Joe Spenard
Encyclopedia
Joe Spenard was an early settler of Anchorage, Alaska
. Lake Spenard, Spenard Road, and the city of Spenard, Alaska
(now incorporated into the Municipality of Anchorage) bear his name.
about 1910, working for the Alaska Securities Company in Valdez
before striking out on his own as a pushcart vendor.
In 1916, Spenard came to Anchorage, which had only been named the previous year. He is credited with bringing the first automobile to Anchorage, a truck manufactured by the REO Motor Car Company
. He also owned a 1915 Ford Model T
which served as the city's first taxicab.
Spenard started a hauling business called the City Express. Flamboyantly decked out in a yellow suit and a top hat, he promoted his services with the slogan, "Time and Tide will Not Wait, But City Express Is Never Late." A newspaper ad for the service contained the following poem:
He built a logging road from the Anchorage city boundary at Ninth Avenue and L Street, across Chester and Fish Creek, to what was then called "Jeter Lake" after homesteader Thomas Jeter. The trail and lake would later come to be known respectively as Spenard Road and Lake Spenard. As the area attracted settlers, it became known as the city of Spenard.
Spenard came under the scrutiny of the National Forest Service for clearing an area on the lake's edge and constructing a dance pavilion in what was then part of the Chugach National Forest
. In 1916, he held the first Anchorage Ice Carnival there. In 1917, the pavilion burned down, but the lake continued to be known as a recreational hot spot.
Spenard's health failed and he sold his business and moved to Sacramento, California
, where he died in 1934.
Anchorage, Alaska
Anchorage is a unified home rule municipality in the southcentral part of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the northernmost major city in the United States...
. Lake Spenard, Spenard Road, and the city of Spenard, Alaska
Spenard, Alaska
Spenard is a neighborhood in the Municipality of Anchorage, Alaska, United States and was historically a separate city from Anchorage. Spenard maintains the flavor of a separate community today, with "Spenardi Gras" being its primary community celebration that encourages a sense of solidarity and...
(now incorporated into the Municipality of Anchorage) bear his name.
Biography
Joseph A. Spenard was born in Ottawa, Canada in 1879. He came to AlaskaAlaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
about 1910, working for the Alaska Securities Company in Valdez
Valdez, Alaska
Valdez is a city in Valdez-Cordova Census Area in the U.S. state of Alaska. According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 4,020. The city is one of the most important ports in Alaska. The port of Valdez was named in 1790 after the Spanish naval officer Antonio Valdés y...
before striking out on his own as a pushcart vendor.
In 1916, Spenard came to Anchorage, which had only been named the previous year. He is credited with bringing the first automobile to Anchorage, a truck manufactured by the REO Motor Car Company
REO Motor Car Company
The REO Motor Car Company was a Lansing, Michigan based company that produced automobiles and trucks from 1905 to 1975. At one point the company also manufactured buses on its truck platforms.REO was initiated by Ransom E. Olds during August 1904...
. He also owned a 1915 Ford Model T
Ford Model T
The Ford Model T is an automobile that was produced by Henry Ford's Ford Motor Company from September 1908 to May 1927...
which served as the city's first taxicab.
Spenard started a hauling business called the City Express. Flamboyantly decked out in a yellow suit and a top hat, he promoted his services with the slogan, "Time and Tide will Not Wait, But City Express Is Never Late." A newspaper ad for the service contained the following poem:
Four bits is my middle name,
Truck and passengers just the same
No matter from whence you came,
City Express is in the game.
He built a logging road from the Anchorage city boundary at Ninth Avenue and L Street, across Chester and Fish Creek, to what was then called "Jeter Lake" after homesteader Thomas Jeter. The trail and lake would later come to be known respectively as Spenard Road and Lake Spenard. As the area attracted settlers, it became known as the city of Spenard.
Spenard came under the scrutiny of the National Forest Service for clearing an area on the lake's edge and constructing a dance pavilion in what was then part of the Chugach National Forest
Chugach National Forest
-External links:*****...
. In 1916, he held the first Anchorage Ice Carnival there. In 1917, the pavilion burned down, but the lake continued to be known as a recreational hot spot.
Spenard's health failed and he sold his business and moved to Sacramento, California
Sacramento, California
Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Sacramento County. It is located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in the northern portion of California's expansive Central Valley. With a population of 466,488 at the 2010 census,...
, where he died in 1934.