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A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day....10-19, 20-05...North to Alaska!
Mama_Bear
Posted on 10/19/2005 12:02:11 AM PDT by Mama_Bear
A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day
Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997. Over 100,000 people have registered for posting privileges on Free Republic, and the forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world.
A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day was introduced on June 24, 2002. It's only a small room in JimRob's house where we can get to know one another a little better; salute and support our military and our leaders; pray for those in need; and congratulate those deserving. We strive to keep our threads entertaining, fun, and pleasing to look at, and often have guest writers contribute an essay, or a profile of another FReeper.
On Mondays please visit us to see photos of A FEW OF FR'S VETERANS AND ACTIVE MILITARY
If you have a suggestion, or an idea, or if there's a FReeper you would like to see featured, please drop one of us a note in FR mail.
We're having fun and hope you are!
~ Billie, Dutchess, DollyCali, Mama_Bear ~
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Alaska's History in Brief
Russian Colonization
The disastrous voyage of Vitus Bering and Aleksey Chirikov in 1741 began the march of Russian traders across Siberia. The survivors who returned with sea otter skins started a rush of fur hunters to the Aleutian Islands. Grigori Shelekhov in 1784 founded the first permanent settlement in Alaska on Kodiak Island and sent (1790) to Alaska the man who was to dominate the period of Russian influence there, Aleksandr Baranov. A monopoly was granted to the Russian American Company in 1799, and it was Baranov who directed its Alaskan activities.
The Russian Orthodox Church and Native Alaskans
The primary goal of the Alaska mission was to convert the Native population to Orthodox Christianity. Conversion was encouraged by the Tsar, as head of the Church, and by the hierarchy. Rules for converting Natives strictly forbade using coercion. Orthodox missionaries were generally successful in their conversions, more so among the Aleuts and Eskimos than the Tlingits. Among the obstacles to conversion were the language barrier, and the shamanistic traditions of the Natives, deeply entrenched in the culture.
Today, Alaskans are proud of their Russian heritage and active Orthodox Churches are to be found in many towns. |
Early Years as a U.S. PossessionIn 1867, Russia sold Alaska to the United States for $7,200,000. The U.S. purchase was accomplished solely through the determined efforts of Secretary of State William H. Seward, and for many years afterward the land was derisively called Seward's Folly or Seward's Icebox because of its supposed uselessness. Since Alaska appeared to offer no immediate financial return, it was neglected. The U.S. army officially controlled the area until 1876, when scandals caused the withdrawal of the troops. After a brief period, during which government was in the hands of customs officials, the U.S. navy was given charge (1879). It was not until after the discovery of gold in the Juneau region in 1880 that Alaska was given a governor and a feeble local administration.
The Gold Rush
The Klondike strike of 1896 brought a stampede, mainly of Americans, and most of them came through Alaska. The big discoveries in Alaska itself followedNome in 189899, Fairbanks in 1902. The miners and prospectors (the sourdoughs) took over Alaska. |
"North to Alaska, They're goin' North, the rush is on!"
The steamship Portland had just pulled into Seattle, returning from the Yukon with over a ton of gold. Her arrival instantly sparked an all-out human stampede for the Yukon.
To seek their fortunes in the Yukon gold fields, prospectors had to make their way along the Inside Passage, cross the Chilkoot Mountains with a ton of supplies, build a raft or boat during the long, hard winter, and then float 550 miles down the Yukon River to Dawson. After reaching Dawson, each prospector had to stake a claim and spend countless weeks, months, or years digging his claim before panning or sluicing the dirt, hoping to strike it rich, but more likely scratching out a meager existence.
While the gold fields lay far to the north, towns like Skagway and Dyea became boomtowns almost overnight. These towns marked the start of the overland portion of the Trail of 98 Alaskas gateway to the Klondike. With numerous saloons, brothels, and a full complement of gunslingers, con men, drunkards, and outlaws, Skagway was a feral, lawless Wild West of the north.
Most of the would-be prospectors came to Alaska with little or no knowledge of mining or backcountry survival. Many soon found themselves questing no longer merely for fortune, but for their very survival. Not surprisingly, of the 100,000 who set out, only a few thousand ever reached the gold fields and only a mere handful ever struck it rich.
~ A Historical Vignette ~
Jefferson Randolph Soapy Smith was a Western crook with the gift of organization. A southern charmer and a master of the bait and switch, he was a confidence man who dressed like a judge, sat on a horse like a prince, and spoke like a bishop. He honed his skills in Texas and Colorado. Gradually he gathered shills and toughs around him, and commanded his gang of lambs as a colonel might command a battalion. When the Klondike Gold Rush began in 1897, he knew that the tenderfeet headed for northern goldfields would be ripe for the picking, and chose raw, lawless Skagway as his headquarters. In this bleak settlement at the head of Alaskas Lynn Canal, he constructed an empire that any Mafia don might envy. However, less than a year later, the town had had enough of Soapy. He was killed by Frank Reid, in 1898 when he was 38 years old. Soapy's life story is a rip-snorting portrait of the rise to power of a man without a conscience. It reveals the strong-arm robberies, bloody trail murders, illegitimate businesses, rigged card games, and garish, candle-lit honky-tonks of the Gold Rush.
One of Soapy's best cons involved his "telegraph office." Recent arrivals were greeted by men who offered to send telegrams to their families for only $5. Most people did not look behind the "telegraph office" to notice that the wires ended a few yards out.
Territorial StatusJuneau officially replaced Sitka as capital in 1900, but it did not begin to function as such until 1906. In the same year Alaska was finally awarded a territorial representative in Congress. A new era began for Alaska when local government was established in 1912 and it became a U.S. territory.
Statehood
In 1958, Alaskans approved statehood by a 5 to 1 vote, and on Jan. 3, 1959, Alaska was officially admitted into the Union as a state, the first since Arizona in 1912. |
- Outsiders first discovered Alaska in 1741 when Danish explorer Vitus Jonassen Bering sighted it on a voyage from Siberia.
- In 1867 United States Secretary of State William H. Seward offered Russia $7,200,000, or two cents per acre, for Alaska.
- On October 18, 1867 Alaska officially became the property of the United States. Many Americans called the purchase "Seward's Folly."
- Joe Juneau's 1880 discovery of gold ushered in the gold rush era.
- In 1943 Japan invaded the Aleutian Islands, which started the One Thousand Mile War, the first battle fought on American soil since the Civil War.
- Alaska officially became the 49th state on January 3, 1959.
- Alaska's most important revenue source is the oil and natural gas industry.
- The state of Rhode Island could fit into Alaska 425 times.
- Prudhoe Bay, on the northern Alaskan coast, is North America's largest oil field.
- The Trans-Alaska Pipeline moves up to 88,000 barrels of oil per hour on its 800 mile journey to Valdez.
- Most of America's salmon, crab, halibut, and herring come from Alaska.
- The term Alaska native refers to Alaska's original inhabitants including Aleut, Eskimo and Indian groups.
- Dog mushing is the official state sport. The Alaska Legislature adopted it in 1972.
![](http://d21c.com/Mama_Bear/iditdogs.jpg) Click here to read about "The Last Great Race on Earth", the Iditarod!
- The state motto is North to the Future.
- Gold is the official state mineral. It was named the state mineral in 1968.
- Alaska has been called America's Last Frontier.
- Every four years Alaskans elect a Governor and a Lieutenant Governor to four-year terms.
- The Alaska State Legislature is made up of a Senate and a House of Representatives.
- Twenty senators are elected to four-year terms; forty representatives serve two-year terms.
- Alaska's Constitution was adopted in 1956 and became effective in 1959 making it the 49th state.
- Nearly one-third of Alaska lies within the Arctic Circle.
- The Alaska Highway was originally built as a military supply road during World War II.
- The state boasts the lowest population density in the nation.
- The discovery of gold in the Yukon began a gold rush in 1898. Later gold was discovered at Nome and Fairbanks.
- Alaska is a geographical marvel. When a scale map of Alaska is superimposed on a map of the 48 lower states, Alaska extends from coast to coast.
- The state's coastline extends over 6,600 miles.
- Alaska is the United State's largest state and is over twice the size of Texas. Measuring from north to south the state is approximately 1,400 miles long and measuring from east to west it is 2,700 miles wide.
- Alaska's geographic center is 60 miles northwest of Mount McKinley.
- The Tongass National Forest is the largest national forest in the United States.
- 17 of the 20 highest peaks in the United States are located in Alaska.
- At 20,320 feet above sea level, Mt. McKinley, located in Alaska's interior, is the highest point in North America.
- Juneau is the only capital city in the United States accessible only by boat or plane.
- The state's largest city is Anchorage; the second largest is Fairbanks.
- The Alaska Range is the largest mountain chain in the state. It covers from the Alaska Peninsula to the Yukon Territory.
- In 1915 the record high temperature in Alaska was 100 degrees Fahrenheit at Fort Yukon; the record low temperature was -80 degrees Fahrenheit at Prospect Creek Camp in 1971.
- The Alaskan malamute sled dog is strong and heavily coated. It was developed as a breed by a group of Eskimos named the Malemiuts.
- Alaska's name is based on the Eskimo word Alakshak meaning great lands or peninsula.
- Agattu, Attu, and Kiska are the only parts of North America occupied by Japanese troops during World War II.
- Oil is the state's most valuable natural resource. The area includes what is thought to be the largest oil field in North America.
- In 1986 Mount Augustine erupted near Anchorage.
The "30-30-30" Rule
Polar and Alaskan explorers cite the "30-30-30" rule, which states that at -30°F, with winds of 30 MPH, human flesh will freeze solid in 30 seconds!
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Alaska king crab fishing is considered to be one of the most dangerous jobs in North America. Every year, hundreds of fearless crab fishermen endure extreme weather conditions and harsh work environments with assertive hopes of catching excessive amounts of the most desirable seafood in the world- King crab!
Deep in the frigid waters of the Bering Sea lurks the highly lucrative and yet often elusive king crab. Each year, approximately 250 boats converge on Dutch Harbor, Alaska, awaiting the official harvesting season. It could be four days in length or as many as 12 the fishermen won't know until the voice of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game crackles across their radios to announce the beginning and end of the fishing season.
Forty-foot waves, freezing temperatures, swinging 700-pound crab pots, a nearly 100 percent injury rate ... but also the chance to earn enough money for a family to live on for a year or more, for just a few days' work. Welcome to one of the world's deadliest jobs that of the Alaskan crab fisherman.
So, the next time you order Alaskan King Crab at your favorite restaurant, remember the men who risked life and limb to bring this wonderful (and expensive) delicacy to your table. :-)
Read more HERE about "The Deadliest Catch".
The following websites provided information and graphics for this presentation...
Scoundrels Gallery Wild Things Photography The Russian Church and Native Alaskan Cultures The 49th State
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TOPICS: Culture/Society; Free Republic; Miscellaneous; Political Humor/Cartoons; US: Alaska
KEYWORDS: alaska; finest; friends; fun; military; surprises; tribute; veterans
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
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To: Mama_Bear
Good morning! What a great thread! Lets move to Alaska.
To: Colonial Warrior
Oh, my ..early morning blurry screen.
202
posted on
10/20/2005 4:52:18 AM PDT
by
MEG33
(GOD BLESS OUR ARMED FORCES)
To: LadyX; Mama_Bear; Kathy in Alaska; JRandomFreeper; tongass kid; tillacum; thackney; MEG33; ...
Alaska REPRISE
Day Two -- here we come!
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203
posted on
10/20/2005 6:04:15 AM PDT
by
DollyCali
(Don't tell GOD how big your storm is -- Tell the storm how B-I-G your s God is!)
To: ST.LOUIE1; Aquamarine; Billie; dutchess; Mama_Bear; dansangel; deadhead; Diver Dave; GailA; ...
October 20, 2005
Living Royally
You are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. Galatians 4:7
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There is an ancient story about a man named Astyages who determined to do away with a royal infant named Cyrus. He summoned an officer of his court and told him to kill the baby prince. The officer in turn delivered the youngster to a herdsman with instructions that he should take him high up into the mountains where the baby would die from exposure.
The herdsman and his wife, however, took the child and raised him as their own. Growing up in the home of those humble peasants, he naturally thought they were his real parents. He was ignorant of his royal birth and his kingly lineage. Because he thought he was a peasant, he lived like one.
Many Christians fail to realize the royal heritage that is theirs in Christ. They live as spiritual peasants when they should be living royally. According to the apostle Paul, believers "are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:26). He also said, "Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, 'Abba, Father!' Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ" (4:6-7).
God has given us everything we need to live victorious, fulfilling lives. Let's not live like peasants. Richard De Haan
Rejoicethe Lord is King!
Your Lord and King adore!
Rejoice, give thanks, and sing
And triumph evermore. Wesley
A child of the King should reflect his Father's character.
FOR FURTHER STUDY
God Our Father
204
posted on
10/20/2005 6:20:05 AM PDT
by
The Mayor
( Pray as if everything depends on God; work as if everything depends on you.)
STRYKER BRIGADE: Alaska-based soldier is killed on patrol in Iraq.
A Fairbanks-based soldier was killed Tuesday in Iraq -- the first member of the 172nd Stryker Brigade to die in combat since the 3,800-person unit left Alaska this fall.
The Stryker brigade started shipping out for the desert from posts in Anchorage and Fairbanks in August. The unit arrived in Iraq in early September, replacing a Washington-based Stryker brigade that had lost more than 30 people during its yearlong tour there. Kelly moved back with her family in Tonganoxie after her husband was deployed.
The Strykers are eight-wheeled, armored combat vehicles new to the military and are used to transport troops on the battlefield.
Several of the soldiers in the Alaska Stryker unit have been wounded in the last two months, some seriously. The sniper attack that killed Frantz occurred Tuesday around 11:40 a.m. Iraq time, according to a statement Wednesday from Army Alaska spokesman Maj. Kirk Gohlke.
Gohlke said Frantz's platoon was conducting a cordon and search operation in an area of Mosul known as "Bedrock." Frantz was mounted in his Stryker vehicle, protecting the dismounted members of his platoon, when he was shot. His wife said she was told he died instantly.
No other American soldiers were wounded.
http://www.adn.com/news/military/story/7109166p-7016259c.html
205
posted on
10/20/2005 6:34:13 AM PDT
by
thackney
(life is fragile, handle with prayer)
To: thackney
RIP Spc. L Frantz and my God give peace to his widow Kelly and others in the Fratz family. Any loss is sad and it seems more real when it is in our backyard.
206
posted on
10/20/2005 7:31:24 AM PDT
by
DollyCali
(Don't tell GOD how big your storm is -- Tell the storm how B-I-G your s God is!)
To: lysie; dutchess; Aquamarine; Billie; JustAmy; lonestar; All
a warm fuzzy doggie/GI reunion story
HERE
207
posted on
10/20/2005 7:45:29 AM PDT
by
DollyCali
(Don't tell GOD how big your storm is -- Tell the storm how B-I-G your s God is!)
To: thackney
love the eagle pix.. wonderful. I life contiguous to a national park & we have many "wild things" around. An occasional eagle.. but it is rare.
208
posted on
10/20/2005 7:48:01 AM PDT
by
DollyCali
(Don't tell GOD how big your storm is -- Tell the storm how B-I-G your s God is!)
To: Mama_Bear; JRandomFreeper; thackney; Kathy in Alaska; tillacum; LadyX; All
Great link on languages in alaska etc...HERE...(btw reading french does seem helpful here. But without it you can glean quite a bit of interesting info)
doggone you mama.. I am just surfing Alaska, not using this great free day to clean house & do my IMP STUFF. Not my fault, lack of discipline. Your fault Sistah!
:-)
209
posted on
10/20/2005 7:55:43 AM PDT
by
DollyCali
(Don't tell GOD how big your storm is -- Tell the storm how B-I-G your s God is!)
To: Mama_Bear; LUV W; WVNan; deadhead; Diver Dave; Brad's Gramma; Texas Termite; All; dixie sass; ...
W-H-A-A-T ???!!! It's Thursday morning and I just signed on.
Last night, my last reply was this -
Exhibit "A":
"To: Texas Termite; LUV W; All
Nana, I think I did not have your name in the To box on my Reply # 194. Meant to do so!
Yes, LUV W, I have been richly blessed, an Appreciator of God's Creations and Love.
Need to go to bed here on the East Coast - good night all. God give you rest."
198 posted on 10/20/2005 12:23:11 AM EDT by LadyX ((( He Is The Lord, above all things )))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 194 | View Replies | Report Abuse ]"
===============================
Now look at Exhibit B, excerpted from my Sistah Nan's reply - # 199 posted on 10/20/2005 12:25:40 AM EDT by WVNan." [2 1/2 minutes later]
that I present as my circumstantial evidence...not that I would accuse my sistah of deliberately sitting there poised with her reply to hit POST as soon as I signed off!
Look at this remark to Mama_Bear in it - -
"That is the nice thing about the "state" threads. They bring new people to the Finest. Of course, Sistah's stories always spice things up. She tends to embellish her tales you know. Mama always said she had a flair for the dramatic."
EMBELLISH?? Moi?!!
Fact is Mama always said Nan was the "clever" one.
[She loved Nan best you know, overlooking all her..well..idiosyncrasies, shall we say?]
sniff..sniff..I shall, however, resist the urge to hit the Report Abuse Button, remembering she WAS nice..sometimes..like here in this graphic deadhead made for us --
Okay - recovered now, and thinking of two years ago when we last got together...my alter ego, Maggie Malone recorded the event, posted on The Finest afterward:
- HERE - with lots of photographs throughout the thread.
(she's the best Sistah in the whole wide world,actually--)
210
posted on
10/20/2005 8:00:23 AM PDT
by
LadyX
((( He Is The Lord, above all things )))
To: DollyCali; Billie; dutchess; The Mayor; JustAmy; Mama_Bear; Aquamarine
You always gather and post such a wonderful variety of thngs on every topic, Dolly!
You are a Finest Treasure - -
211
posted on
10/20/2005 8:03:50 AM PDT
by
LadyX
((( He Is The Lord, above all things )))
To: Darksheare; OESY; Colonial Warrior; Hushpuppie; citizensgratitude; LUV W; tuliptree76; All
Lest you think WVNan and I always were life worn Venerable Ones, the thread I linked above contains this from our overlapping pasts in Florida in the 50's:
"Here are a couple of the gals in their early 20's as Florida Beach Babes. On the left is Nan, at the beach in Miami. At right, Maggie on Indialantic Beach."
-
212
posted on
10/20/2005 8:17:42 AM PDT
by
LadyX
((( He Is The Lord, above all things )))
To: LUV W; Mama_Bear; WVNan; All
Here is another anecdote from our days in Alaska:
One of the men in my husband's outfit on a winter day decided to go into Fairbanks, 30 miles north of the base.
It then was a state law (and probably still is) that you cannot pass by a person on foot on a highway, but *must* stop and offer assistance.
Needless to say, if they are stranded, it takes only a matter of minutes to freeze to death in the extreme temperatures there, and important to help any time of the year.
Cruising along, dark, of course, most of the winter, his headlights picked up a man with a parka on the right side of the road ahead.
Braking to a stop beside him, he leaned over and flung open the passenger door to tell him to get in - - and even faster, slammed it closed and sped away!!
The man with a parka was - a brown bear..:))
213
posted on
10/20/2005 8:56:38 AM PDT
by
LadyX
((( He Is The Lord, above all things )))
To: LadyX
Well, actually I think YOU are the treasure..!!!
Love, the "babe" pix of Maggie & Nan & of course the reunion trip thread! Great read about Great FRiends & Sistahs
Need to see what I can do about putting out a few major fires here on the homefront.. will try to stop by tonight.
you hold down the fort until our wonderful hostess arrives?
214
posted on
10/20/2005 9:08:30 AM PDT
by
DollyCali
(Don't tell GOD how big your storm is -- Tell the storm how B-I-G your s God is!)
To: Deetes
Thanks for letting me know about this. It is very well done, except one thing...
Benny Benson was born October 12, 1913 in *Chignik* Alaska, not *Cognac*. Was somebody drinking?
Just kidding!
215
posted on
10/20/2005 9:48:28 AM PDT
by
akdonn
To: DollyCali; Mama_Bear; Billie; dutchess; The Mayor; Aquamarine; WVNan; All
"you hold down the fort until our wonderful hostess arrives?" Oh, goody!
I take that as a license
- to steal any graphics posted that I covet
say things about Sistah Nan, since she will not be here until tonight
- post helpful things like the time and current temperature in Fairanks this rather balmy October day there:
Am multitasking with "household musts,* but will stop to monitor until at the least 3 p.m....sure to be here this evening.
216
posted on
10/20/2005 9:48:48 AM PDT
by
LadyX
((( He Is The Lord, above all things )))
To: LUV W; All
Can't remember if I already posted this true story - -
perhaps some did not see it, though.
It was common to see women shoppers in any store dressed in outdoor garb, boots, etc. and a fur coat or parka, with a necklace strung with gold nuggets!
A man one day went to purchase a new car, and used gold nuggets to pay for it.
One bizarre story, though, was a time when my husband and friends went down by Tok, Alaska to hunt moose and caribou.
They were way out in the boonies, when along came a truck with a man and woman dressed to the hilt in evening finery and fur coats.
Talking with them, they'd been to Fairbanks for dinner and the opera, and were headed "home" - their mine much farther out!
To get there, they hopped aboard a huge bulldozer, still dressed to the nines, and headed out - - !!
217
posted on
10/20/2005 10:06:48 AM PDT
by
LadyX
((( He Is The Lord, above all things )))
To: LadyX
Good morning, Lady.
Love your Alaska stories. I'm happy to hear the man in the brown parka didn't accept the offered ride. :)
How are you this beautiful morning?
218
posted on
10/20/2005 10:19:08 AM PDT
by
JustAmy
(Our troops need your prayers, now more than ever!)
To: All; LadyX; DollyCali; Mama_Bear; The Mayor; jwfiv; Jack Deth; PreviouslyA-Lurker
![](http://images3.fotki.com/v37/photos/1/107747/420032/cartooneskimo-vi.gif)
Happy Alaska vacation, everyone.
219
posted on
10/20/2005 10:22:12 AM PDT
by
JustAmy
(Our troops need your prayers, now more than ever!)
To: akdonn
Benny Benson was born October 12, 1913 in *Chignik* Alaska, not *Cognac*. Was somebody drinking? LOL. Just wanted to see if you were paying attention. ;-)
Hey, I copy it as I find it. LOL. (50 States.com - Alaska Facts and Trivia #25)
Seriously, thanks for finding this error. I put too much work into these states to have mistakes in them. It has been corrected. :-)
220
posted on
10/20/2005 10:22:50 AM PDT
by
Mama_Bear
(If God brings you to it, He will bring you through it.)
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