Qualla: Whittier: The Town That Lives in One Building

Whittier: The Town That Lives in One Building: Introduction

Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Sompop S from Los Angeles, US of A, CC BY 2.0. Begich Towers has 196 apartments. It also has Whittier's school, police station, post office, church, grocery store, and most of the town's 200 residents. The 14-story concrete building, originally built as barracks for the Cold War military, became Whittier's de facto downtown when the army left in the 1960s. Living elsewhere is possible - a few residents occupy the second former barracks building - but impractical: Whittier receives 22 feet of snow annually, temperatures drop below zero, and winds exceed 60 mph. The tunnel connecting Begich Towers to the Buckner Building (abandoned) and the ferry terminal is how residents reach the outside world. Whittier isn't a town with a building; it's a building that became a town.

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Image: Sompop S from Los Angeles, US of A | CC BY 2.0

Whittier: The Town That Lives in One Building: The Origins

Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit 127x0x0x1 at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0. The U.S. Army built Whittier during World War II as a secret port facility - its location behind the Chugach Mountains, accessible only by tunnel, made it invisible to Japanese reconnaissance. The two massive barracks buildings, Hodge and Buckner, housed troops in what were then ...

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Image: 127x0x0x1 at English Wikipedia | CC BY-SA 3.0

Whittier: The Town That Lives in One Building: The Building

Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Christoph Strässler from Oberdorf BL, Schweiz, CC BY-SA 2.0. Begich Towers is Whittier. The 14-story concrete structure contains one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments, a small grocery (Whittier's only store), a bed-and-breakfast, a church, the mayor's office, and a school that serves the dozen or so children in town. The building has a la...

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Image: Christoph Strässler from Oberdorf BL, Schweiz | CC BY-SA 2.0

Whittier: The Town That Lives in One Building: The Access

Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Frank Kovalchek, CC BY 2.0. Reaching Whittier requires commitment. The Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel, at 2.5 miles the longest combined rail and highway tunnel in North America, provides the only land access. The tunnel is one-lane, alternating traffic direction every 30 minutes; miss your window and wait....

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Image: Frank Kovalchek | CC BY 2.0

Whittier: The Town That Lives in One Building: The Life

Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit born1945 from Hillsboro, Oregon, USA, CC BY 2.0. Living in Begich Towers is like living in a college dorm, a retirement home, and a survivalist compound simultaneously. Everyone knows everyone; privacy is limited; community is mandatory. The school, which sometimes has more teachers than students, occupies a tower floor. The ch...

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Image: born1945 from Hillsboro, Oregon, USA | CC BY 2.0

Whittier: The Town That Lives in One Building: Visiting Whittier

Mon, 12 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT

Photo credit Randy Wick, CC BY 2.0. Whittier is located on Prince William Sound, roughly 60 miles southeast of Anchorage via the Anton Anderson Memorial Tunnel. The tunnel toll is steep ($13 one-way in 2024); timing is essential, as the alternating-direction system creates 30-minute waits for vehicles traveling the...

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Image: Randy Wick | CC BY 2.0