Governor of Alaska, Mike Stepovich (Stijepović) Dedicated to Judy Ferguson, great researcher and chronicler of events at Alaskans.

The Stepovich family in the governor's office in 1958 Pictures of the Stijepović family are part of the Judy Ferguson collection, Montenegro.com them publishes with her consent. For each unauthorized download fits - rights reserved. At the beginning of the last century in the rivers of people who during the great gold the fever in search of dreams of prosperity and wealth went to Alaska there was also a large number of Montenegrins. They were from all over Montenegro. It was mainly about people who had been staying and working in the city for some time other parts of the USA. Lured by stories of great earning opportunities in the harsh regions of Alaska, they moved further north towards more unexplored territories, inhabited only by Indian tribes. Many pioneers from Montenegro left the wasteland of the former "Russian America". their bones or disappeared forever without a trace. Only one of them succeeded they found what they were looking for, became rich and returned most often to the warmer parts of America, others again became famous and successful citizens of Alaska and remained where their sons, grandsons, great-grandchildren... According to the data provided to me in the last few years by friends from the Alaska Genealogical Society so far I am in the process of searching that material managed to find about 400 names of people who immigrated to these parts of the world with place of birth in the territory of today's Montenegro. There are people from all over the world, and most of them moved there from Montana, where they are already had spent some time, a smaller number arrived there directly from Montenegro. Of course, families should be singled out among the multitude of our settlers Hajduković, Stijepović, Dapčević, Milaić and of course all other names whose members stand out among the most respected and deserving people in this area of the world. Famous pioneer John Hajduković, founder of the city of Fairbanks, of the man whose house "Rika Hoadhouse" is today a museum and part of the American national treasure, who was remembered as the main government negotiator with to the Indian tribes of the area, the tireless explorer who got it the name and mountain "Mont Hajdukovich", etc. Like many others, this very important page of our nation's history is also to some miraculously we forgot. Carelessness, lack of adequate institutions and more a lot of things. Fortunately, the great effort, success and suffering is theirs even though it is from us almost completely forgotten, they fascinated some other hardworking and smart people people who did what is the duty of each of us who care a little to the preservation of the roots of remembrance of the achievements and works of our people in the diaspora. Today, thanks to the long-term work and commitment of the American writer Judy Ferguson, who devoted many pages of her previous work to this to our emigrants as well as the book "Parallel Destinies" inspired by the life of John (Jove) Hajdukovich, we have the opportunity to discover a large number of undiscovered pages of the history of our emigration.

The Stijepović family in 2000 Pictures of the Stijepović family are part of the Judy Ferguson collection, Montenegro.com them publishes with her consent. For each unauthorized download fits - rights reserved. Mike Stepovich (Stijepović) Marko Stijepović from Risno, in order to avoid military service in At the age of 16, he made the decision to go to the USA to the Austrian army. He was discovered as a stowaway in Baltimore where he disembarks from the ship and sets off to Fresno, California with a relative who had lived there for some time. Following the rumor of the gold rush, with 800 USD in his pocket in 1897, he went to Alaska, where in 1902 he permanently settled in Fairbanks. Upon arrival during his trip to Alaska, he goes through many unforeseen events situations, rafting, mountain climbing and real adventures. It begins with trade, mostly in minerals, which took place on the route Fairbanks - Seattle. The business becomes very lucrative and slowly earned money starts investing in real estate. In 1918, he met Olga Barta in Portland his first wife. In 1919, Mark's son, Mike Stepovich, was born in Fairbanks, Alaska (Stijepović). However, in the meantime, Marko and his first wife, Olga, disassemble. Olga was from a family that also originated from of our region, but which belonged to the upper middle class, accustomed to easy and luxurious life she could not adapt to isolation and harshness Fairbanks climate. A few years later, Marko goes to visit the old neighborhood where he came from returns with his bride Vuka Radović. By the way, Vuka was a girl who for years she read the letters he sent from America to Marko's mother in Risno. Po by the sayings of Mika, the later Governor, Vuk, even though his stepmother used to care for him treats him even better than his own children and considers himself to be she played a crucial role in returning to Fairbanks and her life and career ties to Alaska. Young Mike was very talented in both sports and science, he was outstanding basketball player (he was also offered a contract with the Red Sox from Boston). However, he decides to study and attend Gonzaga University graduated in 1941. After that, he entered North Dame Law School, which also finishes with brilliant success, and post-graduate studies in law ends in Santa Clara in 1946. In 1947, he married Matilda Baričević with whom he had seven children and went to live on his father's estate in Fairbansk, where he opens a private law office. He has been doing it for a while with independent advocacy, but the education and intelligence of this one a talented man could not go unnoticed. At the insistence and with the help of John Butrovich, who was one at the time one of the most important figures on the political scene of Alaska begins his political career career. Already in 1950 he became the mayor, in 1953 he became a member of the territorial council of Alaska (at that time it was not yet a state) and in 1953 goes to the territorial senate. In 1957, he became the governor of Alaska, more specifically, the latter governor of the Alaska Territory. After the termination of Mika's mandate Stepovich's Alaska becomes a federal state, and it is to his credit very significant. In 1958, he was also a candidate for the US Senate, but candidate Gruebing defeated him by only 900 more votes. Mike Stepovich is a man of our origin who has so far experienced the greatest success in American politics, his name is ubiquitous in the history of this American states. Hanging out with Judy Ferguson while I just listened for hours and hours incredible stories, about Montenegrins, families, their life in Alaska, about her inspiration. While listening to those stories about the successes and failures of many famous people from our country ends. About her experiences from talking to them, her wishes and expectations.I realized that with our acquaintance we laid the foundation for something that will surely happen to further enlighten knowledge in this field, as evidenced by this text and to make these two countries so far away, Montenegro and Alaska which connected by only one, but very important thing, the legacy of our settlers connect much more tightly. Pregalastv and all that was left behind by our pioneers in Alaska as well as the deeds of their descendants that are yet to come are an invisible bridge that will last forever to join a small Mediterranean country with a large ice-encircled land on the far north of the "new" world. Gordan Stojović