Historic Anchorage

Alaska is a land known for pioneers and
pioneer spirit. Without such brave
individuals, Alaska would still be a remote
destination, cut off by distance from the rest
of the world. But Alaska is in touch—and we
have pioneers like August G. “Augie” Hiebert
to thank for that!
Augie is a humble, soft-spoken man who
doesn’t see himself as a hero. He will tell you
that he was just fortunate enough to bring the
right skills to the right place at the right time
in technological history. Hiebert moved to
Alaska from Oregon to work at KFAR in
Fairbanks in 1939 as an engineer. For the next
three-and-a-half years, Augie and Stan
Bennett, his boss, worked and lived inside the
station and its one-bedroom apartment. Augie,
also a ham radio operator, was the first
Alaskan to hear about the attack on Pearl
Harbor. On December 7, 1941, he was
recording short wave transmissions at KFAR
when he heard the news. After confirming the
devastating information, he alerted the
commander of Ladd Air Force Base, who
notified the Alaska Defense Command.
KFAR’s owner, the legendary Alaskan “Cap”
Lathrop, transferred Augie to Anchorage in
1947 to build his radio station KENI. After
Lathrop’s death in 1950, Hiebert decided to put
his energy into bringing television to Alaska.
Augie filed for the first FCC television license
in Alaska in May 1953 and received
construction permits for the television station
in July 1953. KTVA was located in the
fourteen-story Mount McKinley Building. On
December 11, 1953, KTVA began broadcasting
as Alaska’s first television station. Augie was
determined to bring television to Fairbanks–he
was successful when KTVF began broadcasting
in February 1955.
Through the years, Augie met dignitaries
such as Werner von Braun and Walter
Cronkite, who wrote the introduction to
Airwaves Over Alaska, a biography of Augie
written by his daughter, Robin Ann Chlupach.
He has also received many awards recognizing
him for both technological innovations and
community service. His most recent
innovation, however, is one of which he is
most proud. In December 2000, he received
Alaska’s highest honor, the “Alaska Legion of
Merit” for developing an emergency
information system to 241 Alaskan villages
that did not receive radio or TV signals. This
innovation has the potential for saving
thousands of lives.
Augie “retired” in March 1997 when he
sold Northern Television, Inc. He developed
Hiebert Enterprises as a way to distribute his
legacy to his four daughters, three nieces, and
a nephew.
HIEBERT ENTERPRISES, INC.
✧
August G. “Augie” Hiebert.
SHARING THE HERITAGE
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