Alaska Becomes a State

By the 1850s, most of the land between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans was part of the United States. Much of the land to the north belonged to Canada. Land to the south belonged to Mexico. Land to the north was filled with plenty of fish and animals.

William Seward, who was Secretary of State, wanted the U.S. to buy some of this land to the north. Russia owned this land but was willing to sell it. The United States bought the Alaskan territory from Russia for $7.2 million.

Not everyone in the United States thought it was a good buy. Many thought it was too cold and that people wouldn’t want to live there. The land was called “Seward’s Icebox.”

It wasn’t until 1897, almost 50 years later, before Americans gained interest. That’s because gold was found in Alaska. Thousands of people rushed to Alaska to find their treasure. Alaska also ended up providing the United States with minerals and oil. Alaska finally became the 49th state in 1959.