How Deadhorse Got Its Name
(From
the Prudhoe Bay Journal by Deborah Bernard)
Did you ever wonder how a
community in the farthest north oil patch, devoid of horses, could come to be called Deadhorse? Schoolchildren have written to the Prudhoe
Bay Post Office asking just this question.
Newcomers to the Slope have asked.
And this reporter has heard a dozen different stories about the origin
of the colorful, yet macabre, name.
Some
theorize that a miner rode a horse to this area, and decided to stay. The lack of fillies and the abundance of
mosquitoes drove the horse insane.
(Hence “Crazyhorse Hotel”). But
soon, a doe-eyed caribou caught the horse’s fancy, and a “meaningful
relationship” between the two delighted the horse. (“Happy Horse Hotel” might
be a tribute to the pair). And then,
the brutal, merciless winter hit, and the poor horse couldn’t survive. Yup.
Deadhorse.
Nice
theory, but I don’t believe it.
Another story in recent circulation cites a
cheechako who somehow wandered into the Beaufort Sea area, found a caribou
skull, and mistakenly proclaimed that this sign would be used to name this area
Deadhorse.
Nope, don’t buy it.
Because I have found out the truth, the real
origin of the name “Deadhorse” told to me by not one, but three different
old-timers who have worked on the Slope since cat train days. Since the days before there were women,
roads, or flush toilets. And herewith,
my dear readers, is the true origin of the name Deadhorse.
Once
upon a time, a very famous, very rich man in New York set up a $6 million trust
fund for his son. The only catch was
this son couldn’t collect the money until he was 35 years old. The young heir went to Alaska to do odd jobs
and to wait until his 35th birthday came. In the meantime he met some people who owned some gravel hauling
equipment. He talked the father into
co-signing a loan for this company, which despite the sincerity of the owner,
was in danger of financial bankruptcy.
So,
the father co-signed a loan for this company.
Things went from bad to worse and he found himself in possession of
several dump trucks, pieces of equipment and a hauling company. He put the heir in charge of it, and named
it “Deadhorse Haulers.”
Now,
at this point the story branches out into two versions:
One
story says the “Deadhorse Haulers” got its name because, at that time, the
trucking company had the contract to haul away dead horses in the Fairbanks
area. A summertime contract.
The
other story says that the father, disgruntled that he was financially
responsible for the ill-fortuned gravel company, said, “I hate to put money
into feeding a dead horse”. Hence the
name. I like the second story better.
Anyway, Burgess Construction won the contract to build the first
airstrip at Prudhoe Bay. Burgess hired
Deadhorse Haulers to do the gravel work for the first airstrip. Soon everyone was calling the Prudhoe Bay
airstrip “Deadhorse” and the name stuck.
As time went on, the entire area came to be known as Deadhorse. Pilots requesting landing clearance would
radio the “Deadhorse Tower”.
That
name, in fact, may have stuck a bit too well.
Deadhorse today is the designation for a small community right around
the Deadhorse airport. It is the most
highly concentrated business area of the whole North Slope, but for Prudhoe Bay
to be known as Deadhorse is a bit like New York City being known simply as “The
Bronx”.
The
name persists, nonetheless. The Prudhoe
Bay Community Council recently voted to change its name to “Deadhorse Community
Council”. Proponents cited the color
and uniqueness of the name. Opponents
thought the name was too restrictive for a group that represents all of Prudhoe
Bay and the Kuparuk oilfields as well.
When
Prudhoe Bay finally, officially, became a real place on June 3, 1982 with the
granting of its own zip code, Elaine
Childs, holder of the post office contract in Prudhoe Bay, rejoiced. Her elation was a bit watered down when the
new zip code directory came out and listed “Deadhorse AK 99734” and did NOT
list Prudhoe Bay at all.
Names are a funny thing, and hard to
change. It could be worse, however,
when you think of “Jackass Flats, WY” and “East Podunk, KY”, one has to admit
it could be worse.
This reporter, however, will continue to tell
her friends and relatives that she
works and resides in Prudhoe Bay.
Deborah Bernard.