1964 Alaska Earthquake Fatalities Memorial Page
1964
Alaska Earthquake Fatalities
2023
Most of the information on this page
was sent to me by the family members
of those that died
in the 1964 Alaska Earthquake.
I have assured them that I would never use these stories
commercially,
so please respect that.
Do not repost or republish the following
IN ANY FORM without my written
permission, Thank you.
[email protected]
In Loving Memory
REST IN PEACE
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Earl Stuart, his wife
Sammie Marie Stuart and the couples three children
were all lost when the Valdez dock
collapsed during the
tsunami. Just before the earthquake, they drove their family car onto
the dock with
their three children:
Larry 12, Deborah 9 and Janice 7. They all perished.
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner 5/2/1964
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I am the niece of John Sut Larsen
who perished off of Spruce Cape when his boat, the F.V.
Spruce Cape, was smashed by the second tsunami wave.
We were on the mountain and heard him
say they just rode one wave and a bigger one was coming,
"tell my family I love them" he
said over the radio, it still makes me cry! Uncle Johnny's
body was found on Spruce Cape,
but none of the others were found.
Eli Wasilie was also on
the F.V. Spruce Cape when it went down; he was from
Larsen Bay. There
is a Memorial for the crew of the F.V. Spruce
Cape at the Spruce Cape housing subdivision in
Kodiak; the streets of the subdivision are named
after the lost fishermen.
Written by Olga
DuVall Rowland of Afognak
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
JOHN "Sut" LARSEN
My Uncle John "Sut" Larsen was at Kodiak when the earthquake
hit. Him and the others
headed
out into Marmot Bay on the way back to Afognak to check on his mother
(Olga Naumoff Larsen)
after
the earthquake. He was saying his last good-byes to his mother
by "talking in the blind"
on short-wave
radio frequency 2450.
Written by John Watson,
nephew of John "Sut" Larsen
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
JULIA
KOMPKOFF (age 9)
NORMA
JEAN KOMPKOFF (age 3)
CHENEGA
When the ground finally
stopped shaking, the water went out of the bay. The
whole bay was empty!
When
the first giant wave was coming in, my father [Nicholas
Kompkoff] grabbed my 3 year old
sister
Norma Jean and me and told Julia [my 9 year old sister] to
follow him and to run as fast
as
she could. The wave caught Julia as it was going out and
when my father reached out to grab
her,
he lost hold of Norma. I remember seeing my godmother, Anna
Vlasoff, standing in the doorway
of
her house which was floating by.
Written by Carol Ann Kompkoff
of Chenega
[Note from Coleen: Julia and Norma Kompkoff and Anna Vlasoff all
drowned]
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
JOHN
"Sut" LARSEN (of Afognak)
HARRY NIELSEN (of Afognak)
THEODORE PANAMARIOFF (of Afognak)
ELI WASILIE (of Larsen
Bay)
Four fishermen, aboard the fishing
boat, The Spruce Cape, were on their way back to Afognak
from Kodiak
when the tsunami hit the boat and broke it apart. The Skipper
of the boat was
Afognak
resident John "Sut" Larsen; the other three men were Harry
Nielsen of Afognak, Eli
Wasilie of
Larsen Bay and Theodore Panamarioff of the village of Ouzinkie.
Larsen's body was
found 4/3/1964
at Cape Spruce (ironically the namesake of his boat). The other
bodies were never found.
Information courtesy
of www.afognak.org
Correct spelling of
Harry Nielsen provided by his niece: Delice Alexander Colcote
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CHIEF
SIMMIE ALEXANDROFF (of Kaguyak)
NICK ZEEDAR (of Kaguyak)
DONALD WYATT (of California)
The village of Kaguyak is at the head
of Kaguyak Bay on the southeast coast of Kodiak Island.
The village
was on a narrow ribbon of land with the bay on one side
and a fresh water lake on
the other
side. When the earthquake hit, the villagers retreated
to the safety of a hill
behind the
lake. Chief Simmie Alexandroff helped his pregnant wife Renee (Melovedoff)
and
their 3 children
to safety on the hill.
The first wave lifted village
skiffs out of the bay and deposited them into
the lake behind
the village.
Not knowing that three more tsunami waves would completely
obliterate their village,
some of the
village men left the safety of the hill and went down to
the lake to try and secure
their skiffs.
Shortly after the first wave, the
men saw a flare about 2 miles from the village.
One of the men,
Walter
Cohen, ran towards the flare, and found two young Californian
geologists, Donald and
Joyce Wyatt.
Cohen told them to stay on high ground, but they insisted
on going back to the village
with
him. When the next wave hit, it caught up with Cohen and the Wyatt's
near the village church.
Four villagers
in a skiff (Chief Simmie Alexandroff, Nick Zeedar, Victor
Melovedoff and Max Shelikoff)
saw that
Cohen and the Wyatt's were in trouble and pulled them into their
skiff.
The next wave washed 10 village
houses and the church out to sea and pushed the Chief's
skiff
back up to
the edge of the lake, where Shelikoff, Cohen and Melovedoff
jumped out onto dry ground.
Donald Wyatt
literally threw his wife onto the shore, and Shelikoff, Cohen
and Melovedoff took her
up the hill
to join the other villagers.
It was completely dark when the
next wave flipped the big skiff holding Chief Simmie,
Nick Zeedar
and Donald
Wyatt. The villagers last saw the Chief (by flashlight)
trying to hang on to his overturned
skiff;
his body was never found; Zeedar and Wyatt's bodies were found
the next day; Zeedar's was on
the beach, tangled
in the rafters of a broken roof section and Wyatt's body was
found floating in the lake.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ROBERT HARRISON (of Valdez)
Robert Harrison is my Great
Uncle. He was working as a longshoreman on the dock
the morning
of
the earthquake unloading the freighter Chena.
Submitted by Mike Day
Robert "Bob" Harrison, Doug Granger and "Dutch"
Schmidt all died together when the tsunami
destroyed the Valdez dock: all three were related by marriage.
Doug and Bob married sisters
(Glenna and Fay Day) and "Dutch" was married
to Lula Belle Day
(Oma Belle Day's sister-in-law).
Info from Oma Jean Granger Madsen
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
LOUIS
CHARLES McKENZIE (age 8)
ROBERT RUSSELL McKENZIE (age 7)
RICHARD ANDREW McKENZIE (age 6)
TAMARA NANNETTE
McKENZIE (age 3)
OREGON
Monte and Rita Kay McKenzie of Tacoma, were camping
just north
of Newport, Oregon with their
4 children on 3/27/1964. Monte was a Boeing engineer and Rita
was a Red Cross senior lifeguard. The McKenzie's
were still grieving
loss of their oldest child Susanne who died 9 months earlier when
her clothes
caught on fire during a camping trip.
After a day
of playing at the Oregon campground, the McKenzie's found a
driftwood shelter to sleep in. They were totally unaware of the
Alaska earthquake or the resulting
seismic wave that was barreling down the west coast...headed directly
for their campground.
During the middle of the night, while the family was asleep, the
first wave flooded the
driftwood shelter. The young family held hands and ran for higher ground.
The next wave was much
larger and threw Mr. McKenzie up against a rock cliff, then tumbled some
logs on top of
Mrs. McKenzie. Without the protection of their parents, the children
were pulled out to
sea where they all drowned (Louis 8, Bobby, 7, Ricky 6 and Tammie 3).
Hours later,
rescue deputies found Mr. McKenzie in shock and Mrs. McKenzie unconscious,
400 yards from their
campsite. Both were taken to the hospital. Search parties looked for
the McKenzie children for 3
days, but only 1 body was found. Monte and Rita McKenzie had lost all
5 children within 9 months.
UPDATE: The mother of these children,
Mrs. Rita Kay McKenzie (Jepson) died 3/1/2014, just weeks
shy of the 50th anniversary of the 1964 Alaska earthquake.
The Support Officer of Whatcom County,
Washington contacted me to find out where the McKenzie children
were buried so they could bury
Rita's ashes next to her children.
REST IN PEACE McKENZIE FAMILY
Suzanne Kay McKenzie 7/6/1954-8/31/1963
Louis Charles McKenzie 2/25/1956-3/27/1964
Robert Russell McKenzie 3/12/1957-3/27/1964
Richard Andrew McKenzie 3/9/1958-3/27/1964
Tamera Nannette McKenzie 6/26/1960-3/27/1964
Each child has a memorial
grave stone in the Mt. View Memorial Park in
Lakewood, Pierce County, Washington. Their mother's ashes
are buried with them
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
WILLIAM
JONES (of Seward)
My father was William Jones.
We lived in Seward but he was on a fishing
boat in Kodiak
that
day. The crew tried to take the boat out
before the tidal wave hit. My dad was
the
only one to die. But, what has always bothered
me is he is not mentioned in Kodiak
deaths
nor Seward. He left behind a wife and 6 children.
His body was never found.
For
children, that is a terrible thing.
Submitted by Debra Jones, Daughter of
William Jones
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
JACK
VAN BUSKIRK (of Valdez)
Jack Theodore Van Buskirk 1926-1964
died at Valdez. He was the son of
Ralph & Frances
Elba
Onalee Harris VanBuskirk. Husband of Betty and father
of Esther and Mark.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
LEE
STYER (of Anchorage)
Lee Marlin Styer, was the son of
Leroy and Alice (Hayden) Styer of Anchorage,
he was 18.
Lee
had gone to the J.C. Penny building in downtown
Anchorage to visit a friend and died
there
when the building collapsed during the 1964 Alaska
Earthquake.
He
was a senior in high school.
Information submitted by Suzanne Cook
Taylor
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
RICHARD
JAY ROBINSON (of Valdez)
I was 18 months old when my
father was killed. My father, Richard Jay Robinson,
(1936-1964),
he was the
Branch President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day
Saints in Valdez,
Alaska. He worked
with his father, Rex Johnson Robinson, they had a sawmill
together. Richard
also owned and
operated a 21' cabin cruiser, named the "Nomad".
He was also the #1 longshoreman
n in Valdez.
He, as well as many other men from town, were unloading a
ship down at the dock
when the earthquake
struck. His body was never found. Richard was the husband
of Sharon,
and father of three
children; Lynne, Richard II, and Gregory, all survivors.
(his son Lynne
was killed 24 March
1978 - also on Good Friday)
Written by Greg Robinson, son of Richard Robinson
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ARLENE
WALLACE (of Kodiak)
JACK BUSHOR (of Kodiak)
Airman Gordon Wallace, his wife Arlene and
7 year old step-son Jack Leroy Bushor
(son of Jack
Bushor Sr.) were headed back to the Naval Base on
Kodiak Island when
the earthquake
struck. Gordon Wallace survived, but
his wife's body was found inside
of the family
car and his step-sons body was found nearby. Arlene
and son were buried
in the Shenango
Valley Cemetery in Mercer Co., Pennsylvania.
researcher Mona Anderson
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
RICHARD
VOSGIEN age 12 (of Kodiak)
MAURICE NEWTON CURRY age 70 (of
Kodiak)
The Art Vosgien family and Maurice Curry were
near Kalsin Bay on Kodiak
Island when
the earthquake hit. They tried to get back to the
Naval Base.
Maurice Curry
70 and Richard Vosgien age 12 started walking ahead to find help;
they were swept away
by a tsunami wave and drowned.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
LEWIS MICHELSON (age 35) (of
Whittier)
THERESA MICHELSON (age 6) (of Whittier)
RANDY MICHELSON (age 5) (of Whittier)
KEITH MICHELSON (age 2) (of Whittier)
DAVID BARNES
(of Whittier)
MICKI BARNES (age 5)
(of Whittier)
RICKI BARNES (age 4)
(of Whittier)
VICKI BARNES (age 6)
(of Whittier)
My brother, Lewis Michelson and his
partner David Barnes had been living together
with
their 6 children in Whittier for at least a year. The
summer before, they had
built
a cabin and they lived there all summer with the 6 kids
and fished for salmon.
That
winter, they moved into an empty house in Whittier
(I think it was in the lumber yard).
There
was a couple living in one of the other houses in this "camp"
as caretakers of the
buildings.
The day of the quake, my brother had returned from being
out on the water a
short
time before the quake. It was my brothers birthday.
Lewis, Dave, 6 kids and a friend
with
her son had gone to the caretaker couples house for a birthday
celebration when the
earthquake
hit. Someone who was at the Base in Whittier wrote
to my mother and gave her
this
information. She said that all that was left of the house
was kindling!! My brother
was
born on March 27th Good Friday and died on his birthday March
27th Good Friday.
I
think Dave Barnes was from South Dakota. Their bodies were
never found.
Written by Margaret Basta Montana
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
MICHELSON
FAMILY and BARNES FAMILY (of Whittier)
We left Whittier in the fall of
1964. I was working for Union 76 at the time
and
I spent
the summer after the earthquake fueling equipment.
There was more than one
tsunami.
The one that reached the Head of the Bay (by the
tunnel) washed on shore
far
enough to destroy the Two Brothers Lumber Co. The
main tsunami was directed
more
at the town of Whittier. It was about 45' high. My
wife and I and 3 kids ran from
it
because it was coming right at us. The other sawmill,
Columbia Lumber Co., where
most
of the people were lost, was located close to the tunnel end
of the existing small
boat
harbor. Dave Barnes was my wife's cousins husband; their
children had been to our
home
many times. I have pictures of Dave and Lewis Michelson's
children at a birthday
party
with my kids at our Union Oil apartment in Whittier. I
also have pictures of
Leonard
and Daisy Day who worked at the mill and were lost in the tidal
wave.
Submitted by Dick Osburn
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
RICHARD
JAY ROBINSON (of Valdez)
My husband, Richard Jay Robinson
was one of those killed on the dock in Valdez.
The
Stuart family (of 5) were waiting for him to get
off work so they could go
for
a boat ride together. I was at work or I would have
been there also. We had
three
little ones.
Written by Sharon Robinson May
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FRANK
OSCAR REED (Cape St. Elias Light Station)
Frank Oscar Reed was a Coast Guardsman
at the Cape St. Elias Light Station on the
southwestern
tip of Kayak Island. During the earthquake,
his leg was broken by a
falling
rock. Three of his fellow Guardsman were trying to rescue him,
when a tsunami
wave
hit. The fellow Guardsman were able to save themselves, but Reed was
washed out
to sea
and drowned. His body was washed ashore days later. Reed was scheduled
to be
discharged
from military service in April of 1964. He is buried in Ohio.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
JESSE
LEE HATCH (of Seward)
My father Jesse Lee Hatch was born
in Seward, Alaska. He was the son of Peter
and
Annie Hatch
who met at the Jesse Lee Home in Seward.
My father was fishing out of
Seward the
day the earthquake hit on a 56' boat called the CHRIS.
Submitted by Lisa Graham
NOAA Publication said this about Jesse Lee
Hatch: Had been out seal
hunting with Frank Walunga in a 14'
wooden skiff; the
two men were last seen 12 minutes after earthquake by
Dr. Starr and Bob Hayes; the hunters
refused aide.
Bodies never found.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
JESSE LEE HATCH (of Seward)
Jesse Hatch was my Uncle, he
was a commercial fisherman who died in the 1964 earthquake,
he
was never found. They only found pieces of the boat.
Submitted by Pam Cook
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
JULIA
KOMPKOFF (age 9)
(of Chenega)
NORMA JEAN KOMPKOFF (age
3) (of Chenega)
Nicholas Kompkoff Sr.
and his 9 year old daughter Julia were trying to run away from
the
tsunami wave. Nicholas was carrying his two youngest children as he
ran. The wave
hit
all of them and when Nicholas was thrown across the creek, he lost grip
of one of
the
children he was carrying. Nine year Julia and 3 year old Norma Jean
were swept
away
by the water, never to be found.
Submitted
by Avis Kompkoff
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CLARENCE
PAUL BLEDSOE (of Kodiak)
Clarence Paul Bledsoe was born November
8, 1920 in Ellensburg, Washington to Howard
and Vera
(De Weese) Bledsoe.
Submitted by Elaine Bledsoe Wischnowsky
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GERALD
LEE "Jerry" ZOOK (of Valdez)
On March 27, 1964, I was a girl
of 9 living with my immediate family in Ketchikan.
Both sets
of grandparents, as well as some aunts and
uncles and cousins, were living
in Valdez.
My mother's brother, Gerald Zook, was among
those who were lost.
Gerald
Lee (Hibner) Zook was a longshoreman and was working on
the dock at Valdez when
the earthquake
hit. His body was never found. Jerry,
as he was called, was 27 and was
to have
been married the following week. He was born
in Wrangell, Alaska and was the son
of Nettie
Prescott and Lyle Hibner. He served in the U.S. Navy
in the late 1950's and
early 60's.
Upon his discharge he went to live in Valdez near his
mother and
stepfather (Bill Zook).
Submitted by Teresa Hayden Campbell
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PAUL
GREGORIEFF (of Valdez)
HOWARD HOMER KRAIGER (of
Valdez)
Paul Gregorieff
and Howard Kraiger were Valdez longshoreman working
on the freighter
SS
Chena when the earthquake hit. Less than
a minute after the earthquake started,
the ground
supporting the Valdez dock collapsed and several
hundred feet of the dock
slid into
the bay. When that happened, the Chena was severely
pitched and the
shifting cargo
crushed the two men. Paul Gregorieff was born 9/11/1914 at Hinchenbrook
Island,
he was the son of Nellie Gregorieff. Howard Homer Kraiger was born in
Michigan
in about
1903, he was the son of Edward and Lenora (Castor) Kraiger.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PAUL
GREGORIEFF (of Valdez)
My grandfather was Paul Gregorieff.
He died in the Good Friday earthquake.
My
grandmother was Mary (Vlasoff) Gregorieff, she
died in 2003. Thank you
for
putting their names on your web site.
Submitted by Susan Reynaga
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ANNA VLASOFF (of Chenega)
Anna Vlasoff, of Chenega was last seen
standing in the doorway of her house, as
it floated
by when the tsunami hit. She was later found dead on
the beach. Wife of
Steve
Vlasoff, mother of Eddie, Maggie and Margaret Vlasoff.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
SAMMY
PETTIKOFF (of Shuyak Island)
I was eleven years old and in Port
Williams, Shuyak Island (north of Kodiak) when
the
earthquake
hit. A local Native Alaskan man named Sammy Pettikoff
disappeared in Shuyak
Strait
on his boat immediately after the earthquake, presumed
drowned in the tidal wave.
Submitted by Tom Peterson
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DUANNE
CARRIKER (of Valdez)
I lost a very dear friend, Rev.
Duanne Carriker, that day in Valdez. He
was the minister
of the
Assembly of God Church and worked as a longshoreman.
He was working on the dock at
the time
the quake hit. His body was never recovered. He
was 33 years old, had been in the
military
and attended Bible College. His wife, small
son and daughter were flown out for
safety
later that night. Bonnie Carriker is still
at the radio station at North Pole, Alaska.
Submitted by Karen Welborn
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DONALD
MUELLER (of Valdez)
Our father, Donald Mueller, was
born in Davenport Iowa on October 3, 1925.
Dad attended
school
in Hermann and was a senior in high school when
he was called to Army service in
W.W.II. He
was inducted in January 1944 and served 8½ months
in the 35th Infantry Division
and
was awarded the Combat Infantryman's Badge. After discharge,
he had several jobs but
re-enlisted
in the Army in October 1960 and was assigned to US Army
Alaska Yukon Command.
He was discharged
in October 1963. He remained in Alaska, working for a
construction company
and as
a part time employee of the Alaska Steamship Company. He apparently
was on the dock
waiting
to unload the Chena when earthquake hit. The subsequent
tsunami washed him and many
others
out to sea. Dads body was never found. My brother and I
have letters that dad wrote
to us
shortly before the earthquake. My brothers letter is dated
March 23, 1964. Our father
and mother
(Norma Hurst Mueller) were married 10/14/1949 and divorced
6 years later.
My brother and I were raised by our grandparents,
Victor and Blanche Mueller.
Submitted by the surviving children of Donald
Mueller.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PERRY
MEAD Jr. (age 12) (of Anchorage)
MERRELL MEAD (age 2)
(of Anchorage)
Dr. Perry Mead, Alaska's only neurosurgeon,
and his wife Wanda (Merrell) Mead, a teacher,
lived on Chilligan Drive in a well-to-do
Turnagain neighborhood in Anchorage. At 5:36 PM on
3/27/1964, Dr. Mead was working
at the hospital; his wife Wanda was out running an errand
and the Mead's oldest daughter Pam
was visiting a friend about a block from the Mead home.
The Mead's other 4 children,
(Perry 12, Penny 8, Paul 4 and Merrell 2) were home alone when
the earthquake started.
Penny (nicknamed "Mossy") ran out of the house first and stood by
the family car. She watched as
her brother Perry came out of the house, hanging onto his two
little brothers. When he saw
the jumble of broken houses, cars, sunken driveways and uprooted
trees all sliding towards
nearby Cook Inlet, he panicked and took off running, only to fall
into a hole in the ground;
the earth closed in around him and he was never seen again. Penny
picked up her brother Paul
and sat him on the family car. When she turned around to get 2 year
old Merrell, he was gone too;
a crack in the earth had swallowedthe toddler and then closed
back up; he was never found. Seventy
five houses in that wealthy Turnagain subdivision
(that
the Mead's lived in) were destroyed.
Information source:
An interview with Penny Mead, by Julia
O'Malley - Anchorage Daily News reporter 3/22/2014
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
STERLING
STAPP Sr. (of Valdez)
Sterling Stapp Jr. was 16 when he watched
his father Sterling Stapp Sr. get washed off
of the
Valdez dock during the 1964 tidal wave.
Submitted by Honora (Roselyn)
Windeler Drew
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
LESTER
FINKE (of Seward)
Lester Finke was my grandfather,
he was killed at Seward in the earthquake/tidal
wave.
He was
a commercial fisherman and there was lots of ice floating
in the harbor on Good
Friday 1964.
After the earthquake, a bunch of men went down to the
docks to check their
boats.
The tidal wave hit and they were washed away.
Submitted by Lester Finke
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
JIM GROWDEN Sr. (age 29)(of Valdez)
DAVID LEE GROWDEN
(age 4) (of Valdez)
JAMES GROWDEN Jr.
(age 2) (of Valdez)
Jim Growden was my uncle and
I have such fun memories of him. He would stay
with
us
in Anchorage when he was in the Army. I remember
the sleigh bells on the roof
(SANTA),
"LASSIE was hit by a car last week" (my mother
would thump him a good one
as her
4 children were near tears,) he loved burnt toast (our
kitchen always smelled)
and
he helped my mother out with the 4 kids when my Dad was up on
the north slope
for months
at a time. Out of 4 brothers, Jimmy was the one who
went to college (paid
for by
his older brothers) and became the beloved teacher and coach.
He was so loved
by his
wife and children and all of his nephews and me, the one
niece in the crowd.
In a nutshell,
that is my Uncle Jimmy. I loved him unconditionally....and
all of his
practical jokes, unconditionally.
Submitted by Kim Growden Hammer
(age of children corrected by Deanna Dieringer)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DAN
BODDY (of Fairbanks)
Dan Boddy met his wife while he was stationed
in the military in Fairbanks. He had
a variety
of jobs including hauling cars over the Alaska Highway
for a Fairbanks car
dealership.
In the spring of 1964, there were road restrictions,
due to an early
spring thaw,
so Dan's usual job of hauling cars was on hold.
Instead, he worked that
spring
for Lynden Transport and was in Valdez, the day of the
1964 earthquake, to pick
up cargo
from the ship, "Chena". While on the dock, he ran into
an old service buddy
and was invited
to go into town for a drink and talk over old times.
He declined the
offer.
The old friend later told Dan's wife that, as he left
Dan on the dock, and
proceeded to
walk up the street into town, the earthquake struck.
He turned around and
the dock,
and everyone on it, were gone. He said it happened just
that fast. Dan's
wife said
that when her husband kissed her good-bye, before driving to
Valdez that morning,
he was strangely
quiet and she later wondered if he had a premonition about
the way the trip
would
end. Dan's body was was found, early the following week,
washed up on Potato Point
near Valdez.
It's ironic that the family had plans to move out of Alaska,
and had already
purchased
a home in Seattle, when Dan Boddy died in the 1964 earthquake.
Submitted by daughter, Nancy
Boddy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DAN
BODDY (of Fairbanks)
Dan Boddy, a Fairbanks resident, worked
for Mitchell Truck and Tractor but took a week
long
temporary job with Lynden Transfer to haul 4 loads of construction
materials from
the SS
Chena in Valdez to Fort Greely. He was on the dock loading his
truck when the
tsunami
hit.
Information
from the Fairbanks Daily News Miner 3/31/1964
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BOB
SIMMONS (of Seward)
Bob Simmons was my uncle.
My mother, Barbara Simmons was his sister.
The earthquake
was shortly
before I was born . According to my mother uncle
Bob was out fishing, &
the
nameplate of his boat was found several miles inland.
Nothing else was ever found.
Their mother was named Noni. According to my mother Bob
was an accomplished outdoorsman
who
used to go out into the Alaskan Wilderness for months at
a time & come back
"several
pounds heavier". I will inquire further the next
time I see her. He and his
brothers
and sisters grew up in Peace River County, Alberta.
Submitted by Bob Blakely
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ROBERT
SIMMONS (of Seward)
Robert Martin Simmons was my father.
His date of birth was May 14, 1921 and
his date
of death
was March 27, 1964. His mother was Olive Lay Simmons
and his father was
Lester
Benjamin Simmons. Daddy was Irish, Scot and English
as far as I know. Olive
worked as
a school teacher in Alberta and died in White Rock, B.
C. in the 1960's.
His
wife was named Lou , I believe she was Yupik.
Written by Edna Deerunner
Simmons
NOTE: Publication done by NOAA about the earthquake,
says that "Lou" was really
Louise Ellanna (maiden name Oukuk) Simmons.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ALBERT
ANDREW REFT Sr. 11/23/1919-3/27/1964 (of Kodiak)
My father, Albert
Reft, Sr. was born in Karluk. He had
2 brothers, one named Gus
Reft and other Charlie Reft.
He also had 2 sisters, Mary (Reft) Gallager
and
Annie (Reft) Anderson White.
In 1964 I
was 17 y/o myself. I was raised by my Aunt
Mary Gallagher and she was
married to Thomas Gallagher. They
owned and operated the Polar Bear Cafe for years,
until the tidal wave arrived. My understanding
of the circumstances behind my father's
fate comes to me 2nd hand, through friends
who reported this to my Aunt Mary.
Thomas
Gallagher was very fond of animals and he had a
large herd of cattle on Long Island
and Near Island as well.
At Near Island he also had pigs and horses. On March
27th my
father was with my Uncle Thomas at Near Island
to feed the cattle and the pigs. It was
unusual for my father to assist my Uncle in this
regard as myself, and my younger brother
Thomas, would always assist our Uncle in feeding
his animals. However, that day they were
at Near Island and they used a skiff about 16' long
with a 25 hp outboard motor. I was told
that when the first shock arrived (and it was large)
that their outboard motor was flung from
their skiff by this jolt. Both my father and
Uncle had noticed that the water level was rising
and they decided to head back to the boat harbor,
which was a short distance from their skiff
on the beach. They used oars to get themselves
back to the boat harbor and once there, my Uncle
scurried up to the dock. However, my father,
noticing a friend's boat being tied at its mooring
and the boat's mooring lines being very taut from the
rising waters, decided to undo the lines of
his friend's boat and he attempted to bring this boat
to safe waters. My Uncle Gallagher told us
that he did get the lines undone and attempted
to bring the boat to safer waters. He said he
pleaded with my father to jump the boat, to let it go,
and get to safe ground. He did not listen
to my Uncle and so he remained on his friend's
boat. We only know that he was on this boat and after
all had settled down, no traces of the boat or my
father could be found. Obviously, like many of
us at this moment in time, he was not aware of the power
a tsunami has, especially the size of the
one that hit Kodiak.
It was several
days after the tidal wave action had ceased
that the word about my father's fate
had actually reached us. My
Aunt Mary Gallagher and my father were very close to
each other and
I do remember her giving me the news about
my dad. She was standing in our sun room, it
was a
cold, windy and rainy day and she was full
of tears. She stated that all attempts to find
traces
of our father and the boat he was on was in
vane. I don't even remember the name of the boat or
the name of the friend my father new that owned it.
Submitted by Albert A.
Reft Jr.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GERIANN DEE WARE 1963-1964
WHITTIER
When the earthquake
began, Jerry Ware, a railroad maintenance man drove
home to help his wife Judy and their 6 month old baby daughter,
Geriann.
The first tsunami wave came through their house trailer window,
throwing Judy
clear, but washing the baby away. He found his wife who's arm was
ripped or torn open from her
palm to her elbow by a piece of wood debris. Her arm was also broken
between her elbow
and shoulder. Their baby, Geriann was found alive in a snow bank,
but died shortly afterward,
she is buried in Anchorage.
Jerry and Judy were air lifted to Providence Hospital in Anchorage
for emergency treatment
2 days after the earthquake, but gangrene had developed in her arm,
so she
was evacuated to Seattle to receive oxygen chamber treatment for
the gangrene. Jerry Ware's
left ankle was broken.
Written and submitted by Jerry and Judy Ware, parents of baby Gerriann Dee Ware
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
WILLY
EVANOFF (of Chenega)
SALLY EVANOFF (of Chenega)
JOANNE KOMPKOFF (age
3)
(of Chenega)
I was there in Chenega, I ran from
a 96' tidal wave, don't know how I made it.
We ran up
the mountain and stayed up their all night cause
we heard there was going
to
be another quake. We had a fire going.
I ran up the mountain without shoes,
so they had
a time keeping my feet warm. After the waves, we were going
down to the
school
and in my heart I knew Mom and Dad and Joann were gone.
My oldest girl Joann,
3,
was with the mom that raised me, so she died with her and dad.
Mom and dad were
Willy and Sally
Evanoff. The next morning the mail plane came and picked 15
of us up
at once and
later went back and got the others. Twenty seven
out of 87 or so people
died that
day. There were a lot of good people in Old Chenega.
They found my daughters
body
on Knight Island two weeks after the earthquake.
Submitted by Avis Kompkoff
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
WILLIE
EVANOFF
(of Chenega)
SALLY EVANOFF (of
Chenega)
JOANNE KOMPKOFF (age 3) (of Chenega)
RICHARD KOMPKOFF (of Chenega)
ANNA VLASOFF
(of Chenega)
STEVE ELESHANSKY (of Chenega)
RHONDA ELESHANSKY (age 1) (of Chenega)
The small village of Chenega, in Prince
William Sound, was right on the waters edge,
with a steep
mountain slope right behind it. When the earth started
shaking in 1964,
everyone
grabbed their children and tried to run up the hill to safety; 23
people didn't make it.
The older children were told to run, as
fast as they could, up the hill and the youngest
ones were
carried by their parents. SOME villagers didn't even make
it to the bottom of
the hill.
Willie and Sally Evanoff and their granddaughter Joanne Kompkoff
were washed
away with
the first wave. Richard Kompkoff drowned while trying to save
Anna Vlasoff, who
refused to
leave her injured daughter behind (Anna drowned but the daughter
survived). Avis
Kompkoff
ran up the hill carrying her baby, with Steve Eleshansky and his
1 year old daughter
Rhonda
right behind her. As the wave caught up to them, Avis looked back
and Steve and his
daughter were
gone; washed away. One father, carrying two of his sons, was
caught up in a
tsunami wave that carried them up the hill and left them
(standing) safely on a ridge.
Interview with Avis Kompkoff (survivor)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DONALD
McCLURE (of California)
Technical
Sergeant Donald McClure, 34 years old, was eel
fishing with a friend at the mouth
of the
Klamath River, just south of Crescent City, California,
when the tsunami carried both
men
and the tons of logs and driftwood debris on the beach about
half a mile up the River.
My father
received "The Airman's Medal" (posthumously) for his bravery
in saving his friend
life that
night. He was missing for about a month and
his body was finally discovered on
April 26th
about 5-1/2 miles north of Patricks Point buoy by fishermen
aboard the boat Sally
out
of Trinidad Harbor. He was buried May 4th at the Golden Gate
National Cemetery in
San Bruno,
California. He left behind a wife and 3 children,
the youngest being 3 weeks
old.
His father was Thomas Henry McClure of Pikens County,
Georgia, and Ethel
Plott of Union County, Georgia.
Submitted by Doris McClure Andersen
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DONALD
McCLURE (of California)
My father, Technical Sergeant
Stuart W. Harrington, was eel fishing on a sandbar
in the
mouth
of the Klamath River with his best friend, Technical
Sergeant Donald McClure,
when the
tsunami struck. According to my father's account to the
Air Force, and The
Raging Sea,
a book by Dennis Powers published in 2005, the
tsunami pushed them as
much as 2 miles
up the river. This estimate was based upon Sgt. Harrington's
description
of
the landmarks and the site of the first rescue attempt. Stuart
Harrington was a
few years
older than Don McClure and was terribly hindered by his
weighted chest
waders and
heavy woolen clothing. Sgt. McClure pulled him onto a
redwood log at a
point when
he could no longer pull himself up. He never would have survived
without
his dear
friend's strength and courage. It is a true tragedy that Sgt. McClure
was
lost when
the second wave hit as he and my father were attempting to swim
to shore
amidst the
debris. It is a miracle that my father survived. My father
was pained
that his survival
received more media attention at the time than did Sgt.
McClure's
death.
He grieved the loss of his friend until his own death on September
26, 1993.
Submitted by Susan H. Tedrick, Esq.
daughter of Stuart W. Harrington
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
WILLIAM
CLAWSON (of California)
AGATHA CLAWSON (of California)
EARL EDWARDS (of California)
JUANITA EDWARDS (of California)
JOAN FIELDS (of California)
William “Bill” and Agatha Clawson
owned a tavern called the “Long Branch” in Crescent
City,
California.
They, and a group of friends, were celebrating
Bill Clawson's birthday. After
the first
tsunami flooding, The Clawson's, their 27 year
old son Gary, Gary's fiancé
Joan Fields,
an employee named Juanita Edwards and her husband
Earl, a friend named
M. D. McGuire
and the tavern bartender, Bruce Garden all went back
to the tavern to inspect
the damage
and collect the money from the cash register.
Underestimating what was yet
to come, the group decided to stay at the tavern
and have a
birthday
toast. The next tsunami wave destroyed the tavern.
As Gary Clawson & McGuire swam
to shore,
the rest of the party sought safety on the floating tavern
roof. Clawson found a
rowboat
and rowed through fires that were floating on the water,
back out to the stranded
people.
All seven people got into the rowboat and headed for shore.
When the boat was 75'
from shore,
the water receded as quickly as it came in and the boat
was forced into the
Elk Creek
Bridge where it broke apart and everyone was sucked into the
culvert. Some were
trapped in
debris that was in the culvert but Gary Clawson made it
through the culvert and
was carried
out to sea (where he was able to swim back to shore). The bartender
saved himself
by hanging
on to something, but the other five drowned.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
JUANITA
EDWARDS (of California)
My grandmother was Juanita Pearl Edwards
and she died with the others from the Long
Branch
Tavern in Crescent City. This was two years
before I was born so I never knew her
but
she is dearly missed.
Submitted by Cheri Goodwin,
Oregon
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
JOAN
FIELDS (of California)
My half sister was Joan Vey Fields
Died in the 1964 Crescent City Tsunami.
I remember
Joan
as being very sweet and could draw beautiful pictures...
She made me feel special...
I was 13
years old when she died in the 1964 Crescent City Tsunami...
I didn't know her
well but
I loved her very much... After our father died I never heard
from the family
at all...
I don't know if she was found or if she has been buried. We had
another sister
Joan's
Sister Bev I don't know where she is either. Our father's
name was Irvin Crawford
everyone
called him Jack all his family are from Lassen County. I don't
know to much about
Joan's
Mom except that my Mom and her were friends at one time.
Submitted by Joans half sister Patty.
(Note: Joan Vey Fields
was at the Long Branch Tavern at Crescent City,
celebrating the 54th birthday of
her future father in
law. Five people from the saloon died including
Joan and her future in-laws.
The only survivor was
Joan's fiancé, Gary Clawson.)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
WILLIAM
WRIGHT (age 1) (of California)
BONITA WRIGHT (age
2) (of California)
Mr. and Mrs. William Wright, who lived
on Highway 101, Crescent City, California
lost
their two children to tsunami waves. Their 1 year
old son William and 2 year
old daughter
Bonita were pulled from Mrs. Wright's arms by waves.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
LAVELLA
HILLSBURG (of California)
Lavella Hillsburg of Hammond Hill Road
in Crescent City, California...left her
home and
drove to
a friends house to warn them of the coming tsunami.
When the group tried to
leave in
Hillsburg's car, the wave stalled the car, so the three
people tried to evacuate
on foot.
Lavella didn't make it, and drowned.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DONALD
O'LEARY (of Valdez)
DENNIS CUNNINGHAM (of Valdez)
JAMES GROWDEN (of Valdez)
I lost many dear friends in the
earthquake. Donnie (Donald) O'Leary was tying
down
a load (of freight) on a Weaver Brother's truck (that
was transferring
freight
from the dock) when the earthquake struck. He was last seen
scrambling
around in the
mud after the water was sucked out of the bay. When the resulting
tsunami returned,
he was drowned.
Fifteen year old Dennis
Cunningham was our paperboy, he was just waiting
on the
dock to sell
newspapers, etc., to sailors and tourists when the tsunami
hit.
Jimmy Growden and his
family were my neighbors. Our cold storage plant
was located
on the
old cannery dock and Bob Kulstad worked for us as a
watchman. He and his wife
Pat
lived in a trailer on the old dock. Just before the earthquake,
Bob had gone to
the store
for a loaf of bread and his wife Pat stayed behind. The earthquake
and
tsunami collapsed the entire dock and Pat Kulstad
was lost.
Information from: Colleen Joy
Hickman
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DON
O'LEARY (of Fairbanks)
Don O'Leary was born and raised
in Fairbanks; his parents were Mr. and Mrs.
Maurice O'Leary.
He had two brothers, George and Ed and two sisters, Mrs.
Frank Warren
and
Diane O'Leary. He was also survived by two Aunts, Mrs. Ernest
Heilman and
Mrs. Walter
Jewell. Don O'Leary died 3/27/1964 in Valdez.
Information from the Fairbanks Daily News
Miner 3/31/1964
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
THOMAS
SELANOFF (infant twin) (of
Chenega)
ROBERT SELANOFF (infant
twin) (of Chenega)
Thomas and Robert Selanoff, infant
twin sons of Paul Selanoff and Junie Eleshansky died
in the
third tsunami wave to hit Chenega. Their mother was
holding the babies in her
arms
while she was trying to climb up a hill to safety, but
the wave caught up with
her
and took the babies.
Interview with Avis Kompkoff of Chenega
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
CLAYTON
JAMES BAKER (of Anchorage)
Clayton James Baker moved to Anchorage
with his sister and brother-in-law (from Helena, Montana)
in 1957.
Mr. Baker had polio as a child and was handicapped. He
died in his home on Marston
Drive in
Anchorage. He was survived by brothers Lane and Wesley and
sisters Vada Robinson
and Mrs.
Max Smith.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
LEORA ELLEN (OLIVER) KNIGHT (of Anchorage)
My mother was
born in Oberon, North Dakota, on 11/30/1907 to Maurice Herbert
Oliver and
Ellen Maude
Hulbert Oliver. She grew up in N.D. and suffered from polio as
a youngster.
She graduated from
U.N.D. in Grand Forks in 1929, majoring in science. She married
Virgil
Eugene Knight (1906-1978)
who graduated from U.N.D. with a degree in mechanical engineering
that same year.
They found jobs in Chicago - Dad with Western Electric and Mother
teaching.
In 1929, the financial
crash occurred and as new employees, they both lost their jobs.
Later that year
they both got jobs with the B.I.A. as teachers at an industrial school
at
White Mountain,
Alaska. They traveled by ship, The North Star, to Nome, Alaska. They
were
the only non-Native
people in the village and split the teaching duties between
themselves,
along with acting
as the village dentist, nurse, counselor, etc. In 1940,
Dad had a position
with the Civil
Aeronautics Authority (CAA) and Mom taught all the science classes
at Anchorage
High School.
In 1956 or 1957, the Knights moved into a lovely new home in the
Turnagain area.
They were
there on Good Friday, March 27, 1964 when the Great Alaska Earthquake
hit the Anchorage
area. From
my Dad's story of events, they were in the house and began to grab
lamps and loose objects
as the shaking
started. When they realized it was a major earthquake, they ran out
the front door and
down the asphalt driveway
toward the street. At some point, a large crack opened in the driveway
and
Mom, who was running
ahead of Dad, fell in. Dad fell in behind her, but higher up the
back side of
the hole. The frozen
earth continued to move and grind and the crack closed up, crushing
Mother across
the chest and severing
one of Dad's legs. Mother was mortally wounded and may have
died at the scene,
but there is
a story that she died in the ambulance staffed by the volunteer
fire department personnel.
My husbands
brother, Robert Korman, was one of those volunteers and thinks
she may have recognized him
before she died.
Both parents were initially found by National Guard personnel flying
in a helicopter
over this heavily
damaged area of the city. Dad was transported to the new Providence
Hospital where he
was treated
for his traumatic injuries. His own doctor, whom he had known for
20+ years did not recognize
him. A National
Guardsman had found Dad's glasses at the scene and tucked them into
his shirt and he was
later identified
by his name engraved on the stem. Their home was totally destroyed
and very little was
ever salvaged
from it. The land slid into Cook Inlet and nothing was ever built
in that area again,
though it took until
2007 to finally settle the legal claims. Dad underwent several surgeries
to save
his left leg and
to prepare his amputated right leg for a future prosthesis. Virgil Eugene
Knight passed
away in 1978.
He and Leora are buried side by side at the Angelus Cemetery in Anchorage.
Written by Carol Knight Korman (daughter of Leora Oliver Knight)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
WILLIAM
"Bill" JONES
I saw the Sunrise roll. It was a large steel
boat that belonged to Bobby [Bill] Jones.
He was on the
back of the Sunrise and Olie Harder was taking that thing
and heading out
the channel when
she rolled. When she popped back up, Bobby [Billy] was no more to
be
seen and we did not
find his body.
Part of an interview with Chuck Mackey by Stephen Mackey 1995
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
RUDY
AND EDDIE ANDERSON (of Kodiak)
Coleen
writes: This first entry is a mystery. I
have done exhaustive searches to find out
who Rudy and Eddie Anderson
are; I am not even certain that they were related. All I know
for sure is that they are both
on every 3/27/1964 fatality list for Kodiak.
If you have any information
on these two people, please contact me: Coleen
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
MARY ANDERSON
(of Kodiak)
Mary Anderson was was last seen, just before the earthquake,
by Chuck Mackey aboard
one of the Kodiak Fishery
boats at the dock in Kodiak. He said Mary had a young girl
with her. Three
days after the tsunami hit, Mary's body was found in the lazarette
of a sunken boat near
the King Crab Cannery dock, but the young girl was not with her.
(Interview
done with Chuck Mackey in 1994 by Paul Schwartz
as
part of the Kodiak Oral History Project)
(I have never found another mention of
the young girl that was last seen with Mary.
If you can add to
Mary Anderson's story, please contact me: Coleen).
Please feel free to contact
me if you would like to add or change
information: [email protected]
The above information is privately
owned and protected by copyscape
Please do not re-print or
republish it in any form
without
my written permission