AHS Publications

The Alaska Historical Society offers books and its semi-annual journal, Alaska History, for purchase.

To order copies of these Alaska Historical Society publications write to the:

Alaska Historical Society
P.O. Box 100299
Anchorage, Alaska, 99510

Indicate which books you would like to purchase and send your check (in U.S. funds) to cover the cost of the books and shipping and handling. There is a 20% discount for AHS members. Shipping and handling is $3 for the first book and $.75 for each additional book ordered. Be sure to include the address to which you would like the volumes sent.

Alaska History (AHS Journal)

Back Issues | Subscriptions


General Histories

Antonson, Joan M. and William S. Hanable. Alaska’s Heritage. Two Volumes. Second Edition. Alaska Historical Commission Studies in History, No. 133. Anchorage: Alaska Historical Society for the Alaska Historical Commission, Department of Education, State of Alaska, 1992. ISBN 0-9437-1218-1. Price: $37.00 (hardcover); AHS members $29.60.

Volume I summarizes Alaska’s natural history and presents the human history of the "Great Land" to 1867. Volume 2 covers the years since 1867. Lists of suggested readings provide more information about subjects discussed in the text. This work was originally commissioned by funds appropriated by the Alaska State Legislature as an Alaska history textbook for use in secondary schools.


Russian America (1741-1867)

Len’kov, V. D., G. L. Silant’ev, and A. K. Staniukovich. Komandorskii lager’ ekspeditsii Beringa (Opyt kompleksnogo izucheniia). [The Komandorskii Camp of the Bering Expedition (An Experiment in Complex Study)]. Translated by Katherine L. Arndt. Edited by 0. W. Frost. N.p.: Nauka Press, 1988; Anchorage: Alaska Historical Society, 1992. xvii, 156 pp., appendices, index. IBBN 0- 940521-00-8. Price: $12.00 (paper); AHS members $9.60.

"The monograph presents the results of a complex study of the site of the winter camp of the Bering expedition in Komandor Bay of Bering Island [Russia], 1741-1742. It analyzes the collection, which clearly illustrates the material culture of Russian seafarers of the 18th century. Both written sources and the results of the archaeological excavations of 1979 and 1981 were used in the investigation. Natural science methods were applied."—verso of title page.

Pierce, Richard A. Russian America: A Biographical Dictionary. Alaska Historical Commission Studies in History, No. 132. Kingston, Ontario and Fairbanks, Alaska: Limestone Press, 1990; distributed in U.S. by The Limestone Press, c/o History Department, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK 99775. xxii, 555 pp., [14] pages of plates. ISBN 0-919642-45-4. Price: $40.00 (hardcover); AHS members $32.00.

"The 675 lives described here include anyone who influenced developments in Alaska in that period [1741-1867], not only Russians who were there, but sovereigns and high court officials in St. Petersburg; British, French, Spanish and American seafarers; Finlanders, Americans and people of other nationalities who were employed by the [Russian-American] company; and Native Americans. Under Russian supervision, Russian America was truly an international enterprise involving the efforts and sacrifices of many peoples."—p. xx.

Alaska (1867-)

Atwood, Evangeline and Robert N. DeArmond, comps. Who’s Who in Alaskan Politics: A Biographical Dictionary of Alaskan Political Personalities, 1884-1974. Portland, OR: Binford & Mort for the Alaska Historical Commission, 1977. xiii, 109 pp. ISBN 0-8323-0287-2. Price: $7.50 (hardcover); AHS members $6.00.

The primary reference to Alaska’s territorial and state political leaders. An appendix includes lists of past governors, secretaries of Alaska/lieutenant governors, judges, U.S. marshals, and holders of other key offices.

Cohen, Kathryn Koutsky. Independence Mine and the Willow Creek Mining District. Anchorage: Office of History and Archaeology, Division of Parks, Department of Natural Resources, State of Alaska, 1982. Second Printing, 1996. xv, 169 pp., biblio. ISBN 0-943712-22-X. Price: $25.00 (paper); AHS members $20.00.

A history of the Independence Mine near Hatcher Pass in south-central Alaska and the Willow Creek Mining District, a 112-square mile area in the Talkeetna Mountains 40 miles north of Anchorage. The Independence Mine was once the site of the most productive hard rock gold mine in the region and is now a state historic park. Numerous illustrations, figures, and tables.

Cracroft, Sophia. Lady Franklin Visits Sitka, Alaska 1870: The Journal of Sophia Cracroft, Sir John Franklin’s Niece. Edited by R. N. DeArmond. Anchorage: Alaska Historical Society, 1981. xxviii, 134 pp., illus., maps, appendices, index. Price: $10.00 (hardcover); AHS members $8.00.

A unique account of community life in Sitka in 1870, which then served as headquarters of Alaska's government. Lady Jane Franklin and her niece by marriage, Sophia Cracroft, visited Sitka in May and June 1870. Cracroft kept a journal of the visit. Lady Jane Franklin is chiefly known as the wife of Sir John Franklin, a British naval officer and Arctic explorer whose disappearance from sight during his 1845 expedition of the Northwest Passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific precipitated one of the greatest searches of the 19th century. The appendices contain an inventory of Sitka's buildings and a October 24, 1870 census of its population.

Laubenstein, Karen Jackson and Robert E. King. Intrigue of the Past: Discovering Archaeology in Alaska. BLM Heritage Education Program. Anchorage, 1996. $15.00 (punched for 3-ring binder); AHS members $12.00.

Mercier, Francois. Recollections of the Youkon: Memories from the Years 1868-1885. Translated, edited and, annotated by Linda Finn Yarborough. Alaska Historical Commission Studies in History, No. 188. Anchorage: Alaska Historical Society, 1986. xv, 102 pp., biblio., index. ISBN 0-9437-12-19. Price: $10.00 (paper); AHS members $8.00.

"Translated for the first time into English and illustrated with photographs of the period, Recollections of the Youkon is a vivid description of life along the Yukon River during the years 1868-1885. These memoirs of Francois Xavier Mercier provide a detailed personal view of fur traders, prospectors, women, missionaries and Natives during this little-known period of Alaska history."—back cover.

Nash, Roderick. "Tourism, Parks, and the Wilderness Idea in the History of Alaska." Alaska in Perspective, v. 4, no. 1 (1981). Anchorage: Alaska Historical Commission and the Alaska Historical Society, 1981. 28 pp. Price: $0.50 (pamphlet); AHS members $0.50.

In this remarkable essay, Roderick Nash gives a concise history of Alaskan tourism and wilderness attitudes from John Muir's 1879 trip to the more recent popular, wilderness-oriented tourism with its emphasis on actual tourist contact with nature. Nash is a professor of history and environmental studies at the University of California at Santa Barbara who has written extensively on conservation issues and environmental history.

Roppel, Patricia. Alaska’s Salmon Hatcheries, 1891-1959. Alaska Historical Commission Studies in History, No. 20. Portland, OR: National Marine Fisheries Service, 1982. x, 299 pp., biblio., illus., tables, maps, index. ISBN 0-943712-09-2, Price: $18.00 (hardcover); AHS members $14.40.

A well-written and succinct history of Alaska’s Pacific salmon hatcheries and salmon industry from 1891 to 1959. Using a wealth of little-known primary and secondary sources, Roppel traces the growth and development of Alaska's salmon hatcheries in the face of prevailing anti-conservation attitudes of the day. A central theme is the roles played by the federal government and the salmon industry in using fisheries regulations and artificial propagation to counter the adverse effects of commercial fishing on fish stocks and prevent the depletion and destruction of the Alaska salmon fishery.

Roppel, Patricia. Salmon from Kodiak: An History of the Salmon Fishery of Kodiak Island, Alaska. Alaska Historical Commission Studies in History, No. 216. Second Edition. Anchorage: Alaska Historical Commission, 1986. xi, 355 pp., illus., notes, biblio., index. ISBN 0-943712-20-3. Price: $20.00 (paper); AHS members $16.00.

This history of the salmon industry on Kodiak Island, "the land of the red salmon," is divided into two parts: a history of the Kodiak fishery over a one hundred-year period from 1885 to 1985; and cannery histories for thirty-six canneries arranged in chronological order by year of construction (1882-1969).

Woodman, Lyman L. Duty Station Northwest: The U.S. Army in Alaska and Western Canada, 1867-1987. Anchorage: The Society, 3 volume-set $200.00 (hardcover); AHS members $160.00. Volumes can be purchased individually:
Vol. I: 1867-1917. 1996. $75.00; AHS members $60.00.
Vol. II: 1917-1945. 1997. $75.00; AHS members $60.00.
Vol. III: 1945-1987. 1999. $75.00; AHS members $60.00.

Few institutions have been as important to Alaska's history as the U.S. Army. From explorations in the nineteenth century and maintainance of order during the gold rush, to the fighting of WWII and the sustained buildup of the subsequent Cold War, the Army has contributed much to the state's history. In these three massive and well-illustrated volumes, Lyman Woodman chronicles this important story.

Conference Proceedings

Alaska at the Turn of Two Centuries and Historic Southern Southeast Alaska: Proceedings of the Alaska Historical Society Annual Meeting, October 6-9, 2000. Anchorage: The Society, 2001. $20.00 (combbound); AHS members $16.00.

Canadian and American Perspectives on the North: Papers Presented at the Annual Meeting of the Alaska Historical Society, Haines, Alaska, October 22-26, 1991. Anchorage: The Society, 1996. $12.00 (combbound); AHS members $10.00.

Chang, Tohsook P., comp. Alaska’s Past. An Index to the Conference Proceedings. Anchorage: The Society, 1986. $0.50 (paper); AHS members $0.50.

Communities in Transition: Papers Given at the 29th Alaska Historical Society Conference, Sitka, Alaska, October 19-21, 1997. Anchorage: The Society, 1998 $20.00 (combbound); AHS members $16.00.

Our Stories: Voices From Alaska's Museums and HIstorical Societies: Proceedings of the Alaska Historical Society Annual Meeting, October 4-6, 1999. Anchorage: The Society, 2000. $20.00 (combbound); AHS members $16.00.

Politics and Government in Alaska’s Past: Papers Presented at the Annual Meeting of the Alaska Historical Society, Juneau, Alaska, October 4-7, 1995. Anchorage: The Society, 1996. $20.00 (combbound); AHS members $17.00.

Preserving and Interpreting Cultural Heritage: Papers Given at the Annual Meeting of the Alaska Historical Society, Anchorage, Alaska, October 9-12, 1996. Anchorage: The Society, 1997. $20.00 (combbound), AHS members $16.00.

Science and Technology in Alaska's Past. Papers Presented at the Annual Meeting of the Alaska Historical Society, Anchorage, Alaska, November 29-December 2, 1990. Anchorage: The Society, 1995. $20.00 (combbound); AHS members $17.00.

Trade and Commerce in Alaska’s Past: Papers Presented at the Annual Meeting of the Alaska Historical Society, Kodiak, Alaska, November 3-5, 1994. Anchorage: The Society, 1995. $12.00 (combbound); AHS members $18.00.

The Yukon River in Alaska’s History: Papers Presented at the Annual Meeting of the Alaska Historical Society, Fairbanks, Alaska, October 7-9, 1993. Anchorage: The Society, 1993. $21.00 (combbound); AHS members $18.00.