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Southeast Alaska: Hyder border crossing debate: Is Canada still miffed over 1903 decision? By DAVE KIFFER - Is Hyder a bit of Alaska isolated by Canada? Or is it a piece of Canada, geographically isolated in Alaska?

Hyder, Alaska 1920
Title taken from image. Portland Canal in the background. Verso: Alaska Sportsman.
Courtesy Alaska State Library - Historical Collections

Depends on who you ask. Hyder has always been an official part of Alaska, but it also completely isolated by geography from the rest of the state.

And the current debate about whether to keep open a 24-hour-a-day border crossing wouldn't even be taking place if Canada had been successful with its border proposal in 1903.

The Klondike Gold Rush of 1897-1898 had caused nearly 100,000 prospectors to pour into Alaska and northwest Canada. Most of prospectors were American and there was real concern from the Canadian government that northwest Canada was becoming "Americanized" in much the same way that California became "Americanized" during its Gold Rush during the late 1840s.

It was also the case that the most used access points to the Klondike had to pass through American territory in Alaska. Canadian overland routes to the Klondike had proved to be too difficult and Canadians sought an “all Canada” route that used the Inside Passage.

Russia and Great Britain had agreed on a general border between their territories in 1825, with Russia maintaining some control of the coastline of what is now Southeast Alaska.

But how far Russian Alaska territory - which was ceded to the United States in 1867 - extended inland was unclear. Canada – seeking access to freshwater ports in the region - convinced England to negotiate more specific boundaries with the United States and that led to the 1903 Boundary Commission which was comprised of representatives of the United States, Canada and Great Britain.

Initially, Canada was concerned with gaining coastline in Southern Southeast Alaska. Originally, it sought a border that would go from Glacier Bay directly south through Chatham Strait and then dog leg over to Clarence Strait on down to Dixon Entrance.

Under that proposal, most of the towns in Southeast Alaska, including Skagway, Juneau, Wrangell and Ketchikan, would become Canadian. That proposal was rejected by the panel.

Canada then returned to the table with a modified proposal in which the border would follow the mainland coast range as far as the Stikine River and then dog leg into Sumner Strait and follow Clarence Strait to the border.

Everything inland (which would include the Cleveland Peninsula, Revillagigedo Island and the mainland that is now Misty Fjords) would have become Canadian territory, as would all land below the 54.40 latitude

That proposal split the Commission, with the Canadian negotiators in favor and the U.S. negotiators opposed. After the lengthy negotiations, the British member of the panel sided with the Americans, a decision that still angers some Canadians to this day.

Historians generally believe that the British member of the panel, Lord Alverstone, received instructions from his government to support the American position because Great Britain was looking for a favorable American response on other issues.

Later Canadian historians have generally agreed that the final boundary was probably the correct one, but at the time of the decision anger in Canada was such that the young Confederation began moving toward promoting Canadian nationalism as opposed to Canada remaining a more subservient member of the British Empire. The general feeling in Canada was that Great Britain looked after its own interests and betrayed Canada.

The boundary was instead drawn down the center of 90 mile long Portland Canal from the small mining communities of Stewart and Hyder to Dixon Entrance. At Dixon Entrance, everyone agreed the boundary would be drawn across Dixon Entrance, but even that decision retains some contention, with Canadian officials contending the border follows the 54.40 latitude and actually cuts the tip off Alaska's Dahl Island at Cape Muzon. Alaskan officials contend the actual border is further south, offshore in Dixon Entrance. - More...
Monday PM - April 06, 2015

Alaska: 153 of Alaska's Bridges Need Structural Repair, New Analysis of U.S. DOT Data Finds - Federal Highway & Bridge Funding Facing May 31 Deadline - An analysis of the recently-released 2014 U.S. Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT) National Bridge Inventory database finds there are more than 61,000 structurally deficient bridges in need of significant repair all across America. And it is a problem that hits close to home.

The analysis of the federal government data, conducted by American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) Chief Economist Dr. Alison Premo Black, shows cars, trucks and school buses cross Alaska's 153 structurally compromised bridges 198,744 times every day. Not surprisingly, the most heavily traveled are on the Interstate Highway System, which carries the bulk of truck traffic and passenger vehicles.

The top 10 most heavily traveled structurally compromised bridges in Alaska are:

01. Muldoon Road over Glenn Highway (Anchorage County)
02. Lake Otis Road over Campbell Creek (Anchorage County)
03. University Avenue over the Chena River (Fairbanks North Star County)
04. South Tongass Highway over the Water Street Viaduct (Ketchikan Gateway Borough)
05. South Tongass Highway over Hoadley Creek (Ketchikan Gateway Borough)
06. Wendell Street over the Chena River (N Hall Street) (Fairbanks North Star County)
07. North Tongass Highway over Ward Creek (Ketchikan Gateway Borough)
08. Seward Highway over Portage Creek No 2 (Anchorage County)
09. Seward Highway over Portage Creek No 1 (Anchorage County)
10. Seward Highway over Peterson Creek (Anchorage County)

The bridge problem could get a whole lot worse soon, Black warns. The federal Highway Trust Fund (HTF) is the source of 52 percent of highway and bridge capital investments made annually by state governments. The HTF has suffered five revenue shortfalls between 2008 and 2014, and has been bailed out with nearly $65 billion in revenues from the General Fund just to preserve existing investment levels. The latest extension of federal highway and transit funding through the HTF expires on May 31, absent congressional action. Nearly a dozen states so far have canceled or delayed road and bridge projects because of the continued uncertainty over the trust fund situation. ARTBA expects that number to increase as the deadline nears. - More...
Monday PM - April 06, 2015