Alaska: Saga of a Bold Land--From Russian Fur Traders to the Gold Rush, Extraordinary Railroads, World War II, the Oil Boom, and the Fight Over ANWR [Hardcover]

Walter R. Borneman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 4, 2003

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 these 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.

Major themes include Alaska Natives, exploration and mountaineering, mining rushes, railroads and aviation, military operations, and the conflict pitting conservation against development, with a spotlight on the current debate over oil drilling in ANWR.

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.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

The last American frontier, Alaska packs into 615,230 square miles the American saga of explorers and hunters, followed first by miners and soldiers, then homesteaders and tourists making their way into the wilderness. Borneman, a historian and lawyer who has produced multimedia programs for National Geographic, is at his best when he writes about these heroes who battled treacherous weather and terrain. At the same time, he stages their adventures against the backdrop of military and political events. Though some newspapers derided Lincoln's secretary of state, William Seward, for purchasing the territory as a strategic outpost in 1867, his decision proved prescient during WWII, when Alaska proved useful in patrolling the northern Pacific, and especially during the Cold War, when it allowed us to keep watch over communist countries in Asia. Until it obtained statehood in 1959, however, Alaska remained a colonial possession where the U.S. government controlled access to natural resources on the land, in the water and under the surface. Even now, 41% of the state belongs to national reserves; and the controversies continue among conservationists, fisheries, and timber and oil companies. The chapters on Alaska's environment demonstrate the balance of textbook history and storytelling that makes this informative book so readable. On occasion, Borneman becomes mired in local history, such as the quarrel over the state capital, when he might have instead devoted these pages to the Natives, whom he leaves hovering in the background until they suddenly leap forward as activists in the 1960s. He might also have included illustrations. Mirroring the Alaskan landscape, the book's scale and blocks of unbroken text can be daunting. 10 maps.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Walter R. Borneman has written many books and articles on Western history and also practices law in Colorado. He has traveled extensively in Alaska and has produced award-winning multimedia programs on its national parks and forests for National Geographic Maps.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 624 pages
• Publisher: Harper; 1 edition (February 4, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060503068
• ISBN-13: 978-0060503062
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.4 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,203,183 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Walter R. Borneman writes about American military and political history and western expansion. His latest book, Rival Rails: The Race to Build America's Greatest Transcontinental Railroad, chronicles half a century of railroad expansion across the American Southwest. Polk: The Man Who Transformed the Presidency and America (Random House, 2008), won the Tennessee History Book Award and the Colorado Book Award for Biography.

Borneman is best-known in Colorado's mountains as the co-author of A Climbing Guide to Colorado's Fourteeners (Pruett, 1978), the history and standard routes of Colorado's 54 peaks above 14,000 feet, which was in-print for twenty-five years. His collaboration with photographer Todd Caudle, 14,000 Feet: A Celebration of Colorado's Highest Mountains, won the 2005 Colorado Book Award for Pictorial.

QUOTE: My overriding goal in writing history has been to get the facts straight and then present them in a readable fashion. I am convinced that knowing history is not just about appreciating the past, but also about understanding the present and planning for the future.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An Exhaustive History, March 20, 2003

By 

Brian D. Rubendall (Oakton, VA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Alaska: Saga of a Bold Land--From Russian Fur Traders to the Gold Rush, Extraordinary Railroads, World War II, the Oil Boom, and the Fight Over ANWR (Hardcover)

Walter R. Borneman's "Alaska: Saga of a Bold Land" delivers exactly what it promises to deliver from its subtitle. The book is a complete history of the 49th State, from prehistoric times until the dawn of the 21st Century. Checking in at 540 pages of narrative, it is as big and daunting as Alaska itself. Though the book could have used more illustrations and perhaps some photographs to assist the reader, Borneman is a good enough storyteller to keep things interesting.

The story begins with a discussion of the migration of native tribes from Siberia during the last ice age. Borneman then flashes forward to Vitus Bering and the first Russian explorations and colonization of the territory. This is then followed by "Seward's Folly," the American purchase of Alaska, which, surprisingly, as Borneman demonstrates was much more widely supported than many historical accounts would indicate. At two cents an acres, it was certainly one of the great bargains of the 19th Century.

Moving into the 20th Century, the story focuses on the Alaskan Gold Rushes and American settlement, the Japanese invasion during World War II, the 1964 earthquake, and finally the production of oil and the resulting envioronmental controversies. Borneman's scope is expansive, and any reader of his book will come away with a very complete knowledge of the history of what remains the last American frontier.

Overall, a comprehensive and well-written account that will be particularly appreciated by history buffs.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Get weaker as the history moves on....., June 11, 2005

By 

lordhoot "lordhoot" (Anchorage, Alaska USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Alaska: Saga of a Bold Land (Paperback)

I thought this book does an excellent job of relating Alaskan history prior to statehood. The impact of Russian America and World War II proves to be well written. After statehood, it seem like only thing that went on in Alaska were related to oil, native land claims and 1964 Earthquake. There were whole lot more that took place in this state during the last 45 years that the book covered. Unfortunately, the author seem to be enamoured with the big headlines subjects in the post statehood period.

A thick book but its quite readable. For people living outside Alaska, this would be an excellent introduction to the Alaska's history. For the local folks like me, first half of the book remains interesting while the latter half appears to be rehashed of newspaper material. It may have been wise if the author stop at statehood and then wrote a second volume since he seem to have a decent flair for writing.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Well told...., September 16, 2003

By 

nto62 (Corona, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Alaska: Saga of a Bold Land--From Russian Fur Traders to the Gold Rush, Extraordinary Railroads, World War II, the Oil Boom, and the Fight Over ANWR (Hardcover)

Alaska, Saga of a Bold Land, is an archetype for North American regional history. In an entirely commendable fashion, Walter Borneman has provided the captivating details of a frontier state which remarkably remains so into the 21st century. Plotting the economic victories and upheavals, the natural disasters and wonders, Borneman deftly communicates the intimate details rarely found in such a readable history.

Borneman's view is a balanced one where competing interests are at play. In the ever divisive fight over land use and conservation, Borneman admirably selects the middle ground while patiently explaining the potential impacts upon Alaska's future. Such an objective and, yet, compelling achievement is highly appreciated as was Borneman's excellent asides into local characters and customs. Alaska has been pushed and pulled by outside interests since it's inception as an economic engine. From early Russian fur exploitation to contemporary cruise ship tourism, Alaska, Saga of a Bold Land, is a gem.