Alcan Hwy

The original military project was called the Alaska Canada Road or something like that. The military working on the road shortened it to Alcan, named for the state of Alaska and the country of Canada. I would think that most Canadians would prefer the name, Alcan since their country gets equal mention. Northern roads, especially in Alaska, are referred to as to where they go. If you live in Nenana, on the Parks Hwy, the Parks is called the Anchorage Hwy or the Fairbanks Hwy depending on which way you are headed, north or south. I only became aware, after I moved from Alaska to Colorado, that Akaska Highways have numbers, just like real highways in the lower 48.

Therefore the Alcan project was named the Alaska Hwy because that is where the road was headed. Even though the majority of miles are in Canada. Tok was a shortened version for a military construction camp located there, Camp Tokyo was the camp as it was on the road to Tokyo, remembering the highway was built during World War ll. Always have wondered why they didn't spell the town , Toke, to go with the way it is pronounced.

Back to the original post, if the OP has more questions, please ask them. Lots of forum members with lots of good knowledge that are happy and willing to share with others.