Module VI - Alaska Connects

Essential Question:

Alaska's infrastructure of transportation and communication systems -what is the cause-effect relationships to settlement patterns and to the development of the Alaska economy?

From the time Russians set foot on Alaskan Territory to the present, exploration, curiosity, excitement for challenges, economic gain, protection, preservation and survival have all been motivating factors that have linked settlement patterns to the development of the Alaska economy.

Oceans and rivers were the first mode of transportation and means for getting people and supplies into and around Alaska. Alaska Natives were using the river system long before the Russians or Americans arrived. The challenges with this mode of transportation was that it was limited due to weather conditions as to the amount of goods that could be transported. During the summer months, steamboats, canoes,and ships could access the open waters, however during the harsh winter months, the rivers turned into trails for dogsleds which slowed things down considerably.

Steamship - Alaska in Pictures

After America purchased Alaska, things started to move along more rapidly than when the Russians were here. As more people came to Alaska, especially in the advent of the Klondike Goldrush, roads and railroads started being built. Access to Alaska through the waterways limited access. After gold was discovered in the Interior of Alaska, an interest rose to access more areas of Alaska. The military has been a monumental part of road and railroad development in Alaska. This was due to the need to protect our homeland. Many challenges have risen in the development of both roads and railroads, but as one milestone is reached, plans for more roads to connect Alaska are in the making.

Alaska Railroad - Alaska in Pictures

Because economic barriers stall the building of roads and railroads, people like Carl Ben Eilsen took on the challenge of bring aviation to Alaska. Bless his heart! Aviation connected Alaskan communities to each other. The size of Alaska seemed to lesson with this mode of transportation. Communities could now communicate more efficiently with each other via airmail. Remote villages could receive supplies more often.

Float Plane - Alaska in Pictures

As technology advance in the world of aviation and the Space Age, this brought modern telecommunications to the state of Alaska. This allows for students in remote villages to receive equitable education opportunities through long distance learning opportunities, businesses can conduct meetings without the expense of flying in for a meeting, medical facilities can communicate with remote villages for medical care.

Satellites - Alaska in Pictures

Examine:

What were the factors that prompted the growth of communication systems in Alaska?

One of the main factors that prompted the growth of communication systems in Alaska was that travel had been and still can be very difficult. Weather conditions change on a dime and have cost lives whether traveling by road, rail, waterways, or air. Modern communication systems provides instantaneous communication. I love being able to communicate with my brother in Petersburg,AK regardless if he is fogged in or not. My brother has two daughters attending UAF in Fairbanks. There have been times when I have been notified by my brother about a situation I needed to help out with my nieces. All he had to do was text me.

Another factor that prompted the growth off communication systems was the need for Alaskans to be connected with the rest of the world. Starting with mail, to the telegraph, to the telephone, to satellite systems which opened access to the world through television and the internet, these modes of communication have provided Alaskan's opportunities to be competitive in our global economy.

Another factor that prompted growth of communication systems was the need to protect our homeland. Before the telegraph was brought in by the military, it would take a year for correspondence from Alaska to reach Washington, D.C. Wow! How vulnerable that must have made us.

Extend:

How adequate are the systems in your region of the state? Fairbanks has the advantage of a quality college university. Communications systems are well developed and studied here.

How does this affect the people in your area and their ability to make a living?The communication systems enhance the lives of people in Fairbanks. Skyping is a common mode of communication with more remote villages for meetings and services.

What does this mean for the economy of Alaska? Communication and the ability to network is a way of sustaining communities. We need to be able to understand each others needs in order to help support each other.

Evaluation:

Because of the challenges that living in Alaska poses in all sectors of life up here, this drives people to continue to make improvements in transportation and communication. Exploration continues for new ways to access the plethora of resources that Alaska offers. One of my aha moments in the Module was that Norway has the icebreakers needed to continue with off-shore drilling. I am making an assumption here, but if Norway is able to make advancements like this, what is wrong with us? It frightens me a little to watch our great nation lagging behind other nations. I want to be able to say we are a leader in our world.