In May/June 2023, Jill and I toured Alaska by land and by sea. We traveled from Fairbanks to Whittier by motor coach and train and then sailed from Whittier to Vancouver aboard the Majestic Princess. We had a blast!
Click HERE to read a short introduction to our Cruisetour.
This story, part of a series, is about my walking tour through downtown Fairbanks.
Click HERE to read a short introduction to our Cruisetour.
This story, part of a series, is about my walking tour through downtown Fairbanks.
Golden Heart Plaza
Fairbanks, Alaska (Monday, May 29, 2023) “I was out of the bus in a flash!” I wrote near the end of On the Banks of the Chena River.
I was determined to see the sights of downtown Fairbanks, the Golden Heart City, and nothing – especially a mechanical breakdown – would get in my way.
“Take a left here, then two rights, and another left,” the bus driver said when I exited the bus. He followed up with the names of the streets I would follow to the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Center.
It was an easy walk, no more than a mile, that I covered in about fifteen minutes. On the way, I spotted this colorful mural – one of many beautiful murals I saw as I wandered through downtown Fairbanks – on the side of Midnite Mine Brewing Company, near Wendell Avenue and Dunkel Street. It was painted by local multimedia artist Tammy Holland.
I was determined to see the sights of downtown Fairbanks, the Golden Heart City, and nothing – especially a mechanical breakdown – would get in my way.
“Take a left here, then two rights, and another left,” the bus driver said when I exited the bus. He followed up with the names of the streets I would follow to the Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Center.
It was an easy walk, no more than a mile, that I covered in about fifteen minutes. On the way, I spotted this colorful mural – one of many beautiful murals I saw as I wandered through downtown Fairbanks – on the side of Midnite Mine Brewing Company, near Wendell Avenue and Dunkel Street. It was painted by local multimedia artist Tammy Holland.
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My art is a reflection of my childhood, celebrating nature and the strong matriarchal bonds that shaped my character. I play with a bold color pallet and perspectives, often blowing up the subject to larger than life.
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When I prepped for my day in downtown Fairbanks, I read that the Cultural Center was an informative introduction to the people, wildlife, and landscape of the Interior of Alaska. It proved to be that and more!
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The Morris Thompson Cultural and Visitors Center is a place for gathering, discovery, education and celebration made possible by a cross-organizational, multi-cultural partnership built on the values of the late Morris Thompson, a Koyukon Athabascan, born in 1939 in the village of Tanana.
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~ morristhompsoncenter.org
Morris Thompson (1939–2000) was widely recognized as a leader of the Alaska Native people. At age thirty-four, he was appointed Commissioner of the Bureau of Indian Affairs – the youngest person to hold this office.
The Cultural Center, located south of the Chena River inside one of its many u-shaped bends, was completed and opened to the public in 2008.
The Cultural Center, located south of the Chena River inside one of its many u-shaped bends, was completed and opened to the public in 2008.
I loved the design of the building, which to my untrained eye had many of the elements of modern architecture – rectangular forms, asymmetry, and large glass windows, to name a few.
There were eight exhibition halls within the 9,000 square foot interior, including Celebration of Communities, Winter Sets you Free, Elders’ Hall, and Gateway to Alaska. And in each hall were interesting and eye-catching displays, dioramas, and storyboards; I studied and read many over the course of an hour.
I selected four photos (from the several dozen pics I took) to share with you.
There were eight exhibition halls within the 9,000 square foot interior, including Celebration of Communities, Winter Sets you Free, Elders’ Hall, and Gateway to Alaska. And in each hall were interesting and eye-catching displays, dioramas, and storyboards; I studied and read many over the course of an hour.
I selected four photos (from the several dozen pics I took) to share with you.
From a storyboard in Celebration of Communities, I read, “At our core, we have a deep respect for the land and the animals, for they still provide us with food and clothing.”
‘We’ referred to Alaskan Athabaskans, the indigenous people whose territory ranges from northern Interior Alaska to Southcentral Alaska. They are ‘well known for their elaborate beadwork and moose hide leather, which was used in art and regalia like tunics, vests, dresses, and gloves.’ Many of those items were displayed near the storyboard, together with the implements the Athabaskans used to hunt moose and other animals in the wilderness.
There’s a network of public use cabins in Alaska, like the one in Winter Sets You Free. These rustic shelters, ‘nestled deep in the heart of Alaska’s wilderness,’ provide a safe and comfortable base – and a one-of-a-kind experience – from which to explore the backcountry of Alaska.
They are equipped with basic amenities: wooden table, chairs and bunk beds, and a wood-burning stove. The rental fee was $30 to $75 per night. Oh…don’t forget to bring bedding, food, water (these are ‘dry’ cabins), and fuel for the stove!
By the way, I saw the northern lights as they danced in the night sky when I peered out the rear window of the cabin at the right. You can see them, too, if you gaze at the panel that hung beyond the roof!
By the way, I saw the northern lights as they danced in the night sky when I peered out the rear window of the cabin at the right. You can see them, too, if you gaze at the panel that hung beyond the roof!
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Elders’ Hall was an octagonal space with a single display – items that might be part of a traditional Alaska Native celebration – and a medallion with raised letters in the center of the floor.
BLESSED GROUND
MAY 30, 2007
The date commemorated the groundbreaking ceremony for the Cultural Center, led by First Traditional Chief Reverend David Salmon (pictured at the right). He blessed the ground, then drove a stake into it. Carved on the stake, located beneath the medallion, were these words from Hosea 10:12…
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Sow to yourselves in righteousness, reap according to kindness; break up your fallow ground; for it is time to seek Jehovah, till he come and rain righteousness upon you.
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There was a bright-yellow airplane suspended from the ceiling in Gateway to Alaska. It was a Piper PA-22, a replica of the plane flown by William Gordon, known as Alaska’s ‘Flying Bishop.’
As Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Alaska – a position he held for a quarter-century – he was well known ‘for his near-constant ministerial travel around the state.’ Bishop Gordon was also instrumental in ensuring that Alaskan Native people had their own church leaders; he personally ordained 27 Alaska Natives before he retired.
I was off to a great start, as the information I gleaned at the Cultural Center provided a foundation for the sites and sights I would see on my Cruisetour through Alaska.
I was off to a great start, as the information I gleaned at the Cultural Center provided a foundation for the sites and sights I would see on my Cruisetour through Alaska.
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If the streets and sidewalks of Fairbanks could talk, they’d share tales more than 100 years old. With the help of a good pair of shoes, visitors can walk those same streets to catch a glimpse of Fairbanks’ past.
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~ Fairbanks Daily News-Miner
I walked from the Cultural Center to Golden Heart Plaza. The distance was less than a mile, yet it took me more than an hour to cover from start to finish.
Was I a slow walker?
No.
Rather, there were nine waypoints on my route – points of interest that I had planned to see. I think you’ll find them interesting. I know I did.
(As an aside, the article in the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner listed forty-one points of interest in and around downtown Fairbanks. It was far too many for me to see that day, but if you visit Fairbanks and are feeling adventurous...!)
Was I a slow walker?
No.
Rather, there were nine waypoints on my route – points of interest that I had planned to see. I think you’ll find them interesting. I know I did.
(As an aside, the article in the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner listed forty-one points of interest in and around downtown Fairbanks. It was far too many for me to see that day, but if you visit Fairbanks and are feeling adventurous...!)
Mary Ellen and Walter Gould were early pioneers in Fairbanks. They built their homestead cabin – a ‘unique part of the cultural landscape of Fairbanks’ – on this spot in 1910. Located one hundred feet or so from the Cultural Center, it the oldest residence still on its original location in downtown Fairbanks.
The cabin was closed to the public (‘to preserve its historic timbers,’ I read), but I got a glimpse into the past – more than one hundred years ago – when I peered through the front and back windows.
There were many period pieces inside the two-room cabin, including a porcelain sugar and creamer set with a flower design, a kerosene lamp with a decorative metal base, a twin-sized bed topped with a crocheted bed cover, a cast iron wood-burning stove with three doors on the front, and a frontier dress with lace ruffles. Each looked as new as the day they were bought.
There was no sink in sight – it was a dry cabin – but the Gould’s cabin was certainly a step up from the public use cabin I saw inside the Cultural Center!
There were many period pieces inside the two-room cabin, including a porcelain sugar and creamer set with a flower design, a kerosene lamp with a decorative metal base, a twin-sized bed topped with a crocheted bed cover, a cast iron wood-burning stove with three doors on the front, and a frontier dress with lace ruffles. Each looked as new as the day they were bought.
There was no sink in sight – it was a dry cabin – but the Gould’s cabin was certainly a step up from the public use cabin I saw inside the Cultural Center!
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The Moose Antler Arch, built in 2010, was affectionately called the ‘Gateway to Downtown Fairbanks.’ It was made from more than one hundred antlers – mainly moose and caribou – donated by farmers and hunters from the interior of Alaska.
Morbid? No, as most of the antlers, perhaps all, were collected from discards. Moose and caribou, you see, drop their antlers in the fall and grow new antlers in the spring. |
The two and one-half-mile Chena Riverwalk, just past the arch, extended from east of Moose Antler Arch to Golden Heart Plaza. I followed it west a few hundred feet to my next stop, the Lend-Lease Monument.
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In 1941, the United States enacted the Lend-Lease Act to supply its allies, which included Russia, with food, oil, and military materials and equipment during World War II. Alaska was a key exchange point for warplanes for Russia.
This monument, which was created by Alaskan sculptor R.T. Wallen and unveiled in 2006, commemorated ‘the strategic importance of Alaska as a staging ground in the Lend-Lease program.’ |
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I loved the inscription on the base, an apt summary of the purpose behind the Lend-Lease Act:
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The structure of world peace cannot be the work of one man or one party, or one nation…it must be a peace which rests on the cooperative effort of the whole world.
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~ from President Roosevelt’s address to Congress
on March 1, 1945
on March 1, 1945
I crossed the Centennial Pedestrian Bridge, which spanned the Chena River, to reach ‘A Hand Up,’ a bronze statue created by sculptor Gary Lee Price that was unveiled in July 2022.
The statue honored Walter Harper, an Alaska Native mountain climber and the first person to reach the summit of Mount Denali, the highest mountain peak in North America (20,310 feet above sea level). The date was June 7, 1913, and Harper was only twenty years old. Looking on is Snowball, one of Harper’s favorite dogs.
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Immaculate Conception Church – the first church built in Fairbanks – was completed in 1905 through the efforts of Father Francis Monroe. Fairbanks was a town ‘teeming with people attracted by the discovery of gold,’ and Father Monroe went from gold camp to gold camp to gather funds from the miners to build the church, a single-story structure, on the south side of the river. He collected $3,000 – the equivalent of over $100,000 today.
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A handful of years later, Father Monroe raised more funds to move the church to its present location. And then, in the 1910s, the church was enlarged by raising the ceiling, giving the roof a steeper pitch, and adding a belfry. The present stain glass windows were installed in the mid-1920s.
This picturesque church – some say it is the most-photographed landmark in Fairbanks – was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.
This picturesque church – some say it is the most-photographed landmark in Fairbanks – was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.
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I’ve said this more than once in my travel stories: I love to visit churches when I travel. Each church I visited, both big and small, was solemn, sacred, inspirational, and beautiful. And so, it was with the Immaculate Conception Church.
I followed three nuns up the front stairs and into the vestibule. The doors to the chapel were open – an invitation for one and all to come inside. I did…but stayed only a few minutes, as I did not want to intrude on the service that was underway. I lingered long enough, though, to drink in the Godly atmosphere of this once-frontier church. |
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My next stop, just west of the church, was set on a small grassy lot in the shape of a right triangle, the sides bounded by Burnette Street, N Cushman Steet, and the Chena River. There I gazed at a collection of five silver steel spires of varying lengths, each pointing in a different direction.
This was ‘Polaris,’ an arresting piece of public art – a contemporary sculpture – that was unveiled in 2014. Polaris was created through the artistic collaboration of two artists with different backgrounds: Cheryl Hamilton (art) and Michael Vandermeer (science), both from Vancouver, British Columbia. I read from the nearby plaque… |
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Ice, Quartz and the Aurora Borealis combine in a testament to the rugged beauty, climate and history of Fairbanks Alaska.
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The longest spire pointed towards Polaris, the North Star – a distant 323 light-years from Earth.
(As an aside, if you were thinking of traveling to Polaris one day, please be aware that it will take more than twelve million years to reach it!)
I followed Cushman south across the river and turned left on 1st Avenue. Within a couple hundred feet of making the turn, I spotted a ‘Welcome to Fairbanks’ sign. On closer inspection, though, it proved to be more than a welcome sign, as it included lessons in both history and geography.
(As an aside, if you were thinking of traveling to Polaris one day, please be aware that it will take more than twelve million years to reach it!)
I followed Cushman south across the river and turned left on 1st Avenue. Within a couple hundred feet of making the turn, I spotted a ‘Welcome to Fairbanks’ sign. On closer inspection, though, it proved to be more than a welcome sign, as it included lessons in both history and geography.
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Here was the history lesson, as told in the blurb at the bottom of the sign.
The Alaska Highway, which was built ‘as a military necessity’ in 1942, stretched 1,422 miles from Dawson Creek, British Columbia, to Delta Station, Alaska. However, ‘most of the early military traffic was bound for Fairbanks,’ located 101 miles northeast of Dawson Creek, so Fairbanks was recognized as the unofficial endpoint of the Alaska Highway – mile 1,523 from Dawson Creek. (This was something else that I loved about travel: I learned local history in unusual ways!) |
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And now the geography lesson…
The sign served as a “Milepost,’ a way to help orient travelers from around the world. There were seventy-six cities listed on three sides of the sign, with their distance from Fairbanks shown in miles and kilometers. For example, Amsterdam was 4,210 miles/6,780 km from Fairbanks, while Hong Kong was 5,050 miles/8,130 km from the Golden Heart City. Little did I know, I thought with a chuckle, that Fairbanks was the center of our global universe! |
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Golden Heart Plaza was literally steps away, but first I crossed the plaza to gaze upon an interesting-looking clock tower.
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It was a carillon clock tower; its musical instruments were bells rather than chimes, and they played local and national music throughout the day (but not while I was present).
The clock tower was presented to the city by the Fairbanks Rotary Club in 1990 to ‘commemorate this organization’s first fifty years of service to Fairbanks and the Interior.’ I took measure of its height, by eye, as I stood in front of the tower. I thought in terms of my own height – all sixty-eight inches of me. |
How many of me is this tower?
Six, I estimated – roughly thirty-four feet tall. I wasn’t far off, I later learned, as the clock tower stood thirty-three feet tall.
And then I stood in Golden Heart Plaza. The plaza, completed in 1986, was located near the center of the gold-rush activity. It was ‘the literal and figurative heart of Fairbanks.’
The central feature was an eighteen-foot-tall fountain statue, the ‘Unknown First Family,’ by Malcom Alexander. There are five figures in the statue – a man, a woman, two children, and a dog.
Six, I estimated – roughly thirty-four feet tall. I wasn’t far off, I later learned, as the clock tower stood thirty-three feet tall.
And then I stood in Golden Heart Plaza. The plaza, completed in 1986, was located near the center of the gold-rush activity. It was ‘the literal and figurative heart of Fairbanks.’
The central feature was an eighteen-foot-tall fountain statue, the ‘Unknown First Family,’ by Malcom Alexander. There are five figures in the statue – a man, a woman, two children, and a dog.
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Mass, shape, and positive and negative space come alive in Malcolm Alexander’s sculptures. Inspired by the human figure, his sensual interpretations move with rhythm and grace or stand powerfully solid as if married to the earth.
~ artnet.com
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A view from the north side of Golden Heart Plaza
Water bubbled up from below the statue and then fell, perhaps two to three feet, into the surrounding pool. I heard two distinct sounds – a murmur near the top as the water rose up, and a louder sound at the bottom, a hard splash, when the water hit the basin. For me, it was like listening to a string duet – a blend of melody and bass. It was music to my ears!
Dedicated to Alaska families past, present, and future, Golden Heart Plaza was a fitting end to my self-guided tour of Fairbanks.
Still, though, I wasn’t done day tripping in downtown Fairbanks. An interesting activity awaited me!
Click to read my next story, The Spirits Moved ME!
Dedicated to Alaska families past, present, and future, Golden Heart Plaza was a fitting end to my self-guided tour of Fairbanks.
Still, though, I wasn’t done day tripping in downtown Fairbanks. An interesting activity awaited me!
Click to read my next story, The Spirits Moved ME!