Palmer, Alaska

Episode 428 / 30 September 2023 / 71 min / express

Weak Motives & Wilderness Gangsters

"We're in Palmer Alaska, in southern Alaska, forty five minutes from Anchorage." about 0:03:45

The case: Murder of David Grunwald (November 13, 2016). Read the case file.

The figures, as told in 2023

Population

5,978

Median household income

$62,068

Median home value

$351,300

History, in brief

• In the late 19th century the U.S. government began taking an interest in the coal fields north of Palmer. about 0:05:12
• In 1904 financiers began constructing the Alaska Central Railroad to reach the coal. about 0:05:21
• During World War I the Navy constructed rails from Seward to haul the coal. about 0:05:35
• By the end of World War I the Navy distributed land in the coal fields to war veterans, and additional land was opened to homesteading. about 0:05:43
• By 1917 the town had a post office. about 0:06:00
• The town was originally called Warton before the name was changed to Palmer. about 0:06:03
• During the Great Depression the New Deal Relief Program transplanted struggling farmers from the lower 48 to Palmer. about 0:06:12
• Palmer became famed for 90-pound cabbages, seven-pound turnips and giant root vegetables, helped by 20 hours of summer sun. about 0:06:22

The reviews read out

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