My family was living in Valdez during the earthquake. I was just nine years old, but I recall the day vividly. My mother documented our family's experiences during and after the earthquake in a short chapter in the book "The Day Trees Bent to the Ground” (pp. 184-185).
A friend had just dropped me off at home. As i entered the front door the quake began. I thought from the rumbling and shaking that our oil furnace was getting ready to blow up. My mother yelled at me to get my baby sister who was asleep on the sofa. (My mother had MS so she could not walk very well) Getting to my sister was not easy as i fell a couple of times as the floor was rolling back and forth. I finally made it to the back door with sister in arms to join my mother. We did not know it was not recommended to go outside. I held my mother and sister while we hung on to the beautiful huge tree in our yard. I watched the earth move like it was an incoming tide of water, so eerie. i knew nothing of earthquakes but remembering looking up in the sky for a huge mushroom from a bomb. The reason i did that was that i had read the newspaper earlier where the headlines said "China rattles saber at USA fot being in the gulf of Tonkin with warships." I thought China had declared war on us. Hey, i was a young kid! Our neighbor Shirley who was in her yard yelled out it was an earthquake. That night there were several quakes off and on as i slept with one eye open. It was amazing how Alaskans rebuilt and helped one another. I would drive by my old home ever so often and look at that old tree and remember how it was. Last summer i went by and someone had cut it down! I have to admit tears fell down my face.
Where was I when the earthquake hit? I was in my hometown of Berkley, MI, most likely getting ready for bed. It wasn’t until our family’s Easter Sunday Brunch when the topic came up. Alaska seemed so far away, but the stories coming over the wires about the damage and destruction were somehow etched into my mind. It seemed so profound to me that this awful event occurred in conjunction with the day we Catholics and other Christians commemorated the death of Jesus. How was I to know that 3 years later I would have a first hand view of nature’s power that day, while walking about Earthquake park, which was a short distance from my newly rented little house in Spenard. These days, the clay upheavals at the park are worn down and hidden by tall trees, but my memories are clear. They include the memory of the fellow teacher who cried at the mention of the quake, because she couldn’t get to her children, not knowing if they were safe, or the secretary who spoke of sweeping up her grandmother’s shattered china from her dining room floor, and being grateful she was alive. My late husband, Bob spoke of his experience that day and of the weeks after, as Alaskans came together, cleared up the mess and rebuilt the towns and cities (his photographic images are archived at UAA library). Today, the survivors and their stories are a living testimony of the spirit of Alaska at its best. You are the reason why Alaska , after 50+ years is still my home. I salute all of you!
We didn’t move to Alaska until 1968 but I do remember talking about the earthquake in one of my classes. A couple of students remember feeling it somewhat even in Bethel.
My family was living in Valdez during the earthquake. I was just nine years old, but I recall the day vividly. My mother documented our family's experiences during and after the earthquake in a short chapter in the book "The Day Trees Bent to the Ground” (pp. 184-185).
A friend had just dropped me off at home. As i entered the front door the quake began. I thought from the rumbling and shaking that our oil furnace was getting ready to blow up. My mother yelled at me to get my baby sister who was asleep on the sofa. (My mother had MS so she could not walk very well) Getting to my sister was not easy as i fell a couple of times as the floor was rolling back and forth. I finally made it to the back door with sister in arms to join my mother. We did not know it was not recommended to go outside. I held my mother and sister while we hung on to the beautiful huge tree in our yard. I watched the earth move like it was an incoming tide of water, so eerie. i knew nothing of earthquakes but remembering looking up in the sky for a huge mushroom from a bomb. The reason i did that was that i had read the newspaper earlier where the headlines said "China rattles saber at USA fot being in the gulf of Tonkin with warships." I thought China had declared war on us. Hey, i was a young kid! Our neighbor Shirley who was in her yard yelled out it was an earthquake. That night there were several quakes off and on as i slept with one eye open. It was amazing how Alaskans rebuilt and helped one another. I would drive by my old home ever so often and look at that old tree and remember how it was. Last summer i went by and someone had cut it down! I have to admit tears fell down my face.
Where was I when the earthquake hit? I was in my hometown of Berkley, MI, most likely getting ready for bed. It wasn’t until our family’s Easter Sunday Brunch when the topic came up. Alaska seemed so far away, but the stories coming over the wires about the damage and destruction were somehow etched into my mind. It seemed so profound to me that this awful event occurred in conjunction with the day we Catholics and other Christians commemorated the death of Jesus. How was I to know that 3 years later I would have a first hand view of nature’s power that day, while walking about Earthquake park, which was a short distance from my newly rented little house in Spenard. These days, the clay upheavals at the park are worn down and hidden by tall trees, but my memories are clear. They include the memory of the fellow teacher who cried at the mention of the quake, because she couldn’t get to her children, not knowing if they were safe, or the secretary who spoke of sweeping up her grandmother’s shattered china from her dining room floor, and being grateful she was alive. My late husband, Bob spoke of his experience that day and of the weeks after, as Alaskans came together, cleared up the mess and rebuilt the towns and cities (his photographic images are archived at UAA library). Today, the survivors and their stories are a living testimony of the spirit of Alaska at its best. You are the reason why Alaska , after 50+ years is still my home. I salute all of you!
We didn’t move to Alaska until 1968 but I do remember talking about the earthquake in one of my classes. A couple of students remember feeling it somewhat even in Bethel.