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Pioneer Park bAnew bench honoring Jack Williams is now in the perfect spot at Pioneer Park, overlooking one of his finest achievements — the restored sternwheeler Nenana.A crowd of old friends and supporters gathered this week to dedicate the bench to Williams. who dit*d in July 2014 at age 82. Williams devoted many years to restoring historical projects at the 44-acre Pioneer Park.A plaque in front of the black vvTought-iron bench says: “In memory of Jack Williams, a moving force in the fund-raising and volunteer efforts that produced major restorations of Kitty Hensley House, the Harding Railroad Car, the lavelle Young wheelhouse and the Stemwheeler Nenana, id! in Pioneer Park.The special bench had been in the works for several years and was unveiled on a beautiful summer evening last Thursday. Nancv Williams slipped the cover off the sign, created by pioneers, and told the crowd, “This was his pride and joy. the beautiful riverboat sitting there.Jack Williams was involved in many restoration projects at Pioneer Park. He even helped bring the carousel to the park, which is often the highlight of a visit by youngsters.But the stemwheeler was a key focus for Williams. The ship had been piloted upriverKris C appsCttMM! VITV Korncomto Fairbanks and sold to the Centennial Year (196?) Planning Group. The group renovated the interior to accommodate a restaurant, got nd of the staterooms and altered the cargo deck for visitors.Pioneers and the community dove in to help with restoration costs. A nonprofit group called The Historical Preservation Foundation was created to manage donations and grant funds. Williams was a founding member of that foundation.Renovation began in 198? and the “Last Ladv of the Riv-er“ w as declared a National Landmark in 1,992, in large part due to the efforts of Williams and other supporters.The SS Nenana is the largest steamed stemwheeler ever built w est of the Mississippi River and the second largest wooden vessel in existence. It has more than 11.930 square feet of interior exhibit area space and 10,000 square feet of exterior decks.A focal point of the park, the sternwheeler no longer houses a restaurant. It now displays dioramas that depict, in exquisite detail, life in 22 villages along the Tanana and Yukon Rivers, between 1847 and 1932. Those were the
Newspaper Details
Fairbanks Daily News
Fairbanks, Alaska, US
Tue, Aug 29, 2017
Page 3
Full Page
Clipped by
John P.
AK, USA 26 Nov 2024
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