Guide to the Michael B. Ardaw Charitable Trust records
1943, 1966-1992
Collection number: HMC-0469.
Creator: Michael B. Ardaw Charitable Trust.
Title: Michael B. Ardaw Charitable Trust records.
Dates: 1943, 1966-1992.
Volume of collection: 0.3 cubic feet.
Language of materials: Collection materials in English.
Collection summary: Papers relating to a trust funding scholarships to university students.
Organizational history:
Michael B. Ardaw was born on January 10, 1892 in Siberia, Russia. He served in the Russian army on the western from 1914 to 1915, with the Self Defense Civilian Organization from 1917 to 1918, and as an engineer in the army before the revolution. During the Bolshevik Revolution, Ardaw fled Russia to India through Tibet. He then traveled by steamer to the United States where he found work in California with the National Parks Service. In 1940, Ardaw moved to Seward on a contract with the U.S. Army and was assigned to help build Fort Richardson in Anchorage. In 1943, he purchased a homestead on Nancy Lake. Every year on July 4, Mr. Ardaw hosted a large picnic at the homestead for everyone in the Nancy Lake area. In 1974 after his cabin burned down, Ardaw placed his homestead in a trust established to provide continued access to the marina for fishing and camping in the area. Proceeds earned from the marina are put into the trust to provide scholarships to students attending the Univrsity of Alaska. Michael Ardaw, also called “Russian Mike” by his friends, died on April 30, 1978.
Collection description:
This collection consists of records relating to the Michael Ardaw Charitable Trust. The records are divided into three series: biographical materials on Michael Ardaw, correspondence, and legal files. The biographical materials include University of Alaska Anchorage enrollment forms, obituaries, and a will. The Trust correspondence series documents Trust activities. The legal files series includes lease agreements and copies of deeds.
Arrangement: Documents are arranged roughly chronologically within series.
Rights note: The Archives does not hold copyright on these items.
Preferred citation: Michael B. Ardaw Charitable Trust records, Archives and Special Collections, Consortium Library, University of Alaska Anchorage.
Acquisition note: The collection was presented to the Archives in 1997 by Arliss Sturgulewski.
Processing information: This collection was arranged and described by Kathleen Hertel in 1999. Additions to the collection were made in 2008 and the collection description and inventory were rewritten at that time.
Container list:
Series 1: Biographical materials; 1966-1981.
| Folder | Description | Date |
| 1 | Last will and testament, codicils, amendments | 1966, 1974 |
| 2 | Enrollment papers, University of Alaska Anchorage | 1974 |
| 3 | Obituary | 1978 May 12 |
| 4 | Alaska State Legislature memorial | 1981 June 19 |
| 5 | Assorted textual items | Undated |
| 6 | 2 oral history cassette tapes | 1972, 1978 |
Series 2: Trust correspondence; 1966-1992.
| Folder | Date |
| 6 | 1966 |
| 7 | 1974 |
| 8 | 1983-1984 |
| 9 | 1987 |
| 10 | 1988 |
| 11 | 1989 |
| 12 | 1990 |
| 13 | 1992 |
Series 3: Legal files; 1943-1992.
| Folder | Description | Date |
| 14 | Trust agreement, amendments | 1966, 1973, 1977 |
| 15 | Trust deeds | Undated, 1966 |
| 16 | Interim Trust forms | 1966, 1974 |
| 17 | Nancy Lake lease agreement with Burlile | 1966-1967 |
| 18 | Proposed Nancy Lake lease agreement with Bowman | 1973 |
| 19 | Nancy Lake Marina Complex lease agreement with Michael Ardaw Charitable Trust | 1974 November |
| 20 | Nancy Lake lease agreements, correspondence | 1974-1976 |
| 21 | Nancy Lake lease agreements, general documents | 1974 |
| 22 | Scholarship fund, correspondence | 1966, 1972, 1973, 1986, 1989-1991 |
| 23 | Scholarship fund, general documents | 1966, 1972, 1974, 1990 |
| 24 | Scholarship fund, general documents | 1990-1992 |