Synopses & Reviews
The history of Alaska is filled with stories of new land and new riches -- and ever present are new people with competing views over how the valuable resources should be used: Russians exploiting a fur empire; explorers checking rival advances; prospectors stampeding to the clarion call of "Gold!"; soldiers battling out a decisive chapter in world war; oil wildcatters looking for a different kind of mineral wealth; and always at the core of these disputes is the question of how the land is to be used and by whom.
While some want Alaska to remain static, others are in the vanguard of change. Alaska: Saga of a Bold Land shows that there are no easy answers on either side and that Alaska will always be crossing the next frontier.
Synopsis
The state of Alaska is a land of stunning scenery, open land and abundant natural resources. And from Russians exploiting a fur empire to prospectors searching for gold to oil companies seeking fuel, its eventful history is filled with conflict over these valuable resources and how they should be used.
In the first major, non-textbook history of Alaska in fifty years, Walter Borneman explores the remarkable history of our 49th state, from its earliest inhabitants to challenges and opportunities of today. Native American cultures, the Russian colonization of the area, the Gold Rush of the 1890's, and conflicts over conservation issues and oil drilling are all explored in this comprehensive volume. In Alaska, Borneman has captured the beauty, danger and majesty of this extraordinary place.
Walter R. Borneman is the author of Alaska: Saga of a Bold Land, 1812: The War That Forged a Nation, and several books on the history of the western United States. He lives in Colorado.
"This is the most accessible of all the Alaska histories." -- Anchorage Chronicle
About the Author
Walter R. Borneman is the author of six books and numerous articles about American history, most recently, Alaska: Saga of a Bold Land and 1812: The War that Forged a Nation.In his home state of Colroado, he is best-known as the co-author of A Climbing Guide to Colorados Fourteeners,first published in 1978 and in-print for twenty-five years. Borneman has a masters degree in American history from Western State College and a law degree from the University of Denver. He is the president of the Walter V. and Idun Y. Berry Foundation, which funds post-doctoral fellowships in childrens health at Stanford University.