Bill English, Part 1 |
Bill English was interviewed on March 29, 2012 by Leslie McCartney at Elmer E. Rasmuson Library at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Bill's long-time friend Sydnor "Syd" Stealey was also present during the interview. Bill lives in Anchorage, Alaska, but due to his life-long connection with the community of Wiseman, he was visiting Fairbanks to participate in a project sponsored by the University of Alaska Fairbanks' Oral History Program/Project Jukebox and the National Park Service to identify material about Wiseman for possible digitization and public access through the Gates of the Arctic Research Portal. In this first part of a two part interview, Bill talks about his family background, growing up in Wiseman, and his career as a pilot, both as a small plane bush pilot and later as a commercial jet pilot with Wien Airlines.
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2012-03_PT.1 |
Pioneer Aviators |
Mar 29, 2012 |
Bill English, Part 2 |
This is a continuation of an interview with Bill English on March 29, 2012 by Leslie McCartney at Elmer E. Rasmuson Library at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Syd Stealey is also present during the interview. In this second part of a two part interview, Bill continues to talk about his career as a pilot, including flying overseas, and his work as a pilot trainer and FAA pilot certifier.
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2012-03_PT.2 |
Pioneer Aviators |
Mar 29, 2012 |
William and Shirley English |
Bill and Shirley English were interviewed at their home in Anchorage, Alaska on August 4, 1992 by David Krupa. Before consenting to the interview, Bill took time to inquire about the purposes of the project, the background of the interviewer, and the nature of the information sought by the project. At the outset of taping, he modestly disavowed having much to say: ninety minutes later Bill had established an enduring and fascinating record of the early days in Wiseman, Alaska. He discusses early transportation with horse-drawn scows, mail routes from Fairbanks to Tanana and up the Koyukuk, hunting for sheep and caribou with his mother in the uplands, the first plane into Wiseman, the colorful characters who populated the Brooks Range in days past, and his experiences as a commercial pilot in Alaska when aviation was still largely a "seat of the pants" adventure. Both of the English's continuing fondness for the area and its people shine through in this interview, and the tape offers a fascinating glimpse of an earlier era of--perhaps surprisingly to some listeners--more vigorous human activity in the region. Bill recalls Wiseman when it was a community of 2,000: today perhaps fifty individuals reside there permanently. He concludes by saying that when times were good in Wiseman, when people could make a living, it was a warm, gentle, and cooperative community. He expressed his concern that the National Park Service, while doing important work in preservation, must not "lock away" land for the pleasure and use of a few elites at the expense of those who would make this their homeland.
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93-15-14 |
Gates of the Arctic National Park |
Aug 4, 1992 |