Girdwood, Anchorage, Alaska facts for kids
Girdwood is a fun resort town located in the southern part of Anchorage, Alaska. It sits in a lovely valley surrounded by seven glaciers! These glaciers feed into many creeks that flow into the Turnagain Arm of Cook Inlet. You can usually get to Girdwood by driving on the Seward Highway or taking the Alaska Railroad. It's about 35 to 40 miles from Downtown Anchorage. In 2019, about 1,742 people lived in the Girdwood valley.
Girdwood started as a small town that helped miners during the gold rushes in the 1890s. For a long time, it was a quiet place. But two big things changed it! First, Alyeska Resort was built on the slopes of Mount Alyeska. This resort became a popular place for people from all over the world to visit. Second, a huge earthquake hit in 1964. It badly damaged the old town, which was right by the water.
After the earthquake, most of the town moved further up the valley to a new spot. Some homes stayed behind, and a small shopping area was built later. For many years, Girdwood was mostly busy during certain seasons, with people visiting vacation homes. But in the 1990s, the Alyeska Prince Hotel opened. This helped Girdwood become a place that's busy all year round! This also means there are often talks about how the town is growing and making sure housing is affordable for people who work at the resort.
Girdwood is still very popular for seasonal fun. In winter, people love to go skiing and snowboarding at Alyeska Resort. In summer, there's lots to do too, like hiking, fishing, and rafting. Every July, Girdwood hosts the Forest Fair, which is a big event for visitors. Girdwood is also in the northernmost part of a rain forest and is the closest way to get to Chugach National Forest from Anchorage.
Contents
History of Girdwood
Girdwood was first called "Glacier City." It began as a camp to supply gold miners who were looking for gold in the creeks near Turnagain Arm. The town was later named after Colonel James Girdwood. He was a businessman from Belfast who found the first four gold claims along Crow Creek in 1896.
The town had to move about 2.5 miles up the valley after the huge Good Friday earthquake in 1964. The land where the old town was actually sank into Turnagain Arm! This put much of the town underwater during high tide. The nearby town of Alyeska was left empty, and most of its people moved to the new Girdwood town. You can still see old cabins underwater in the marshy areas where the city used to be. Big earthquakes happen fairly often in Girdwood and the Kenai Peninsula. Records show there have been six major earthquakes here in the last 3,300 years.
Girdwood became an official city in 1961. Then, in 1975, it became part of the Municipality of Anchorage. This happened when the larger Anchorage area joined with Anchorage and its smaller cities.
Girdwood has been featured in at least two movies. One was The Chechahcos, a 1924 silent film about the Klondike Gold Rush. The other was Warren Miller's Snowriders II in 1997. Girdwood was also the home of Alaska's former senior U.S. Senator Ted Stevens. Olympic gold and silver medal-winning skier Tommy Moe also lived in Girdwood when he was in high school.
Girdwood was even shown on the TV show The Amazing Race 12 on January 20, 2008, as the finish line!
Geography and Climate
Girdwood has a subarctic climate. This means it has long, cold winters and short, mild summers.
Population of Girdwood
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1950 | 79 | — | |
| 1960 | 63 | −20.3% | |
| 1970 | 144 | 128.6% | |
| 2020 | 2,025 | — | |
| U.S. Decennial Census | |||
Girdwood was first counted in the U.S. Census in 1950 as a small village. It officially became a city in 1961. Later, in 1975, it joined with Anchorage.
Famous People from Girdwood
- Callan Chythlook-Sifsof (born 1989), an Olympic snowboarder.
- Rosey Fletcher (born 1975), another Olympic snowboarder.
- Keegan Messing (born 1992), a Canadian-American Olympic figure skater.
- Lisa Murkowski (born 1957), a U.S. Senator who represents Alaska.
- Ted Stevens (1923–2010), a lawyer who served as a U.S. Senator for Alaska for many years.
