Anchorage Daily News

POPULATION: 840 (2006)

LOCATION: At the junction of the Talkeetna and Susitna rivers, 120 miles north of Anchorage off Mile 98.7 of the Parks Highway.

DESCRIPTION: A town noted for its recreational opportunities. As the gateway for hunting, fishing, mountaineering and flightseeing trips and a staging area for nearly all Mount McKinley climbing expeditions, the town provides air taxis, helicopters, outfitters and related services. Ten residents hold commercial fishing permits. Nearly one of every four homes is used only seasonally. There is one school, attended by about 110 students.

HISTORY: The Talkeetna and Chulitna rivers join the Susitna River at Talkeetna, an Indian word meaning "where the rivers join." Originally the site of a Tanaina Indian village, Talkeetna was established as a mining town and trading post in 1896, before either Wasilla or Anchorage existed. A gold rush to the Susitna River brought prospectors to the area, and by 1910, Talkeetna had become a riverboat steamer station. In 1915, it was chosen as the site for the Alaska Engineering Commission that would build the Alaska Railroad, and the community peaked near 1,000. World War I and completion of the railroad in 1919 dramatically decreased the population. Several of its old log buildings are historical landmarks; Talkeetna was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in April 1993. The town began to develop as the jumping-off point for Mount McKinley expeditions after development of the West Buttress route up the peak in 1951 and subsequent access from the south.

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