ALASKA June 2010 – 75th Anniversary
Seventy five years ago in 1935, as a part of President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal, 200 families from the Midwest moved to Alaska and started the Matanuska Valley Colony. The Matanuska-Susitna (Mat-Su) Valley, population 89,000, is in south central Alaska, about 35 miles north of Anchorage and includes the towns of Palmer, Wasilla, Big Lake, Houston, Willow and Talkeetna. Talkeetna is the starting point for the courageous climbers looking to conquer Mt. McKinley in Denali National Park (named after the Dena’ina Indians, original inhabitants of Wasilla).
On the 75th Anniversary in 2010, Palmer celebrated with a parade of floats representing local families and businesses and the unveiling of a memorial to the pioneering families. Many in attendance at this important milestone were descendants of the original farm settlers including my son-in-law’s family enough to fill two floats . His grandparents, “ Anthony, Alys and 4 children (Bandette, MN)” are listed as one of the 203 families who were the first of the Colonists in the Matanuska Valley at the first draw for land tracts on May 23, 1935.
Young and old had travelled from “the lower 49’s” to the 50th State of the Union to acknowledge the pioneering spirit of their ancestors. Older folks had a chance to reminisce with each other while sharing their stories of unique experiences as children settlers in virgin territory. They smiled, chuckled and laughed as they recalled how they had survived in their new Alaska settlement, fighting (literally) wild animals, unscrupulous humans, untamed land, freezing temperatures, family spats, government decrees, births and early deaths. Fertile valley land but also harsh conditions, winters long, growing season short. Men went to work in the nearby mines or to the coast for months to work at fishing, leaving women and children to fend for themselves. Only the hardiest and most stubborn families managed to hang on and they were there on the 75th anniversary to witness and enjoy the rainbow of survival. Congratulations!
Alaska is a most beautiful state, but that is another story for a later day!
