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We are thrilled to announce that conservation work has begun on Bus 142!
You can watch the work happen on the Bus 142 Livestream.
Museum staff and student employees will work with the conservators, B.R. Howard and Associates, to prepare the bus for long-term exhibition. Conservation efforts will include making structural and paint repairs, cleaning, and replacing windows, and preserving the graffiti and epitaphs left by people who visited the bus on the Stampede Trail. The team will also apply protective coatings to prevent further metal deterioration and fading.
Your support is crucial to these efforts. If you have questions about making a donation, please contact Aelin Allegood at 907-378-1205 or ajallegood@alaska.edu.
A grant has been awarded to support Bus 142 conservation work. Read more here:
Major Grant to Support Bus 142 Conservation Work
While the grant provides a big boost for Bus 142's Road to Exhibition, the museum needs to raise significant additional funds to make the final exhibit a reality.
We invite you to virtually explore Bus 142. Learn more here: Bus 142 Virtual Exhibit.
The app will be updated with new images and commentary as progress on Bus 142 occurs.
Thank you for sharing in the Bus 142: Road to Exhibition journey.
Angela Linn, UA Museum of the North Senior Collections Manager, recently provided an update on Bus 142: The Road to Exhibition as part of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Summer Sessions' Discover Alaska lecture series. In this presentation, you'll learn about work taking place behind the scenes and see new Bus 142 images.
Here's the direct link to the presentation on YouTube:
Questions or comments? Please email Aelin Allegood, UAMN Development, at ajallegood@alaska.edu.
Thank you for joining us on this journey!
Bus 142 is making its first public debut in the University of Alaska Fairbanks Engineering Building’s High Bay. On October 6, 2021, Bus 142 moved to this temporary new home for extensive conservation work required to prepare the Bus for exhibition. This state-of-the-art facility is accessible and open to the public from 8 am to 8 pm Monday through Friday and has large glass windows to observe the work for free. The Engineering Building is at 1764 Tanana Loop on the UAF campus. A campus map is available here: www.uaf.edu/campusmap/
The museum must raise the funds for this important work. Please consider a gift to support Bus 142 Conservation today.
The full October 7, 2021 press release can be read here: uaf.edu/news/stampede-trail-bus-moves-to-uaf-engineering-building.php
For questions about donations, please contact Aelin Allegood at ajallegood@alaska.edu or (907) 378-1205.
Two historic auto specialists spent three days in Fairbanks this summer, seeing the proposed exhibit site and examining the bus. This was an essential step in establishing the conservation plan.
Bus 142 is now officially accessioned into the ARCTOS database and assigned a catalog number: https://arctos.database.museum/guid/UAM:EH:UA2020-008-0001
UAMN Ethnology & History Senior Collections Manager Angela Linn and Operations Manager Kevin May have begun to catalog items from inside Bus 142.
We are so grateful for your support!
Stampede Trail bus arriving in Fairbanks for conservation work
CONTACT: Marmian Grimes, 907-460-4750, mlgrimes@alaska.edu
The 1940s-era bus made famous by the book and film “Into the Wild” arrived in Fairbanks this week so that staff at the University of Alaska Museum of the North can begin conservation work.
The former Fairbanks city bus—known as Bus 142—will eventually be displayed by the museum. The Alaska Department of Natural Resources earlier this year removed the bus from the spot where it was abandoned off the Stampede Trail near Healy, Alaska. The museum and DNR signed a formal agreement this week that assigns long-term stewardship of the bus to the museum.
“Bus 142 is an international icon and a fascinating piece of Alaska’s history,” said museum director Patrick Druckenmiller. “Our museum is honored and excited to work with the Bus 142 community and share its story in a safe and respectful manner with our visitors.”
The bus gained notoriety after the release of Jon Krakauer’s 1996 book “Into the Wild” and 2007 film of the same name, which told the story of Chris McCandless, a 24-year-old man who died at the bus site in 1992. Over the years, the bus became a sometimes hazardous destination for visitors, some of whom became lost or injured in their attempts to reach the bus, which required crossing a remote river. Two people in the last decade have died trying to visit the bus, which prompted DNR to take steps to reduce the risk of future injury and death.
The DNR, with the assistance of the Alaska Army National Guard, moved the bus to a storage facility near Anchorage in June. In July, the DNR announced that it planned to house the bus at the UA Museum of the North.
“We at DNR understand that Bus 142 represents the spirit of independence, love of wilderness and more to people around the world,” said DNR Commissioner Corri Feige. “We are grateful that the Museum of the North has agreed to work with us to preserve and display this important historical and cultural artifact, so that visitors to our state can continue to experience and be inspired by the bus, without having to risk their safety or lives to do so.”
The museum’s preservation and interpretation work is expected to take at least two years. The work includes cataloging the bus and objects associated with it, hiring a conservation team that specializes in historic vehicles and fully documenting the history of the collection.
Once the work is completed, the museum hopes to exhibit the bus in the wooded area north of the museum parking lot, with a short trail and interpretive signs to describe the bus’ history.
The museum has also launched a fundraising effort to support the preservation, interpretation and exhibition of the bus. More information can be found on the museum’s website.
ADDITIONAL CONTACT: Dan Saddler, Alaska Department of Natural Resources, dan.saddler@alaska.gov, 907-269-8427.
