Iñupiaq hunter watching for seal, Nome, Alaska. ASL-P240-210, George Parks Photograph Collection, Alaska State Library-Historical Collections.
Hunter watching for seal, Nome, Alaska. ASL-P240-210, George Parks Photograph Collection, Alaska State Library-Historical Collections.
The Alaska Historical Society is dedicated to the promotion of Alaska history by the exchange of ideas and information, the preservation and interpretation of resources, and the education of Alaskans about their heritage.
The Alaska Historical Society is a volunteer-based, 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to the promotion of Alaska history by the exchange of ideas and information, the preservation and interpretation of resources, and the education of Alaskans about their heritage. Governed by a 15-member board of directors, the Society provides a forum and a vehicle to achieve these goals. AHS is a membership organization with 340+ members.
The Alaska Historical Society actively advocates for state and federal history programs and funding, for social studies programs in schools, statewide commemoration activities, and special projects that improve both scholarship on, and education about, Alaska’s history. In 2018 and 2019, AHS made protecting our state’s archives its advocacy priority. By emphasizing how collections are used in research, we hope to bring attention to the rich resources in the state’s archives.
Each year the Alaska Historical Society holds its annual Conference in different cities around the state and presents a public conference on selected topics in Alaskan history. These meetings give members a chance to share the latest research into Alaska history, as well as swap stories about the old days. Papers presented at the society’s annual meeting have dealt with a wide variety of topics as they relate to Alaska, such as the church, oral history, education, transportation, women, the military, the fishing industry, maritime history, aviation and many more.
During the annual conference, AHS holds a silent auction that is the organization’s primary fundraiser. Donations of items of historical relevance are encouraged. For donations, contact our Executive Director at Alaska Historical Society P.O. Box 100299 Anchorage AK 99510-0299, (907) 276-1596, members@alaskahistoricalsociety.org
The Society publishes an award-winning semi-annual journal of historical scholarship, Alaska History, which is free to members and available for subscription or purchase. Its articles cover every facet of Alaska’s fascinating history, from mining to education, from exploration to biography. The book review and Alaskana sections keep readers apprised of publications and activities of interest.
AHS also publishes a quarterly newsletter, Alaska History News that is distributed free to members. This newsletter informs readers of events, new publications, local historical society activities, governmental policies affecting history programming, and provides information on new resources available for the researcher or local society.
In Spring 2023, the Alaska Historical Society embarked on an effort to redesign our dated logo which many believed was confusing and more reflective the Russian tzarist era than the broad diversity of Alaska history we strive to represent.
We contracted with Anchorage graphic designer Emily Tallman of Poetica and spent the summer fine-tuning numerous concepts. In Fall 2023, the AHS board unanimously and enthusiastically approved the new logo, which Tallman calls a Raven Spiral.
In Alaska, ravens are widely found, believed to be clever and adaptable and in some
Alaska Native cultures, considered the creator of the world and of daylight. Our Raven Spiral
faces forward, its wings in a spiral formation signifying movement and the dynamic nature of
time. Its wings also suggest pages in a book, the means by which much of Alaska’s history is
stored and conveyed.
