sharply, and so the President’s deci - sion to build the railroad was justified. In the post-war years Congress ap - propriated $100 million for track reha - bilitation to repair the effects of heavy wartime use. The railroad also started its streamlined passenger service be - tween Anchorage and Fairbanks, a train dubbed Aurora, with blue and gold col - ors. This ushered in a new service ca - tering to summer visitors as well as Alaskans and laid the foundation for the railroad’s important role in supporting the small but growing visitor industry. By 1953, however, there was grow - ing competition from trucks and au - tos on highways that were being built or upgraded. Passenger service to and from Seward was discontinued, not to return until the present-day summer service supporting cruise ships calling at Seward. Whittier, built by the U.S. Army during World War II, was becom - ing important for the railroad, which reached the Prince William Sound community through tunnels built during the war. The first train-barge service from Whittier was established in 1964, en - abling rail cars from anywhere in the
Lower 48 to be brought to Alaska by sea and to reach any point along the Alaska Railroad. Earthquake damage on March 27, 1964, disrupted rail traffic but service was quickly restored. Freight service between Anchorage and Fairbanks re - sumed April 6 and to Whittier on April 20. Passengers were again traveling by April 11. The railroad again demonstrated its value in the 1970s, providing heavy- haul service to support construction of the trans-Alaska oil pipeline. Rails had meanwhile been extended east of Fairbanks to Eielson Air Force Base, providing support to that installation, now home to the nation’s most ad - vanced fighter-interceptors. Plans were made for further ex - tensions east to Fort Greely, where the nation’s missile interceptors are based. That link has not yet been built but a bridge across the Tanana River was constructed as the first increment of the rail east. Today the bridge sup - ports U.S. Army operations on training ranges south of the river. Today, the Alaska Railroad is under state ownership and continues to sup - port the growth of Alaska’s economy.
RAILROAD, CONTINUED from PAGE 22
camp in 1915, was to become its largest city. There were prior railroads, of course, regional lines built to support gold mines. The private Alaska Cen - tral Railway, later the Alaska Northern Railway, was built a few miles north from Seward. It later went bankrupt. The rail line was later acquired by the government to be part of the Seward-to-Fairbanks line. A region - al 45-mile rail line from Fairbanks to nearby gold fields was also acquired, although this was mainly to obtain the rail terminal in Fairbanks. The government wanted the rail - road to make money, but the territo - ry’s economy was thin, at least in In - terior and Southcentral Alaska, as gold mining declined. Seward, Anchorage and Fairbanks had combined popula - tions of 5,400, not enough to generate a lot of business. In 1938, however, the railroad turned its first profit, and with the start of World War II its strategic im - portance was amply illustrated as military and civilian freight increased
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The Alaska Miner
Summer 2023
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