Golden Spike That Completed Alaska Railroad Is Up for Auction

This image provided by Christie's Images shows a golden spike driven by President Warren G. Harding in Nenana, Alaska, just days before he died in office, which marked the completion of the Alaska Railroad over a century ago. Christie's Images via AP

ANCHORAGE, Alaska—President Warren G. Harding drove a golden spike into the final coupling of the Alaska Railroad more than a century ago, a ceremonial act that marked the launch of a system to easily bring coal and other natural resources out of the wilderness.

Harding would die of a massive heart attack just a few days later, on his way back to Washington. The spike he pounded with such fanfare—weighing nearly a pound and valued at up to $50,000—has been in private hands outside of the state ever since.