Alaska marks 55th anniversary of statehood

Editor’s note: In celebration of the 55th anniversary to the state of Alaska, which was admitted into the Union Jan. 3, 1959, the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman is reprinting a story from the Jan. 8, 1959, edition marking the historic occasion.

Ceremony marks Alaska admission as 49th state

Jan. 3 was a big day for Alaska. On that date, President Eisenhower issued his proclamation admitting Alaska as the 49th state of the Union. Sens. E.L. (Bob) Bartlett and Ernest Gruening were present at the White House ceremony, along with Rep. Ralph J. Rivers and three men who attended at the invitation of the president to witness the historic event.

They were Waino E. Hendrickson; acting governor Robert B. Atwood, chairman of the Alaska Statehood Committee; and Mike Stepovich, who resigned as governor of Alaska in July to run unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate. Gov. William A. Egan was unable to leave Juneau to attend.

Washington officials at the ceremony were Vice President Richard M. Nixon, Sam Rayburn of the House of Representatives and Fred A. Seaton, Secretary of the Interior.

One feature of the ceremony was the unveiling by the president of the new American flag. It will consist of seven rows of seven stars, arranged in staggered lines.