Alaska Far Away 16 years old

The New Deal Pioneers of the Matanuska Colony

Alaska Far Away

'Alaska Far Away' tells the story of the Matanuska Colonization Project of 1935, a creative and controversial New Deal program that relocated 202 families devastated by the Great Depression, taking them from the upper Midwest to the Matanuska Valley in Alaska to start an experimental farming colony. It generated a whirlwind of publicity and controversy at the time, not only as a federally-funded social experiment, but also as one of the last pioneer movements in America. The Matanuska Colony isn't just a fascinating footnote to the history of Alaska. It encompasses the despair of the Depression, the creative energy of the New Deal, the adventure of pioneering in Alaska, and the best and worst of our government and ordinary citizens in facing those extraordinary challenges.

Credits

Alaska Far Away Cast

Name Character
Peter Coyote He was 66, now 83 years old as Narrator

Alaska Far Away Crew

Name Department
Alaska Far Away poster
Alaska Far Away (16 years)

The New Deal Pioneers of the Matanuska Colony

  • Release day: Thursday, March 06, 2008
  • Runtime: 91 minutes