Uploaded June 2023 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
In one of the earliest dramatic films ever made in Alaska, actress Lottie Kruse portrays a girl who dresses as a boy in order to escape the confines of her life and go on a quest to locate her long-lost gold-seeking father. In these scenes aboard a northbound steamship, the adventure-seeking stowaway earns a new name - "Alaska" (B&W/Silent/16mm film).
The full film may be viewed on the Alaska Film Archives YouTube channel at: youtu.be/3LqeWRjoHeI
According to research by Alaska historian David Reamer, sequences appearing in the full film were shot at several different locations in Alaska in 1917, including Ketchikan, onboard the steamship "Alaska" between Ketchikan and Juneau, Juneau, Skagway, the Cordova area (Childs Glacier/Miles Glacier/Copper River), and Anchorage. The small film crew made plans to go to Fairbanks, the Aleutians and Kasilof, but it is unknown whether that happened or whether filming ever took place at those locations. Scenes in the film that appear to be in Fairbanks were likely actually shot in Anchorage and Seward. Other scenes were filmed in Pasadena, California and Seattle, Washington. Reamer wrote about the film in a July 30, 2023, article in the Anchorage Daily News titled "The first movie filmed in Anchorage: A cross-dressing gold rush romance." A link to the article is here: adn.com/alaska-life/2023/07/30/the-first-movie-filmed-in-anchorage-a-cross-dressing-gold-rush-romance
The Girl Alaska (1919). Producer: World Pictures. Director Al Ira Smith. Cast: Lottie Kruse, Henry Bolton, and C. Edward Cone
This scan of "The Girl Alaska" was made by the Library of Congress from a 16mm positive film print, the earliest generation material LC holds for this title (LC Number 1763113-7-1 to 7-5; George Kleine Collection). A 16mm duplicate of the Library of Congress film (AAF-339) is also 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. This film scan was obtained by the Alaska Film Archives from the Library of Congress. Conditions for use for film and television credit must state the following screen credit: Archival film materials from the collections of the Library of Congress.
In one of the earliest dramatic films ever made in Alaska, actress Lottie Kruse portrays a girl who dresses as a boy in order to escape the confines of her life and go on a quest to locate her long-lost gold-seeking father. In these scenes aboard a northbound steamship, the adventure-seeking stowaway earns a new name - "Alaska" (B&W/Silent/16mm film).
The full film may be viewed on the Alaska Film Archives YouTube channel at: youtu.be/3LqeWRjoHeI
According to research by Alaska historian David Reamer, sequences appearing in the full film were shot at several different locations in Alaska in 1917, including Ketchikan, onboard the steamship "Alaska" between Ketchikan and Juneau, Juneau, Skagway, the Cordova area (Childs Glacier/Miles Glacier/Copper River), and Anchorage. The small film crew made plans to go to Fairbanks, the Aleutians and Kasilof, but it is unknown whether that happened or whether filming ever took place at those locations. Scenes in the film that appear to be in Fairbanks were likely actually shot in Anchorage and Seward. Other scenes were filmed in Pasadena, California and Seattle, Washington. Reamer wrote about the film in a July 30, 2023, article in the Anchorage Daily News titled "The first movie filmed in Anchorage: A cross-dressing gold rush romance." A link to the article is here: adn.com/alaska-life/2023/07/30/the-first-movie-filmed-in-anchorage-a-cross-dressing-gold-rush-romance
The Girl Alaska (1919). Producer: World Pictures. Director Al Ira Smith. Cast: Lottie Kruse, Henry Bolton, and C. Edward Cone
This scan of "The Girl Alaska" was made by the Library of Congress from a 16mm positive film print, the earliest generation material LC holds for this title (LC Number 1763113-7-1 to 7-5; George Kleine Collection). A 16mm duplicate of the Library of Congress film (AAF-339) is also 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. This film scan was obtained by the Alaska Film Archives from the Library of Congress. Conditions for use for film and television credit must state the following screen credit: Archival film materials from the collections of the Library of Congress.
