Discover the best of what Fairbanks has to offer. The small-town hospitality and pioneer spirit will make your stay one to remember. Fairbanks is the hub for Alaska’s Interior and Arctic with first-class accommodations and restaurants, museums, world-renowned concerts and performances, upscale galleries and specialty stores, historic sites, Alaska Native culture, and access to the Alaskan wilderness.
In 1901 Captain E.T. Barnette disembarked from the steamship, Lavelle Young, and set up a temporary trading post on the banks of the Chena River. His temporary post became permanent when Felix Pedro discovered gold in the nearby hills the following year, sparking a stampede of miners into the Interior. Fairbanks, incorporated as a city in 1903, was named after Indiana Senator Charles Fairbanks who later became Vice President. Now, “discovery day” is commemorated in July with a celebration called Golden Days.
There is still active mining in the area and glimpses of the former bonanzas can be seen along the Steese Highway in the huge tailing piles leftover by the gold dredges. Fairbanks economy is tied to military, the petroleum industry, transportation, the University of Alaska and tourism.
Fairbanks is Alaska’s second largest city and has expanded its borders to include a city population of 30,000, and an overall area population of 97,000 incorporated as Fairbanks North Star Borough.
History In 1901 Captain E.T. Barnette disembarked from the steamship, Lavelle Young, and set up a temporary trading post on the banks of the Chena River.
His temporary post became permanent when Felix Pedro discovered gold in the nearby hills the following year, sparking a stampede of miners into the Interior. Fairbanks, incorporated as a city in 1903, was named
after Indiana Senator Charles Fairbanks who later became vice-president. Now, “discovery day” is commemorated every July with a bang-up celebration called Golden Days.
There is still active mining in the area and glimpses of the former bonanzas can be seen along the Steese Highway in the tailing piles leftover by the gold dredges. Fairbanks economy is tied to government, military, the petroleum industry, transportation, the University of Alaska and tourism.
Even though the town itself is modern, you can still find plenty of that gutsy pioneer spirit. Despite the boom and bust eras of the pipeline, goldrushes and a devastating flood in 1967, Fairbanks
continues to develop and prosper.
