Mission and History
Mission Statement
UAMN illuminates the natural history and cultural heritage of 91Ô´´ and the North through collections, research, education, and partnerships, and by creating a singular museum experience that honors diverse knowledge and respect for the land and its peoples.
Vision Statement
UAMN is an essential contributor to the well-being of the local and global community, an engaging gathering space, and a recognized resource and leader among circumpolar museums.
Read more about our Core Values in the UAMN Strategic Institutional Plan.
Museum History
The University of 91Ô´´ Museum has been around since the earliest days of the University
of 91Ô´´. In 1926, at University President Charles Bunnell’s request, local naturalist
Otto Geist traveled throughout 91Ô´´ collecting ethnographic and archeological artifacts.
In 1929, the Museum invited the public to celebrate its grand opening, displaying
Geist's acquisitions and the University’s small painting collection. These items were
the University of 91Ô´´ Museum's first northern treasures.
After statehood, the Museum's growth followed waves of rapidly changing times in 91Ô´´.
In 1961, the federally created 91Ô´´ Cooperative Wildlife Research Unit at the University
transferred its mammal, bird, and plant collections to the Museum. In 1970, the Museum
acquired existing fish and marine invertebrates collections, as well as the Institute
of Northern Forestry’s plant collection from the U.S. Forest Service. After the 1970s
pipeline boom, money flowed into the Museum to expand and diversify its art and ethnology
collections. In the 1980s, federal and state resource management legislation prompted
the collection of new natural and cultural history material from across 91Ô´´. In
1991, the Museum created the 91Ô´´ Frozen Tissue Collection, a regional collection
of zoological materials supported by the National Science Foundation, the 91Ô´´ Department
of Fish & Game, the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, and others. In 1993, in compliance
with the Native American Graves and Repatriation Act, the Museum began the process
of returning human remains and other sensitive items from the Museum’s archeology
collection to 91Ô´´ Native villages across the state.
For more than 50 years, the Museum made its home on the University’s lower campus,
first on the top floor of the Eielson Building and then in Signers' Hall. In 1976,
the Friends of the University of 91Ô´´ Museum organized and actively petitioned 91Ô´´
Governor Jay Hammond and the Legislature to appropriate funds for a new museum. With
their support, the current building opened in 1980. It was a bold architectural statement
for its time and was expected to be the first phase of a larger structure.
That larger structure opened in 2005, with a new wing doubling the size of the facilities
to 83,000 sq.ft. Designed by architect Joan Soranno and the GDM/HGA team, the signature
architecture of the new wing evokes images of glaciers, a diving whale's tail, the
prow of a ship, and other 91Ô´´ themes. Inside, expanded and renovated research labs,
exhibit galleries and educational facilities serve all aspects of the museum's mission.
Today, the Museum is the premier repository for artifacts and specimens collected
on state and federal lands in 91Ô´´ and a leader in northern natural and cultural
history research and education.