In Pursuit of Alaska: An Anthology of Travelers' Tales, 1879-1909
This collection of Alaskan adventures begins with a newspaper article written by John Muir during his first visit to Alaska in 1879, when the sole U.S. government representative in all the territory's 586,412 square miles was a lone customs official in Sitka. It closes with accounts of the gold rush and the 1909 Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition in Seattle. Jean Meaux has gathered a superb collection of articles and stories that captivated American readers when they were first published and that will continue to entertain us today. The authors range from Charles Hallock (the founder of Forest and Stream, a precursor of Field and Stream) to New York society woman Mary Hitchcock, who traveled with china, silver, and a 2,800 square foot tent. After explorer Henry Allen wore out his boots, he marched barefoot as he continued mapping the Tanana River, and Episcopal Archdeacon Hudson Stuck mushed by dog sled in Arctic winters across a territory encompassing 250,000 miles of the northern interior.
Although the United States acquired Alaska in 1867, it took more than a decade for American writers and explorers to focus attention on a territory so removed from their ordinary lives. These writers-adventurers, tourists, and gold seekers-would help define the nation's perception of Alaska and would contribute to an image of the state that persists today. This collection unearths early writings that offer a broad view of American encounters with Alaska accompanied by Meaux's lively and concise introductions. The present-day adventurer will find much to inspire exploration, while students of the American West can gain new access to this valuable trove of pre-Gold Rush Alaska archives.
For more information go to: http: //www.inpursuitofalaska.com
Earn by promoting books
Earn money by sharing your favorite books through our Affiliate program.
Become an affiliateThis is a terrific book, with archival photographs and smart, informative introductions for the various travelers' accounts.
--Mike Dillon "City Living "In Pursuit of Alaska....is clearly a labor of love beautifully realized by the University of Washington Press.
-- (01/01/2014)In Pursuit of Alaska: An Anthology of Travelers' Tales, 1879-1909 is a lively and fascinating collection filled with exceptional prose that will give modern readers a taste of Americans' first encounters with the North...For anyone interested in Alaska history, or even just exceptional writing, In Pursuit of Alaska is an absolutely essential volume.
-- (01/01/2014)Offers travel writing by explorers, tourists, adventure seekers, and gold miners who traversed Alaska when it was truly the last frontier.
-- (01/01/2013)Theirs are voices not often heard, but which illumine an important period of Alaska's development with color and verve. A collection compiled with intelligence, and well worth trekking into for all those intrigued by our still-enigmatic uppermost corner.
-- (01/01/2013)Each excerpt is supported by notes about the writer's background that - along with historical photographs - complement these accounts of the lives of early Alaska visitors.
-- (01/01/2013)