Alaska has earned many unique nicknames over its storied history, from the original “Seward's Folly” to the current “Canada's ponytail.” Get a scrunchie-like grip on Alaskan history with today's Groupon to the Museum of Alaska Transportation and Industry, located north of downtown Wasilla. Choose between the following options:
• For $4, you get an adult admission (an $8 value).
• For $9, you get a single-day family admission (an $18 value).
A National Endowment for the Arts–designated Blue Star Museum, the Museum of Alaska Transportation and Industry delves into Alaska’s technological past with more than 20 acres of indoor and outdoor collections. Practice mouth-motor purrs while surveying decommissioned planes, tractors, and automobiles in addition to exhibit halls spanning other aspects of the state’s upbringing, from Eskimo skin boats to frontier ATMs. An exhibit of antique telephones reminds visitors of the days before cell phones were handed out at birth, and a tribute to Alaskan women honors hardscrabble, XX-chromosomed trailblazers. Although this Groupon is not valid on event days, the museum hosts family-friendly affairs and dog-friendly human sled races throughout the season. Check the online list of events for dates and times.
Museum of Alaska Transportation and Industry
The Museum of Alaska Transportation and Industry traces its roots back to 1967, during the centennial celebration of Alaska becoming a territory of the US. At this time, it exhibited only six retired railroad cars that served as troop carriers during World War II and formed the Centennial Train, a traveling historical exhibit. Today, nearly 50 years later, the museum stays put at its 20-acre location that includes a train yard and an exhibit hall, where the staff collects, conserves, and restores artifacts relating to the state’s industrial history.