Uploaded November 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Scenes of 1950s travel along a snow-covered Alaska Highway trace the route from Milepost 0 at Dawson Creek, British Columbia, to the highway’s unofficial end in Fairbanks, Alaska nearly 1,500 miles later. Along the way, the traveler's camera captures landmarks such as the S.S. Nenana in dry dock, a CANOL pipeline pump station, the Aurora Lodge, and finally the Nordale Hotel in Fairbanks.
According to the Alaska Department of Transportation, the Alaska Highway was originally built for military purposes. Construction officially began in March, 1942 -- about 90 days after the bombing of Pearl Harbor -- and the Army Corps of Engineers completed the initial road on November 20, 1942. After several years of improvements, the highway opened to civilian, non-military use in 1948, and has undergone continual revisions ever since (Color/Silent/16mm film).
This clip is from AAF-16331 of the Arnie M. Lee and Family 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.
Scenes of 1950s travel along a snow-covered Alaska Highway trace the route from Milepost 0 at Dawson Creek, British Columbia, to the highway’s unofficial end in Fairbanks, Alaska nearly 1,500 miles later. Along the way, the traveler's camera captures landmarks such as the S.S. Nenana in dry dock, a CANOL pipeline pump station, the Aurora Lodge, and finally the Nordale Hotel in Fairbanks.
According to the Alaska Department of Transportation, the Alaska Highway was originally built for military purposes. Construction officially began in March, 1942 -- about 90 days after the bombing of Pearl Harbor -- and the Army Corps of Engineers completed the initial road on November 20, 1942. After several years of improvements, the highway opened to civilian, non-military use in 1948, and has undergone continual revisions ever since (Color/Silent/16mm film).
This clip is from AAF-16331 of the Arnie M. Lee and Family 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.
