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BENJAMIN A. GRIER (Ak. Hist. Soc. Col.). Scrapbook and Photograph Album; 1911-1952. .9 cu. ft. Photograph List.
Benjamin Arthur Grier was born in Nevada in1882. He came to Seward, Alaska, in 1911, where he worked as a storekeeper at Brown & Hawkins. In 1920, Grier worked as a miner at Cache Creek near Talkeetna. He then managed the Ray C. Larson lumber yards in Kanatak (1923-1924) and Anchorage (1924-1927). Grier was elected to the House of Representatives for the Territory of Alaska in 1924 and served two terms from 1925 to 1927. He was also an officer of the Anchorage Chamber of Commerce. He met and married his second wife, Mamie Vogel, in Juneau in 1925. In 1927, Grier and his wife moved from Anchorage to San Pedro, California, where they operated a restaurant and concession at Cabrillo Beach. In California, Grier was a member of the San Pedro Chamber of Commerce, acting as chairman of the entertainment committee and later as a board member. He also maintained ties with friends and associates in Alaska, promoted Alaskan development, and was an active member of the Elks Club.
The collection consists of the scrapbook and photograph album of Alaskan miner, businessman and territorial legislator, Benjamin A. Grier. The collection contains: a xerographic copy of the original 90 page scrapbook; a xerographic copy of the original 98 page photograph album; letters, documents, and clippings from the scrapbook (1922-1952); 73 original black and white prints from the album; 277 black and white photo post cards from the album; and 27 black and white prints from the scrapbook. There are also 89 departmental black and white preservation copy negatives of selected images. Photographs, letters, and documents were removed from the album and scrapbook where possible to better preserve them. The letters concern mining interests, roads and trails, and activities of the San Pedro Chamber of Commerce (1929-1940). The documents include: Grier's certificates of election for Representative from the Third Judicial Division of the Alaska Territorial Legislature (1925 and 1927), an open letter to his constituents; a list of members of the Anchorage Chamber of Commerce's Fourth of July Committee listing Grier as president; two programs from events given by the San Pedro Chamber of Commerce; and a certificate of appreciation from the chamber (1949). Clippings in the scrapbook include articles by and about Grier concerning mining and resource development, politics, and chamber of commerce activities. Subjects of the original photographs in the album and scrapbook include: Benjamin Grier and friends; camps, cabins, and hydraulic placer mining operations at Cache, Mills, Nugget, Twin, and Falls creeks; lumber operations at Kanatak in Icy Bay; dogs, dog teams and sleds; and hunting. Subjects of the photo post cards include: mining, wildlife, hunting, towns, Alaska Natives, dog teams, ships, shipwrecks, fishing, and scenery.
The collection was presented to the Alaska Historical Society by Jeff LaLande in 2005. The collection was deposited in the archives in 2006.
HMC-0015AN
JAS (5/2007)