This dataset includes historical shoreline positions that span 70 years, from 1947 to 2017, for the north coast of Alaska between the U.S. Canadian Border to the Hulahula River. Shorelines were compiled from topographic survey sheets (T-sheets; National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)), aerial orthophotographs (U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Conoco-Philips (CP), British Petroleum Alaska (BPXA), and NOAA), satellite imagery (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and State of Alaska), and lidar elevation data (USGS). Historical shoreline positions serve as easily understood features that can be used to describe the movement of beaches through time. These data are used to calculate rates of shoreline change. Rates of long-term (70 years) and short-term (less than 40 years) shoreline change were generated in a GIS using the Digital Shoreline Analysis System (DSAS) version 5.1. DSAS uses a measurement baseline method to calculate rate-of-change statistics. Transects are cast from the reference baseline to intersect each shoreline, establishing measurement points used to calculate shoreline change rates.