May 16, 2024 is the 223rd birthday of the one and only William Henry Seward. In honor of this, Cook Inlet Historical Society’s final event for their lecture series this season will be a program featuring songs, instrumental music, dramatic readings and a look at the life of the man who helped make Alaska part of the United States. It’s called “Seward’s Follies: The Life And Legacy Of William H. Seward.”
On this episode of Hometown, Alaska we find out about the event, discuss Seward’s political career and examine the driving force behind his motives to expand the territory of the United States.
HOST: Ammon Swenson
GUESTS:
Laura Koenig, artistic director, Anchorage Festival of Music, adjunct professor of music, University of Alaska Anchorage, board member, Cook Inlet Historical Society, producer, “Seward’s Follies.”
Stephen Haycox, emeritus professor of history at the University of Alaska Anchorage
LINKS:
Cook Inlet Historical Society
Shake City String Band
Rachel Taylor Brown
Walter Stahr, “Seward: Lincoln’s Indispensable Man” Simon & Schuster, 2012.
Seward Family Digital Archive
Ammon Swenson is Alaska Public Media’s Audio Media Content Producer. He was born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska. He graduated from UAA in 2018 with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and integrated media. He’s previously worked for KRUA radio, the Anchorage Press, and The Northern Light.
