Aunt Phil's Trunk Volume Three continues to entertain readers as they travel through Alaska's history from 1912 to 1935. This book of nonfiction short stories highlights the pioneering spirit of early Alaskans as they enter a new era as a territory of the United States. As with the first two books, volume three is filled with more than 300 historical photographs.Readers follow along as men with axes, hammers and mauls pound a path through the vast Alaska wilderness to lay tracks that connect the deep-water port of Seward in the south to the territory's interior town of Fairbanks in the north. Through the stories in this volume, readers will see a railroad construction town grow out of the tundra to become Anchorage - the largest city in Alaska.Volume three also shares stories about epidemics and disasters, including the Great Sickness of 1918, the sinking of the steamship Princess Sophia in Southeast Alaska and the incredible serum run to Nome in 1925.Did you know there was a rescue mission to save a banker in Iditarod four years before the famed Nome diphtheria run? That story unfolds between the pages of this book, as well.In addition, this book shines a light on the early aviators who blazed new trails through Alaska skies in the 1920s, how the Alaska Native people struggled for recognition and how farmers from America's Midwest carved out an agricultural community in the wild Matanuska Valley."Aunt Phil's Trunk" is a true Alaska treasure trove. The illustrations alone are worth the 19.95 price, but the narratives from front to back are equally praiseworthy. For those who love Alaska history, this easy-to-read collection is highly recommended." - William J. Tobin, Senior Editor, Voice of the Times. |