Archives Information

Atwood Resource Center

The Bob and Evangeline Atwood Alaska Resource Center is located on the museum's first floor. The public is welcome to use our Paul G. Allen Family Foundation Reading Room to research the museum's collections, which include Alaska-related photographs, books, periodicals and maps from the 19th century through today.

Hours
June:
    10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday
July through Sept. 15:
    10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday
    10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday
Winter:
    10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday
    10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday

Contact
Phone: (907) 929-9235 E-mail: resourcecenter@anchoragemuseum.org

Library collection
The Atwood Resource Center maintains a library of more than 12,000 titles focusing on history, ethnography and art of Alaska and the North. The collection also includes historic maps of Alaska. Circulation of library material is restricted to staff and volunteers, but the public is welcome to use the collection as a reference library. Access our catalog here.

Artists' file
We gather published information about past and present Alaska artists, maintaining paper files and a database of more than 12,300 names. Please direct inquiries about specific artists to resourcecenter@anchoragemuseum.org.

Photo collection

We maintain a photo collection of more than 500,000 images covering a broad range of topics in Alaska's history. More than 5,000 of these images can be viewed here.

Major collections include:

• Alaska Railroad (12,000 images) Includes construction photos dating from 1914.
• Brickley Collection (12,000 images) From the Katmai eruption (1912) to the Good Friday earthquake, Brickley shot photos and purchased others for his photo postcard business, with a large selection of World War II-era views.
• Federal Aviation Administration (15,000 images) Includes airfields, village aerials and FAA's Alaska installations 1945-1975.
• Lu Liston Collection (8,000 images) Contains the Hewitt's Drug Store postcard negatives, Southcentral Alaska in the 1930s and 1940s, and portraits taken in the 1930s, '40s and '60s.
• Martin Collection (2,500 prints, negatives, letters and drawings) Stereo views of the Yup'ik village of Kwigillingok, 1925-1935. Historical materials include glass lantern slides and photographs.
• Steve McCutcheon (140,000 images) Includes McCutcheon's professional black-and-white work throughout Alaska, post-World War II to the mid-1980s, and his stock color slide files. His historical materials include glass lantern slides and Gold Rush images.
• Louis Odsather Collection (1,000 images) This is the official photo album commissioned be the federal government to document the 1935 establishment of the Matanuska Colony in Palmer.
• Redington Family Collection (10,000 images) Joe Redington Sr.'s slides 1948-1995. Images covering history of Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race and dog mushing in Alaska; His 1979 summit of Mt. McKinley; homesteading on Flat Horn Lake; and rescue and reclamation work for the U.S. Army.
• Ward W. Wells (120,000 images) Comprises Wells' stock and commercial work, 1945-1982 and portraits 1972-82.

Image reproductions and use
For information about ordering reproductions or using photographs, e-mail resourcecenter@anchoragemuseum.org.

Donations
Reconstructing history through photography is a fascinating piece-by-piece adventure, and each new collection expands our ability to do that. The photo and book collection is carefully preserved and stored to ensure a long, useful life. To inquire about donating Alaska materials, call (907) 929-9235.

Reference
We are happy to provide reference assistance. Please e-mail resourcecenter@anchoragemuseum.org or call.

Museum Exchange Program
The Atwood Resource Center participates in a museum publications exchange program. Annually, Anchorage Museum publications are sent to 200 reciprocating museums in the United States and Canada. Current newsletters and exhibition catalogs from these museums are kept on file at the Anchorage Museum.