Fairbanks, Alaska

"Fairbanks" redirects here. For other uses, see Fairbanks (disambiguation).

Fairbanks, Alaska
City
Downtown Fairbanks from the Chena River.
Motto:  The Golden Heart City
Location of Fairbanks, Alaska
Country	United States
State	Alaska
Borough	Fairbanks North Star
Incorporated	November 10, 1903
Government
• Mayor	Terry Strle
Area
• City	32.7 sq mi (84.6 km2)
• Land	31.9 sq mi (82.5 km2)
• Water	0.8 sq mi (2.1 km2)
Elevation	446 ft (136 m)
Population  (2008)
• City	35,132
• Density	981.9/sq mi (379.7/km2)
• Urban	51,926
Time zone	UTC-9 (AKST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC-8 (AKDT)
ZIP code	99701, 99702, 99705, 99706, 99707, 99708, 99709, 99710, 99711, 99712, 99714, 99716, 99767, 99775-(UAF), 99790
Area code	907
FIPS code	02-24230
GNIS feature ID	1401958
Website	http://www.ci.fairbanks.ak.us

Fairbanks (Template:Pron-en) is a Home Rule City in and the borough seat of the Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska, United States.Template:GR

Fairbanks is the largest city in the Interior region of Alaska, and second largest in the state behind Anchorage. It is the principal city of the Fairbanks, Alaska Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of the Fairbanks North Star Borough and is the northernmost Metropolitan Statistical Area in the United States.

According to 2008 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 35,132, and the Fairbanks metropolitan area's population was 97,970. Fairbanks is home to the University of Alaska Fairbanks, the oldest college in Alaska.

History

Main article: History of Fairbanks

Captain E.T. Barnette founded Fairbanks in August 1901 while trying to set up a trading post at Tanacross (where the Tanana River crossed the Valdez-Eagle trail). But the steam boat Barnette was aboard, the Lavelle Young, ran aground and he was deposited seven miles (11 km) up the Chena River. Smoke from the steamer's engines attracted some prospectors, and they met Barnette where he disembarked. The prospectors convinced Barnette to set up his trading post there. The city is named after Charles Fairbanks, a Republican senator from Indiana and later the 26th Vice President of the United States, serving in Theodore Roosevelt's second term.

Felix Pedro discovered gold northeast of town in July 1902 and a swarm of new residents followed. Federal judge James Wickersham established government offices in Fairbanks the next year, helping to cement the quickly growing town as an important center of activity in Interior Alaska.

The Tanana Valley is an important agricultural center for Alaska, and during Fairbanks' early days the vicinity of the town was a major producer of agricultural goods. Despite early efforts by groups like the Alaska Loyal League and the Tanana Valley Agriculture Association, and the editor of the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, W.F. Thompson, to encourage food production, agriculture in the area was never able to fully support the population, although it came close in the 1920s.

Geography

A winter panorama of downtown Fairbanks, as seen looking south from the Cushman Street bridge spanning the Chena River.

Topography

Fairbanks is located in the central Tanana Valley, straddling the Chena River near its confluence with the Tanana River. Immediately north of the city is a chain of hills that rises gradually until it reaches the White Mountains and the Yukon River. The southern border of the city is the Tanana River. South of the river is the Tanana Flats, an area of marsh and bog that stretches for more than 100 miles (160 km) until it rises into the Alaska Range, which is visible from Fairbanks on clear days. To the east and west are low valleys separated by ridges of hills up to 3,000 feet (910 m) above sea level.

The Tanana Valley is crossed by many low streams and rivers that flow into the Tanana River. In Fairbanks, the Chena River flows southwest until it empties into the Tanana. A slough of the Chena creates Garden Island, a district connected to the rest of Fairbanks by bridges and culverted roads.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 32.7 square miles (84.6 km²); 31.9 square miles (82.5 km²) of it is land and 0.8 square miles (2.1 km²) of it (2.48%) is water.

Climate

Fairbanks' climate is subarctic. The Interior, home of Fairbanks and Denali National Park, has some of the most extreme and variable weather in the world: rapid temperature swings, thunderstorms with hail and lightning, and summer snow. Winters are very long, lasting from late September to mid-April, and are bitterly cold and dry, with temperatures sometimes dropping to -65 °F (-54 °C). Often the temperature is below zero Fahrenheit (-17.8 °C) for entire months. The coldest temperature ever recorded in Fairbanks was -66 °F (-54.4 °C) on January 14, 1934. The average January low is -19 °F (-28 °C) and the average January high is -2 °F (-19 °C). Winter snowfall averages around 67.4 inches (171 cm). Ice fog can occur if the temperature drops below -20 °F (-29 °C). Summers can be warm, with temperatures often reaching into the 80s °F (27° to 32 °C) and sometimes reaching into the 90s °F (32° to 37 °C). The average July low is 53 °F (12 °C) and the average July high is 72 °F (22 °C). The highest temperature ever recorded in Fairbanks was 99 °F (37.2 °C) on July 28, 1919. Thunderstorms with hail and lightning can occur in summer. August and September can be rainy; snow often falls in September. Springtime snow often falls well into May, and sometimes even into early June. The average annual precipitation is 10.34 inches (26.26 cm)(rainfall plus melted snow). Fairbanks is known for its lingering summer days: on 21 June, the sun is visible for 21 hours and 49 minutes, providing 24 hours of usable daylight. Local golf clubs feature all-night summer golfing. Conversely, the sun is up for 3 hours and 42 minutes on 21 December, providing 5 hours and 33 minutes of usable daylight.

According to the New York Times, spectacular displays of the aurora borealis ("northern lights") are visible on an average of 200 days a year in the vicinity of Fairbanks.

Climate data for Fairbanks, Alaska
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Source: AccuWeather.com

People and culture

Demographics

Historical population

Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1910	3,541		—
1920	1,155		−67.4%
1930	2,101		81.9%
1940	3,455		64.4%
1950	5,771		67.0%
1960	13,311		130.7%
1970	14,711		10.5%
1980	22,645		53.9%
1990	30,843		36.2%
2000	30,224		−2.0%
2008 (est.)	35,132
source:

File:Fairbanks,Alaska First Settlers.jpg

First monument to the first settlers in Fairbanks, Alaska

As of the censusTemplate:GR of 2000, there were 30,224 people, 11,075 households, and 7,187 families residing in the city. The population density was 948.7 people per square mile (366.3/km²). There were 12,357 housing units at an average density of 387.9/sq mi (149.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 66.67% White, 11.15% Black or African American, 9.91% Native American, 2.72% Asian, 0.54% Pacific Islander, 2.45% from other races, and 6.57% from two or more races. 6.13% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Of the 11,075 households, 39.9% had children under the age of 18, 47.2% were married couples living together, 12.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.1% were non-families. 27.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.56 and the average family size was 3.15.

Median age of the population was 28 years, with 29.4% under the age of 18, 14.7% from 18 to 24, 32.8% from 25 to 44, 16.4% from 45 to 64, and 6.6% who were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 105.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 108.2 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $40,577, and the median income for a family was $46,785. Males had a median income of $30,539 versus $26,577 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,814. About 7.4% of families and 10.5% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.6% of those under age 18 and 7.0% of those age 65 or over.

Media

Fairbanks' largest newspaper is the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, which also includes a weekly entertainment guide, Latitude 65. A few other periodicals also serve Fairbanks and the Fairbanks North Star Borough: The Ester Republic and the University of Alaska Fairbanks student newspaper, the Sun Star.

Fairbanks is also served by television and radio. Leading radio stations include AM Stations KFAR 660 talk radio, KCBF 820 ESPN Radio Network, KFBX 970 talk radio and KJNP 1170 religious radio. FM stations include 88.5 popular Christian, KUAC 89.9 National Public Radio, KSUA 91.5 University of Alaska, Fairbanks, KDJF ("CHET FM") 93.5 everything country KXLR 95.9 classic rock KYSC 96.9 soft rock, KWLF 98.1-"Wolf 98.1", top 40, KJNP-FM 100.3 religious radio, KAKQ-FM 101.1-"Magic 101.1" pop music, KIAK-FM 102.5 country music, KTDZ 103.9-"K-TED" adult hits, and KKED 104.7 rock music.

Fairbanks' major television affiliates are KATN (ABC)-(KIMO retransmission), KFXF (FOX), KUAC-TV (PBS)-"AlaskaONE" with some KMXT-only programming, KTVF (NBC), K13XD (CBS), and UHF station KDMD-LP-(i)-Fairbanks. Cable TV is available from GCI and Denali Television.

Sports

The Carlson Center is home to University of Alaska Fairbanks Nanooks men's ice hockey, the Top of the World preseason college basketball tournament, and the Fairbanks Grizzlies, a professional arena football team in the Indoor Football League.

The Fairbanks Ice Dogs, a junior hockey team in the North American Hockey League, play at the Big Dipper Ice Arena.

The Alaska Goldpanners and the Fairbanks AIA Fire are summer collegiate baseball teams, playing home games at Growden Memorial Park. The park is home to the annual Midnight Sun game, an annual tradition since 1906, played without artificial lights starting after ten at night on the summer solstice.

The 2009 Alaska basketball state champions reside in Fairbanks at Hutchison High School.

Facilities, services, utilities, schools, and health care

City water, sanitary sewer, and electric systems are operated by private entities. Water and sewage services are available at most locations within the city limits, but many residents lack them in the surrounding urbanized areas. Fifteen circulating pump stations distribute treated water throughout the greater Fairbanks area.

Electricity is provided by Golden Valley Electric Association. The Chena power site has four steam turbines fueled by coal and one oil-fueled electrical generator. Interior Alaska is not connected to the electrical grid of the contiguous United States and Canada, but a transmission line constructed in 1985 connects Fairbanks with power plants in the coal producing area of Healy and the Anchorage area. Fairbanks currently holds the world record for the largest rechargeable battery, which weighs approximately 1,300 tons. The battery was installed to help bridge the gaps that occur during frequent power outages. The battery will provide power for 7 minutes to about 12,000 homes.

The University of Alaska Fairbanks operates its own coal-fired generating station on campus, providing electricity and steam heat to university buildings.

Garbage collection services are provided in some areas of the city, although many Fairbanks residents must haul their own garbage to "transfer stations" where trash and garbage are picked up and taken to the dump. Collected refuse is hauled to the Class 1 Borough landfill on South Cushman Street. Garbage services are funded by a tax that is paid by resident property owners regardless of whether or not they are eligible for garbage collection services in their area. Fort Wainwright operates its own landfill.

The Fairbanks North Star Borough School District has a student enrollment of slightly over 14,000. There are both public and private schools. Most private schools are run by religious organizations (e.g., private Catholic schools).

Local hospitals or health clinics include Fairbanks Memorial Hospital; Interior Community Health Center; Chief Andrew Isaac Health Center; Bassett Army Community Hospital (Fort Wainwright). The hospitals are qualified acute-care facilities and support state-certified Medevac services. Specialized Care: FNA Regional Center for Alcohol & Other Addictions. Long Term Care: Fairbanks Pioneers' Home; Denali Center.

Until 1996, telephone service was provided by the Municipal Utilities Service, a public company. In that year, telephone service was sold to Alaska Communications Systems, a private company. General Communications Inc. has competed against ACS in Fairbanks since 1997. Both companies offer mobile phone service in Fairbanks, as do national and local providers such as AT&T and Alaska DigiTel.

A pair of fiber optic cables provide long-distance telephone and Internet service. Broadband Internet access is provided by GCI, ACS, and a handful of satellite Internet and wireless Internet services.

Fairbanks is classified as a small city. It is found in EMS Region 1C in the Interior Region. Emergency services have highway, airport, and floatplane access. Emergency service is provided by 9-1-1 telephone service, paid EMS service, volunteers, a health aide, and the military. Auxiliary health care is provided by Fairbanks Fire Department; Airport Fire Department; University Fire Department; Chena Goldstream Fire & Rescue; Steese Area Volunteer Fire; Guardian Flight Critical-Care Air Ambulance; Warbelow's Air Ambulance; Fort Wainwright Fire/Emergency; Ester Volunteer Fire Department.

Economy and transportation

As the regional service and supply center for the Alaska Interior, Fairbanks offers a diverse economy, including city, borough, state, and federal government services; and transportation, communication, manufacturing, financial, and regional medical services. Tourism and mining also comprise a significant part of the economy. Including Eielson Air Force Base and Fort Wainwright personnel, over one third of the employment is in government services. The University of Alaska Fairbanks is also a major employer. Approximately 325,000 tourists visit Fairbanks each summer. The Fort Knox hardrock gold mine produces 1,200 ounces daily with 360 permanent year-round employees.

Fairbanks is at the confluence of the Richardson Highway, George Parks Highway, Steese Highway, and Elliott Highway, connecting the Interior to Anchorage, Canada, and the lower 48 states. The Dalton Highway to Prudhoe Bay begins about 75 miles (about 120 km) north of town. Goods are transported to Fairbanks by truck, air, and the Alaska Railroad. Regularly scheduled flights to Alaskan and Lower 48 points are available at the state-owned Fairbanks International Airport. An 11,800-foot (3,597 m) asphalt runway, winter ski strip, heliport, and seaplane landing strip are available. A public seaplane base is also located on the Chena River. In addition, there are several privately owned airstrips and heliports in the vicinity.

Local public transportation service is provided by the Metropolitan Area Commuter System (MACS), operated by the borough.

Frontier Flying Service, a regional airline, is headquartered in Fairbanks.

Taxes

• Sales: None
• Property: 20.777 mills (7.171 city/13.606 borough areawide)
• Special: 5% alcohol tax (city only); 16% tobacco tax (8% city/8% borough); 8% accommodations tax (city only)

Points of interest

• Creamer's Field Migratory Waterfowl Refuge
• El Dorado Gold Mine
• Fairbanks Curling Club
• Georgeson Botanical Garden
• Gold Dredge No. 8
• Robert G. White Large Animal Research Station
• Pioneer Park
• Riverboat Discovery
• Sternwheeler Tanana Chief
• University of Alaska Museum of the North

Sister Cities

• Aix-les-Bains, France
• Erdenet, Mongolia
• Fanano, Italy
• Mo i Rana, Norway
• Pune, India
• Tainan, Taiwan
• Yakutsk, Russia

Additional reading

• Boswell, John. History of Alaskan Operations of United States Smelting, Refining, and Mining Company. Fairbanks. University of Alaska, Mineral Industries Research Laboratory, 1979.
• Cashen, William. Farthest North College President. Charles E. Bunnell and the Early History of the University of Alaska. Fairbanks. University of Alaska Press, 1972.
• Cloe, John and Monaghan, Michael. Top Cover for America. Missoula, Montana. Pictorial Histories Publishing Co., 1984.
• Cole, Terrence. The Cornerstone on College Hill: An Illustrated History of the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Fairbanks. University of Alaska Press, 1994.
• Cooley, Richard. Fairbanks, Alaska: A Survey of Progress. Juneau. Alaska Development Board, June 1954.
• Davis, Neil. The College Hill Chronicles: How the University of Alaska Came of Age. Fairbanks. University of Alaska Foundation, 1992.
• Dixon, Mim. What Happened to Fairbanks? The Effects of the Trans-Alaska Oil Pipeline on the Community of Fairbanks, Alaska. Boulder, Colorado. Westview Press, 1978.
• Kirchner, L.D. Flag Over the North, The Story of the Northern Commercial Company. Seattle. Superior Publishing Company, 1954.
• Kruse, John A. Fairbanks Community Survey. Fairbanks. Institute of Social and Economic Research, 1976.
• Movius, Phyllis. The Role of Women in the Founding and Development of Fairbanks, Alaska, 1903-1923. Fairbanks. University of Alaska Fairbanks, 1996.
• Naske, Claus, and Rowinski, L.J. Fairbanks: A Pictoral History. Virginia Beach, Virginia. The Donning Company, 1981.
• Patty, Ernest. North Country Challenge. New York. David McKay, 1949.
• Potter, Jean. Alaska Under Arms. New York. Macmillan, 1942.
• Potter, Jean. The Flying North. New York. Macmillan, 1947.
• Rickard, T.A. Through the Yukon and Alaska. San Francisco. Mining and Scientific Press, 1909.
• Robe, Cecil. The Penetration of an Alaskan Frontier, The Tanana Valley and Fairbanks. Ph.D. dissertation, Yale University, 1943.
• Wickersham, James. Old Yukon. Washington, D.C. Washington Law Book Co., 1938.
• Wold, Jo Anne. This Old House. Anchorage. Alaska Northwest Publishing Co., 1976.
• Wold, Jo Anne. Fairbanks: The $200 Million Gold Rush Town. Fairbanks. Wold Press, 1971.

External links

• Fairbanks official website
• Fairbanks Chamber of Commerce
• Fairbanks Convention and Visitors Bureau
• National Weather Service Fairbanks office
• Template:Wikitravel
• Fairbanks, Alaska at Curlie