The word “Denali” means “the high one” in the native Athabascan language and refers to the mountain itself. The mountain was named after president William McKinley of Ohio in 1897 by local prospector William A. Dickey, although McKinley had no connection with the region. The name is only used by those outside of Alaska.Charles Alexander Sheldon took an interest in the Dall sheep native to the region, and became concerned that human encroachment might threaten the species. After his 1907-1908 visit, he petitioned the people of Alaska and Congress to create a preserve for the sheep.  The park was established asMount McKinley National Park on February 26, 1917. However, only a portion of Mount McKinley (not even including the summit) was within the original park boundary. The park was designated an international biosphere reserve in 1976. A separate Denali National Monument was proclaimed by Jimmy Carter on December 1, 1978.  Mount McKinley National Park, whose name had been subject to local criticism from the onset, and Denali National Monument were incorporated and established into Denali National Park and Preserve two years later.  Through the collective care of park staff and visitors, Denali has become a premier destination for wildlife viewing.

Anderson:  Located forty miles north of the Borough seat, the City of Anderson was incorporated in 1962.

Clear:  The Clear Air Force Station is located 5 miles from Anderson, and employs most of its residents.  The entrance to the Clear Air Force Station is located 3 miles from the main highway and gated for security. The small community known as Clear is located along the George Parks Highway at milepost 280 and encompasses residential homes and businesses.

Anderson was incorporated as a second class city in 1962 and named after Art Anderson, one of the original homesteaders. He came to Alaska from Washington state as a teamster building the Alaska Railroad in 1919 after he had served with General Pershing in WWI. An elementary school opened in 1961 with a high school added in 1971. They are part of the Denali Borough School District. Some residents presently work in Nenana or Healy as well as at the Air Force Station.

Currently, Anderson is best known for its popular Blue Grass and Country Music Festival, held the last weekend of July at the tourist friendly city park of 660 acres. The festival hosted by the Anderson-Clear Lions Club welcomes about 3000 people in a well secured atmosphere. On days when it chooses to show, Mt. McKinley can be seen to the south on the Nenana River at the end of First Street.

Anderson’s other claim to fame is the land rush of 2007 when 26-one acre lots were made available free in a lottery. Seven lots were eventually claimed, one of them as a B&B. The free lots are no longer available.

The largest community and the Borough seat, Healy is located on the George Parks Highway, the Borough’s major north-south highway corridor.  Healy has the largest population with almost 1000 permanent residents. It contains the borough seat, school district offices, both major industries: Usibelli Coal Mine and Golden Valley Power Plant, the only grocery store in the winter, and a secondary industry of summer tourist accomodations and activities – and a golf course.

In 1914, when plans for a railroad were announced, a rail camp was built at the Healy Forks junction, bringing even more settlers to the area.  Once the railroad appeared, it wasn’t long before dozens of underground coal mines were operating along the river banks, providing fuel to the local community and at times sending shipments to other Alaskan locales.  The coal mines in turn lured more pioneers to the area.  Emil Usibelli, an Italian immigrant, arrived as a logger and by 1943 had opened his own successful strip mine near the aptly named Suntrana camp, a word that means “burning hills” in the Athabascan language.  In following years, the Usibelli Coal Mine eventually bought out all the other mines dotting the valley and today is the sole operating coal mine in the state of Alaska.

As more and more settlers and their families moved to the Dry Creek, Healy Fork, and Nenana River valleys, eventually a one room school house was added to the other businesses that were already established — bunk houses, hotels, the post office, “Goat Mary’s beer parlour, a general store and many other roadhouses and churches.  It wasn’t until the 1970’s, once the George Parks Highway was completed, that the center of Healy gradually migrated from the river to its current position along the highway.  Soon more businesses moved in and eventually a larger K-12 school was dedicated, combining the old Healy and Suntrana one-room school buildings.

This is only one small portion of Healy’s early history.  Today, because the community includes the surrounding areas of Ferry and Denali, it is important to remember that while the railroad and coal mines were developing along the river valleys, only twelve miles south amongst the towering mountain peaks of the Alaska Range, other events were unfolding that would eventually produce the Denali National Park and Preserve.  But that is another history with its own story to tell.

Denali National Park entrance lies just south of the Nenana River Canyon where all the concessions for the park are. These include major travel hotels, many small accomodations, and a boardwalk of gift stores, restaurants and activities. All amenities are within walking distance of the park, and are the hub for bus travel into the park.

The Park Entrance area offers a beautiful view of the Nenana River nestled between Sugarloaf Mountain and Mount Healy.  It is within hiking distance to the Denali National Park and Preserve and is home to a strip of lodging facilities, restaurants, shops, RV camping, tours and more that offers something for everyone visiting Alaska in the summer.  This area is completely boarded up during the winter and is open from mid-May to mid-September.

Seventeen miles south of the Borough seat lies the community of McKinley Village and Denali National Park.  There are approximately 200 year-round residents, which reside within a 19-mile stretch of the George Parks Highway.

The first year-round resident of the area was Bill Nancarrow who homesteaded land at Deneki Lakes in 1954, obtaining land staked in 1952. The Denali Highway, linking the Richardson Highway to the McKinley National Park Road, opened in 1957. In 1958, George Lingo opened a hamburger stand near the current site of Denali River Cabins at the crossing of the Nenena River. About a year later, Gary and Linda Crabb built and operated McKinley Village across from Lingo’s business. In 1960, Lingo cleared an airstrip at Mile 229 and readied it for commercial aviation. Today, Denali Air operates from this gravel airfield.

A rough estimate of the local population is approximately 160 year-round residents, but this number swells significantly with the influx of summer seasonal residents and employees. Year-round work can be hard to come by and consequently many people head to the lower 48 for winter. Most year-round residents work for the National Park Service, the Murie Science and Learning Center and the Denali Education Center. Others run home-based small businesses or seasonal summer businesses that require weeks of winter preparation and booking.

The focus of activity is McKinley Park Community Center and Fire Hall. Few businesses remain open in winter, currently 229 Parks is open on weekends; this fine restaurant is a popular gathering spot for local residents seeking good food, libations and music. Dog-mushing, snow-machining and cross-country skiing are also enjoyed by the locals. Temperatures can dip to -50 F and top 80 F in the summer. Recent winters have brought minimal snowfall and summers minimal rain. The Community Center’s new children’s playground is a common gathering spot for families in the summer months.

The Carlo Creek area was claimed by two families: Otto and Billie Stoepler on the West and Jerry and Elaine Pollack on the East side of the Parks Highway.  The Pollacks opened up Jeratad. It had a restaurant and cabins, and was named after their three children, Jerry, Amanda and Tad. The Stoepler’s operated Carlo Creek Cabins.
Eventually. Jeratad was split up into two main pieces, and half was sold to the present owners of the restaurant, who also own Panorama Pizza. The other half was sold to the present owners of Creekside Cabins.

Cantwell, with a population of 222, is located 40 miles south of the Borough seat.  In the winter Cantwell becomes a fantasyland for snowmachiners and ice fisherman alike.  The wide-open tundra covered with deep snow makes this a winter playground.

The town of Cantwell is named after Jim Cantwell, a worker on the Alaska Railroad.  The town began as a flag stop on the Alaska Railroad. Oley Nicklie, a Native Alaskan, sought work with the railroad after fur prices dropped, he and his two brothers founded the settlement.  Prior to the settlement, the only inhabitants of the Cantwell area were nomadic Athabascan Native Alaskans who hunted and fished the area.  The original Cantwell Roadhouse, now called Cantwell Lodge, was built in 1935 by John Carlson.  Cantwell School started out in the Pentecostal Church parsonage in 1940, and, as all burgeoning towns must, it grew into a one room building, then a two room building, and finally was added on to the new school in the 1950’s.  The old two room building is still attached and the original outhouse can still be seen behind the Cantwell Lodge.

The next large expansion was seen in 1957 when the Denali Highway opened, linking Cantwell to Paxton and the eastern network of Alaskan Highways. This gravel road is primarily a seasonal road due to heavy snow. The George Parks Highway didn’t officially open till 1970, so the Denali Highway was the major connection to civilization for Cantwell, aside from the railroad. However, there were no businesses at the intersection or along the highways until the Parks Highway was in use.

Cantwell is still a major cultural center for the Ahtna group of natives. The Cantwell Native Council is located in the current community building which, along with native housing, was built in the 1970’s.

Also located in the Community Center is Community of Cantwell, Inc., which is the parent organization for the local EMS, which consists of one ambulance, one fire truck, one tanker truck and both summer and winter rescue equipment. All of which are operated entirely by a volunteer group of residents. They support all of the EMS units north of Cantwell and also work with the units from Trapper Creek and Talkeetna.

Cantwell is known as the southern entrance to Denali National Park. While there isn’t a formal road into the park from the Cantwell area, there are many trails and guiding services to assist in a more wilderness experience.

Cantwell served as a filming location for the 2007 movie Into The Wild.

The small community of Kantishna lies at the end of the 92 mile Denali National Park road.  Nestled in the “foot hills” of Mt McKinley, it was founded as a gold mining camp in 1905.  Situated closer to the source of the gold, Kantishna Mine was more successful and longer running than others in the area.  It was also the home of legendary Fanny Quigley, who lived there, mining, hunting, homesteading and gardening from 1906 to 1944.

Today, the “town” of Kantishna is the site of four tourist based lodges, with the only transportation to and from provided by bush plane and tour buses along the Park Road.