In the 1934 photo above:
Anton Anderson, his wife Alma and their two daughters
He became known as “Mr. Alaska Railroad”
Anderson arrived in the rugged tent city at the mouth of Ship Creek in 1916 to work for the Alaska Engineering Commission (AEC) as a resident engineer.
He began by surveying much of the railroad line and the original town site of Anchorage.
1928
One of Anderson’s achievements was the construction of the Eklutna Hydroelectric Power Project Dam, located 40 miles northeast of Anchorage.
The picture above is the front of the Anderson's home at 7th Avenue and G streets in 1939 Anchorage, Alaska.
In the 1930s, Anton Anderson was a principal civilian engineer for the U.S. Army during World War II.
In his capacity for the Army, he was the head of construction for the railroad spur tunnel, the Whittier Tunnel, connecting Whittier to Portage.
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The Whittier Tunnel
The photo above shows Anton Anderson at the entrance to the Whittier Tunnel portal in 1942.
Located a little over an hour south-east of Anchorage, the Whittier Tunnel has an interesting history.
When it Began
Survey parties started their work under the direction of Anderson in 1941.
On November 20, 1942, they held the “holing in” ceremony of the Whittier Tunnel which was completed in 1943.
When completed, it was the longest (2.5 miles) railroad tunnel in the United States and the fourth largest in the world. Today, the tunnel accommodates both trains and automobiles.
Pictured above is the Whittier Tunnel. Note that both trains and cars use the same tunnel. And yes, tunnel traffic is carefully controlled.
Mayor Anderson
In 1957, Anderson was elected to a two-year term as Mayor of Anchorage.
Have You Visited the Anchorage Memories Website?
It’s a treasure chest of memories, stories, pictures, and videos just waiting for you to enjoy.
Take a look at Anchorage Memories.com and remember.
The Anton Anderson Memorial Whittier Tunnel
In the picture above is the entrance to the Whittier Tunnel.
In 1976, William Dorcy, the Manager of the Alaska Railroad, officially named and dedicated the two Whittier Tunnels in honor of Anton Anderson.
Also in 1976, Robert B. Atwood of the Anchorage Times newspaper, wrote the following in his “Between Us” newspaper column:
“Ole Kukkola, who served as associate engineer and lived in the same camp at Whittier with Anderson, told the group of the engineering problems that Anderson overcame to make the tunnel project a success. For instance, Anderson computed by triangulation over the top of the mountains the directions to be followed by tunneling crews working toward each other from opposite sides of the mountain. If Anderson had erred, those two crews would have never have met and we may have had two tunnels through the mountain. But he didn’t err. When the two crews met they found their tunnels off only one-half inch in elevation, one-eighth inch in line and one foot in length, which, in engineering language, means no mistake at all.”
BONUS
Would you like to know more?
Take a look at the history of the Anton Anderson Memorial Whittier Tunnel and discover it.
Have you ever traveled on the Alaska Railroad, or taken the Whittier Tunnel? If you have, you owe a lot to Anchorage Pioneer, Anton Anderson.
From Our North Stars (that’s you)
Oops!
We goofed in our Denali edition.
“I think you mean Denali not Denai.”
Rosemary
Yes, we meant Denali Rosemary, and thank you for catching our error with your eagle eye. Mary and I have both written “Denali” 100 times on the blackboard.
Contact Us
Mary and I hope you enjoyed this edition focusing on Anchorage Pioneer Anton Anderson.
And if you still live in Anchorage, or plan to visit, the next time you drive through the Whittier Tunnel you can thank Anton Anderson and his crew.
Do you have a comment, or do you want to share a memory of a trip through the Whittier Tunnel? You can reply to this email, or you can Contact Us to say, “Whittier is one of my favorite road trips”.
Until Next Time
Mike and Mary
Anchorage Memories.com
Incredible story and Mr. Anderson must have had really smart parents!
I'm his granddaughter. You may want to research the Alaska Railroad Seward Switchback, which doesn't get a lot of public recognition of Anton's accomplishments. According to some (my dad) that engineering feat surpassed the great Whittier/Anderson Tunnel. And, yes, the original New Zealand Anderson family (mother from Ireland, father from Sweden) were all accomplished people.