Synopses & Reviews
Swedish missionary Albin Johnson arrived in Alaska just before the turn of the twentieth century, thousands of miles from home and with just two weeksand#8217; worth of English classes under his belt. While he intended to work among the Tlingit tribes of Yakutat, he found himself in a wave of foreign arrivals as migrants poured into Alaska seeking economic opportunities and the chance at a different life. While Johnson came with pious intentions, others imposed Western values and vices, leaving disease and devastation in their wake.
Seventeen Years in Alaskaand#160;is Johnsonand#8217;s eyewitness account of this tumultuous time. It is a captivating narrative of an ancient people facing rapid change and of the missionaries working to stem a corrupting tide. His journals offer a candid look at the beliefs and lives of missionaries, and they ultimately reveal the profound effect that he and other missionaries had on the Tlingit. Tracing nearly two decades of spiritual hopes and earthbound failures, Johnsonand#8217;s memoir is a fascinating portrait of a rapidly changing world in one of the most far-flung areas of the globe.
Review
andldquo;Johnsonandrsquo;s vivid memories and Ehrlanderandrsquo;s transparent translation makes the text highly readable. . . . Together, Ehrlander and Johnson leave readers with a more nuanced understanding of the role early missionaries played in the Far North.andrdquo;
Synopsis
Fifty Years Below Zero is an engrossing account by Charles Brower, the "King of the Arctic," of his life in the north. Brower shares his knowledge of whaling, pioneering, and Alaska Native life and customs before statehood, chronicling a period of important and rapid change in Alaska history with insight and humor. His story is also full of high adventure and rich with details about the many visitors who became his friends--explorers, whalers, traders, and missionaries. This volume is an excellent companion to the oral biography of Harry Brower, Jr., the son of Charles Brower, entitled The Whales, They Give Themselves (University of Alaska Press 2004).
Synopsis
Swedish Covenant missionary Albin Johnson's memoir of his years among the Tlingit of Yakutat offers an eye-witness account of an indigenous people in transition. At the turn of the twentieth century migrants poured into Alaska seeking economic opportunities, and they brought with them western values, vices, and diseases, leaving devastation in their wake. Swedish Covenant and other missionaries sought to mitigate the negative effects of western influences on Alaska Natives while they engendered profound change themselves. The narrative captures encounters between Tlingit people and Swedish missionaries at a dynamic time in Alaska's history.
About the Author
Charles Brower, the "King of the Arctic," was born in New York City in 1863. At the age of twenty, he was invited to join a small party to investigate coal mining possibilities near Cape Lisburne, Alaska, on the Arctic Ocean. Attracted by the lure of wide horizons and far places, he accepted the invitation. Except for occasional visits "Outside," Brower remained within the Arctic Circle for the rest of his life, living and working at Point Barrow, Alaska, where he died in 1945.
Table of Contents
List of IllustrationsPreface to the 1994 Edition
Terrence ColeIntroduction
Vilhjalmur StefanssonPrologChapters I-LVEpilogueIndex