On September 4, 1942, General Order No. 44 created the Northwest Service Command. The Command supervised all activities related to the Alcan Highway. The colors on the patch represent both the United States and Canada. The white stripe represents the Alcan Highway and the blue star the North Star, under which the construction took place. The patch was authorized for wear on March 23, 1943.

The Alcan Highway was officially opened on Friday, November 20, 1942. Franklin Roosevelt was President of the United States and his Secretary of War was Henry L. Stimson . Brigadier General William M. Hoge was the initial commanding officer of the Northwest Service Command (NWSC), builders of the highway. He was relieved by Brigadier General James A. O'Connor whose Chief of Staff was Colonel K. B. Bush. 10,000 U.S. Army officers and men and 2,000 U.S. Public Roads Administration civilians served under their command. The initial construction was completed in 9 months.