Guide to the Else family papers
1957-1961
An Alaska Historical Society collection
Collection number: HMC-1501-AHS.
Creator: Else family.
Title: Else family papers.
Dates: 1957-1961.
Volume of collection: 0.3 cubic feet and 7.17 GB.
Language of materials: Materials in the collection are in English.
Collection summary: Primarily photographs from a family who lived in Anchorage.
Biographical note:
The Else family, consisting of William “Bill” and Irma Else, their daughter Patty, and two sons, Ron and Loren, moved to Anchorage in 1957 when Bill took a job as a corrections officer at the territorial jail. While in Alaska, the family enjoyed visiting Portage Glacier and camping at Long Lake. The family also attended the bonfire and parade in downtown Anchorage celebrating the signing of the Alaska Statehood Act in 1958. Patty Else twirled a baton for the Anchorage High School marching band and graduated in 1960. In June of 1960 Irma’s parents, Jim and Verna Conger, visited from Kansas. The family left Alaska in 1961, after Bill’s job was transferred to Montgomery, Alabama.
Collection description:
The collection consists primarily of photographs, and also includes some papers and memorabilia from the Else family’s time living in Alaska. Most of the photographs are black and white and color negatives, though the collection also includes some prints. Subjects of the photographs include members of the Else family; various leisure activities, such as fishing, boating, bicycling, and camping; events, including Fur Rendezvous, President Dwight D. Eisenhower’s 1960 visit to Anchorage and the Alaska statehood bonfire and parade; the interior of the family’s home; and scenery. Locations depicted in the photographs include Anchorage, Seward, Hope, Portage Glacier, Mount McKinley (now Denali) National Park, Worthington Glacier, Thunderbird Falls, Wasilla Lake, and Long Lake. The papers in the collection include Loren Else’s second grade report card, an “Order of the Cheechako” certificate commemorating Jim Conger’s visit to Alaska, an invitation to Patty Else’s high school graduation, clippings pertaining to the federal jail where Bill worked, and a Certificate of Award from the U.S. Bureau of Prisons. The collection also contains several souvenir pennants from various locations in Alaska. A copy of a scrapbook containing photographs, clippings, pieces of ephemera, and reminiscences compiled by Loren Else is available digitally.
Arrangement: The collection is arranged by document type.
Digitized copies: 225 of the photographs in the collection have been digitized by the donor but are not currently available online. For information about obtaining digital copies, please contact Archives and Special Collections.
Digital materials: The digital contents of this collection are not available online. Access may only be provided on-site in the Archives research room. For more information about potential distance access to digital records, please contact Archives and Special Collections.
Rights note: The Alaska Historical Society holds copyright to this collection and has given the Archives authority to grant use permissions.
Preferred citation: Else family papers, Alaska Historical Society collections, Archives and Special Collections, Consortium Library, University of Alaska Anchorage.
Acquisition note: This collection was donated to the Alaska Historical Society in 2024 by Loren Else, who signed a deed of gift in 2025. The Historical Society retains ownership of the collection and placed it on deposit in Archives and Special Collections in 2024. Additional material was added to the collection in 2025.
Processing information: This collection was described by Gwen Higgins in 2025.
Location of originals: The scrapbook was made available to Archives & Special Collections for scanning and the original remains with the donor.