The Fairbanks Log House

At Alaskaland, at a few locations around town and out in the bush one sees log cabins all of a style--sod roof on a low-pitched gable that extends out over the porch, the overall structure being rather low. Go to Nome or to other coastal towns in western Alaska and you will see a completely different style of architecture involving frame houses with glassed in porches, usually facing the sea. These houses are reminiscent of the houses found in the old whaling villages of New England.

It seems likely that the Nome-style house had its genesis in the New England houses, but where did the Fairbanks-style log house come from? Travelers to Siberia, particularly in the regions around Irkutsk, will be struck by the similarity of the Fairbanks log house to the log cabins there. In the Siberian cities the log houses frequently have ornate painted window shutters and eaves but the style is unmistakable. To stroll through a country village is to stroll through Fairbanks 30 or 40 years ago, the houses are identical.

It is not too far-fetched to think that the Fairbanks log house had its origin here. Irkutsk used to be the effective capital of Alaska before Sitka was. Also the original wave of Russian influence was reinforced by a second wave of emigrants during gold rush days and up until the 1920's. Many Russians settled in interior Alaska and built log houses like those they lived in at home.