My husband and I (Kim) traveled back to Alaska last fall to do more research and soak in all the beauty of our favorite places. When we lived in Alaska, we never tired of taking trips off the beaten path. This last trip was no exception.
Walking through the deep, overgrown grass that covers the location of Curry now, it was easy for my mind to wander back to its days of glory. What a beautiful place it must have been to visit and even live!
One of my greatest wishes was that the suspension bridge still stood and crossed the Susitna. I would have loved to walk across it and climb up Curry Ridge. While I’ve been on Curry Ridge from the other direction, there’s just something about imagining what it would have been like to cross the river the same way the people of 1926 did. (We hired a helicopter to take us back to Curry Ridge where the historic lookout still stands, but sadly, the weather never cooperated.)
The scene where little Davey falls into the river from the bridge is every parent’s nightmare. The original suspension bridge across the river built in 1924 was very sturdy and quite safe, but the walkway was made of planks and the sides only consisted of cables/ropes vertically and horizontally that connected to the large cables that spanned the river from the towers. A really great look at the original suspension bridge is here: http://www.alaskarails.org/mem/ARR/pc/curry-bridge.jpg. But a later picture of the bridge shows more reinforcement: http://www.alaskarails.org/historical/curry/suspension-bridge.jpg.
The addition of the cottages and bunkhouse at Curry actually happened in 1925, but we fictionalized it for 1926. The buildings were built by the navy back when Chickaloon boomed in the coal industry.
The engine house and power plant had been under the same roof until the fire of 1926. No one was killed in the fire caused by coal dust finding its way into an overheated smokestack of a locomotive. When they rebuilt the engine house, they also rebuilt the power plant—on the other side of the tracks this time.
The Druze Revolt is another incredible piece of world history, but not one that many people know about. Since Jean-Michel was French, we decided to use this little tidbit, but the story about the burning of innocent people is something we created. We don’t know if anything like that may have actually happened, and it is not our intention to say that it is a part of history. Please remember this is a work of fiction. But Jean-Michel’s war experiences are loosely based on stories my own dear grandpa shared about war and what he went through.
Katherine is named after a dear friend—Katherine Prejean. One of the best people I’ve ever known. One of the most beautiful hearts I’ve ever known. And no matter the years or the distance—we will always be kindred spirits. And she’ll always be Angi to me.
While there were many men who ran the Curry Hotel kitchen and worked in it over the years (as evidenced in several historical photos), we’ve chosen to make the head chef be a woman—Mrs. Johnson. She is a feisty character we fell in love with while writing In the Shadow of Denali. Her irritating Scotsman Chef Daniel Ferguson is purely fictional.
Senator Wesley Jones was a real Republican senator from Washington State at this time, but we made up his appearance at the Curry. We have no idea if he actually visited Alaska. For the purposes of the story, we needed to bring a politician onstage.
Finally, Cassidy’s story is a tribute to Cassidy Hale (see the dedication page in In the Shadow of Denali). Precious girl, taken from us way too soon. But God in His infinite wisdom is using her story to further His story. Let it shine, let it shine, let it shine.
We hope you join us for book three in THE HEART OF ALASKA, Under the Midnight Sun, where a brilliant National Park naturalist and interpreter—Tayler Hale—joins Mrs. Johnson, Collette, Cassidy and Allan, Jean-Michel, Katherine, and Thomas in Curry.
We are so thankful for all of you—our readers.
Until next time . . .
Enjoy the journey,
Kim and Tracie