Guide to the John Rustgard telegram
1912
Collection number: HMC-0955.
Creator: Rustgard, John (b. 1863).
Title: John Rustgard telegram.
Date: 1912.
Volume of collection: 0.02 cubic feet.
Language of materials: The telegram is in English.
Collection summary: A telegram seeking advice on a species classification for bears inhabiting Chichagof Island.
Biographical note:
John Rustgard was born in Norway in 1867. He later attended school in Red Wing, Minnesota and earned a law degree from the University of Minnesota in 1890. He then worked in Minneapolis as a schoolteacher (1890-1892) and lawyer (1892-1900). Rustgard moved to Nome, Alaska where he practiced law, served as mayor (1902) and served two terms as city attorney (1900-1909). He then moved to Juneau where he served as the U.S. District Attorney in the First Judicial Division (1910-1914), had a private law practice (1914-1920), and served as Alaska Territorial Attorney General (1920-1933). He ran for Alaska delegate to the U.S. Congress in 1930. He retired to Babson Park, Florida in 1934 where he died in 1950.
Collection description:
The collection consists of a single telegram from U.S. District Attorney John Rustgard to the Honorable Walter E. Clark in Washington, D.C., February 12, 1912. In the telegram, Rustgard requests the assistance of a mammalogist to settle a dispute over bear skins harvested on Chichagof Island.
Alternative formats: The telegram been digitized and can be viewed on Alaska’s Digital Archives. For information about obtaining copies please contact Archives and Special Collections.
Rights note: Copyright does not apply to this item.
Preferred citation: John Rustgard telegram, Archives and Special Collections, Consortium Library, University of Alaska Anchorage.
Acquisition note: This item was purchased via internet auction by the Archives in 2007.
Processing information: This collection was described by Jeffrey Sinnott in 2007.