
The Story of Coldfoot and College
From Tell Your Story Alaska by Billy Tjernlund
November 11, 2025 · 18 min
About this episode
This episode explores the history of Coldfoot and College in Alaska, highlighting their significance in gold mining and education.
Coldfoot got it's name from gold prospectors traveling their way up the tundra and got "cold feet" and turned around. It became a lively stop for gold miners, but as soon as the gold dried up, so did the town. It was abandoned until the Alaska Pipeline construction project in the 1970s made Coldfoot a base of operations. Today, Coldfoot functions as a truck stop for travelers heading north along the Dalton Highway. College is host the the University of Alaska at Fairbanks which has shaped what the town of College has become today. UAF is considered one of the premier institutions for Arctic studies as they host a wide range of scientific studies of the Arctic including dinosaur bone digs in Alaska! Contact the show at tysalaska@gmail.com TYSA Logo was created by Evan Van Kirk Music was created by Isaac Bedingfield
People in this episode
Host: Billy Tjernlund
Topics covered
- gold mining
- town history
- Alaska Pipeline
- Arctic studies
- University of Alaska
Keywords
- Coldfoot
- College
- gold prospectors
- Alaska Pipeline
- University of Alaska
- Arctic studies
- Dalton Highway
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: University of Alaska at Fairbanks
Places: Coldfoot, College, Alaska, Dalton Highway
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