Book Cache Memories

Book Cache Memories gives you a look at a favorite Anchorage book store that was near and dear to so many.

Remember the Book Cache?

Everyone had their favorite store location and as you read this historic account, you'll discover some things about this Anchorage icon that may not know.

In the winter, it was a nice, warm place to spend a relaxing time browsing the large selection of books, magazines, and sundries.

And on a warm summer day, it was a fun place to browse the shelves, discover a new book for your reading pleasure and say hello to friends.

Owners Doris and Russ Riemann

Book Cache Memories

Russ and Doris Riemann first came to Anchorage in 1953 when Russ accepted a job with the Alaska News Agency, a wholesale clearing house that sold magazines and other reading materials to stores and other businesses in Southcentral Alaska.

But the News Agency wasn't doing very well. So with dedication and hard work, Russ soon turned it around.

Then in about 1958, Russ and Doris Riemann started considering the idea of selling books directly to customers in a retail store.

And that's when they joined with a lady named Esther Tout, who was running a small 15-by-25 foot book store in the same building where Jonas Brothers Taxidermy and Furriers was located on Fifth Avenue.

Jonas Brothers Museum

That small book store inside the museum became more and more popular each year.

And as it did, Russ and Doris began looking at starting their own store.

Book Cache Memories

The Cache

Then, in the early 1960s, Doris and Russ made the move by putting together their very own book store and what would become the best known Book Cache location in town at 436 Fifth Avenue.

What are your memories?

Book Cache 5th Avenue

The Original Idea

It didn’t start out as just The Book Cache.

The original idea was to have a variety of stores under the name “The Cache”.

Those stores included:

The Book Cache
The Stamp and Coin Cache
Barb’s Cache and Carry
Cache Dining and Cocktails

But the idea of a series of stores under the “Cache” umbrella, didn’t work very well.

The first to go was Cache Dining and Cocktails.

Eventually, all the stores were gone, except for the book store. Then the name was changed to “The Book Cache” and the rest is history.

Book Cache Sears Mall Location

When Anchorage got its first mall, the Sears Mall on Northern Lights Boulevard, the Book Cache saw the perfect place to find customers. They quickly jumped at the opportunity and opened the shop you see in the picture above.

You could walk in the mall, grab a treat at Andy’s Carmel Corn, then have some lunch or a cup of coffee before stopping in for a book or magazine.

The 1964 Good Friday Earthquake

March 27, 1964

For 5 minutes the earth shook Anchorage and Alaska like never before.

And the 1964 Good Friday earthquake took its toll.

Anchorage’s favorite Book Cache location was right next to the J.C. Penney building (it’s badly damaged structure is seen above).

The Book Cache was also severely damaged by the quake, but somehow, Russ and Doris were among the first to get their book store open again… And with that, the Fifth Avenue store quickly became a very welcome information hub and meeting place for quake survivors.

Book Cache Memories

As Far Away as Hawaii

In the late 1980s, Russ and Doris Riemann sold The Book Cache.

At that time, they had grown to 17 stores across Alaska, including the Carr's Mall in Kenai, and the Central Peninsula Mall in Soldotna.

And believe it or not, 2 of those 17 stores were located in Maui, Hawaii.

Book Cache Memories

What are your memories?

The Book Cache is probably at the top of your list.

Over the years, each location became a great place to meet friends.

You could spend a lot of happy time just browsing through shelves of wonderful books, magazines, newspapers and local information.

Book stores come and go, and now the Book Cache is gone. But for those of us who grew up, or lived in Anchorage when it was around, those stores will forever have a special place in our hearts.

In reading this article, it's not hard to see why Russ, Doris, and the rest of their family had such great success.

They loved what they did, they loved the people of Anchorage and Alaska. And they didn't mind the hard work. And all of us enjoyed the fruits of their labor.

Thank you for the great Anchorage Memories Russ and Doris Riemann.