Downtown Fairbanks Historical Walking Tour

Opened in fall of 2008, the 38,000 square-foot center is home of Explore Fairbanks, the Alaska Public Lands Information Center, Alaska Geographic Gift Store, Tanana Chiefs Conference Cultural Programs and Denakkanaaga, an Alaska Native Elde... Read more

The statue depicts figures of a Russian and American pilot circa WWII, commemorating the strategic and social importance of Alaska as a staging ground in the Lend-Lease program (1942-1945).  In the program, nearly 8,000 aircraft and numero... Read more

This pedestrian-bicycle bridge connects the south bank of the Chena River adjacent to the Alaska State Court House to the north bank near Doyon, Ltd., as part of the Chena River Pathway system. The bridge’s namesake, the late Dr. William ... Read more

Fairbanks’ first steel girder “skyscraper” was built from 1950 to 1952 as part of a two-year building program to alleviate the housing shortage in Fairbanks. It is still one of the tall­est buildings in town. The eight-story struc­t... Read more

William H. Gilcher opened his first sheet metal shop in 1907. Most commercial build­ings used sheet metal at that time as the building material of choice. The history of the Gilcher building that we see today is not unlike that of many cab... Read more

A round safe, built by the Victor Safe Company around 1895, adorns the 3rd Avenue entrance to Mt. McKinley Bank, (around building edge to the right) a locally owned and operated bank. It is one of the first safes constructed of manganese st... Read more

On this land, the first courthouse and federal jail was built by Judge Wickersham in 1904. The fire of 1906 destroyed it, and the hast­ily built replacement was in very bad shape by 1932. The new federal building built that same year soon ... Read more

In 1933, the city built a new city hall on the corner of Cushman Street and 4th Avenue. The two-story concrete building is a good example of a modernized Classical Revival de­sign. The building was used as city hall until 1995 and for many... Read more

The original public school building that was built at this location in 1906 burned down in 1932. The “fireproof” steel and concrete replacement was completed in 1934 and was the most modern school facility in the Terri­tory of Alaska. ... Read more

In front of City Hall and to the left of the front doors you’ll see a sculpture called Il Ponte which means “the bridge” in Italian. The sculp­ture was a gift from the Italian town Fanano, the birthplace of Felix Pedro. It represents... Read more

From 1905 until the mid 1950s, the stretch of 4th Avenue between Barnette and Cushman Streets was a “Red Light” district. Small cabins, some no bigger than 6 by 9 feet, were tightly packed along both sides of the street, and the area wa... Read more

Back when Fairbanks was young and all of the roads were dirt, raised wooden boardwalks allowed citizens who were walking around town to stay clean and dry. The last remaining piece of that boardwalk is visible to the left of the concrete si... Read more

Fairbanksans are creative and resourceful people who make the most of available mate­rials. These traits are reflected in the construc­tion – shortened army surplus skis – chosen to build this fence.

Falcon Joslin came to Fairbanks in 1904 and started the Tanana Valley Railroad; he was also vice president of the Washington-Alaska Bank when E.T. Barnette bought it. Joslin built this two-story home in 1905, which makes it the oldest frame... Read more

This house is an example of a style popular during Fairbanks’s “second gold rush,” the 1930s. In 1937, Dr. and Mrs. Ernest Patty had the house built around an old 1907 log cabin. Dr. Patty was the President of the University of Alaska... Read more

Miner Arthur Williams built this house in 1916 for his fashionable wife to keep her from moving to Seattle. It boasted the most modern conveniences and comforts to be found in Fairbanks at that time and represents a “catalog” house, for... Read more

Built by Ruth and James Barrack in 1929, this Dutch Colonial home still retains its original hardwood floors, stone fireplace, and sawdust insulation. Because of its size, people thought a new hotel was being built on the outskirts of town.... Read more

This home was built for Judge Charles Clay­pool in 1911. One of the earliest frame homes in Fairbanks, it was built on the very edge of town. In 1925, a new owner, Otis Berry, raised the home and installed a huge center cross-beam from a b... Read more

This home is a wonderful ex­ample of a “grow-house.” The original cabin has settled and the five additions are very obvious. A couple would start out with a square cabin and as their family grew, so did their home. Each new addition to... Read more

The Episcopal Church began its mission work in Fairbanks in 1904. The log church was founded by Bishop Peter Trimble Rowe of the mission at Circle City and opened August 15, 1905, with Archdeacon Hudson Stuck presid­ing at the service for ... Read more

R.C. Wood’s banking career in Fairbanks be­gan as cashier for E.T. Barnette’s Fairbanks Banking Company. In 1909, Wood took over the management of the First National Bank of Fairbanks. His original one-story house was built on this sit... Read more

Fairbanks’ first library from 1906 to 1908 was a screened-off section in St. Matthew’s Church. When Philadelphia banker George C. Thomas read an appeal for more reading material in a church publication, he donated $4,000 toward a new bu... Read more

Built in 1907 and owned by Cora Madole, a fortune teller from Dawson City, the building served as the 1st Avenue Bathhouse until 1910, when the pipes froze and burst. The story of the building’s early years as a bathhouse is well told in ... Read more

Fraternal organizations played an important role in Fairbanks’ formative years as they do today. Formed in 1904, the Tanana Masonic Club was one of the first. The original one-story structure, built in 1906 by the Tanana Commercial Compan... Read more

This riverside beautification project celebrates the landing of E.T. Barnette on the south bank of the Chena River on August 26, 1901. Festival Fairbanks, Inc., a local community service organization, which plans, organizes and coordinates ... Read more

The current building may have been com­pleted in 1982, but the history of the bank on this lot goes back to the early 1900s. It was here that “Square Sam” Bonnifield – a miner turned gambler turned banker who was given his nickname b... Read more

First published in 1903 by Judge Wickersham as the Fairbanks Miner, the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner carries a long newspaper tradi­tion and is currently the only daily newspaper in Fairbanks.

This location served as a railroad depot from 1905-2004. It first served the Tanana Mines Railroad, that was later renamed Tanana Valley Railroad, which made runs to gold camps in the area. The president and founder was Fal­con Joslin, who... Read more

The first hospital in Fairbanks was built next to St. Matthew’s Church on 1st Avenue in 1904. It was the first framed building in Fair­banks – other buildings were built of logs. Boasting forty beds, the next hospital was St. Joseph’... Read more

This is Fairbanks’s first Catholic Church, built in 1904 by Father Francis Monroe, a Jesuit, and originally located on Wendell Street on the other side of the river. In the winter of 1911, the church was moved closer to St. Joseph’s Hos... Read more

As the story and photos on the sign in this small park show, the Chena River has been integral in the development of Fairbanks. The Chena flows into the Tanana River, which joins the Yukon River and empties into the Bering Sea. The Chena fl... Read more

Doyon, Limited is one of the thirteen Native regional corporations established by Congress under the terms of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA). With the land en­titlement of 12.5 million acres, Doyon is the largest private l... Read more

The idea of this downtown plaza stemmed from a celebration of the silver anniversary of Alaska’s statehood in 1984. Through the work of Festival Fairbanks, Inc. ’84 Director, William R. Wood, the Fairbanks City Council supported the cre... Read more

The well-construct­ed, log cabin that houses the Alaskan headquarters of the Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race was constructed in 1958-59 and has been nicknamed the “All Alaska Cabin” because it was built entirely of Alaskan prod... Read more

E.T. Barnette was the founding father of Fair­banks. This tribute commemorates his ac­cidental landing at approximately this spot on the riverbank in 1901, when the steamer Lavelle Young, which he had hired to trans­port a $20,000 shipme... Read more

On your left as you enter the circle is a plaque celebrat­ing 25 years of Alaska statehood, 1959-1984. The obe­lisk marks Milepost 1,523 of the Alaska Highway. The distances between Fairbanks and cities around the world are listed. The di... Read more

The building now known as Co-op Plaza was once the Empress Theatre. Its construction in 1927 caused a furor because it was the town’s first structure to be built of reinforced concrete, and people believed that concrete would crumble in t... Read more

Austin ‘Cap’ Lathrop came to Alaska in 1896 as a captain of a schooner that ferried pros­pectors to Cook Inlet in Anchorage. Lathrop had an interest in the film industry and had a plan to open a chain of Empress theatres. He had theatr... Read more

The Lacey Street Theatre, one of a series of Art Deco buildings in Fairbanks, anchors the area between Cushman and Lacey streets. Its construction coupled with two public buildings, the old Federal Building and Main School, changed the down... Read more

A plaque at the northeast corner of 1st Avenue and Noble Street marks the original site of Judge James Wickersham’s frame home (the actual house can be seen at Pioneer Park). Wickersham was instrumental in the success of Fairbanks and the... Read more