Alaska’shistoricandculturalinfluencesareprevalentthroughoutthestate,from
RussianOrthodoxchurches,toremnantsoftheKlondikegoldrushandthetraditionsof
AlaskaNativepeoplestillpracticedtoday.
20,000yearsago–ThefirstinhabitantsofAlaskacrosstheBeringLandBridgefrom
Siberia.
1741–RussianexplorersledbyVitusBeringarriveinNorthAmericaandestablish
outpostsforfurtrade.
1784–Russianwhalersandfurtradersestablishthefirstnon-- indigenoussettlementin
AlaskaonKodiakIsland.TheRussianinfluenceisstillvisibleinSouthwestandInside
Passagecommunitiestoday.
1867–U.S.SecretaryofStateWilliamH.SewardpurchasesAlaskafromRussiafor$7.2
million,equivalenttotwocentsperacre.Initially,thepurchaseisconsidered“Seward’s
Folly.”
1897–ThebeginningoftheKlondikegoldrush,whichsendsthousandsofgold
prospectorsnorthinhopesofstrikingitrich.
1902–PresidentTheodoreRooseveltestablishestheTongassNationalForest.Located
intheInsidePassage,itisthelargestnationalforestintheUnitedStatesat17million
acres.
1903–AlaskaCentralRailwaybuildsthefirstrailroadinAlaskastartinginSewardand
extending50milesnorth.AlaskaCentralRailwaywilllaterbecometheAlaskaRailroad.
1906–DistrictofAlaskaisauthorizedtosendanon-- votingdelegatetoCongressandthe
capitalismovedfromSitkatoJuneau.
1907–PresidentTheodoreRooseveltestablishestheTongassNationalForest.Located
intheInsidePassage,itisthelargestnationalforestintheUnitedStatesat17million
acres.
1912–TheDistrictofAlaskaisrenamedTerritoryofAlaska.MountKatmaieruptsand
formstheValleyofTenThousandSmokes.
1913–ThefirstAlaskaTerritorialLegislatureconvenes.Thefirstlawtopassgrants
womentherighttovote.
1916–ThefirstbillforAlaskastatehoodisintroducedinCongress.
1922–AlaskaNativevotingrightsareestablished.
1923–TheAlaskaRailroadiscompleted,commemoratedbyavisitbyPresidentWarren
G.Harding.
1924–CongressextendscitizenshiptoallNativeAmericansandAlaskaNativepeoples
intheUnitedStates.TlingitWilliamPaul,Sr.,isthefirstAlaskaNativeelectedtothe
AlaskaLegislature.
1942–OnJune3,1942,JapanbombsDutchHarborandoccupiestheislandsofAttuand
Kiska,whicharepartoftheAleutianChain,spurringmassiveamilitarybuildupinthis
remotepartofAlaskaandpromptingthebeginningofconstructionworkontheAlaska
Highway.Later,theAleutianWorldWarIINationalHistoricAreaisdesignatedto
rememberthetroopswhofoughtinAlaskaduringWWIIandNativeAleutswholost
theirhomes.
1942–TheAlaskaHighwayiscompleted,andextendsfromDawsonCreek,British
ColumbiatoFairbanks.
1953–AnoilwelldrillednearEurekaontheGlennHighwaymarksthebeginningof
Alaska'smodernoilhistory.
1959–Alaskabecomesthe49thstateonJanuary3,1959,makingitthelargeststatein
theunion.
1968–OilisdiscoveredatPrudhoeBay,NorthAmerica’slargestoilfield.
1971–RichardNixonsignstheAlaskaNativeClaimsSettlementAct,settlinglandclaims
withAlaskaNativepeopleandestablishingNativecorporations.
1977–Thetrans-- Alaskaoilpipelineiscompleted.Thepipelinetotals800milesinlength
andisvisiblefromspace.
1980–PresidentCartersignstheAlaskaNationalInterestLandsConservationActto
establish15NationalParkServiceareasinAlaska,nearlydoublingtheamountof
nationalpubliclands.
2009–Alaska’s50thanniversaryofstatehoodisrecognizedwitheventsandcelebrations
throughoutthestate.