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THE GREAT ALASKA EARTHQUAKE:
MARCH 27, 1964
[This exhibit was mounted in the lobby of the UAA Consortium Library from March to August 1999. The materials used in it were selected by Kathleen R. Hertel, a member of the staff of the UAA Archives and Special Collections Department.]
On the afternoon of March 27, 1964, the state of Alaska suffered the worst earthquake ever recorded in North America. The quake registered 8.6 on the Richter Scale in 1964 and has since been upgraded to 9.2 by the USGS. The effects of the quake were devastating. All of Anchorage was shaken by the quake, but the Downtown and Turnagain neighborhoods incurred the most dramatic damage. One hundred-seventeen people lost their lives and millions of dollars in property was damaged or destroyed. Thirty-five years later the state has made a full recovery but signs of the disaster, such as Earthquake Park and Potter Marsh, serve as a reminder of the 1964 Great Alaska Earthquake.
1. Damaged House Near K Street and 8th Avenue; April 1964.
(Betzi and Lyman Woodman Collection.)
2. 4th Avenue Between C and D Streets; 1964.
(U. S. Army Photo.
Betzi and Lyman Woodman Collection.)
TERROR IN TURNAGAIN BY THE SEA
The worst earthquake damage in the Anchorage area occurred in the Turnagain by the Sea subdivision. The severe shaking caused the clay soil to break apart and slide 500 yards toward Cook Inlet. Dozens of homes were swept away in the slide. Six people were killed in the area, including two children. The streets in Turnagain, and throughout Anchorage, were covered with huge fissures and crevasses, scars of the greatest disaster in the state's history.
3. Destruction in Turnagain By the Sea; April 1964.
(USAF Photo.
Betzi and Lyman Woodman Collection.)
4. "Damage in Turnagain Area, Anchorage, Alaska, Following Recent Earthquake;" March 28, 1964.
(Photo by Pfc. Donald Whitbek. USAF Photo. Betzi and Lyman Woodman Collection)
DOWNTOWN DESTRUCTION
The damage in Anchorage was extensive. Landslides caused the most destruction. A three block section of 4th Avenue dropped almost 25 feet, leaving the tops of some buildings level with the pavement. Part of the Government Hill area shifted, taking a section of the Government Hill School with it. The shaking also brought down the control tower at Merrill Field, killing a controller inside. The J. C. Penny building on 5th Avenue was a complete loss. Falling concrete from the facade killed two women trying to escape the crumbling building. In a show of support for the city, J. C. Penny built a new store in the same location.
5. Government Hill School, Anchorage; April 1964.
(Betzi and Lyman Woodman Collection)
6. Hillside Apartments, 16th Avenue Between G and H Streets; 1964.
(Betzi and Lyman Woodman Collection)
AFTER THE QUAKE: ALASKA REBUILDS
Cleanup in the Anchorage area started almost immediately. Within days, heat, light, and water were restored. Streets were soon repaired and damaged buildings demolished or rebuilt. Thirty-five years later, evidence of the Great Quake can still be seen around the Turnagain area. In this once devastated area a park has been created, dedicated to the memory of the earthquake, its victims, and its survivors.
7. D Street Entrance to J. C. Penney's Between 5th and 6th Avenue; 1964.
(U. S. Army Photo. Betzi and Lyman Woodman Collection)
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