Walter Harper Statue to be Housed at Doyon Headquarters
From left to right: Robert Tatum, Esaias George, Harry Karstens, John Fredson, and Walter Harper.
Earlier this year, the Walter Harper Project group received news of the passage of Alaska State Senate Bill 144 declaring June 7th as Walter Harper Day. Additionally, the group is working to construct a statue of Walter Harper, who was the first documented person to summit Denali in 1913.
Doyon is pleased to announce that the statue, when finalized, will be housed outside of the Doyon Plaza in downtown Fairbanks. The location of the statue is fitting as Denali is the most prominent landmark in Alaska’s interior, the homeland of the Athabascan people, and will provide easy access to tourists and community members in Fairbanks. The statue, along with interpretive panels, will acknowledge the contributions of each of the expedition team members, while highlighting Walter Harper’s remarkable skill set and character traits that allowed him to play a pivotal role in the expedition’s success.
The Walter Harper Project has partnered with Fairbanks Native Association for receiving donation funds for the project and will soon be issuing an RFP to solicit artists’ proposals for the work. For more information or to make a donation, please go to www.walterharper.org/.
“It is an honor to recognize the accomplishments of our ancestors and to share their legacy with our youth,” says Tanya Kaquatosh, senior VP of administration for Doyon.
View the official press release here.