Trapper George Johnston bought his dream car in 1928, a four cylinder Model AB Chevrolet sedan, shipped by steamer from Whitehorse several hundred miles via the Yukon and Teslin Rivers to Teslin village. The local Taylor & Drury store fueled it with naphtha. At first, his only road was 78 miles of frozen Taslin Lake. For his taxi service in Teslin, George Johnston built a 3- to 5-mile road, which later became part of the Alaska Highway. The car is now displayed in the George Johnston Museum, Alaska Highway, Teslin, Yukon, Canada. The Alaska Highway was built as a military road during World War II in just 9 months in 1942, to link existing airfields via Canada to the territory of Alaska. The ALCAN Highway (a military acronym for Alaska-Canada) opened to the public in 1948. It begins in Dawson Creek, British Columbia, and runs via Whitehorse, Yukon to Delta Junction, Alaska. The "Alaskan Highway" is comprised of British Columbia Highway 97, Yukon Highway 1 and Alaska Route 2. While the ALCAN measured 2700 kilometers (1700 mi) upon completion in 1942, by 2012 it was rerouted and shortened to 2232 km (1387 mi). Once legendary for being a rough, challenging drive, the highway is now paved over its entire length. Delta Junction, at the end of the highway, claims "Historic Milepost 1422" where the Alaska Highway meets the Richardson Highway, which continues 96 mi (155 km) to the city of Fairbanks at Historic Milepost 1520, often (but unofficially) regarded as the northern portion of the Alaska Highway (although its Mileposts are measured from Valdez).
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