List of National Historic Landmarks in Alaska

The National Historic Landmarks in Alaska represent Alaska's history from its Russian heritage to its statehood. There are 49 National Historic Landmarks (NHLs) in the state.^[1] The United States National Historic Landmark program is operated under the auspices of the National Park Service, and recognizes structures, districts, objects, and similar resources according to a list of criteria of national significance.^[2] Major themes include Alaska's ancient cultures, Russian heritage, and role in World War II, but other stories are represented as well. In addition, two sites in Alaska were designated National Historic Landmarks, but the designation was later withdrawn. These sites appear in italics in another table further below.

The National Historic Landmark Program is administered by the National Park Service, a branch of the Department of the Interior. The National Park Service determines which properties meet NHL criteria and makes nomination recommendations after an owner notification process.^[2] The Secretary of the Interior reviews nominations and, based on a set of predetermined criteria, makes a decision on NHL designation or a determination of eligibility for designation.^[3] Both public and privately owned properties can be designated as NHLs. This designation provides indirect, partial protection of the historic integrity of the properties via tax incentives, grants, monitoring of threats, and other means.^[2] Owners may object to the nomination of the property as a NHL. When this is the case the Secretary of the Interior can only designate a site as eligible for designation.^[3]

NHLs in Alaska

The table below lists all 49 of the National Historic Landmark sites, along with added detail and description.

[4]	Landmark name	Image	Date designated[5]	Location	County	Description
1	Adak Army Base and Adak Naval Operating Base		February 27, 1987 (#87000841)	Adak Station 51°52′19″N 176°38′10″W / 51.872°N 176.636°W	Aleutians West	Established in 1942 as part of World War II, this military base was the launching pad for the American attack on the Japanese-held Aleutian Islands of Kiska and Attu.
2	Alaska Native Brotherhood Hall		June 2, 1978 (#72000192)	Sitka 57°02′57″N 135°20′22″W / 57.0492°N 135.3394°W	Sitka	This 1914 meeting hall and headquarters building served the original chapter of Alaska Native Brotherhood, founded by Tlingits in the early 1900s to fight discrimination and represent interests of natives.
3	Amalik Bay Archeological District		April 4, 2005 (#05000460)	King Salmon 58°05′19″N 154°32′06″W / 58.0886°N 154.535°W	Lake and Peninsula	An archeological site located in Lake and Peninsula Borough
4	American Flag Raising Site		June 13, 1962 (#66000162)	Sitka 57°02′48″N 135°20′02″W / 57.0468°N 135.3338°W	Sitka	In 1867, site of Russian flag lowering and American flag raising marking the transfer of Alaska to the U.S.; in 1959, after Alaska admitted as 49th state, site of first official raising of 49-star U.S. flag; also called Castle Hill.
5	Anangula Site		June 2, 1978 (#78000512)	Nikolski 53°00′02″N 168°54′40″W / 53.00056°N 168.91111°W	Aleutians West	Site of earliest signs of human occupation in the Aleutian Islands.
6	Attu Battlefield and U.S. Army and Navy Airfields on Attu		February 4, 1985 (#85002729)	Attu Island 52°54′02″N 172°54′34″E / 52.9005°N 172.9094°E	Aleutians West	Site of bloody battle in which only 29 of 2,500 Japanese survived, only battle on U.S. soil during World War II.
7	Bering Expedition Landing Site		June 2, 1978 (#77001542)	Kayak Island 59°53′33″N 144°29′08″W / 59.8926°N 144.4856°W	Valdez-Cordova	Site of first recorded contacts between natives and Europeans
8	Birnirk Site		December 29, 1962 (#66000953)	Barrow 71°17′00″N 156°45′00″W / 71.28333°N 156.75000°W	North Slope	Sixteen prehistoric mounds of the Birnirk and Thule cultures.
9	Brooks River Archeological District		April 19, 1993 (#78000342)	Katmai National Park and Preserve 58°33′16″N 155°47′00″W / 58.5544°N 155.7833°W	Lake and Peninsula	An archaeological site located along an ancient beach and modern river. There are twenty separate well preserved sites which have provided a large number of Arctic Small Tool Tradition artifacts.
10	Cape Krusenstern Archeological District		November 7, 1973 (#73000378)	Kotzebue 67°06′51″N 163°41′09″W / 67.1142°N 163.6858°W	Northwest Arctic	The archeological district comprises 114 ancient beach ridges which formed nearly 60 years apart. They provide a rare sequential look at over 5000 years of inhabitation.
11	Cape Nome Mining District Discovery Sites		June 2, 1978 (#78000535)	Nome 64°33′49″N 165°22′17″W / 64.56361°N 165.37139°W	Nome	Significant for role in the history of gold mining in Alaska
12	Chaluka Site		December 29, 1962 (#66000155)	Nikolski 52°55′59″N 168°51′00″W / 52.933°N 168.850°W	Aleutians West	Includes a large mound; yields information about origins of Aleuts
13	Chilkoot Trail and Dyea Site		June 16, 1978 (#75002120)	Skagway 59°38′00″N 135°17′00″W / 59.6333°N 135.2833°W	Skagway	Major access route from the coast to Yukon goldfields in the late 1890s.
14	Church of the Holy Ascension		April 15, 1970 (#70000112)	Unalaska 53°52′33″N 166°32′11″W / 53.8758°N 166.5363°W	Aleutians West	Built in 1826 by the Russian American Fur Company to help acclimate indigenous population in Russian Alaska.
15	Dry Creek Archeological Site		June 2, 1978 (#74000442)	Healy, Alaska 63°54′33″N 149°01′00″W / 63.9092°N 149.0167°W	Denali	This archeological site has provided evidence which supports the Bering land bridge theory
16	Dutch Harbor Naval Operating Base and Fort Mears, U.S. Army		February 4, 1985 (#85002733)	Unalaska 53°53′16″N 166°32′23″W / 53.8878°N 166.5397°W	Aleutians West	Only US fortifications in the Aleutian Islands prior to WWII, attacked by the Japanese Navy during the Battle of Dutch Harbor in June 1943.
17	Eagle Historic District		June 2, 1978 (#70000919)	Eagle 64°47′10″N 141°12′00″W / 64.7861°N 141.2°W	Southeast Fairbanks	Historic district with over 100 well-preserved buildings from the Gold Rush years on the Yukon River. Roald Amundsen announced his successful traverse of the Northwest Passage from here in 1905
18	Fort Durham Site	Upload image	June 2, 1978 (#78000529)	Taku Harbor 58°02′01″N 134°00′01″W / 58.03361°N 134.00028°W	Juneau	One of three Hudson's Bay Company posts set up in Alaska
19	Fort Glenn		May 28, 1987 (#87001301)	Fort Glenn 53°22′39″N 167°53′24″W / 53.37750°N 167.89000°W	Aleutians West	Well preserved World War II defense base.
20	Fort William H. Seward		June 2, 1978 (#72000190)	Haines 59°13′36″N 135°26′41″W / 59.2267°N 135.4446°W	Haines	Last of a series of 11 military posts established in Alaska during the gold rush era
21	Gallagher Flint Station Archeological Site		June 2, 1978 (#78003208)	Sagwon 69°22′00″N 148°42′00″W / 69.36667°N 148.70000°W	North Slope	Discovered in 1970 during the construction of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline, it was at the time the earliest dated archaeological site in northern Alaska.
22	Holy Assumption Orthodox Church		April 15, 1970 (#70000898)	Kenai 60°33′09″N 151°15′59″W / 60.5524°N 151.2663°W	Kenai Peninsula	Russian Orthodox church in Kenai, Alaska.
23	Ipiutak Site		January 20, 1961 (#66000157)	Point Hope Peninsula 68°20′49″N 166°45′47″W / 68.3469°N 166.7631°W	North Slope	The type site for the Ipiutak culture
24	Iyatayet Site		January 20, 1961 (#66000158)	Cape Denbigh Peninsula 64°24′33″N 161°30′51″W / 64.40917°N 161.514028°W	Nome	Shows evidence of several separate cultures, dating back as far as 6000 BC
25	Sheldon Jackson School		August 7, 2001 (#72000193)	Sitka 57°03′06″N 135°19′22″W / 57.0516°N 135.3228°W	Sitka	Oldest institution of higher learning in Alaska
26	Kake Cannery		December 9, 1997 (#97001677)	Kake 56°57′50″N 133°55′31″W / 56.9639°N 133.9253°W	Petersburg	Built 1912-1940; significant for role in history of salmon canning in Alaska
27	Kennecott Mines		June 23, 1986 (#78003420)	Kennecott 61°29′07″N 142°53′19″W / 61.4852°N 142.8885°W	Valdez-Cordova	Site of discovery of copper in 1900 and subsequent mining activities
28	Kijik Archeological District		October 12, 1994 (#94001644)	Lake Clark National Park and Preserve 60°17′33″N 154°15′01″W / 60.2925°N 154.2503°W	Lake and Peninsula	Related to the history of the Dena'ina Athabaskan Indians
29	Japanese Occupation Site, Kiska Island		February 4, 1985 (#85002732)	Kiska Island 51°58′02″N 177°29′31″E / 51.9672°N 177.4919°E	Aleutians West	Site of the Japanese occupation of Kiska which along with nearby Attu were the only US land occupied by the Japanese during World War II
30	Kodiak Naval Operating Base and Forts Greely and Abercrombie		February 4, 1985 (#85002731)	Kodiak 57°44′19″N 152°30′17″W / 57.73861°N 152.50472°W	Kodiak Island	World War II-related facilities
31	Ladd Field		February 4, 1985 (#85002730)	Fairbanks 64°50′15″N 147°36′52″W / 64.8375°N 147.6144°W	Fairbanks North Star	Primary role during WWII was major stopping point for the Lend-Lease program.
32	Leffingwell Camp Site		June 2, 1978 (#71001093)	Flaxman Island 70°11′06″N 146°00′14″W / 70.1851°N 146.0039°W	North Slope	Campsite of geologist and polar explorer Ernest de Koven Leffingwell on Arctic coast of Alaska, not far from Prudhoe Bay.
33	Nenana (river steamboat)		May 5, 1989 (#72001581)	Fairbanks 64°50′16″N 147°46′06″W / 64.8377°N 147.7683°W	Fairbanks North Star	River steamboat; only surviving wooden one of this type.
34	New Russia Site	Upload image	June 2, 1978 (#72001593)	Yakutat 59°32′35″N 139°48′28″W / 59.54306°N 139.80778°W	Yakutat	Site of Russian trading post attacked and destroyed by Tlingit natives.
35	Old Sitka		June 13, 1962 (#66000166)	6 miles (9.6 km) north of Sitka on Starrigavan Bay 57°07′53″N 135°22′15″W / 57.131389°N 135.370833°W	Sitka	Also known as the Redoubt St. Archangel Michael Site, this was the site of a Russian-American Company settlement, established in 1799 and destroyed by Tlingit attack in 1802.
36	Onion Portage Archeological District		June 2, 1978 (#72000191)	Kiana 67°05′49″N 158°17′51″W / 67.0969°N 158.2975°W	Northwest Arctic	Perhaps most important archaeological site in Alaska; caribou river crossing; human presence for millennia.
37	Palugvik Site	Upload image	December 29, 1962 (#66000957)	Hawkins Island 60°31′01″N 146°03′00″W / 60.517°N 146.050°W	Valdez-Cordova	Includes a large midden yielding information about Eskimo culture in the area.
38	Russian-American Building #29		May 28, 1987 (#87001282)	Sitka 57°02′50″N 135°19′52″W / 57.047280°N 135.331157°W	Sitka	Siding covered log building; dates back to the years after the 1867 purchase of Alaska.
39	Russian-American Magazin		June 13, 1962 (#66000954)	Kodiak 57°47′16″N 152°24′13″W / 57.78778°N 152.40361°W	Kodiak Island	Storehouse building associated with the Russian and then the American trading companies active in Alaska.
40	Russian Bishop's House		June 13, 1962 (#66000025)	Sitka 57°02′55″N 135°19′38″W / 57.0485°N 135.3273°W	Sitka	One of four surviving examples of Russian Colonial Style architecture in the Western Hemisphere.
41	St. Michael's Cathedral		June 13, 1962 (#66000165)	Sitka 57°02′59″N 135°20′05″W / 57.0497°N 135.3347°W	Sitka	Primary evidence of Russian influence in North America.
42	Seal Island Historic District		June 13, 1962 (#66000156)	Pribilof Islands 57°N 170°W / 57°N 170°W	Aleutians West	Historic buildings related to northern fur seal hunting in the Pribilof Islands and its restriction in 1911 and 1966.
43	Sitka Naval Operating Base and U.S. Army Coastal Defenses		August 11, 1986 (#86003559)	Sitka 57°02′49″N 135°21′52″W / 57.04694°N 135.36444°W	Sitka	Commissioned as Sitka Naval Air Station in October 1939, it was redesignated the Naval Operating Base, July 1942. Protected the North Pacific during World War II.[6]
44	Sitka Spruce Plantation		June 2, 1978 (#78000513)	Unalaska 53°53′12″N 166°32′23″W / 53.8866°N 166.5397°W	Aleutians West	First recorded afforestation project in North America; Russian settlers began in 1805; attempt to make Unalaska self-sufficient in timber.
45	Skagway Historic District and White Pass		June 13, 1962 (#66000943)	Skagway and White Pass 59°27′30″N 135°18′50″W / 59.4583°N 135.3139°W	Skagway	Historic frontier Gold Rush town and trail leading to White Pass on the border of Canada. Over 100 buildings from the era survive, though they are threatened by continued development. Mentioned in The Call of the Wild by Jack London.
46	George C. Thomas Memorial Library		June 2, 1978 (#72001542)	Fairbanks 64°50′41″N 147°43′40″W / 64.844735°N 147.727652°W	Fairbanks North Star	The public library for Fairbanks from its construction in 1909 until the opening of the Noel Wien Public Library in 1977. Site of 1915 meeting between U.S. officials and native Alaskans to settle land claims.
47	Three Saints Bay Site		June 2, 1978 (#72001541)	Old Harbor 57°08′00″N 153°30′00″W / 57.1333°N 153.5°W	Kodiak Island	Site of the first Russian settlement in Alaska in 1784.
48	Wales Site		December 29, 1962 (#66000161)	Wales 65°36′44″N 168°05′21″W / 65.6122°N 168.0892°W	Nome	Site of first discovery of how the Thule culture followed the Birnirk culture in precontact whaling populations of the Alaskan shoreline.
49	Yukon Island Main Site		December 29, 1962 (#66000955)	Yukon Island 59°30′54″N 151°29′56″W / 59.5150°N 151.4989°W	Kenai Peninsula	Related to the Kachemak Bay Culture.

Historic areas of the NPS in Alaska

National Historic Sites, National Historical Parks, some National Monuments, and certain other areas listed in the National Park System are historic landmarks of national importance that are highly protected already, often before the inauguration of the NHL program in 1960, and are then often not also named NHLs per se. There are three of these in Alaska. The National Park Service lists these three together with the NHLs in the state,^[7]

Cape Krusenstern National Monument is also an NHL and is listed above. The other two are:

	Landmark name	Image	Date established[8]	Location	County	Description
1	Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park			Skagway	Skagway	Park of Klondike Gold Rush, an NHL shared with Seattle, Washington.
2	Sitka National Historical Park			Sitka	Sitka

Former NHLs in Alaska

	Landmark name[9]	Image	Date designated[9]	Date withdrawn[9]	Locality[9][10]	Borough or Census Area[9]	Description[10]
1	Gambell Sites[11]		1962[11]	1989[11]	Gambell [11] 63°46′34″N 171°42′3″W / 63.77611°N 171.70083°W	Nome [11]	These five archeological sites established a chronology of human habitation on St. Lawrence Island, with evidence of four cultural phases of the Thule tradition, beginning about 2000 years before the present. Over the 20th century, the archeological value of the sites was largely destroyed due to ivory mining, and landmark designation was withdrawn.[11]
2	Sourdough Lodge[11]		1978[11]	1994[11]	Gakona [11] 62°18′07″N 145°18′07″W / 62.301940°N 145.30194°W	Valdez-Cordova [11]	Built of logs in 1903-05, this was one of a number of roadhouses built along the Valdez Trail. It was destroyed by fire in 1992, leading to withdrawal of its landmark status. By the time of its destruction, it was one of the oldest continuously-operating roadhouses in Alaska.[11]

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Alaska
• History of Alaska
• Historic preservation
• National Register of Historic Places
• List of U.S. National Historic Landmarks by state

References

1. NPS Alaska NHL List
2. "National Historic Landmarks Program: Questions & Answers". National Park Service. Retrieved 2007-09-21.
3. "Title 36 of the Code of Federal Regulations, Part 65". US Government Printing Office. Retrieved 2008-04-05.
4. Numbers represent an ordering by significant words. Various colorings, defined here, differentiate National Historic Landmarks and historic districts from other NRHP buildings, structures, sites or objects.
5. The eight-digit number below each date is the number assigned to each location in the National Register Information System database, which can be viewed by clicking the number.
6. "Sitka Naval Operating Base and U.S. Army Coastal Defenses". National Historic Landmarks Quioklinks. National Park Service. Retrieved 18 March 2012.
7. These are listed on p.110 of "National Historic Landmarks Survey: List of National Historic Landmarks by State", November 2007 version.
8. Date of listing as National Historic Site or similar designation, from various sources in articles indexed.
9. National Park Service (June 2011). "National Historic Landmarks Survey: List of NHLs by State" (PDF). Retrieved 2011-07-04.
10. National Park Service. "National Historic Landmark Program: NHL Database". Retrieved 2007-10-04.
11. National Park Service. "National Historic Landmark Program: Withdrawal of NHL Designation". Retrieved 2007-10-04.

External links

• National Historic Landmark Program at the National Park Service
• Lists of National Historic Landmarks