- 1923
President and Mrs. Harding and Governor Bone of Alaska at the Mendenhall Glacier, Juneau (Times Wide World Photos). Alaska State Library, President Harding’s Trip to Alaska, 1923. Photographs, New York Times Company, P418-03.
President Warren Harding arrived in Juneau on July 10 on his visit to Alaska. He was the first U.S. President to visit the territory. On his return to Seattle, he’d given a speech which, in part, he predicted that the Southeast Panhandle would be ready for statehood in the near future. Sparked in part by this presidential encouragement, a separation movement quickly formed to promote and organize for a Territory of South Alaska. Southeast residents were resentful of the increased political power of the northern Judicial Divisions represented by Anchorage and Fairbanks, which had less residents and paid less taxes but dominated in the legislature. Following a November 6 election, seven towns in Southeast selected delegates for a separation convention to address the issue.
The Southeast Alaska Convention on Territorial Division convened November 19 in Juneau and passed a memorial asking Congress to make the First Division of Alaska a separate territory, the Territory of South Alaska, and to prepare an Organic Act for the new territory. A delegate traveled to Congress to present the plan but never even got a committee hearing.
Baseball in Juneau got a new field when the Firemen’s Baseball Park opened in the Casey-Shattuck addition between 9th Avenue and Gold Creek, replacing the Last Chance Basin field, which tended to get flooded and was out of town. (The current Federal Building was built on the field in 1962-1966, ending its baseball history.)
The Douglas Mining Company incorporated March 23 under the laws of Alaska for the purpose of prospecting and developing 13 lode claims which give promise of being as rich as the Treadwell properties. The claims were situated immediately behind the city of Douglas (but never turned into a producing mine.)
The seaplane Northbird made its first real commercial flight in this part of Alaska May 3, previous flights having been for sightseeing or pleasure.
The Twin Glacier Camp, near the mouth of the Taku River was opened June 23 by Taku River Trading Company as a rustic tourist camp. Guests from Juneau at the formal opening included Governor and Mrs. Scott C. Bone. A boat made a trip to the camp from Juneau every three days and Captain William Strong also ran special one-day excursions up the Taku River from the camp with his boat, the Nakina. The camp, later known as Taku Lodge, is still in operation.
The crew of the Alaska Pulp & Paper Company plant at Speel River arrived in town November 17 with the shutdown of the mill. About 1,000 tons of pulp was on hand awaiting shipment south. The plant first started operating early in 1921 and had run intermittently since then (it closed permanently afterwards.)
Point Retreat light Station officially opened December 22. (It was later automated in 1973.)