In the year 1968, the discovery of a vast oil field on Alaska's North Slope marked the beginning of a transformative era. Faced with the challenge of transporting this newfound wealth to market, oil companies initially contemplated the construction of a pipeline to the port city of Valdez. However, the prohibitive costs involved prompted a shift in focus towards investigating a shipping route to connect with the American Eastern Seaboard—an unexplored pathway with commercial potential.