Welcome to Skagway, Alaska
Skagway is a quintessential municipality situated at Southeast Alaska in the United States, with a population of almost a thousand residents and a considerably low population density. The summer months occur sometime around the middle of the year, the warmest spanning from June to August.
It is a popular holiday destination in the region, and welcomes an impressive hundreds of thousands of visitors during the tourist season. Its tourism industry plays a large role in boosting the economy of this town.
Skagway is also a port that is both conveniently and strategically located. This transportation hub connects Alaska with many parts of the world, incl. the Yukon Territory (northwestern Canada), Asia, as well as Europe. The awe-inspiring gateway is highly a popular stop, particularly for cruise liners. Passengers can stretch their legs and capture the snow-capped mountain scenery on their cameras before they set off to continue their journey.
Despite Skagway being considered a relatively small borough, it has quite a lengthy history that roots back to prehistoric times. The calm, tranquil and slow-paced lifestyle that present residents now enjoy have concealed the shocking past of lawlessness and disorder that this small town had to once endure and eventually overcome.
Arts & Crafts
The arts and crafts culture of Skagway reflects its long and eventful history. From the prehistoric inhabitants (Tlingit) that were skillful in creating meticulous designs evident in the clothes worn by them, and carvings, e.g. weapons used, the totem poles, and so on, to present day designs that are both modern and those influenced by previous works done.
Skagway’s European influence in terms of arts began some time during the Gold Rush era. For example, the well-known jewelry designer Herman Kirmse from the late 1890s who used mainly gold and ivory in his creations. In the early 1900s arts and crafts such as quality furniture, paintings, photography, etching, etc. became very popular and played an important role in further shaping the contemporary arts scene.
Skagway offers a variety of places where tourists can buy locally produced arts and crafts. A few examples include stained glass designs at Translucent Treasures, carved jewelry at Schindler Carvings, paintings from Tina Cyr Designs, carved sculptures and jewelry at Wassman Art-Effects, porcelain jewelry at Gold Vein Designs, photographs by Dimitra Lavrakas Photography, etc.
Visitors who prefer to explore galleries and hobby stores might like to try: Changing Tides & Cross Stitch Gallery on Broadway, Etc Fabrics, Pine Country Crafts, Dirce Anns Fabrics, Inside Passage Arts, Skagway Artwork, Echoes of Alaska, etc.
