Anyone who travels the Alaska Highway today for the first time would be hard put to imagine the hardships associated with the building of the road. Today one whizzes by on a paved highway in modern cars, trucks and campers, past clean modern motels, cafes and towns. In the early 1940s this was mostly wilderness, traveled by a small band of hunters, trappers and prospectors and several Indian tribes. The mile upon mile of desolate countryside and harsh weather conditions continued to make this area hostile to modern develpment. Even today, the roade can be very inhospitable at times and the area just off hte highway is still very remote and rugged.
We can thank, in part, the cooperation of the United States and Canadian governments for building the road and bringing it to the condition it is in now for the tourist traveling to Canada and Alaska. it has undoubtedly vastly increased the modernization of the North Country, which may in fact be considered a sin to some of the old-timers in the area.
It is hoped that this pictorial history will give the traveler an idea of what these men had to face in the early 1940s. It is difficult now to put the entire story in perspective. The photographs were selected from various archives in the United States and Canada to show not only the road construction, but something of the way the soldiers and construction men lived....
This book is dedicated to those men who opened up a wonderful part of our continent for the enjoyment of all who want to seek its wonders.
--Stan Cohen, from the Preface
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