I’d like to document my Grandfather John Jackson “Johnny” Tully’s life in Anchorage and Palmer. He divided his time between the two locations. Born 12 Sept. 1885 Cornwall, Henry, IL. The family moved to Elyria, Valley, NE in about 1888. Died June 1955 in an Anchorage hospital. Buried in the Pioneer Cemetery in Palmer. I have the obituaries from Anchorage and Palmer papers.

Possibly, he went to AK sometime between 1902 and 1909 for a “look-see,” and he arrived for good in the 1920’s. Made his living working as a trapper, working on the roads, working in construction, homesteader, bought and sold land, and he opened the Arctic Circle Trailer Court (900 block of East 8th at Ingra). He was a ship’s carpenter going from AK to Honolulu (don’t have dates). He was granted homestead patent for 113 acres along the Matanuska River in Palmer (application 7 Nov 1932; patent issued 24 Feb 1939). I have the papers for that. He was not one of the Colonists, although he probably helped with construction both before and after they arrived.

In Anchorage, for the buildup up to WWII, he worked construction for Ft. Richardson and Elmendorf AFB. He also helped build the Mountain View neighborhood and lived there for a time. When was Mt. View built? I’m trying to pin down dates.

MY LOOKUP REQUEST is asking someone to look in the phone directories in the library to see when he is listed as being in Anchorage. Beyond that, please suggest what other resources I can tap. Are there pay records for government work? or lists of government contractors? Where would I find crew lists for freighters?

Thanks so much for any help. I’ll also post something on the Mat-Su message board. Kris