with the Samson Hardware Building in the background, winter carnival scenes in Fairbanks, women in parkas posing near a Pacific Alaska Airlines airplane, a brief aerial view of the University of Alaska Fairbanks campus, people disembarking from a DC-3 airplane, women and a man posing, people re-boarding the airplane, winter carnival lights, people shoveling deep snow at a cabin, men and women posing with a dog team, a man placing dogs in harnesses (black & white section of film with the first man identified as Jeff Studdert by local historian George Lounsbury in 2014), dogs running under the Noyes Slough swinging bridge and out onto the Chena River in Fairbanks, and another man driving a dog sled as a woman rides in the sled. Handwritten notes on film boxes are as follows, though the order does not seem to correspond with the order of scenes above: “Boat trip, Bowler[?].” “Dog team and tractor.” “Trip to Delta – loop.” “Fire scenes at Mc Park, coal mine at Healy.” “Lake Chelan boat trip sunset.” “Trip to Barrow, caribou, carnival and dog sled ride.”
[Hetherington films, reel 2]
[Hetherington films, reel 2]
This film contains scenes of a large military parade in downtown Fairbanks, a sign for "US Navy Petroleum Exploration NPR4," military equipment on display near the Lacey Street Theatre area in downtown Fairbanks, a Cat train, military aircraft and pilots, sailors near an Interior dredge in operation, people standing around a burned airplane (with all the fabric burnt off), a blanket toss in Barrow, large equipment including barges and backhoes at work along the beach (construction of NARL?), Navy ships along the coast, Quonset huts, and another blanket toss in Barrow.
[Hill family films]
[Hill family films]
This film reel is made up of 12 smaller reels of film. Reel 1 is labeled “Ivory Carving of Pt. Barrow” with postal markings on the box indicating a film processing date of 1949. It contains footage of men making ivory carvings, a dog, carvings on a shelf, and a sunset. Reel 2 is labeled “Skee pictures, Mexico fishing, seal” with postal markings on the box indicating a film processing date of 1949. It contains footage of people skiing, scenes from outside of Alaska, dogs, and people on boat. Reel 3 is labeled “Fish camps, good pictures of Bear Hill and cabin with picturesque” with markings on the box indicating an approximate film processing date of 1950. It contains footage of river travel, men at a cabin with a bear hide, and people with dog team. According to Cynthia Hill Reed in 2013, the bear-skinning scene occurs near Rampart and includes: Cynthia's grandmother, Mary Shanahan Hill; Cynthia's father, Jay G. Hill; Cynthia's uncle, Jack (John) Hill; and possibly Cynthia's grandfather, Rudy Hill. Reel 4 is labeled “Parachute Jump and Dog Races” with markings on the box indicating an approximate film processing date of 1950 to 1952. It contains footage of a parachute jump and dog races on the Chena River in Fairbanks. Reel 5 is labeled “Fairbanks, Our Big Bear, and Skiing” with markings on the box indicating a film processing date of approximately 1950. It contains footage of downtown Fairbanks, people skiing, and a ski lift. Reel 6 is labeled “Construction Polaris Building, Pregnant Betty, Melinda, Dogs and Cats, Betty Unpregnant coming home from [?] with Genneg[?]” with markings on the box indicating a film processing date of approximately 1952. It contains footage of the Polaris Building's construction in Fairbanks in 1952. According to Cynthia Hill Reed in 2013, the Polaris Building was built by her grandparents, Mary and Rudy Hill. Reel 7 is labeled “Native Dancers Fairbanks” with markings on the box indicating a film processing date of approximately 1954. It contains footage of Alaska Native dance scenes as filmed from bleachers. Reel 8 is labeled “Dog Races 1952 – Horace Smoke won with Kenja (leader) – Very Good – Terry” with markings on the box indicating a film processing date of approximately 1954. It contains footage of dog mushing and spectators. Reel 9 is labeled “Dog Races and Fair” with markings on the box indicating a film processing date of approximately 1955 or 1956. It contains footage of dog races. Reel 10 is labeled “Hospital – Johnny Mike – Summer Outing – Fishing Trip – Salmon" with markings on the box indicating a film processing date of approximately 1954 or 1955. It contains footage of family scenes and fishing. Reel 11 is labeled “Jax Mary and Rudy first film guy at SP with crane” with markings on the box indicating a film processing date of approximately 1956 or 1957. It contains footage of people posing and a crane at work. Reel 12 is labeled “Walt and Me in LA” and “Mary Hill Carmen - Very Good of Mary Terry” with markings on the box indicating a film processing date of approximately 1963. It contains footage of a crane at work, people posing, and a show with trained seals.
[Howard C. Robinson's Alaska film]
[Howard C. Robinson's Alaska film]
AAF-11895 begins with the title screens: "Howard C. Robinson presents Alaska" and "Produced by Robinson Studios." Program includes scenes of the Inside Passage, Ketchikan, commercial fishing activities, Wrangell, Petersburg, Taku Glacier, Sitka, Skagway, White Pass and Yukon Route Railroad, Valdez, the Gulf of Alaska, Prince William Sound, Resurrection Bay, Seward, Resurrection River, Iron Mountain, a map of Alaska, the Alaska Highway, White Horse, Fairbanks, gold mining and dredge activities, Anchorage, a bear pulling cart with small girl in cart, Worthington Glacier, Keystone Canyon, Matanuska Glacier, Matanuska Valley, Palmer, Juneau, the Governor's mansion, Mendenhall Glacier, Malaspina Glacier, Cordova, Columbia Glacier, Whittier, Anchorage, Lake Spenard, Cook Inlet, the Alaska Railroad, scenery between Seward and Anchorage, the Whittier tunnel, Hurricane Gulch, Talkeetna, Mt. McKinley Park and park hotel, Elmendorf Air Force Base, Nome, placer mining, pilot Gren Collins and an airplane on skiis, Alaska Native activities such as seal hunting and jigging for tomcod, a Russian Orthodox Church, Kodiak, Dutch Harbor, Umnak, Adak harbor, Massacre Bay at Attu, captured World War II-era Japanese equipment on Kiska, an Aleutian storm, and Aleutian volcanoes.
[Hunting and Alaska scenes]
[Hunting and Alaska scenes]
This film reel made up of 15 smaller reels. Reel 1 contains scenes of musk oxen, men feeding musk oxen, a man and sheep, and a bridge (very overexposed). Reel 2 is labeled "Military class, children, trip up the Chena, University reindeer, crane," and it contains views of children playing, children riding in a car, children pulling a wagon, a child in snowshoes, reindeer, cars on a road, a small boat with outboard motor on a river, and a man fly fishing. Reel 3 is labeled "Airplane hunting trip" and "February 12, 1933." It contains aerial views during winter, an airplane on skis, landscapes, a cache, mountains, cabins, dog teams and passing by a Northern Air Transport ski plane, a family walking on a road with a child pulling a sled, and cabins. Reel 4 is labeled "Circle trip, caribou, children, hunting, September 1933," and it contains footage of a family fishing, siphons and pipes on Davidson Ditch, a man with a pack and a gun, a man with a sheep's head, a man dragging a dead caribou, a caribou strapped to a car, and people posing near small game tacked to a shed. Reel 5 is labeled "Huffman's - Dog Derby March 1933," and it contains scenes of dog races and dog teams on the Chena River, downtown Fairbanks, Cushman Street bridge, the Samson's Machinery building, NC buildings, people on the river and bridge, and the church and hospital. Reel 6 contains scenes of people, cabins, a placer gold mining operation, and children playing on a cable spool. Reel 7 is labeled "Carnival, skiing, children, July 4, 1937," and it contains views of a ski jump, children with a dog, 4th of July children's races on Second Avenue, children swimming, and a dog pulling a child on a wagon. Reel 8 contains views of a child, a canoe, a baby in a crib, people boating on a lake, and a dog sled (very overexposed). Reel 9 is labeled "1950 Carnival Parade and ski jumps," and it contains views of the Ice Carnival parade on Cushman and Second Avenue, the carnival, and a ski jump. Reel 10 is labeled "March 1951 Donn skiing," and it contains views of crowds watching cross-country skiers at the Alaska Agricultural College & School of Mines (University of Alaska Fairbanks), and a downhill ski race. Reel 11 is labeled "Donn's wedding, June 195 [1?]," and it contains views of the Huber wedding. Reel 12 is labeled "Wendy and Chena and pups," and it contains footage of a woman as well as a child and puppies. Reel 13 is labeled "Waterskiing July 1955, Chena's pups," and it contains views of a family, people waterskiing on a lake, and puppies. Reel 14 is labeled "Super-XX Nov. 11, 1955," and it contains footage of a car, a family, a camper, travel, and sternwheelers in Whitehorse. Reel 15 is labeled "Children skiing winter 1934-1935," and contains footage of people skiing.
[Lee family films 3]
[Lee family films 3]
AAF-16346 is from a film containing the following note: “Jean, Ingrid and Norm at 18 Mile, Bob and Charlotte, Carl Elken[?] Matanuska, Ron and Norm Davidson Ditch, Harding Lake, dressed up for Easter, Jean in [??] parade, birthday Ingrid and Norman, reindeer [??] at university, Jean’s birthday party, Christmas at Arne’s home, Ingrid and Norm learning to ski, beaver swimming.” The film contains scenes of family activities and travel around Alaska, children walking on railroad tracks, the Cushman Street Bridge in Fairbanks, people hiking and climbing on tors formations, children swimming at Harding Lake, a family in a boat, children playing on snow piles, children racing on ice skates, a boy dressed like a cowboy, children dressed up and posing for the camera, a girl in traditional Scandinavian clothing, a summer parade in Fairbanks, a Pioneers of Alaska float and other floats in the parade, a birthday celebration, a family riding on a sled pulled by reindeer, Christmas celebrations, and children on skis.
[Lounsbury film collection 3]
[Lounsbury film collection 3]
Some portions are left-to-right reversed. This footage includes travel outside of Alaska including a Rose Bowl parade. Alaska footage features Alaska Railroad travel, tent camp in Mt. McKinley National Park and activity at camp, sled dog races on Chena River in Fairbanks, sled dog demonstrations, Fairchild 71 airplane on skis and pilot Ed Young, Russian Junkers arriving in Fairbanks in March of 1931 carrying body of Ben Eielson, funeral procession in Fairbanks carrying body of Ben Eielson to the railroad depot, road travel, chained bear, bison and sheep at the University of Alaska, hydraulic giant, bi-plane at Fairbanks with pilot A.A. Bennett (?), aerial view of Fairbanks, Alaska Railroad train travel, sternwheeler at Nenana, U.S. Army Pilot Captain Hoyt at Fairbanks and hand-propping airplane, riverboat travel, houses and yards in Fairbanks, and summer parade at Fairbanks, and Mayor Rothenburg of Fairbanks handing flowers to George Lounsbury's mother Fay Jennings. Additional footage (from Johnny Repo) includes canoe, small mining operation and cabin, moving mining equipment by barges marked as Florence and Alyum Mining Co,. moving dragline, group of men outside the roadhouse at Wiseman with man getting haircut, people crossing mouth of Wiseman Creek in boats during break-up on the Koyukuk River, rowing and paddling on river, cutting wood, Wien Alaska Pilgrim airplane at landing strip, Wien airplane on landing strip with pilot Tony Schultz, cabins at creek, assembling dredge, flying boat Sikorsky S-42 (?), Glass Flying Service at Valdez, Ford Tri-Motor takes off from Valdez, winter storm at Valdez, airplanes at Valdez from different companies including Lyle, Mirow and Reeve, Pilgrim airplane on skis taking off, aerial views of mountains and gold camp, J-2 (?) Piper airplane taking off, Jim Dodson aircraft, break-up on unidentified river, Wiseman (?), man sawing firewood, men building cabin, men whipsaw lumber, mining operation with dragline and hydraulic giants, large dead bull moose being hauled off, Caterpillar pulling small building, aircraft, and aerial view of Fairbanks and mining operation. AAF-9547 begins with footage shot by donor George Lounsbury's grandfather, Guy Jennings, on a trip out of Alaska to buy a new Buick automobile. Following the scenes of the log buildings and wall tents at the entrance of McKinley Park is Jennie R. Jennings, Guy’s wife, wearing a fur coat and standing closest to the camera at the far edge of a group of four women. Following the scene of the vehicle driving on the park road, is a close-up shot of Alice Nordale and Austin E. “Cap” Lathrop, who wore a bill cap. Following scenes of men washing dishes at McKinley Park, is a close-up shot of Fay Jennings, daughter of Guy and Jennie, with dark hair, (and Alice Nordale?), standing in front of a vehicle. Following scenes of a parade in Fairbanks and Mayor Rothenburg handing flowers to Fay Jennings, who is wearing an aviation hat, there are scenes of a canoe and mining operations, and beginning with the canoe is footage shot by Johnny Repo (sp?). Scenes of airplanes at Valdez came from film obtained by the Lounsbury family through Bob Reeves. The final part of the reel, beginning with aerial views and then a color shot of the Ophir area, are films from Johnny Repo (sp?).
[Lounsbury film collection 4]
[Lounsbury film collection 4]
AAF-10856 includes aerial views of Nome, the Nome waterfront, aerial views of the Seward peninsula, a mining operation, a truck pulling a long length of pipe, Mirow Air Service Loening flying boat airplane, a dredge operating on the Seward peninsula, a Pacific Alaska Airways Lockheed Electra, a Caterpillar and power shovel working at a placer gold mining operation, men cleaning up gold in a sluice box, various views of placer mining operations, a small riverboat, brief views of Palmer, a hard rock mining operation in Hatcher Pass, an aerial tramway operating, an Alaska Railroad bus on rails, aerial views of Copper Center (?), aerial views of Fairbanks, a Northern Commercial Caterpillar shop on Second Avenue in Fairbanks, the interior of an office, railroad travel and family scenes, Ice Carnival Parades in Fairbanks, Ice Carnival dog races and activities on the Chena River (during 1940, 1946, and 1950), a barge trip with the riverboats Idler and Mudhen taking barges with Caterpillars and other equipment, and a Cat train during winter hauling freight through a wooded area and cross country to Wiseman. Additional film has suffered water damage. Footage includes Lounsbury boys, a village along the ocean, family and farm scenes taken outside of Alaska, winter scenes in Fairbanks, boys shoveling off a roof and playing in snow, and a family posing for photos. According to George Lounsbury, approximately the first 30 minutes are Dan Lhamon and Rod Wolff films ending with the parade sequence. The next approximately 15 minutes are Johnny Repo (sp?) and Walter Rasmussen (sp?) films beginning with the boat sequence and ending with views of the Third Rail at Wiseman. The remainder of the reel is Lounsbury family films beginning with footage of a mine at Ester Dome and scenes at Kotzebue followed by a family visit to Iowa.
[McMillin Pribilof films AAF-14553--14554]
[McMillin Pribilof films AAF-14553--14554]
Films were shot by L.C. McMillin on the Pribilof Islands of Alaska during the late 1930s and early 1940s prior to World War II. At the time, McMillin was employed as an agent by the United States government to manage the islands and its peoples, and to oversee fur seal harvests. McMillin’s first and middle names were Lee Carroll or possibly Lee Clarence. AAF-14553 is unlabeled, and contains images of ships on the water, a community along the shoreline (possibly Ketchikan), totem pole, sunsets, views from boat on water, people disembarking ship and crawling into rowboats that are towed to shore at one of the Pribilof Islands, storm waves as seen from shore, people at dock, people in row boats waving, stormy waves crashing beach, woman walking near home and posing on steps, woman walking along boardwalk, buildings in community, boys swimming [portions intentionally blurred for online display], children participating in foot races, gunny sack races, racing with a pole etc., boys bobbing for apples, girls eating donuts off of string, pie-eating contest, baseball game with teams wearing uniforms, men herding seals and tossing seal hides into truck [approximately five minutes of this material removed from online display due to culturally sensitive content], men offloading supplies from ship, men gathering chunks of ice, power shovel filling dump truck with soil, men excavating hillside, men with shovels working in stream, people herding reindeer, men rowing boat to dock, and cliffs and surf. AAF-14554 is labeled, "Funter bay," and contains scenes of foxes on a rocky beach, numerous foxes in winter, and seals on beach., Titles and title screens included here are part of the original film, and may include words, phrases, and attitudes that would now be deemed insensitive, inappropriate or factually inaccurate. Some scenes have been removed from online display due to culturally sensitive content. Where removed, the omission is noted by a title screen. Contact film archivist for more information.
[McMillin Pribilof films AAF-14555--14557]
[McMillin Pribilof films AAF-14555--14557]
Films were shot by L.C. McMillin on the Pribilof Islands of Alaska during the late 1930s and early 1940s prior to World War II. At the time, McMillin was employed as an agent by the United States government to manage the islands and its peoples, and to oversee fur seal harvests. McMillin’s first and middle names were Lee Carroll or possibly Lee Clarence. AAF-14555 is labeled, "Seattle Trip etc.," and contains images of clouds, many people in a small boat, a shoreline with small white buildings, a sailboat, rigging on a boat, ice coating the boat rigging, sunsets, flag blowing in breeze, Juneau shoreline, Ketchikan Cold Storage building, a drawbridge at an unknown location, many people in small boats, man raising a U.S. flag, birds, cattle, and a woman picking flowers. AAF-14556 is labeled, "St. Paul," that contains scenes of ships (possibly military ships), a procession led by men carrying a United States flag and religious banners, many people in small boats and standing on shore, small children standing and waving, girl's and women's foot races, men participating in a pie-eating contest and tug-of-war match, baseball game, ship at sea, men unloading barrels on shore, a cliff and birds, and a landscape. AAF-14557 is labeled, "St. George misc.," that contains scenes of a man smoking, boys participating in a gunny sack race and pie-eating contest, people coming out of a church (possibly a wedding party), a procession led by men carrying a United States flag and religious banners, seals, a landscape and hills, reindeer, and birds on a rock., Titles and title screens included here are part of the original film, and may include words, phrases, and attitudes that would now be deemed insensitive, inappropriate or factually inaccurate.
[McMillin Pribilof films AAF-14558--14559]
[McMillin Pribilof films AAF-14558--14559]
Films were shot by L.C. McMillin on the Pribilof Islands of Alaska during the late 1930s and early 1940s prior to World War II. At the time, McMillin was employed as an agent by the United States government to manage the islands and its peoples, and to oversee fur seal harvests. McMillin’s first and middle names were Lee Carroll or possibly Lee Clarence. AAF-14558 is labeled, "Natives 1," and "St. George, Road Building, P. Manderville[?]," and contains images of men carrying wooden planks, men on shore and near a house, man killing fox [approximately 55 seconds of this material removed from online display due to culturally sensitive content], a small boat arriving and men pulling the boat ashore, crates on a truck, a boat leaving and arriving, men with a wooden beam, old church being disassembled, bulldozer, men moving rocks, and man climbing cliff. AAF-14559 is labeled, "Natives 2," and contains images of men with ropes climbing over a cliff to retrieve eggs, men hauling water, a white building and woman holding pitcher, men with a boat or umiak, people harvesting blocks of ice, wedding scenes, men in small boats, a religious procession, truck pulling boat, men portaging boat, boat rowing toward another boat, man high up on pole, man snipping fur from fox tail [approximately 41 seconds of this material removed from online display due to culturally sensitive content], child, and men with wheelbarrows near shore., Titles and title screens included here are part of the original film, and may include words, phrases, and attitudes that would now be deemed insensitive, inappropriate or factually inaccurate. Some scenes have been removed from online display due to culturally sensitive content. Where removed, the omission is noted by a title screen. Contact film archivist for more information.
[McMillin Pribilof films AAF-14560--14562]
[McMillin Pribilof films AAF-14560--14562]
Films were shot by L.C. McMillin on the Pribilof Islands of Alaska during the late 1930s and early 1940s prior to World War II. At the time, McMillin was employed as an agent by the United States government to manage the islands and its peoples, and to oversee fur seal harvests. McMillin’s first and middle names were Lee Carroll or possibly Lee Clarence. AAF-14560 is labeled, "4th Julys, games, wedding, birds," and contains scenes of men with an octopus, a procession of people coming out of a church and going back into church, row boat arriving at a dock, waves crashing against the shore, ship, whale spout, construction of a large dam at unknown location, football game at unknown location, man with film camera, sled with barrels, people carrying an umiak or boat and lifting it onto a truck, and a road made of planks on the tundra. AAF-14561 is labeled, "Surf," and contains images of a shore and waves, rowboats coming ashore, a ship in the bay (possibly a military ship), supplies being offloaded onto the shore, a boat named "Veca," rowboats along the shore, man climbing a mast, and flowers. AAF-14562 is labeled, "Good scenes," and contains scenes in the Pribilofs and outside Alaska including men and a green truck, seals, men with crates, birds, flowers, travel outside Alaska, car on a snowy road, snowy mountains, people sledding, woman and flowering shrub, garden and flowers, train, large dam, train, United States flag, and a priest leading a procession., Titles and title screens included here are part of the original film, and may include words, phrases, and attitudes that would now be deemed insensitive, inappropriate or factually inaccurate.
[Nome airfield and ATG, Eskimo villages and ATG, Anchorage and fishing, Family film, land clearing, Cemetery, Eskimo activity]
[Nome airfield and ATG, Eskimo villages and ATG, Anchorage and fishing, Family film, land clearing, Cemetery, Eskimo activity]
Part 1 (AAF-1523) footage includes Eskimo people pulling nets containing fish onto shore, a snow-blower, Lend-Lease bombers with Russian identification at Nome airfield, Governor Dewey of New York during a visit, Quonset huts, Eskimo hunters on an icepack, a wolf chained in a dogyard, a reindeer herd and harnessed reindeer, a Jeep with "Follow Me" in English and Russian, Alaska Territorial Guard (ATG) troops drilling, a village, Eskimos landing umiaks, Jack Jefford standing next to a DC-3 with "King Chris" painted on the nose, whaling festival activity, and a small sternwheeler. Part 2 (AAF-1524) footage includes Eskimos with dog teams and in boats, military aircraft, village activity, men building a log structure, a group of Eskimos, children on a teeter-totter, a bear cub, an aircraft buried in snow, military officers looking at an Alaska map, boys in a pie-eating contest, ATG troops training, a man with a net catching birds (?), a fishwheel, ice fishing, and village scenes.
[Richard and Janet Ward collection 1]
[Richard and Janet Ward collection 1]
Footage includes a porcupine, Dick Ward with a chained sled dog, Dick Ward in a Pan American World Airways (PAA) uniform in Metlakatla, the PAA terminal building, a PAA Dc-4 or DC-6 passenger plane, Annette Island scenery (?), trucks and equipment at an asphalt plant, men paving a runway, cars and trailers at the Log Cabin Inn on the Glenn Highway, a gold dredge in operation, ice going out on the Chena River during break-up, aerial views of mountains, cars and a semi truck on a muddy road, a glacier moraine, early tripod-style power poles or telegraph/telephone poles used by ACS, a river, a rainbow, power boats, a parade in downtown Anchorage, power boat races on Spenard Lake (?), a squirrel, a light airplane taxiing across railroad tracks, and a small boy. Footage from outside Alaska includes palm trees, scenery, neon lights, an orange grove, highway travel, and a variety of locations. Additional footage includes Alcan Highway scenes during winter, Whitehorse, U.S. Customs at the Alaska border, Macintosh Trading Post, Alcan Highway scenes during summer, sternwheelers and street scenes in Whitehorse, Peace River Bridge, and travel back to the U.S. Border. Additional footage from outside Alaska includes a college, road travel, a flock of sheep on a road, beach and city scenes, PAA and logging trucks, crew members, and (back in Alaska) scenes in Fairbanks following a large snowfall. Additional footage from outside Alaska includes neon lights, travel, a cactus, small children and adults, and a parade.
[Richard and Janet Ward collection 2]
[Richard and Janet Ward collection 2]
Footage includes a construction camp for the Anchorage International Airport, and airport construction scenes from both summer and winter. Additional footage includes winter travel, University of Alaska buildings in Fairbanks, a weasel tracked vehicle, airplanes that were damaged in the Easter 1949 wind storm at the Fairbanks airport, winter travel scenes, bison on a road, a muddy street in Fairbanks, the General Store in Fox, vapor trails, people skiing, travel on the Glenn Highway, ice going out on the Chena River during break-up, Copper Center Roadhouse, Keystone Canyon, people traveling by outboard-powered riverboat, a picnic, men working on a Caterpillar, a road construction camp, and 40 Mile Roadhouse. Additional footage includes a bear cub, salmon drying by a cabin, people traveling in umiaks, an unidentified village, a Cessna 195 light plane taking off, a gold dredge, a small outboard riverboat, caribou, black bears at a dump, summer scenes, ships at a dock in Seward or Whittier, Alaska Railroad travel, Alcan Highway travel, Seward, light planes, Winter Carnival activities, and people sport fishing.
[Seppala family film 1]
[Seppala family film 1]
Footage includes Leonhard with a dog team, Olympic activities at Lake Placid in 1932, Leonhard with dogs in Maine, Nome street scenes and lighter, small rail cars on Seward Peninsula Kougarok Railroad, a gold dredge and mining operations near Nome, passengers on the tug Dayton, aerial views of Nome, Sigrid and Mrs. Seppala in Skagway and on a ship, ship travel in the Southeast, a tour bus in Skagway, Gorst Air Transport Loening Air Yacht seaplane on a beach, scenery from a train, mining camp scenes, a Davidson Ditch siphon, gold dredge operation, a Caterpillar tractor, a Davidson Ditch crew building a dam at a washout, Scenery along the Richardson Highway, a lone gold miner (Harry Lind?) with a rocker box near Nome, Davidson Ditch Dam on the Chatanika River, a Davidson Ditch crew repairing a washout, a Davidson Ditch dam and siphon in a valley, hydraulic giants, men driving thaw points, a gold dredge, a man sampling dredge diggings, internal dredge operations, King Islanders arriving in Nome by umiak, 4th of July Native games in Nome, kayak races, a man demonstrating an Eskimo roll in a Kayak, Leonhard mushing and making ice cream with Eskimo girls, the pupmobile on Kougarok railroad, sled dogs pulling a wagon and small rail cars in Nome. Additional scenes include a Paramount News Reel of Leonhard Seppala mushing dogs in New York during a diphtheria serum drive and contestants in the Ottawa International Dog Derby in 1930.
[Trucking in Alaska]
[Trucking in Alaska]
Footage includes a bulldozer clearing snow at Alaska Freight Lines in Valdez, Tsaina Lodge, an Alaska Road Commission sign, blowing snow in Valdez, 40 Mile Lodge, a Beechcraft Bonanza airplane, a Canadian border station, a small sawmill in Port Chilkoot, people loading lumber, a Golden North airlines C-46 airplane loading polar bear cubs, "Polar Bear Line" painted on a C-46, car races at Rendezvous raceway in Fairbanks, an Alaska Freightlines van, travel on the Richardson Highway during winter, a minor truck accident during winter, clearing snow in Thompson Pass, a buffalo on the road, travel on the Richardson Highway during summer, early telegraph tripod poles along a highway, the Lowe River, a washed out bridge, Keystone Canyon, a tunnel on a road, unloading a ship at Valdez, Paxson Lodge, a damaged bridge near Sheep Mountain on Glenn Highway, a truck with flat tires being repaired along the highway, winter travel scenes showing overflow sections or glaciering across the highway, Knik River Bridge, and downtown Anchorage.
[We Live in the Arctic - Reel 2]
[We Live in the Arctic - Reel 2]
Detailed summary information for this film was provided by the filmmakers, Bud and Connie Helmericks – see a film archivist for full information. According to these notes, films include scenes of an Inupiat family identified in notes as Nanny and George, son Apiak, and daughters Lydia and Martha; Nanny tending a fishnet set in the Arctic Ocean; Lydia (age 5) eating dried meat with an uluruk; Martha (age 17) holding a mirror and applying lipstick; a woman identified in the notes as Bessie with a homemade guitar made from a Prestone can; a whale boat in the Arctic Ocean; people identified in the notes as Oolak or Job (age 15), Little Jacob, Carrie with little Maugaulak or Mark, and Richard; Chandler Lake; a group of inland Inupiat or Nunamiut at Chandler Lake, including people identified in the notes as baby Franklin Roosevelt and his father, Simon Paneak; caribou skin tents covered with canvas; bear damage at a cabin; Connie picking berries; Bud and Connie hunting moose; Connie rendering tallow; Connie chinking a cabin with moss; Bud making a cabin window; Bud demonstrating winter wear; fishing through ice; Bud cutting ice blocks; and heating the airplane engine before take-off.
[Yukon River travel, Nenana and Eagle, seal skinning, sport fishing, commercial fishing, Unalakleet, gold dredge]
[Yukon River travel, Nenana and Eagle, seal skinning, sport fishing, commercial fishing, Unalakleet, gold dredge]
Part 1 (AAF-980) footage includes a dog team crossing ice, a riverboat on the Yukon River in autumn, a river pilot in a small boat checking water depth, a school in Nenana, people in Eagle Village, riverboat workers, a Dawson City street, going through Five-Finger Rapids, Alaska and Canada flags, Whitehorse, Skagway, Miles Canyon Rapids, and Lake Bennett. Part 2 (AAF-981) footage includes an Alaska Native woman wearing a parka, drying sea mammal intestines, whale butchering in Kotzebue, river scenery, sod houses, a cemetery at Pt. Hope, a gold dredge operating in Nome, a man speaking to an audience, Alaska Native dancers, a Ladd Field hangar, Athabascan men and women in Eagle, the Mission School in Nenana, Gren Collins float plane at a dock with people crowded around, and men trading furs in Canada. Part 3 (AAF-984) footage includes an Alaska Native woman skinning a seal at Pt. Hope. Part 4 (AAF-985) footage includes people at a picnic, small boats on the ocean, fly fishing on a creek, men catching salmon and flounder, the fishing boat "Radar,” a glacier, a flower garden, Sara Machetanz and a man with dogs pulling a three-wheeled cart in Nome, women in parkas, and Sara Machetanz with children eating ice cream. Part 5 (AAF-986) footage includes Sara Machetanz fishing, unloading salmon from a commercial fishing boat, a fishing fleet, crabs on a dock, totes of fish, emptying nets on fishing boats, salmon swimming upstream at a waterfall, Sara Machetanz with girls at a Girl Scout Camp near Ketchikan, women in parkas putting on mukluks, and boys playing on a rubber raft in a gravel pit. Part 6 (AAF-987) footage includes scenery around Unalakleet. Part 7 (AAF-988) footage includes men driving thaw points for a mining operation, men working hydraulic giants, and a large dredge in operation in Interior Alaska.