From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Flag of Alaska
Location of Alaska in the United States
Artis the Spoonman
Rex Beach
Carlos Boozer
Susan Butcher
Callan Chythlook-Sifsof
Mario Chalmers
Robert Crawford
Jimmy Doolittle
William Duncan
Wyatt Earp
Mike Gravel
Ernest Gruening
Wally Hickel
Robin Hobb
Sheldon Jackson
Kevin Johansen
Levi Johnston
Joseph Juneau
Gunnar Kaasen
Jewel Kilcher
Sydney Laurence
Lance Mackey
Holly Madison
Ray Mala
Andre Marrou
Drew Meekins
Tommy Moe
Lisa Murkowski
William Oefelein
Bristol Palin
Sarah Palin
Peter the Aleut
Valerie Plame
Amerie Rogers
Larry Sanger
Curt Schilling
Mark Schlereth
Molly Smith
Soapy Smith
Steve Smith
Ted Stevens
Robert Stroud
Nate Thompson
Archie Van Winkle
Tony Barnette
1983
living
Anchorage
MLB player for the Texas Rangers
Laird Barron
1970
living
Palmer
sled dog racer, writer
Rex Beach
1877
1949
Nome , Rampart
writer; one of many participants in the Nome Gold Rush and related events who became famous elsewhere (see below for other examples)
Marty Beckerman
1983
living
Anchorage
writer
Irene Bedard
1967
living
Anchorage
actress; voice actor for Pocahontas
Mark Begich
1962
living
Anchorage
U.S. Senator from 2009 to 2015, Mayor from 2003 to 2009, son of Nick Begich Sr. and brother of Tom Begich
Tom Begich
1960
living
Anchorage
Former Minority Leader of the Alaska Senate , son of Nick Begich Sr. and brother of Mark Begich
Benny Benson
1913
1972
Chignik , Unalaska , Seward , Ugaiushak Island, Kodiak
designer of the Flag of Alaska
Chad Bentz
1980
living
Juneau , Seward
major league baseball pitcher
Bill Berry
1926
1979
Fairbanks
painter, cartoonist
Lydia Black
1925
2007
Fairbanks, Kodiak
anthropologist, linguist
Annalee Blysse
romance novelist
Tom Bodett
1955
living
Homer
writer, commentator, voice actor
Carlos Boozer
1981
living
Juneau
power forward for the Chicago Bulls who won an Olympic Bronze medal
Lincoln Brewster
1971
living
Fairbanks, Homer
musician, singer-songwriter
Justin Buchholz
1983
living
Fairbanks
mixed martial artist
Kira Buckland
1987
living
Anchorage
animation voice actress
David Bullock
1993
living
Anchorage
American tech entrepreneur and media executive
Martin Buser
1958
living
Big Lake
sled dog racer
Jon Butcher
1950
living
Clear
guitarist and songwriter best known for fronting 1980s band Jon Butcher Axis
Susan Butcher
1954
2006
Fairbanks, Wrangell Mountains
sled dog racer, four-time winner of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race
Nora Marks Dauenhauer
1927
2017
Juneau
writer
T. Neil Davis
1932
2016
Fairbanks, North Pole
geophysicist, writer
Dale DeArmond
1914
2006
Juneau, Ketchikan , Pelican , Sitka
printmaker
R. N. DeArmond
1911
2010
Juneau, Ketchikan, Pelican, Sitka
historian, journalist, writer
Mahala Ashley Dickerson
1912
2007
Anchorage, Wasilla
lawyer, civil rights activist, mother of bodybuilder Chris Dickerson
Traci Dinwiddie
1973
living
Anchorage
actress
Buckwheat Donahue
1951
2019
Nome
folklorist
Jimmy Doolittle
1896
1993
Nome
World War II general and hero
Brandon Dubinsky
1986
living
Anchorage
professional ice hockey player
William Duncan
1832
1918
Metlakatla
Anglican lay missionary, brought a group of Tsimshian Indians from Canada to Annette Island , founding Metlakatla
Trajan Langdon
1976
living
Anchorage
retired basketball player, most notably the Cleveland Cavaliers and CSKA Moscow
Austin E. Lathrop
1865
1950
Anchorage, Cordova, Fairbanks, Valdez
businessman, one of the strongest Alaskan opponents of statehood
Sydney Laurence
1865
1940
Anchorage, Valdez, Talkeetna
landscape painter
Ernest Leffingwell
1875
1971
Flaxman Island
explorer and geologist
Hilary Lindh
1969
living
Juneau
alpine ski racer
Segundo Llorente
1906
1989
Alakanuk , Anchorage, Bethel , Cordova, Fairbanks, Kotzebue, Sheldon Point
Jesuit priest, elected to the Alaska House of Representatives in 1960, becoming the first Catholic priest to serve in a U.S. state legislature; also a widely published writer on Alaska in his native Spain
Fred Machetanz
1908
2002
Palmer, Unalakleet
painter
Dick Mackey
living
Coldfoot
sled dog racer, early winner of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race
Lance Mackey
1970
2022[ 4]
Fairbanks, Fox
sled dog racer, four time Yukon Quest and four time Iditarod winner
Edna Ahgeak MacLean
1944
living
Utqiaġvik , Sitka, Anchorage, Fairbanks
an Iñupiaq linguist, anthropologist and educator specializing in the preservation and revitalization of the Iñupiaq language.
Holly Madison
1979
living
Craig
model, television personality
Ray Mala
1906
1952
Candle
actor, cinematographer
Andre Marrou
1938
living
Anchorage, Homer
the third Libertarian to be elected to a U.S. state legislature (all from Alaska to that point), later became the party's vice presidential and presidential nominee
Edward Marsden
1869
1932
Saxman , Metlakatla, Sitka
Tsimshian Presbyterian missionary and activist, first Alaska Native to be ordained
Robert Marshall
1901
1939
Wiseman
wilderness activist, writer; wrote Arctic Village about his experiences in Wiseman
Bristol Marunde
1982
living
Fairbanks
mixed martial artist
Jesse Marunde
1979
2007
Glennallen
strongman competitor
Carl McCunn
1946
1981
Anchorage
photographer, adventurer; committed suicide when stranded in the wilderness in northern Alaska
Mel McDaniel
1942
2011
Anchorage
country music singer-songwriter
Linious "Mac" McGee
1897
1988
Anchorage, Seward
pioneering aviator
Drew Meekins
1985
living
Juneau
pairs figure skater
Russel Merrill
1894
1929
Anchorage, Ketchikan
pioneering aviator
Dan Mintz
1981
living
Anchorage
comedian, writer, and actor
Tommy Moe
1970
living
Girdwood, Palmer, Wasilla
skier, gold medal winner at the 1994 Winter Olympics
Patricia Monaghan
1946
2012
poet, writer
Kelly Moneymaker
1970
living
Fairbanks
singer, most notably with Exposé
Shannyn Moore
1970
living
Homer
blogger, political activist
James Morrison
1954
living
Anchorage
actor, 24
Joshua Morrow
1974
living
Juneau
actor, singer
Margaret Murie
1902
2003
Fairbanks
"grandmother of the conservation movement"
Frank Murkowski
1933
living
Anchorage, Fairbanks, Ketchikan, Wrangell
U.S. Senator from 1981 to 2002, Governor from 2002 to 2006, father of Lisa Murkowski
Lisa Murkowski
1957
living
Anchorage, Fairbanks, Ketchikan, Wrangell
U.S. Senator who was reelected as a write-in candidate in 2010, daughter of Frank Murkowski
Dorothy Page
1921
1989
Wasilla
co-founder of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race
Bristol Palin
1990
living
Wasilla
daughter of Sarah and Todd Palin, former contestant on Dancing with the Stars
Sarah Palin
1964
living
Eagle River, Skagway , Wasilla
youngest and first female governor, 2008 Republican nominee for U.S. vice president
Todd Palin
1964
living
Dillingham , Wasilla
ex-husband of Sarah Palin, champion snowmobile racer
Rudy Pankow
1998
living
Ketchikan, Alaska
actor, most notably on the Netflix original, Outer Banks.
Virgil Partch
1916
1984
St. Paul
cartoonist
William Paul
1885
1977
Tongass Village , Ketchikan, Sitka, Juneau
Native rights activist, first Alaska Native attorney
Mary Peltola
1973
living
Anchorage
U.S. Representative , former Member of the Alaska House of Representatives
Elizabeth Peratrovich
1911
1958
Juneau, Ketchikan, Klawock , Petersburg , Sitka
civil rights activist
Peter the Aleut
ca. 1815
Kodiak
Orthodox saint
Emmitt Peters
1940
2020
Ruby
sled dog racer, early winner of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race
Pat Pitney
1965
living
Fairbanks , Juneau
president of the University of Alaska system, 1984 Olympic gold medalist
Valerie Plame
1963
living
Anchorage
Kirsten Powers
1969
living
Fairbanks
blogger, political commentator
Chanel Preston
1985
living
Fairbanks
pornographic actress
Kikkan Randall
1982
living
Anchorage
Olympic gold medalist cross-country skier
Sean Rash
1982
living
Anchorage
professional tenpin bowler
Joe Redington
1917
1999
Knik
sled dog racer, co-founder of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race
Robert Campbell Reeve
1902
1980
Anchorage, Valdez
pioneering aviator
Wilds P. Richardson
1861
1929
Valdez
Army officer, headed Alaska Roads Commission
Tex Rickard
1870
1929
Juneau, Nome
Old West figure, boxing promoter; lived in Nome during the height of its gold rush, served on the first city council
Libby Riddles
1956
living
Shaktoolik , Teller
sled dog racer, first woman to win the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race
Libby Roderick
ca. 1958
living
Anchorage
journalist, singer-songwriter, writer
Amerie Rogers
1981
living
Anchorage
pop singer
Paul Rosenthal
1942
living
Juneau
violinist, founder of the Sitka Summer Music Festival
Peter Trimble Rowe
1856
1942
Sitka
Episcopal bishop
Jason Ryznar
1983
living
Anchorage
professional ice hockey player
Larry Sanger
1968
living
Anchorage
co-founder of Wikipedia
Curt Schilling
1966
living
Anchorage
professional baseball player
Daniel Schlereth
1986
living
Anchorage
professional baseball player
Mark Schlereth
1966
living
Anchorage
professional football player, analyst for ESPN
Brian Schmidt
1967
living
Anchorage
astrophysicist, 2011 Nobel Prize laureate in Physics
Mitch Seavey
1959
living
Seward, Sterling
sled dog racer
Charles John Seghers
1839
1886
Juneau, Nulato , Sitka
pioneering Catholic missionary
Ronald Senungetuk
1933
2020
Fairbanks, Homer, Wales
silversmith, sculptor
Leonhard Seppala
1877
1967
Fairbanks, Nome
sled dog racer, key musher in the 1925 serum run to Nome
Tom Sexton
1940
living
Anchorage, Fairbanks
Alaska poet laureate
Don Simpson
1943
1996
Anchorage
film producer
Peter Simpson
1871
1947
Metlakatla, Sitka
Native rights activist and boatbuilder
Jamie Smith
ca. 1965
living
Fairbanks
cartoonist, printmaker
Molly Smith
living
Douglas
theater director
Soapy Smith
1860
1898
Skagway
con artist, gangster
Steve Smith
1985
living
Anchorage
professional football player
Dana Stabenow
1952
living
Anchorage, Seldovia
writer
Darby Stanchfield
1971
living
Kodiak, Unalaska
television actress
Ben Stevens
1959
living
Anchorage, Fairbanks, Girdwood
Chief of Staff to the Governor of Alaska, Alaskan State Senate President
Ted Stevens
1923
2010
Anchorage, Fairbanks, Girdwood
longest-serving U.S. Senator from Alaska, Pres. pro tempore of U.S. Senate , father of Ben Stevens.
John Strohmeyer
1924
2010
Anchorage
Pulitzer Prize -winning journalist; professor at University of Alaska Anchorage , author of Extreme Conditions
John F. A. Strong
1856
1929
Iditarod , Juneau, Katalla , Nome, Skagway
founder of what is now Juneau Empire , territorial governor
Robert Stroud
1890
1963
Juneau
convicted killer known as "The Birdman of Alcatraz "
Stephen Sundborg
1943
living
president of Seattle University
Jeremy Swayman
1998
living
Anchorage
ice hockey goaltender
Rick Swenson
1950
living
Manley Hot Springs , Two Rivers
sled dog racer
Jim Sykes
1950
living
Anchorage, Palmer, Talkeetna
Green Party politician
Rachel Uchitel
1975
living
Anchorage
media personality; her father was an Anchorage business magnate of the 1970s and 1980s who founded Anchorage's cable television system
Jujiro Wada
ca. 1872
1937
Barrow, Fairbanks, Nome
adventurer
Velma Wallis
1960
living
Fairbanks, Fort Yukon
writer
Nathan West
1978
living
Anchorage
actor
Mr. Whitekeys
1947
living
Fairbanks, Spenard
writer, musician, commentator, satirist
James Wickersham
1857
1939
Eagle , Fairbanks, Juneau
judge and congressional delegate in the district and territory, made an early recorded ascent of Mount McKinley, compiled an important early bibliography of Alaska
Noel Wien
1899
1977
pioneering aviator
Lael Wilcox
living
Anchorage
ultra-endurance bicycle racer
Dave Williams
1979
living
Anchorage
professional baseball player
Barrett Willoughby
1901
1959
writer
Charles Wood
1916
1978
Iditarod, Kodiak
singer and actor in Broadway musicals
Roger L. Worsley
1937
living
Anchorage
educator; vice-chancellor University of Alaska Anchorage , 1978–1985
Hugh Wade
1901
1995
first secretary of state of Alaska
People associated with Alaska [ edit ]
Edward Albee (1928–2016), main person responsible for building the Last Frontier Theatre Conference in Valdez to the status it has currently achieved
Henry Tureman Allen (1859–1930), U.S. Army officer who conducted a famous expedition of Alaska's interior in 1885, largely through the Copper and Tanana River drainages
Roald Amundsen (1872–1928), frequently passed through Alaska in his travels
Hubert Howe Bancroft (1832–1918), whose 19th-century published history of Alaska, part of a larger series, formed an important foundation for later study of Alaskan history
Alexander Baranof (1746–1819)
Vitus Bering (1681–1741), made the first recorded European sighting of Alaska
Hale Boggs (1914–1972), member of the U.S. House from Louisiana, who disappeared on a flight in Alaska along with freshman colleague Nick Begich while helping Begich campaign for reelection
Jackson Browne (born 1948), stated in a 1980s interview that he was conceived in Alaska, while his father was stationed there in the U.S. military
Simon Bolivar Buckner Jr. (1886–1945), military commander of Alaska early in World War II
Sydney Chapman (1888–1970), mathematician and geophysicist; Advisory Scientific Director of the Geophysical Institute at the University of Alaska from 1951 until his death, where he was largely responsible for building the programs and reputation of the Institute in its early years
James Cook (1728–1779), British explorer whose voyages included several trips along Alaska's coastline
William Healey Dall (1845–1927), biologist, hydrographer; explored interior Alaska, charted the Aleutians; America's pre-eminent authority on Alaska 1866–1900
Brad Davis (born 1955), played briefly for the Anchorage Northern Knights before going on to a long career with the Dallas Mavericks , both as a player and in other capacities
Edna Ferber (1885–1968), friend of Ernest Gruening; following the success of Giant , was convinced by Gruening to write Ice Palace as a tool to promote Alaskan statehood
Joseph Hazelwood (born 1946), captain of the Exxon Valdez when it ran aground and spilled oil in 1989
Michael A. Healy (1839–1904), captain of the USRC Corwin and USRC Bear when they were the only law enforcement presence north of Sitka
Eric Holmback (1924–1965), professional wrestler of the 1950s and 1960s known as "Yukon Eric," was billed (declared by the promoter and/or ring announcer as hailing) from Fairbanks. Other wrestlers, such as Jay York (who was also briefly a member of the rock group Delaney & Bonnie ) and King Kong Bundy (while wrestling in Texas during the early 1980s), also portrayed wrestling personas associated with Alaska.
Michio Hoshino (1952–1996), photographer
Jack London (1876–1916), writer
Christopher McCandless (1968–1992), hiker, ad hoc adventurer
John Muir (1838–1914), writer, explorer, naturalist; made and wrote about several trips to Alaska; explored Glacier Bay
Wiley Post (1898–1935), aviator who died in a plane crash in Alaska along with Will Rogers (see below) while making a flight through the territory
Ralph Regula (1924–2017), longtime member of the U.S. House representing Canton, Ohio , the hometown of William McKinley . Regula devoted much of his career to preserving McKinley's legacy, and maintained a decades–long effort in Congress to prevent the renaming of Mount McKinley to its native name Denali .
Will Rogers (1879–1935), actor and humorist, died in a plane crash in Alaska along with Wiley Post while making a flight through the territory
Robert W. Service (1874–1958), due to influence from Gold Rush migration across the North Country, Service became Alaskans' most well–loved poet, despite actually living in the Yukon Territory.
Vilhjalmur Stefansson (1879–1962), frequently passed through Alaska in his travels
Timothy Treadwell (1957–2003), bear enthusiast
Naomi Uemura (1941–1984), adventurer, mountain climber, died while attempting a solo ascent of Mount McKinley
Bradford Washburn (1910–2007), mountaineer, geographer
Cal Worthington (1920–2013), purchased Anchorage dealership Friendly Ford in 1976 and renamed it Cal Worthington Ford, which his company still owns and operates along with other Anchorage dealerships. He has been a ubiquitous figure on Anchorage television for decades, as well as the subject of parodies and other cultural depictions originating from Alaska.
^ Helminiak, Jeff (November 22, 2020). “Improving through challenging times: Seward junior swimmer Jacoby wins national title at U.S. Open“ . Peninsula Clarion . Retrieved July 19, 2021.
^ OlympicTalk (June 15, 2021). "For the first time, an Alaskan is in line to swim at the Olympics" . NBC Sports . Retrieved July 19, 2021.
^ Crouse, Karen (June 21, 2021). "U.S. Swim Team Will Take 11 Teenagers to Tokyo Games" . The New York Times . Retrieved July 19, 2021.
^ Hollander, Zaz; Hughes, Zachariah; Bieri, Chris (September 11, 2022). "Alaska mushing legend Lance Mackey, 4-time Iditarod champ, dies at age 52" . Anchorage Daily News . Retrieved January 2, 2023 .