Uploaded January 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Fairbanksans in support of Alaska statehood waved banners and signs during a wintertime parade in 1957. Alaska finally became the 49th U.S. state on January 3, 1959, following the signing into law of the Alaska Statehood Act. The act had been introduced by Alaska delegate E. L. "Bob" Bartlett and was signed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower on July 7, 1958. The act was the culmination of an effort spanning decades. Many prominent Alaskans supported statehood, including James Wickersham in the early 1900s, and later by Bob Bartlett, Ernest Gruening, Bill Egan, Bob Atwood, and Ted Stevens (Color/Silent/16mm film).
This clip is from AAF-10087 of the Ed Orbeck collection held by the Alaska Film Archives, a unit of the Alaska and Polar Regions Collections & Archives Department in the Elmer E. Rasmuson Library, University of Alaska Fairbanks.
The Alaska Film Archives appreciates your support. Your donation in any amount will help us continue important preservation work. Please visit the “About” section of our YouTube channel to learn how you can help today. Thank you! For more information please contact the Alaska Film Archives.
Fairbanksans in support of Alaska statehood waved banners and signs during a wintertime parade in 1957. Alaska finally became the 49th U.S. state on January 3, 1959, following the signing into law of the Alaska Statehood Act. The act had been introduced by Alaska delegate E. L. "Bob" Bartlett and was signed by President Dwight D. Eisenhower on July 7, 1958. The act was the culmination of an effort spanning decades. Many prominent Alaskans supported statehood, including James Wickersham in the early 1900s, and later by Bob Bartlett, Ernest Gruening, Bill Egan, Bob Atwood, and Ted Stevens (Color/Silent/16mm film).
This clip is from AAF-10087 of the Ed Orbeck collection held by the Alaska Film Archives, a unit of the Alaska and Polar Regions Collections & Archives Department in the Elmer E. Rasmuson Library, University of Alaska Fairbanks.
The Alaska Film Archives appreciates your support. Your donation in any amount will help us continue important preservation work. Please visit the “About” section of our YouTube channel to learn how you can help today. Thank you! For more information please contact the Alaska Film Archives.
