Stay at this Fairbanks home lived in by Governor Frank Murkowski and enjoy the river right out the back door.This home was part of the original 165 acre dairy farm from 1930. It is located on 3 park like acres on the Chena River with your own private hot tub. It has a large living area with plenty of seating, beautiful kitchen, 3 bedrooms, 2 full bathrooms, 2 half baths, dining room, a small bar and office area. In the basement is an additional sleeping area and a full gym.
The homestead and dairy originally consisted of approximately 165 acres. It was farmed for winter wheat and pea vines as that was the basic food source for the dairy cows.
The anecdotal history of the house begins back in the 1930’s. The cabin was built first, and later the barn. You can still see the original logs under the crawl space in the garage and the front entry of the cabin was where the walk in pantry is now.
The barn was built specifically to milk the cows and hay was stored in the hayloft above. If you look in the back of the barn there used to be two openings . Three of the boxcars were situated in a row so that the cows would enter one door to be milked and they would exit out the other door into the boxcars where they sheltered in the winter. The cement structure in the front area of the barn still holds the original water trough and the back part of the barn was called, “the milking parlor”. At some point radiant heat was installed under the concrete to warm the barn.
There were also two silos on the property, but those deteriorated many years ago.
We believe the rail cars originated from the Tanana Valley River Railroad (or Tanana Mines Railroad) which was part of the rail service for the old city of Chena. Chena was the original townsite for Fairbanks and was settled in the early 1900’s.
The original cabin was what is now the living room—that’s why the ceiling is so low. Over time, someone jacked up the cabin and dug out a basement. Someone else tacked on four bedrooms upstairs.
In the 1960s, contractor George McClanahan and his family lived in the house. He used his heavy equipment to dig out the pool area, framed it in, and lined it with a rubbery material that he had tested at UAF… supposedly it could get to temperatures as cold as -80 without getting brittle. The pool deck was added in the early 80’s using cedar planks brought up from southeastern Alaska.
The Murkowski family arrived in the summer of 1971. Over the years, they had horses, numerous dogs, cats, ducks, and chickens. In the late ‘70s, they extended the living room area to the south, and added a small extension to the east for the dining room and office area.
When Pope John Paul II and President Ronald Reagan met in Fairbanks in 1984, Reagan’s security detail stayed at the house while Ronald and Nancy Reagan overnighted at the house across the pasture to the north.
Around 1992, the Murkowski’s sold the house to daughter, Eileen Van Wyhe and husband Leon. However, her parents still wanted somewhere to stay in Fairbanks. They discussed refitting the barn, and joked about moving into one of the old boxcars. That created an inspiration: Leon worked with Bernie Karl at the time, and there was a retired Alaska Railroad car in Bernie’s salvage yard. It was hauled to the property on a big flatbed, and restored to its original design as a military troop carrier. It was wider than a standard car and had its own hot water heater. Perfect!
In early 2000’s, the Van Wyhes remodeled the top floor to create a master suite, and added a wine cellar and a home gym in the basement.
Notes of Interest:
The house was built on a knoll and did not suffer damage in the great flood of 1967. It is one of very few homes on the lower Chena River that does not sit on the flood plain.
There is a seam of natural gravel that runs through the middle of the south yard to the river. It results in a gravel beach as opposed to most properties along the Chena River that have a mud beach. The assumption is that at one time a creek ran through the property.
The flagpole is anchored by an old Volkswagon Beetle engine.
There is a large raspberry patch between the Senate car and the other box cars. These are Siberian raspberries which ripen about a week after the wild raspberries. They are twice as big as a wild raspberry and delicious.
There is now a private hot tub.
We are local so if you have any questions or need anything please reach out but all our properties are self check in and check out.
The house is located right off a busy street so there might be some road noise. But it is located on 3 acres directly on the chena river with its own little gravel beach to put your kayaks into the water.
You have sole access to the whole house except for the garage and the supply closets. The yard is shared with the train car vacation rental.
It has a large living area with plenty of seating, beautiful kitchen with a commercial sized range with 2 ovens and a wine fridge. The house has 3 bedrooms upstairs. The main bedroom has a king bed with a private seating area and on suite bathroom. The other 2 bedrooms have a queen bed each and the larger bedroom has a twin sized bed too. There is also a hall bathroom with a shower and tub combo on the 3rd floor. The main floor has a large living room, big kitchen, stylish dinning area, 2 half bathrooms and a room that has a small bar and built in desk. Both the dining room and room with a bar open up on to a massive cedar deck. There is a full sized futon in the living room on the main level. Down stairs is another sleeping area with a bunk bed that has a full sized bed on the bottom and a twin sized bed on top. The other part of the basement has a full gym that includes; a stationary bike, treadmill, dumbbells, free weights and a weight bench with a bar.
We recommend renting a 4 wheel drive or AWD car during your stay as the area's attractions are spread out.
