Thomas Kenny Fox

My father was born 23 August 1907 in the small village of Unga, Alaska. His father was Thomas Fox of England; his mother was Emma Gardner who was Aleut, an Alaskan Native. He had a large family of brothers and sisters. Thomas was a trapper, hunter, and fisherman in Alaska. When I was young he developed tuberculosis and was sent to the TB hospital in Seattle, Washington.

He trapped fox, mink, and whatever paid at that time. I remember the beautiful furs he brought home to show us. Silver and blue fox and many more. He fished in the Bristol Bay area when they only had small boats. He was gone a lot so don’t remember a lot of him being around. When he drank we stayed away from him as he would get mean, especially if my mother knew he was coming and hid his guns.

When he got back from Seattle, my mother had divorced him. He went to Dutch Harbor, where he became sheriff. Aunt Katie, his sister, said that he had hurt his leg and went back to Seattle to have it operated on. He got a blood clot which killed him on 29 May 1943.

Tom Fox, Stricken with Sudden Illness, Shows Improvement

Stricken with sudden illness the afternoon of the 12th, Tom Fox, who with his wife and baby recently returned from a protracted stay in Anchorage, was the cause of considerable worry on the part of his family and friends.

Dr. Alcorn was called in and treated the patient for intestinal trouble, and at last reports Mr. Fox was greatly improved and on the road to complete recovery.