Tongass National Forest

The bears of Admiralty Island have attracted people from time immemorial. During the 20th Century, developments made it easier for more people to visit the island.

The airplane and the outboard motor increased access and the camera made recreational photography an increasingly popular activity. People visited Admiralty to hunt, fish and photograph the wildlife and natural beauty.

Increased visitation brought increased bear hunting and bear-human interaction. A bear killed Forest Service employee Jack Thayer near Eliza Harbor in 1929. At the time, residents were allowed to kill bears within a mile of their homes in defense of persons and property.

Meanwhile, John Holzworth, with Mole Harbor resident Allen Hasselborg as his guide, spent 1927 to 1930 photographing and studying the bears of Admiralty. His 1930 book The Wild Grizzlies of Alaska suggested that the bears might be an endangered species in danger of extinction, resulting in a pro-conservation sentiment and "Save the Bears Movement."

To counter the "Save the Bears Movement," Deputy Forest Supervisor B. Frank Heintzleman proposed a bear management plan for Admiralty Island. In 1934, the Forest Service, Alaska Game Commission, and Bureau of Biological Survey agreed to a bear management plan. It created 2 bear refuges on the island: 60 square miles in the vicinity of Thayer Mountains and 21 square miles around Pack Creek, with bear observation platforms at each.

The plan also called for establishing public service sites, a system of trails, portages and shelter cabins. The public service sites included the head of Windfall Harbor as a harbor and trail terminal, the portage between Young Bay and Hawk Inlet, and the portage between Oliver Inlet and Seymour Canal. The plan also proposed a trail from the beach of Seymour Canal to a point on Pack Creek for those wishing to observe bears and an observation blind at Pack Creek.

The movement to preserve Admiralty Island and its resources continued in the late 1930’s with discussions regarding the creation of either a national park or national monument or the possibility of adding it Glacier Bay National Monument. Values cited for park status included climax forest, bears, geological and ecological features, as well as archaeological features.

This effort failed but was revived again with the environmental movement of the 1970’s. The movement was strengthened with the passage of the Wilderness Act in 1964 and the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. By presidential proclamation, President Carter designated Admiralty Island as a national monument on December 1, 1978.

A long-term fixture at Pack Creek, Stan Price moved his wannigan, a house on floats, from his gold mine and fur farm near Windham Bay to the northwest portion of Seymour Canal as early as 1956. Although never issued a special use permit by the Forest Service, he lived at Pack Creek and built four additional buildings on the land and cleared two garden plots by 1973. He became known as “the bear man of Admiralty” for his conservation work with brown bears. Remnants of his buildings are still visible.