During the first few years of construction, men were not encouraged to bring their families to the north. Proper housing and services such as schools were lacking, and the construction phase was seen as short-term. Nonetheless, some women came north, lived in near-by squatter communities, and managed to get work. Many married civilian couples worked together in family businesses such as trucking, hauling and food catering. As more permanent maintenance camps were set up along the highway the value of having long term employees increased. Civilian contractors who brought their families were likely to stay longer. This also created a more equal balance between men and women in the territory and a more stable community.

Women’s involvement in the construction of the Alaska Highway continues to be the subject of historical study and reinterpretation. In 1998 Dawn Nickel completed a Master of Arts thesis that reexamined the role of women in the construction of the highway and the reflections that these women had of their experiences. Ms. Nickel argues that the focus of other historians on the construction activities of men, and the assumption that women served only as cooks and cleaners to the work crews, has ignored the diverse and significant roles that women played on the Alaska Highway. (Yukon Archives. 971.903 NICK. Dawn Nickel. Realities and Reflections: Women and the Yukon Frontier during the Alaska Highway Period. Edmonton, Alberta: University of Alberta, 1998.)