The city of Fairbanks is located in Interior Alaska near the confluence of the Chena and Tanana Rivers in the Tanana Valley. We are 360 miles north of Anchorage, 125 south of the Arctic Circle, 3,500 miles from Los Angeles and 4,200 miles from Washington, DC. Nicknamed “The Golden Heart City”, Fairbanks is the largest city in the interior region and the second largest in Alaska.
Founded in 1901 by Captain E.T. Barnette as a trading post on the Chena River, the community grew and was eventually named after Senator Charles Fairbanks. The discovery of Gold in the hills just north of Fairbanks caused a mass influx of residents, bringing the population to almost 11,000 in 1910. Ladd Field, now Fort Wainwright, was built in 1938 followed by the Alcan Highway in 1940’s and Eielson Air Force Base, formerly Satellite Field, in 1943, bringing the military population to almost isto be just shy of 19,921. According to records the population of Fairbanks in 1880 was approximately 2,600 and has since swelled to almost 90,000 in the North Star Borough with projections for nearly 105,000 by the year 2018.
An Act of the Alaska Legislature created the Fairbanks North Star Borough in 1964; the year of the fateful Good Friday Earthquake that shook anchorage and three years before Fairbanks suffered a devastating flood at the hands of the Chena River.
The Fairbanks economy is based on tourism, the state’s oil revenue and federal government expenditures for the military, administration of federal agencies and research grants. As Alaska’s second largest city, Fairbanks is an important trading, transportation and military center. Residents of nearby North Pole, Fort Wainwright Army Post, Eielson Air Force Base and surrounding areas come to Fairbanks for shopping, entertainment and employment.
Fairbanks 50 Largest Employers
Univ. of Alaska Fairbanks 3,416 Military-related (Civilian) 2,264 FNSB School District 2,130 State Government 1,798 Fairbanks Memorial Hospital 1,268 Federal Government 1,116 ASRC Energy Services 751 Fred Meyer 633 Wal Mart/Sam's Club 501 North Star Borough 445 Fairbanks Gold Mining Co. 378 Safeway 318 Tanana Chiefs Conference 301 Mc Donald's Restaurants of Alaska 271 Tanana Valley Surgical Clinic 267 Fairbanks Native Association 240 Fountainhead Development 228
Golden Valley Electric 212 Fairbanks Resource Agency 202 City of Fairbanks 185 Laidlaw Education Services 173 Nana Management Services 169 Fairbanks Princess Hotel)160 Tatonduk Outfitters Inc 155 ACS Communications 154 Flint Hills Resources 152 Home Depot 150 Fbks. Comm. Mental Health 143 Alyeska Pipeline Service Co. 142 Lear Siegler Services 141 Pike's Waterfront Lodge 140 Petro Star 139 Alaska Athletic Club 133 Cornell 132
Frontier Flying Service 131 Lowe's 128 Holland America (Westours) 124 Chili's Grill & Bar 121 Fairbanks Daily News Miner 117 Catholic Bishop of Alaska 116 Westmark Hotels 114 Seekins Ford Lincoln Mercury 113 Airport Equipment Rentals 113 Sears Roebuck and Company 111 Osborne Construction 106 Alaska Airlines 106 Pizza Hut 101 Carlile Transportation 101 Haskell Corporation 94 Family Services of Alaska 93
The Interior and Fairbanks in particular are known to have some of the most extreme weather conditions in the country due to significant changes in solar heat throughout the year. The winters are very long, usually lasting from late September to mid-April. From November to March, daylight ranges from ten to less than four hours daily and temperatures can drop to 50 degrees below zero. The summers are very warm, often reaching 80 degrees Fahrenheit and sometimes reaching the 90’s. The sun is above the horizon eighteen to twenty-one hours per day. August and September tend to be the rainier months and snow tends to fall the last week of September leading back into the winter season.
Fairbanks is home to the University of Alaska Fairbanks; the flagship campus of the University of Alaska system. Originally founded as the Alaska Agricultural College and School of Mines in 1917 it became the University of Alaska in 1935. UAF remains the only campus in the University of Alaska system that awards doctoral degrees and holds the distinction of being one of only thirteen Land, Sea and Space Grant Universities in the country.
The University of Alaska Fairbanks encompasses eight campuses, plus the Center for Distance Education, offering 163 degrees and 25 certificates in 115 disciplines. 9,681 students are currently enrolled at the various campuses in the UAF system with 88% pursuing an undergraduate degree. 833 certificate, associate or baccalaureate degrees and 204 master's and doctoral degrees were conferred in the spring of 2007.
Located on the main campus of the University of Alaska Fairbanks, The Rasmuson Library is the largest library in the State of Alaska with 1.1 million volumes and electronic access to more than 20 million titles worldwide. The UAF campus is also home to the Museum of the North which boasts a rare and unique collection of more than 1 million objects.
University athletics are a vital part of the community. Dubbed the Nanooks; UAF athletics are composed of Division I hockey team, a Division II basketball team, mens and women's cross country skiing, rifle, women's swimming and volleyball.
Alaska is an outdoors paradise. We are blessed to have incredible hunting and fishing opportunities within an hours drive of Fairbanks. No matter what outdoor activity you're into, you can find it in Fairbanks. Summer or winter, there are plenty of sports to keep you breathing fresh Alaskan air. Having called Alaska home for almost 30 years, we can't imagine living anywhere else. Considering a move to Fairbanks? Call or email us; we would love to hear from you.
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