REFERENCE CODE: AkAMH

REPOSITORY NAME:
Anchorage Museum at Rasmuson Center
Bob and Evangeline Atwood Alaska Resource Center
625 C Street
Anchorage, AK 99501
Phone: 907-929-9235
Fax: 907-929-9233
Email: resourcecenter@anchoragemuseum.org

Guide prepared by: Sara Piasecki, Photo Archivist

TITLE: George Alexander Spangler Photographs

COLLECTION NUMBER: B2013.060

OVERVIEW OF THE COLLECTION

Dates: circa 1905-1944

Extent: 61 items

Language and Scripts: The collection is in English.

Name of creator(s): George Alexander Spangler, R. Pepper, Jasper Jones

Administrative/Biographical History:
George Alexander Spangler came to Alaska from California around 1906 and mined around
Katalla. He later began work on the construction of the Copper River & Northwestern Railway.
He returned Outside to Denver, where he worked as a civil engineer on highway construction
projects.

Scope and Content Description:
The collection consists of 61 black-and-white photographs of Katalla, Cordova, Eska Creek,
and Sitka, Alaska; Copper River & Northwestern Railway construction; and scenes in Northern
California and Montana, created or collected by George Alexander Spangler. Of note are three
photographs of a pile driver at Katalla damaged in 1907 by “Bruner’s dynamiters;” M. W.
Bruner was the head of the Alaska-Pacific Railway & Terminal Co., a bitter rival of the
C.R.N.W. Ry. Also included are two photographs documenting voter turnout in Cordova for the
election of the first Alaska territorial delegate to Congress, Spangler noting support for John
“Jack” Corson who was running against James Wickersham.

Arrangement: Arranged by location into Alaska and Outside, then chronologically.



CONDITIONS GOVERNING ACCESS AND USE

Restrictions on Access: The collection is open for research use.

Physical Access: Original items in good condition.

Technical Access: No special equipment is needed to access the materials.

Conditions Governing Reproduction and Use:
The Anchorage Museum is the owner of the materials and makes available reproductions for
research, publication, and other uses. Written permission must be obtained from the Anchorage
Museum before any reproduction use. The Anchorage Museum does not necessarily hold
copyright to all of the materials in the collections. In some cases, permission for use may
require seeking additional authorization from the copyright owners.

Preferred Citation:
George Alexander Spangler Photographs, Anchorage Museum, B2013.060

ADMINISTRATIVE INFORMATION

Acquisition and Appraisal Information
Donated by Spangler’s niece, Ruth Silverman, in July 2013.

Note
Some photographs bear notes in two hands.


RELATED MATERIALS
Tom Hogan Photograph Collection, B2009.012
Copper River & Northwestern Railway Shipping Receipts, B2009.055
Copper River & Northwestern Railway Construction Album, B2012.028


SUBJECTS
Spangler, George Alexander
Copper River and Northwestern Railway
California Northeastern Railway
Railroads—Alaska—Design and construction
Labor camps—Alaska
Labor camps—California, Northern
Katalla (Alaska)
Cordova (Alaska)
Copper River (Alaska)
Sitka (Alaska)
California, Northern


Detailed Description of the Collection
 1 — By R. Pepper, showing our camp at Katalla [two men and two dogs on log dock, with wood shack and walled tent in background]
 2 — Looking west from camp. Our camp during winter of 1906-7. Tent to the left is where I spent many a night [snow in clearing and on tall fir trees, walled tent at left. Katalla? Or Orr Lake? Cf. .45]
 3 — Showing snowfall in Catalla, Alaska, during winter of ’06 [roadhouse with huge snow banks in front, sign partially blocked, reads Laundry & Baths]
 4 — Indian graveyard at Catella, Alaska, showing style of Greek crosses, R.C. Bayless posing. G.A.S. [man next to fence and spirit house]
 5 — Rock cut on beach at Katalla, A., C.R. & N.W. Ry. Co., 1907 [bird’s eye view of railroad tracks under construction along shore, three men pushing small car]
6 — Cattella, Alaska, July 4 ’07. H. Gabriel, Harry Carter, Ray Moss, R.C. Bayless, N.S. Russel, G.A. Spangler, Vandiver, R. Pepper, Red Milburg, Tim Extrom, McCloskey [group portrait of men outside same building as in .7, with surveyor’s equipment, laundry tub, and sign “Girl Wanted”]
 7 — [Photographic postcard] Catella, Alaska, June 25, ’07. A snap shot out on the mosquito flats. G.A.S. [three men standing in clearing]
 8 — [Photographic postcard] Catella, Alaska, July 8, ’07 [group portrait of 8 men outside building, with surveyor’s equipment; postcard addressed to Mrs. F.M. Spangler, Cincinnati, Ohio]
 9 — Out in the tundra, Katalla, Alaska [six men in clearing]
 10 — By R. Pepper. Showing camp at Katalla, Alaska, Aug. 23, ’07. G.A.S. [man with two dogs in right foreground, creek flowing past buildings and walled tents, mountains and bay in distance]
 11 — Pile driver wrecked by Bruner’s dynamiters, Katalla, A., 1907 [construction workers inspecting damage, some in small boats and some standing on logs near completed bridge piers]
 12 — Showing Katalla Co.’s pile driver wrecked by Bruner’s Alaska-Pacific with dynamite during month of May ’07. Driver was on top piling shown in the rear before being shot. G.A.S. [same as .11]
13 — Another picture of the wrecked driver. This constituted the first act in the railroad war successfully terminated on July 3rd in favor of the Katalla Co. [view of bridge under construction with damaged pile driver]
 14 — 50. 7-7-07. Bruner terminal, Katalla, A. [logs floating in foreground, buildings and walled tents on shore with dock under construction]
 15 — Katalla [four men with canoe on bank next to same building as seen in .6 and .8, drying rack at left, mountains in background]
 16 — Fishing schooner Caroline washed ashore during storm, Katalla, Alaska [man standing next to hull of beached ship]
 17 — Sta. 1214. Transit party, location C.R. & N.W. Ry. Co., Cordova, A. [five men, four smoking pipes, with small sled in snowy field, surveyor’s equipment at right]
 18 — G.A. Spangler, R.E. Armitage, Camp #5 [two men with rifles smoking cigars, standing in clearing]
 19 — Camp #5, Cordova, A., C.R. & N.W. Ry. Co. [winter scene with railroad tracks in foreground, walled tents and pile of ties in middle ground, mountains in distance]
 20 — Camp #5, C.R. & N.W. Ry. Co., Cordova, A. G.A.S. [winter scene with several walled tents in snow]
 21 — View to the north of Camp #6, C.R. & N.W. Ry. Co. [winter scene with snowy clearing, trees and mountains beyond]
 22 — Tide flats between Camp 5 & 6, C.R. & N.W. Ry. Co. [man standing on railroad tracks]
 23 — Camp #7, C.R. & N.W. Ry. Co. [walled tents in foreground, railroad bridge construction in background]
 24 — Camp #7, C.R. & N.W. Ry. Co., Cordova, June 20, ’08 [several walled tents in brush, railroad trestle at right]
 25 — Mess tent decorations, July 4, ’08, Camp #7 [three men seated on benches at tables in walled tent decorated for Fourth of July celebration, with garlands or leaves, flag, small image of woman on rafters]
 26 — Flag point as seen from Camp #7. Kortwright in foreground, June ’08, Camp #7 [man standing on railroad tracks with mountains behind]
 27 — Camp #10, C.R. & N.W. Ry. Co., Aug. 11 ’08 [two men standing in entryway of walled tent]
 28 — Sand bar, C. River, 1:30 A.M. [man standing in midnight sun on Copper River, George Spangler?]
 29 — Sand bar in Copper River at low water, setting points for bridge [man with surveyor’s equipment, small boat at rear left]
 30 — First pile in water, C.R. & N.W. bridge [man standing on bridge under construction, with small shack on tracks at right, man and logs on beach below]
 31 — First pile in Copper River trestle, June ’08 [men standing near small shack in muddy clearing next to pile driver]
 32 — 3 pile drivers in action on Copper River Bridge, June ’08 [distant view of railroad bridge construction]
33 — Voting for John Corson for delegate, Aug. 11, ’08. 980 votes were cast [bird’s eye view of crowds on Main Street in Cordova, including businesses with signs Half and Half on Draught Here; Seattle Bar, Rob’t Ashland Pres.; Drugs; Pioneer Drug Store; Mrs. Hood Complete Line of Ladies’ Furnishings; Southern]
 34 — On the way to vote for Delegate to Congress, two trains were run front the front. G.A.S. [crowd of men gathered along railroad tracks]
 35 — C.W. Wagner homestead, Eska Creek, Alaska, March 1917 [man, woman, and young girl standing outside log cabin]
 36 — March 1917 [man with young girl and dog, log cabin in background]
 37 — March 1917 [two men on horseback next to log cabin]
 38 — Sitka [Lincoln Street in Sitka with St. Michael the Archangel Cathedral, The Baranoff at left, and sign for [?]alm Café at right]
 39 — [two men posing with gold pans, both smoking pipes and inspecting nugget; Alaska?]
 40 — [six men and a dog posed outside a walled tent in a work camp; Alaska or California]
 41 — [Photographic postcard. Group of workers on a break sitting on downed trees; Alaska or California]
 42 — 15th Ave. South Frisco before the quake. G.A.S. [ten men seated against building wall in San Francisco circa 1906]
 43 — Rocky Gate looking north, showing heaviest[?] field in the Cal. N.E. Ry. [men working next to a huge pile of earth in a clearing, with tall fir trees behind, during construction of the California-Northeastern Railway, circa 1905]
 44 — Planing mill at [Camino?], Calif. [view of large lumber mill near railroad tracks]
 45 — Our camp at Orr’s Lake. 3rd tent on the left is same as tent in snow picture [two men and dog standing in clearing near walled tents in tall fir trees]
 46 — Antelope Range, note x where you killed buck last fall. Mt. Shasta is small range beyond mountains with x on it and is distant about 15 miles. It is quite a climb from cross to flat below with a deer on your back. Picture was taken and sent to me with personal note by Jasper Jones of London, Ky. G.A.S. [scenic of lake with mountains behind]
 47 — Orr Lake looking south-east. Duck hunting was good on this lake, which was about ½ mile from camp
 48 — Mt. Shasta. The flat mountain to the right and a part of Shasta is called Shastina
 49 — Mt. Shasta from Orrs Lake, Easter Sunday. Showing Mt. Shasta as seen from our camp, Jasper Jones in the offing. G.A.S. [man in clearing with Shasta in distance]
 50 — Looking south from top Orrs Mt., note x our camp. Showing our camp where cross appears, the famous trout creek immediately in front of it and Orr’s Lake where duck hunting was good. The light streak to the left of timber is road bed of Cal. N.E. Ry.
 51 — One reason why I want to go home. Jasper Jones at work [man washing laundry in tub near walled tent in tall fir trees]
 52 — [Photographic postcard] Hello forked horn! Do you recognize the old place? Taken from in front of O.K.M.’s tent by yours truly. Got a letter from Jasper the other day with your address. Seems to me your quite permanently established in Alaska. Must be some attraction there besides work. Bedolfe’s[?] line on its last legs & I’m now at Klamath Falls, Ore. care J.D. Church. [signed] Adams [addressed to] Mr. Geo Spangler, Cordova, Alaska c/o A. Williams [postmarked] Weed, Cal., Jan. 25, 1908 [and] Cordova, Alaska, Feb 8, 1908 [work camp with walled tents in tall fir trees]
 53 — [work crew, possibly digging irrigation ditch, in flat, arid area, automobile parked near work site; California?]
 54 — [four men standing near wooden-sided automobile, other cars parked in background; same location as .53]
 55 — [agricultural mat on ground in flat, arid area; same location as .53-54]
 56 — [man and three women on horseback, with dog; photo stamped on reverse “Britone, trademark reg., made only by Camera Service”]
 57 — [two men and four women on horseback; same location as .56]
 58 — [automobile on road in mountains; Northern California or Oregon?]
 59 — Echo Lake [photo stamped on reverse “Kodatone, Omaha, Nebr., Aug. 11, 1937”]
 60 — [bear in woods; photo stamped on reverse “Kodatone, Omaha, Nebr., Aug. 2, 1938”]
 61 — [Photographic postcard] Scene from Billings, Red Lodge Highway to Cook City entrance Yellowstone Park [addressed to] Dr. E. Goldstien, 625 So York St, Denver 4 Colo [postmarked] Billings, Mont., Mar. 30, 1944 Guide written: July 15, 2013