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Anchorage holds half the population of Alaska with approximately
269,070 residents. It is located in the south central region at the head of
the Cook Inlet. Mount Susitna, informally known as Sleeping Lady, lies 35
miles to the northwest. Less than 10 miles east of downtown are the Chugach
Mountains, and they are one of the city's wild playgrounds. Chugach State Park is
less than an hour down the road. The average temperatures
in January range from 8 to 21 degrees; in July, average temperatures range
from 51 to 65. Annual precipitation is 15.9 inches, with 69 inches of
snowfall. It can be argued that Anchorage is the only
"City" in Alaska. Alaskans say, "if you've been to Anchorage you haven't been to Alaska, if
you've been to Alaska you haven't been to Anchorage." Anchorage IS the HUB to most all Alaskan Communities
and
about a 3 hour flight to Seattle.
Anchorage has over 162 parks, including 10 large reserves. Recreational
activities include downhill and cross-country skiing, ice hockey, fishing,
golf, swimming, hiking, biking and camping. The most popular place
to hike is the
Flattop Mountain Trail, a mostly moderate climb. The city is along Turnagain
Arm, where beluga whales chase salmon runs in the second largest tides in
North America. Anchorage is also known for "Combat" fishing, where
men and women line up shoulder to shoulder casting a line to catch one of
many 40 lb. salmon.
The Port of Anchorage handles 85% of the general cargo for the Alaska Railbelt
(the train route)
area. Anchorage is the center of commerce for the state. Oil and gas
industries, finance and real estate, transportation, communications, and
government agencies are headquartered in Anchorage. Over 8,500
military personnel are stationed at Fort Richardson and Elmendorf AFB.
In 1741 Russian sailors led by the Dane Vitus Bering came upon Alaska's
mainland. They were followed by British, Spanish and American explorers,
including Captain James Cook in 1778. In 1867, Alaska was purchased by the
U.S. from Russia. The discovery of gold in 1887 as well as in the Interior in
1922 sparked development in the area. Construction began in 1914 on a
federal railroad from the port of Seward, to the gold claims near
Fairbanks, 358 miles to the north. The midpoint construction headquarters
were in Anchorage, and by July of 1915, thousands of job seekers and
opportunists had poured into the area. That July produced
the "Great Anchorage Lot Sale," a land auction that shaped the future of
the city. Some 655 lots were sold for $148,000 or an average of $225 each.
A month later, the town voted to call itself Alaska City, but the Federal
government refused to change its name from Anchorage. From 1939 to
1957, major military impacts and government construction of roads,
airports and harbors throughout Alaska, contributed to the growth of
Anchorage. The Port was completed by the early 1960s. The Good Friday
earthquake in 1964 destroyed a large part of the city. During the 1970s,
the development of the Prudhoe Bay oil fields and the Trans-Alaska
Pipeline brought rapid growth to Anchorage; population, office space and
housing tripled within a ten-year period. Today it is the HUB of most
Interior communities. Many tourist come here based on
necessity but are sometimes surprised that it is a city with all the
major conveniences of any city in the "lower 48".
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