Charles "Jim" Binkley

Charles Madison "Captain Jim" Binkley, Jr. was a World War II veteran and popular Alaska riverboat captain. Captain Jim was born in Wrangell, Alaska, on May 16, 1920. He worked in Alaska, piloting freight vessels on the Yukon and Tanana Rivers. He later created the popular Riverboat Discovery tour of the Chena and Tanana Rivers in Fairbanks, Alaska. In addition to running this riverboat tour business, Captain Jim also served two terms in the Alaska House of Representatives and was active in numerous civic organizations. He passed away on January 3, 2003 at the age of 82. For more about Captain Jim, see his obituary in the Fairbanks Daily News Miner newspaper.