History

This photo shows Juneau's Salmon Creek Dam. (Courtesy Photo / AEL&P)

Salmon Creek Dam to gain engineering landmark status

It’s not the only Southeast structure to earn the status.

 

Reverend Father Simeon Johnson, the rector for St. Nicholas Russian Orthodox Church, left, stands in the church chapel with the recently enthroned Bishop of the Russian Orthodox Diocese of Sitka and Alaska, the Right Reverend Alexei on Wednesday, May 25, 2022. Alexei was in Juneau to discuss rennovations to St. Nicholas, the second oldest Orthodox church in Alaska. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

St. Nicholas Orthodox Church prepares for a heavy lift

Alaska’s second-oldest Orthodox church.

 

Courtesy photo / Sydney Akagi Photography Bartender Logan Terry pours a drink during an opening event for the Crystal Saloon, a newly overhauled bar downtown.

What’s old is new again: A Crystal Saloon returns to Juneau

It’s a name with a history reaching back over the last century.

 

Courtesy Photo / The White House The White House, heavily renovated over the years, has been the home of America’s presidents for most of the country’s history.

Quiz: Alaska and its history with the presidents

How much do you know about the state’s relationship with the commander-in-chief?

Courtesy Photo / The White House The White House, heavily renovated over the years, has been the home of America’s presidents for most of the country’s history.
Courtesy photo / United States Army Signal Corps The Color Guard of the 442nd RCT stands at attention while citations are read following the fierce fighting in the Vosges area of France on November 12, 1944.

‘Way above the call of duty in many cases’: Civil rights group to honor Japanese-American regiment on Day of Remembrance

They’re the most decorated unit in American history, without exception.

Courtesy photo / United States Army Signal Corps The Color Guard of the 442nd RCT stands at attention while citations are read following the fierce fighting in the Vosges area of France on November 12, 1944.
This undated photos shows National Day of Mourning plaque on Cole's Hill in Plymouth, Mass, where since 1970 Indigenous groups have gathered to mourn the history of colonization in North America. This year marks the 400th anniversary of the traditional "First Thanksgiving " in 1621, but for many Indigenous people, including Alaska Natives, the holiday is a somber one. (Courtesy photo / Creative commons)

Thanksgiving has somber context for Indigenous Americans

New narratives.

This undated photos shows National Day of Mourning plaque on Cole's Hill in Plymouth, Mass, where since 1970 Indigenous groups have gathered to mourn the history of colonization in North America. This year marks the 400th anniversary of the traditional "First Thanksgiving " in 1621, but for many Indigenous people, including Alaska Natives, the holiday is a somber one. (Courtesy photo / Creative commons)
Tlingit master carver Wayne Price, left, and students from Angoon High School wheel a dugout canoe down to the Angoon waterfront on Tuesday, Oct. 26, 2021, for a ceremony commemorating the bombardment of the village by the U.S. Navy in 1882. Dugout canoes were specifically targeted by the navy for destruction, and Price said crafting a new one was a way of healing from the past. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)

Remembering and rebuilding: Angoon residents commemorate 139 years since bombardment

‘We’re still here.”

Tlingit master carver Wayne Price, left, and students from Angoon High School wheel a dugout canoe down to the Angoon waterfront on Tuesday, Oct. 26, 2021, for a ceremony commemorating the bombardment of the village by the U.S. Navy in 1882. Dugout canoes were specifically targeted by the navy for destruction, and Price said crafting a new one was a way of healing from the past. (Peter Segall / Juneau Empire)
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Then Now: Looking back on pandemic response

Comparing messaging from 1918 to 2021

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In 1980, U.S. Coast Guard helicopters and cutters, assisted by the U.S. Air Force and the Canadian armed forces as well as civilian rescue and relief organizations, rescued more than 500 passengers and crew from the cruise ship Prinsendam in the Gulf of Alaska. (Courtesy photo / U.S. Coast Guard)

Rescuers recall Prinsendam fire following 41st anniversary

It’s been four decades since the Coast Guard’s biggest and most successful rescue.

In 1980, U.S. Coast Guard helicopters and cutters, assisted by the U.S. Air Force and the Canadian armed forces as well as civilian rescue and relief organizations, rescued more than 500 passengers and crew from the cruise ship Prinsendam in the Gulf of Alaska. (Courtesy photo / U.S. Coast Guard)
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Alaska Science Forum: Finding out more about the quake that shook Kodiak 120 years ago

By Ned Rozell In 1900, Alaska was home to Native people in scattered villages and camps and recently arrived miners who scraped the creeks for… Continue reading

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Juneau voices: Locals share personal stories for new audio history project downtown

Juneau voices: Locals share personal stories for new audio history project downtown

For Anne Stepetin, a Tlingit Native from Angoon, it never gets easier to talk about the story.

Juneau voices: Locals share personal stories for new audio history project downtown
Lawmakers honor first African American woman elected to the Alaska House

Lawmakers honor first African American woman elected to the Alaska House

The late Senator was the “conscience of the Legislature.”

Lawmakers honor first African American woman elected to the Alaska House
Planet Alaska: A lesson from haa shagóon in 2020

Planet Alaska: A lesson from haa shagóon in 2020

The phrase means so much more than just “our ancestors.”

Planet Alaska: A lesson from haa shagóon in 2020
Opinion: Ferry system is shameful; Floathouse owner seeks photographs; Senatorial shortcomings

Opinion: Ferry system is shameful; Floathouse owner seeks photographs; Senatorial shortcomings

Letters to the Editor.

Opinion: Ferry system is shameful; Floathouse owner seeks photographs; Senatorial shortcomings
Then and Now: This photo composite shows what the Willoughby District looked like back what it was an Alaska Native village, and now in current day. The historic photograph by Winter and Pond is not dated, but was was taken sometime between 1893 and 1943, according to the Alaska State Library Historical Collections. (Collection number ASL-PCA-87). The photo on the right was taken Monday, June 24, 2019, on Willoughby Avenue by Juneau Empire photographer Michael Penn.

The Willoughby District in downtown Juneau has a new Native name

A nod to indigenous history.

Then and Now: This photo composite shows what the Willoughby District looked like back what it was an Alaska Native village, and now in current day. The historic photograph by Winter and Pond is not dated, but was was taken sometime between 1893 and 1943, according to the Alaska State Library Historical Collections. (Collection number ASL-PCA-87). The photo on the right was taken Monday, June 24, 2019, on Willoughby Avenue by Juneau Empire photographer Michael Penn.
FDR’s New Deal helped preserve Alaska Native art, like these three totem poles in Juneau

FDR’s New Deal helped preserve Alaska Native art, like these three totem poles in Juneau

Rural Tennessee has electricity for the same reason Southeast Alaska has totem parks — the New Deal.

FDR’s New Deal helped preserve Alaska Native art, like these three totem poles in Juneau
The surprising humanity of 19th century 1,500-mile trek through Alaska

The surprising humanity of 19th century 1,500-mile trek through Alaska

Don’t call him Lewis or Clark.

The surprising humanity of 19th century 1,500-mile trek through Alaska
Dig this: Art and science collide in new Ray Troll exhibition

Dig this: Art and science collide in new Ray Troll exhibition

Ketchikan artist has been drawing dinos with crayons for 61 years.

Dig this: Art and science collide in new Ray Troll exhibition
Keeping the light on: Alaska’s oldest lighthouse is in dire need of repairs
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Keeping the light on: Alaska’s oldest lighthouse is in dire need of repairs

It’s beautiful from afar, but close up you’ll see it’s crumbling.

Keeping the light on: Alaska’s oldest lighthouse is in dire need of repairs
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Jeff Smiths Parlor Museum recently restored by the National Park Service, July 18, 2017. (Courtesy Photo | National Park Service, Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, Karl Gurcke)

Southeast In Sepia: Jefferson Randolph ‘Soapy’ Smith’s parlor

The building Soapy operated in Skagway has an interesting history.

Jeff Smiths Parlor Museum recently restored by the National Park Service, July 18, 2017. (Courtesy Photo | National Park Service, Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, Karl Gurcke)