Comments on: In the Archives: Alaska Trumps Michigan

By: Jim Rees

Jim Rees — Sat, 16 Jul 2011 18:53:22 +0000

Probably the story I remember reading was about one that was found but not in service, because it was within the last 20 years.

By: Dave Askins

Dave Askins — Tue, 12 Jul 2011 22:06:05 +0000

Re: wooden water mains

I touched base with Cresson Slotten, who’s unit manager in the systems planning unit for the city of Ann Arbor. He’s been with the city for over 20 years and during that time, no wooden water mains have been discovered that are still in use. However, work crews have found wooden water main still in place. A wooden plug was also discovered in one instance, and it was replaced with an iron plug. A sample of one of the wooden mains was retained and is stored at the Wheeler Service Center.

By: George "SMOKINJOE"

George "SMOKINJOE" — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 07:51:23 +0000

Something goofy with the above Juster Hill link on "Alaska Far Away" when you click on "purchase". I tried this one and it worked OK. [link]

By: George "SMOKINJOE"

George "SMOKINJOE" — Thu, 07 Jul 2011 00:08:15 +0000

The Pilot Point issue first. If you "Google Map" Pilot Point and zoom in it shows Pilot Point, Ugashik and Ugashik New. Ugashik & Ugashik New are the same place. Pilot Point was New Ugashik and Ugashik was Old Ugashik or Traditional Ugashik. I think the post office wanted entirely different names as some people would simply address to "Ugashik" and mail delivery was a major effort to those remote villages in those days. There is a book being worked on now by Jim Fox about the pre 1935 history of the Matanuska Valley. He is an excellent historian that worked on a couple of DVD's addressing the "Colonists" in the Mat Valley that took place in 1935. It's available at Amazon or can be purchased directly from Juster Hill Publications: [link] An interesting bit. George Lucas' (of "Star Wars") family was from the early Mat Valley and did the sound track for "Alaska Far Away". I met Jim Fox at a local presentation of Alaska Far Away at the Cook Inlet Historical Society showing in Anchorage. I turned Jim on to our family and he has done extensive research on it along with Coleen Mielke that has a super award winning genealogy site that did our pages. [link] Please sign her guest book if you visit! Luckily, our family tends to live long lives. I have a great aunt that moved back to Morton, WA that is doing well and is "Sharp as a tack" at 102 years! Jim spent time with her for a lot of info. By the way, a lot of the "Colonists of '35" came from Michigan. Some of their families will be on Alaska Far Away. Small world, aye? Glad I ran across your article. George in Girdwood, AK

By: Laura Bien

Laura Bien — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 16:17:17 +0000

Those are some wonderful photos, Smokin’ Joe; thank you for sharing them. And a fascinating family history; have you ever written it up? That’s definitely a book I would read. I am wondering, however, why Washington D.C. forced the town to change its name before issuing post office equipment…bit of a mystery there.

By: George "SMOKINJOE"

George "SMOKINJOE" — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 09:00:43 +0000

Always interesting to read tales about early Alaska. My family ancestors were early settlers in Alaska, my mother the first Caucasion born in the Matanuska Valley in Knik, her father was a cinnabar, coal and gold miner. My fathers parents were teachers and missionaries in the Bristol Bay village of Pilot Point. I got my handle of "Smokin' Joe from smokin' the beaches of Nome from my partner Andy Hehnlin, a miner and well known Alaskan tempera artist. You can "Google" him by name. Here's some on my family if you like history. [link] [link]

By: Laura Bien

Laura Bien — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 12:21:28 +0000

Oh darn it, clearly I did indeed give it away. Though I’m a little surprised no one suggested that this is a pioneer-era marshmallow toaster. “You build up a bed of coals in the bowl, and position a marshmallow skewered on a two-penny nail suspended from a fiddle string…”

Also looking forward to hearing about old-time wooden water pipes in AA; there’s a good story there for an AA historian.

By: Jim Rees

Jim Rees — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 11:40:03 +0000

“clublike missing component … attached to a nearby sapling, bent over.” Ah, you’ve given it away. Obviously this was a primitive weapon used to scare away the bears that were so common back then and today are making a comeback. You load the bowl with banana smoothie (bears are terrified of banana), pull the sapling over to dip the club, then let it go, spattering the bear in the face. I think I’ve seen a similar device down at Washtenaw Dairy.

The story I dimly remember reading in the AA News was about the wood water pipe being taken out of service, so I’m pretty sure there are none left in Ann Arbor. I may have the location wrong, could have been East Madison, but it was near South Quad. Wish I could remember when it was published, I’m going to say 1990s. I’ll be curious to see what the City says.

By: Laura Bien

Laura Bien — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 03:51:16 +0000

p.s. …that came off, unintentionally, as a bit snarky…not meant as such. Just that I’m sometimes surprised to learn how thin the pioneer edge of survival was.

By: Laura Bien

Laura Bien — Tue, 05 Jul 2011 03:41:00 +0000

Oh, and Dave…amid households prostrated by malaria and dealing withmalnutrition and pesky local wolves and bears, banana sundaes were not a top menu item either… :) there is no hardware missing on this artifact, but there is one clublike missing component which likely was attached to a nearby sapling, bent over.