A Look back at How Seward was founded

In the latter part of 1901, John E. Ballaine decided to organize and promote a railroad from the Pacific Coast through Central Alaska to the Yukon valley.

His first aim was to establish an ocean terminus at a year-round harbor with good shelter and ample depth of water. The location needed level ground for wharves and bunkers at the railroad terminal facilities, as well as adjacent room for factories and smelters. From every source of available information Tyoonok, Seldovia, Knik, Port Well, Valdez, Illiamna, Cordova Bay, Port Nelle Juan, and Controller Bay were examined.

“I held the view that the ocean terminus was of prime importance for it would serve all future generations and in time become one of the world’s important centers of commercial and industrial activity.” Ballaine suggested in the January 1, 1906 edition of the Seward Daily Gateway.

In 1898, United States Army Captain Glenn had started from Resurrection Bay with a government exploration party to cooperate with similar parties starting from other points on the southern coast of Alaska to find an All American route to the Klondike for a trail, wagon road, or railroad.

“Odd as it may now seem,” Ballaine offered, “Resurrection Bay was the last that came to my notice, for it was then perhaps the least known harbor on the entire southern coast of Alaska.”

In his report, Captain Glenn stated that Resurrection Bay was one of the best harbors in Alaska and that it connected with a route of easy grades and moderate cost for a wagon road or a railroad, either by way of the Matanuska river to the Klondike, or up the Susitna valley to the Tanana and the Yukon.

By March of 1902 the Alaska Central Railway was organized and Resurrection bay selected as its tentative terminal. R.E. Field’s engineering party was charged with making a detailed survey of Resurrection Bay harbor.

“The reports of the engineers more than confirmed all the favorable information I had previously obtained about Resurrection Bay and the practicability of a route from its head to the interior river,” said Ballaine. “My investigations had convinced me that the resources tributary to the route were diversified and abundant, including gold, copper, high grade coal, and the best timber and agricultural lands in Alaska. I therefore, in November 1902, definitely selected Resurrection Bay as the ocean terminus of the Alaska Central Railway.”

The only residents of the area were Mrs. Mary Lowell and her family. They had lived for eighteen years in the cabin that was still their home. Ballaine speculated that the Resurrection Bay area would be able accommodate an ultimate population of not less than 500,000.

“To some it may appear an extravagance to say that people now living will see at Seward one of the half dozen largest cities on the Pacific Coast,” Ballaine suggested. “The same people in 1880 would have pronounced it impossible for Seattle to attain a population exceeding 10,000 or 12,000 by 1905, as a great many at that time did.”

Ballaine was a child when he moved to Washington with his parents in 1879. “Seattle was then a ragged settlement on the fringe of impenetrable forests.” Ballaine explained. “It had no electric lighting plant, no water works, no daily newspaper, as Seward has today. Seattle in 1880 was further from the center of population, several times over, measured in time of travel, than Seward is in 1905.”

Mike Kash offers some perspective

A woman awakes during the night to find that her husband was not in their bed. She puts on her robe and goes downstairs to look for him.

She finds him sitting at the kitchen table with a hot cup of coffee in front of him. He appears to be in deep thought, just staring at the wall.

She watches as he wipes a tear from his eye and takes a sip of his coffee. "What's the matter, dear?" she whispers as she steps into the room, "Why are you down here at this time of night?"

The husband looks up from his coffee, "I am just remembering when we first met 20 years ago and started dating. You were only 16. Do you remember back then?" he says solemnly.

The wife is touched to tears thinking that her husband is so caring, so sensitive. "Yes, I do" she replies.

The husband pauses. The words were not coming easily. "Do you remember when your father caught us in the back seat of my car?"

"Yes, I remember," said the wife, lowering herself into a chair beside him. The husband continues. "Do you remember when he shoved the shotgun in my face and said, "Either you marry my daughter, or I will send you to jail for 20 years?"

"I remember that too" she replies softly.

He wipes another tear from his cheek and says... "I would have gotten out today."

Beary cool playground

On the outskirts of Anchorage, this family decided to build a sturdy, colorful playground for their 3 and 4 year old sons, with smooth-stone gravel all around it to avoid knee scrapes and other injuries.

They finished building it on Saturday evening, and the following morning, as the mom was about to wake up the boys and have them go out to play in their new play center, this is what she saw from the upstairs window:

A Look Back at the Douglas World Flyers

The unique sound of four 12-cylinder water-cooled 420-hp Liberty engines echoed as four Army flyers arrived in Seward on April 13th, 1924. The Douglas World Cruisers were the first airplanes ever seen by most of the 1,000 people who welcomed from the beaches of Resurrection Bay.

It was a time of frail airplanes built of wood, wire, and cloth, with uncertain engines, wooden propellers, and few instruments. The adventure began in early 1924, when US Army Air Force General William Mitchell predicted the strategic importance of Alaska in a future air war.

The announcement by the Army Air Force that eight of its airmen would attempt a round-the-world flight captured the world’s attention. British, Portuguese, French, Italian, and Argentine pilots immediately announced their intentions to claim the coveted title of first to circumnavigate the globe.

Donald W. Douglas, a young aircraft manufacturer of seaplanes in Santa Monica, agreed to build planes for the Americans based on his Navy DT-2 torpedo bomber but with significant changes for long-range operation. The airplanes, called Douglas World Cruisers, were dual-controlled with a gas capacity of 644 gallons for a range of 2,200 miles. They would each have engine instruments, altimeter, turn-and-bank indicator, drift indicator, and compass - but no radio.

On April 4, the Seattle, Chicago, Boston, and New Orleans, left Washington for Alaska. The 600 mile flight from Sitka to Seward took nearly seven hours and a half hours through the worst weather they had encountered to date.

“For a couple of hours the weather was ideal and then we started to run into snow squalls, light ones at first, and then heavier and heavier,” reported Lt. Leslie P. Arnold, the mechanic for the Chicago. “About 1:30 we struck a regular blizzard that lasted nearly 45 minutes, the thickest weather any of us had ever flown in. The only possible way to keep going was to fly along the beach just over the water and follow the black beach line. Several narrow escapes from collisions took place, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief when we finally broke through into brilliant sunshine.”

“From here on the weather was ideal, clear and sunny, and again the snow capped mountains were admired by all.” Arnold continued. “Quite a few glaciers were passed and being the first seen by many of us, they were given a keen looking over. They are nothing more or less than a river of solid snow and ice, yet to me it created quire a feeling of awe.”

There was no float plane dock at the boat harbor, so the Flyers were serviced by having two medium-sized dories shuttle drums of gasoline to the planes. The gasoline was pumped by hand-operated centrifugal pumps from the drum to the tanks. The oil, in five gallon cans, was poured by hand into the oil tanks.

The soon-to-be world famous flyers were offered some of the most luxurious accommodations of their trip, spending the night at the Van Gilder. In her golden age, the Van Gilder was considered the finest hotel in Seward, catering to the wealthy passers-through, visiting dignitaries, travelers, and explorers.

The flight was challenging every step of the trip, and the Alaska leg was no exception. With flight commander Maj. Martin piloting, the Seattle fell behind with mechanical trouble that eventually forced him down. After an engine replacement, the Seattle departed in questionable weather hoping to catch up with the other flyers waiting at Dutch Harbor.

On April 30, the Seattle lost her battle with fog and high winds on the segment between Chignik and Dutch Harbor. They became lost and crashed on a mountainside near Port Moller. The airplane was completely destroyed. After walking ten days through the frozen wilderness, the two-man crew safely reached Dutch Harbor escaping with only minor injuries.

On September 28, the Douglas World Cruisers returned to Seattle with an actual flying time of 371 hours and 11 minutes. One of the flyers received his only injury from the trip, two broken ribs, when an overeager greeter at the Santa Monica Douglas plant reception gave him a bear hug.

Sources differ on whether they logged 29,000, 27,553, or 26,553 miles in six months and six days - averaging 70 mph. Whatever the actual distance, the 1924 round-the-world flight remains one of the truly great achievements in aviation.

More than just an aviation milestone, this flight was a monumental logistical accomplishment that was an important step towards opening up worldwide air transportation. The flight was the greatest feat in aviation up to that time, and earned the Douglas Aircraft Company its motto, “First Around the World.”

Bad Food

A Doctor was addressing a large audience in Tampa. "The material
we put into our stomachs is enough to have killed most of us
sitting here years ago. Red meat is awful. Soft drinks corrode
your stomach lining.

Chinese food is loaded with MSG. High fat diets can be
disastrous, and none of us realizes the long-term harm caused
by the germs in our drinking water.

But there is one thing that is the most dangerous of all and we
all have, or will, eat it. Can anyone here tell me what food it
is that causes the most grief and suffering for years after
eating it?"

After several seconds of quiet, a 75-year-old man in the front
row raised his hand, and softly said,

"Wedding Cake."

Misty's Mischievous young men

Two little boys, ages 8 and 10, were excessively Mischievous. They were
always getting into trouble and their parents knew all about it. If any
mischief occurred in their Town, the two boys were probably involved.

The boys' mother heard that a preacher in town had been successful in
disciplining children, so she asked if he would speak with her boys.

The preacher agreed, but he asked to see them individually. So the
mother sent the 8 year old first, in the morning, with the older boy to
see the preacher in the afternoon.

The preacher, a huge man with a booming voice, sat the younger boy down
and asked him sternly, "Do you know where God is, son?"

The boy's mouth dropped open, but he made no response, Sitting there
wide-eyed with his mouth hanging open.

So the preacher repeated the question in an even sterner tone, "Where is
God?!" Again, the boy made no attempt to answer. The preacher raised
his voice even more and shook his finger in the boy's face and bellowed,
"Where is God?!"

The boy screamed and bolted from the room, ran directly home and dove
into his closet, slamming the door behind him.

When his older brother found him in the closet, he asked, "What
happened?"

The younger brother, gasping for breath, replied, "We are in BIG trouble
this time," ..........."GOD is missing, and they think we did it!"

A Look Back at the Mysterious Catastrophe of the USS Yukon

The USS Yukon left the Seward city dock at 4:20 p.m., February 3, 1946 with 496 passengers aboard. Twelve hours later, her distress calls were heard as far away as Honolulu, Hawaii. Several miles off course, veteran Captain Christian F. Trondsen was uncertain of his position; 40-50 ft. icy ground swells had crashed the ship aground on the rocks.

Around 4:30 a.m., the distress calls ceased.

The Yukon had operated in Alaskan waters for over two decades, and now it seemed almost a certainty that she would be dashed to pieces before help could possibly arrive. Struggling against heavy snowstorms, terrific east northeast gales, 30 degree air temperatures, and water at zero; chances for any survivors would be slim.

As the first jagged crags ripped through her hull, Trondsen wisely ordered engines full ahead, wedging her bow in a 45 degree angle hard against the rocks. This kept the upper deck afloat when her stern broke off and sank.

Seward’s Malcolm MacDonald joined a member of the Yukon crew who volunteered to rig a breeches bouy from the wreck to a narrow strip of beach. Landings were hazardous. Several victims fell into the water and were hauled out more dead than alive. Many were severely injured. A man dropped from the bouy, striking the water flat with a pistol shot report, screaming in pain. The severity of the fall ripped off his clothing.

At dawn, Mr. and Mrs. Vern Trakowski, owners of Seward’s Alaska Scenic Airservice, braved the storm to locate the wreck. Spotting an oil slick on the water, they followed it to the dead ship. Conditions were so bad there was little they could do beyond returning to report the Yukon’s position, Cape Fairfield, to the Army.

The US Coast Guard cutter Onondaga was responding to a Middleton Island distress when they heard the call from the Yukon. Weather conditions were so severe that the Onondaga almost passed the Yukon when they searched for her.

The Onondaga drove to within 700 yards of the wreck and lowered small motor whale boats to collect as many passengers as possible. There was no reported hysteria or disorder in the evacuation. Young ladies were placed in charge of small groups of children, while the older women stayed behind.

CMM Cleo Duncan was trying to reach the rope ladder when a rogue wave caught his lifeboat, hurling it high into the air, and down again far from the ship. This motion caused Duncan to throw both arms up and out to steady himself. At that moment, a blanketed infant was flung loose from the Yukon’s top deck, catapulting downward towards the freezing water below, landing squarely in Duncan’s outstretched arms.

Duncan told the Seward Weekly Marathon that he didn’t see the baby coming, and stood there for several moments after it fell, clutching the warm little body against his chest in astonishment and thanksgiving at the lucky accident that had permitted him to save its life.

The oldest passenger, an Alaskan lady who had made the trip outside several times before, refused to go into the life boats until forced to do so by well-meaning fellow passengers. She was struggling down the rope ladder with a line tied under her arms when a huge wave tore at her, ripping her loose, and leaving her hanging mid-air, drenched to the skin by the icy water.

As anxious rescuers watched for her to reappear, she shouted matter-of-factly, “Somebody please help me get my hands back on that damn ladder!”

At the Seward first aid station, when she was asked whether or not she had been frightened, she reportedly replied. “Of course, I was scared. Who the hell wouldn’t be scared?”

It took five heart wrenching days of coordinated effort between Army, Navy, and Coast Guard forces to rescue the Yukon's passengers and crew. Three civilians, six servicemen, and two crew members were lost; including one Yukon crewmember who went over the side to bring up a victim of the shipwreck, only to go under from the cold himself.

“Only eleven lost,” reported US Coast Guard Lt. Garrett Tuck. “That’s the miracle, so few being lost when at one time it looked like nobody was going to be saved."

A little Nervie for the New Year

This is a case of photographer photographs photographer. The following
photographs were taken by photographer Hans van de Vorst at the Grand
Canyon, Arizona. The descriptions are his own. The identity of the
photographer IN the photos are unknown.

I was simply stunned seeing this guy standing on this solitary rock IN
the Grand Canyon. The canyon's depth is 900 meters here. The rock on
the right is next to the canyon and safe.
Watching this guy on his thong sandals, with a camera and a tripod I
asked myself 3 questions: 1. How did he climb that rock? 2. Why not
taking that sunset picture on that rock to the right, which is perfectly
safe? 3. How will he get back?


This is the point of no return.


After the sun set behind the canyon's horizon he packed his
things(having only one hand available) and prepared himself for the
jump. This took about 2 minutes. At that point he had the full attention
of the crowd.
After that, he jumped on his thong sandals ... The canyon's depth is 900
meters here. Now you can see that the adjacent rock is higher so he
tried to land lower, which is quite steep and tried to use his one hand
to grab the rock.


We've come to the end of this little story. Look carefully at the
photographer. He has a camera, a tripod and also a plastic bag, all on
his shoulder or in his left hand. Only his right hand is available to
grab the rock and the weight of his stuff is a problem. He lands low on
this flip flops both his right hand and right foot slips away ... At
that moment I take this shot. He pushes his body against the rock. He
waits for a few seconds, throws his stuff on the rock, climbs and walks
away.

Andi Blackwood gets a Nod

You can imagine how excited I was to read the emediawire article, Investors are Pouring Millions of Dollars into Nashville's Country Music Market
only to discover a tip of the hat to Andie Blackwood on the right hand column, complete with one of my photos of her!!

I am fairly confident that as a photographer this is the best footage circulation that I have received thus far, plus the photo - taken at the Wild Horse Saloon in Nashville, is one of the more artsy headshots that I have ever taken.

Kinda cool, I am liking it.

We are still working on plans to get back to Nashville so that she can record some more songs, including her title track, Love to Burn. Looks like a year of great adventure for our heroine.

Stuck between Charlotte Overman and Ali Shumate kinda rocks for a placement for someone who has nothing on the airways yet. Way to go Robert, you PR master.

Misty fishes with face painting

Wasilla Pick-up lines

1) Did you fart, cause you blew me away.

2) Are your parents retarded, 'cause you sure are special.

3) My Love for you is like diarrhea .. I can't hold it in.

4) Do you have a library card, 'cause I'd like to sign you out.

5) Is there a mirror in your pants? Because I can see myself in them.

6) If you and I were Squirrels, I'd store my nuts in your hole.

7) You might not be the best looking girl here, but beauty is only a light switch away.

8) Man - "Fat Penguin!"
Woman - "WHAT?"
Man - "I just wanted to say something that would break the ice."

9) I may not be Fred Flintstone, but I bet I can make your bed-rock.


10) I can't find my puppy, can you help me find him? I think he went
into this cheap motel room.

11) Your eyes are as blue as window cleaner.

12) If you're going to regret this in the morning, we can sleep until the afternoon.

and.... the best for last!

13) Your face reminds me of a wrench, every time I think of it my nuts
tighten up.