Oct. 17, 2011: Historian Steven Levi presents the 'Clara Nevada': Gold, greed, murder and Alaska's Inside Passage all come together in a fascinating story
by Kathleen McCoy |
Oct. 17, 5-7 p.m.
UAA Campus Bookstore
Feb. 5, 1898. Witnesses report a giant orange fireball reflected in the glacial waters of Alaska's Lynn Canal. At the height of Klondike gold fever, the Clara Nevada disappeared into an epic storm -- taking passengers and priceless cargo with it. Was the explosion an accident or a robbery gone wrong? Did Captain C. H. Lewis make off with $165,000 ($13.6 million in today'' currency, in raw gold? Or was the sinking case a sea-weary steamer meeting an untimely end?
Alaska historian Steven C. Levi combs the archives to piece together the true account of the Clara Nevada's final voyage, attempting to solve the riddle of the lost steamer that resurfaced 10 years after that tragic night and became known as Alaska's ghost ship. His book includes over 30 amazing archival photos and is dedicated to "the passengers and crew of the Clara Nevada who may have been the victims of one of the largest robberies in American History."
For more information about this free event, visit the UAA Campus Bookstore website or contact Rachel Epstein at (907) 786-4782.
"Oct. 17, 2011: Historian Steven Levi presents the 'Clara Nevada': Gold, greed, murder
and Alaska's Inside Passage all come together in a fascinating story" is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.