Parish History
A Description of Anchorage, Alaska
Anchorage, which started out as a railroad construction tent camp in 1915, has become a surprisingly cosmopolitan city of approximately 260,000 people without losing its wilderness roots. One can drive downtown to a concert dressed in evening clothes and dodge a moose en route, or be working in the garden when a bear ambles across the lawn. Eagles have been known to swoop down on small pets in subdivisions. The local symphony orchestra and community chorus, often joined by Outside artists, compete with the sounds of huge migrations of geese, ducks and sand hill cranes. Offerings of varied arts, music groups and museums are equal in quality to those in the Pacific Northwest.
View of the Alaska Range and Mt. Susitna (Sleeping Lady) to the west of Anchorage.
Outdoor enthusiasts find sleep to be elusive in summer when the sun doesn’t set until almost midnight. The Tony Knowles Coastal Trail, following the shoreline for eleven miles, and the vast network of bike and ski trails provide ample choices for biking, walking or running in summer and cross country skiing in winter. The Chugach State Park, 495,000 acres of rugged mountain wilderness a half hour from downtown, is an endless joy to campers, hikers and skiers. Baseball and soccer fields, tennis courts, golf courses and lakes provide more summer activities. Ice skating facilities are everywhere in winter, and Anchorage is considered the cross country ski capital of the United States in terms of length of snow months and number of groomed ski trails, many of which are lighted. Fishing and boating opportunities also rank high.
For spectator sports, baseball, basketball and hockey games take place regularly, depending on the season. Before the evening’s entertainment, people can choose from over 300 restaurants serving foods from around the world. Costs are similar to those in big cities Outside. Movie theaters and shopping malls abound all over town, and shopping ranges from discount stores to upscale import shops.
Public transportation exists, but still leaves something to be desired. The public school system is good. Student populations continue to grow rapidly, exceeding 50,000 this year, so new schools are being built. There are fine choices of specialty schools within the public system. The University of Alaska - Anchorage offers a number of degree programs and is the largest public university in the state. The small, private Alaska Pacific University has excellent offerings, particularly in psychology and environmental studies.
Housing in Anchorage is in good supply with a wide variety of choices. Green belt areas and bike paths are close to almost everyone. Crime is low and probably not as great a concern as in other parts of the country. A bigger hazard is the weather. Being unprepared for storms or cold while outdoors in summer or winter can be dangerous. Driving in winter, though, is less hazardous than in other parts of the country because the city is well prepared for snow and ice storms. Finally, there are two excellent, well-equipped private hospitals, with a variety of good physicians and specialists to back them up. Public hospitals are the Alaska Native Medical Center and the new Veterans’ Administration hospital on Elmendorf Air Force Base. Anchorage has been a military town since World War II.
Anchorage winter temperatures range from -25 to +25 degrees Fahrenheit, with +20 during the day being a normal high and -10 a normal low at night. Count on snow from mid-October to mid-April. In summer, temperatures range from 35 degrees to 65 degrees, with 40 being the nighttime normal and 60 the daytime high. Spring and fall seasons are negligible. The climate is relatively dry because the mountains surrounding the city siphon off moisture from the Pacific Ocean. Rainfall is less than that of New York City, with most of it coming in July and August. We have less snow than Interior Alaska, with an average of two feet on the ground in mid-winter. It is wise to keep busy between the months of November and February because daylight is at a premium. In mid-December the sun rises over the mountains around 10 a.m. and sets by 3 p.m.
For more information about our city, visit the home page of the Municipality of Anchorage.