Eva McGown

Who was Eva McGown?

Eva McGown née Montgomery, the "hostess of Fairbanks," was best known for her three decades helping newcomers, military wives, construction workers, students, and visitors to find shelter in Fairbanks, Alaska during periods of time — particularly World War II — when the demand for housing far oustripped supply. Named Official Hostess of Fairbanks and Honorary Hostess of Alaska, McGown was featured in an article in Reader's Digest and a broadcast of the popular biographical television program This is Your Life, and was the basis for the character Bridie Ballantyne in the 1958 novel Ice Palace and its 1960 film adaptation. She died in 1972 in a fire in the Nordale Hotel, where she had lived the last 28 years of her life.