Curriculum Materials
Middle School Education
Alaska’s Resources
Information for Teachers:
Alaska is a land rich in resources. It was the region’s mineral
deposits and abundance of fur which brought Russian settlers to
the area. In 1741 Russia claimed ownership of the land, despite its
occupation by many Native Alaskan tribes. War debts, the declining
fur trade and Russia’s inability to defend the territory caused the
country to seek out a buyer for Alaska by the mid-19th century.
William Henry Seward, the United States Secretary of State, was
approached. For Seward, the opportunity of purchasing this land
was seen as a step toward fulfilling America’s manifest destiny —
a belief that the nation should extend its borders to promote its
republican institutions. The purchase of the land would increase
the size of the United States by nearly 20 percent.
Negotiations for the purchase of Alaska were held in secret between
Seward and Baron Edouard de Stoeckl, Russian Minister to the
United States. The price of 7.2 million dollars was agreed upon and
in the early morning hours of March 30, 1867, a treaty was signed
between the two nations.
When newspapers announced the United States’ new purchase,
a fierce debate over the value of the territory began in America.
Detractors, claiming the region was nothing more than a frozen
wasteland, labeled it “Seward’s Folly” and “President Johnson’s
Polar Bear Garden.” Supporters praised the land’s natural resources
and its strategic geographic location. The treaty was approved by the
Senate within weeks, but became delayed in the House of
Representatives due to the impeachment of President Andrew
Johnson. Fifteen months later, the House approved the purchase.
The discovery of gold there in the late-19th century was an early
indication, for many people, of Alaska’s benefits. In 1968, oil and gas
were discovered at Prudhoe Bay. Today, Alaska is no longer viewed
as a “Folly.” The state makes a multi-billion dollar contribution to
the United States economy with its resources of timber, fishing,
tourism, oil and gas.
In this unit, students will explore differing viewpoints on Alaska at
the time of purchase and learn about Alaska’s resources today. Using
evidence gained through analysis of the documents provided in this
packet, students will write a well-organized essay discussing the
debate over the purchase and describing Alaska today.
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Alaska’s Resources
Learning Context
In this unit students will:
■ Learn how to use primary
sources in an essay
■ Use the Internet for research
■ Use analytical skills
■ Work collaboratively and individually
This unit addresses the following New
York State Learning Standards:
■ Social Studies
Learning Standard 1:
History of the United States
and New York
Learning Standard 4:
Economics
Learning Standard 5: Civics, Citizenship
and Government
■ English Language Arts
Learning Standard 1:
Language for Information
and Understanding
Note:
When reproducing these materials for classroom
use, Lesson Sheets (those numbered with L) should
be photocopied single sided for ease of use, unless
otherwise stated.
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Teacher’s Unit Key
LESSON 1 :
Supporting the
Purchase
LESSON 2 : Opposing the
Purchase
LESSON 3 : Debate in the
Press
Alaska’s Resources
Students will read the two speeches provided in lesson 1. They
should be able to identify that Sumner’s reasons for buying Alaska
are its many resources: forests of pine and fir, mineral products
(coal, copper, iron, silver, lead, gold, and granite), ice, furs, and
fish. They should also be able to identify that Banks felt Alaska
was important for American defense. Buying Alaska would help
the United States preserve its institutions and its power. Students
are then asked to give their opinion on which reason for buying
Alaska they think is most important and why.
Students will read the document provided in lesson 2. They will
list Walrussia, Seward’s Folly, and Johnson’s Polar Bear Garden as
names opponents called Alaska. They will also list the types of animals opponents thought lived in Alaska. Opponents felt no useful
animal could live there and thought only polar bears and wretched
fish would be found there. Students then identify that opponents
felt the land was barren. Nothing could be raised or dug there and
only moss grew. Students are finally asked to decide if they would
have agreed to buy Alaska based on the description opponents
gave of it.
Students will examine the political cartoon provided in lesson 3.
They should be able to identify the two people in the cartoon as
President Andrew Johnson and William Henry Seward. They are
next asked to explain what the two are doing. Johnson is looking
at a picture of himself as a King (nickname in the press at time for
Johnson was “King Andy”) which is making him angry and
Seward is attempting to sooth him by applying Russian Salve.
Students should then be able to describe the two pictures hanging
in the background of the cartoon. One is an illustration of Eskimos
and the other is a Map of the Russian Fairy Land. The Map shows
Uncle Sam being chased by polar bears across Alaska’s icy landscape. The final question asks students to determine if the artist
supported or opposed the purchase of Alaska and to explain why.
The artist does not appear to support the purchase. He portrays
Alaska as a hostile icy place. Johnson comes across as an angry
child who has to be calmed by Seward using the purchase of
Alaska from Russia.
continued on next page
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Teacher’s Unit Key
Alaska’s Resources
LESSON 4 :
Online Resources
After looking up information on the internet about Alaska today,
students are to answer the questions in the chart. Students should
be able to identify that despite opponent predictions that nothing
grew in Alaska, millions of acres of forest can be found there and
about 1 million acres of land is farmed. Students will discover
many different kinds of wildlife make Alaska their home. Students
could list anything from bears, wolves, and moose, to whales,
seals, and fish. Students will also find that many useful natural
resources are located in Alaska today. Students could list oil, coal,
silver, zinc, gold, timber, or fish. Students are finally asked to list
all the industries found currently in Alaska. These industries
include oil, tourism, fishing, timber, mining, and agriculture.
LESSON 5 :
Was Alaska a
Good Deal?
The final question can be used to tie together everything students
learned in this unit. Using information they’ve gathered from
the documents and activities, students will write a well-developed
essay explaining the debate over the purchase of Alaska. They will
describe which side of the argument they would have been on
and discuss how having Alaska as a state affects the United
States today.
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ALASKA’S RESOURCES
Lesson 1 - Documents
Supporting the Purchase
The announcement of the United States’ purchase of Alaska sparked a long and fierce
debate over the value of the territory. Many reasons were given in support of buying the
land. Read the documents below and answer the questions.
DOCUMENT 1: Excerpt from The Cession of Russian America, a speech by Senator
Charles Sumner of Massachusetts, delivered to the United States Senate on April 8, 1867.
“The Climate…by which the rigors of
that coast are tempered to a mildness
unknown in the same latitude on the
Atlantic side; then, the Vegetable
Products, so far as known, chief
among which are forests of pine
and fir waiting for the ax; then the
Mineral Products, among which are
coal and copper, if not iron, silver,
lead, and gold, besides the two great
products of New England, “granite
and ice;” then the Furs, including
precious skins of the Black Fox and
Sea Otter, which originally tempted
the settlement, and have remained
to this day the exclusive object of pursuit; and lastly, the Fisheries, which, in
waters superabundant with animal life beyond any of the globe, seem to
promise a new commerce to the country.”
DOCUMENT 2: Excerpt from a speech by Representative N. P. Banks of Massachusetts
on the purchase of Alaska, delivered to the House of Representatives June 30, 1868.
“It is necessary for the defense of this country, for the preservation of its
institutions and its power. It cannot in the nature of things remain with
perfect certainty, and possibly not for a long time, in the possession of
Russia. It is likely to be conceded and transferred to some other Power, and
it is indispensable to us that in such an event it should in the nature of
things be transferred to the United States.”
Vocabulary Key
cession : parting with
L1-A
ALASKA’S RESOURCES
Lesson 1 - Worksheet
NAME:
Supporting the Purchase
1. What reasons did Senator Sumner give for buying Alaska?
2. What reasons did Representative Banks give for buying Alaska?
3. Which reason do you think is most important and why?
L1-B
ALASKA’S RESOURCES
Lesson 2 - Documents
Opposing the Purchase
Many reasons were given not to buy Alaska. Read the following document and answer the
questions on the student worksheet.
DOCUMENT 1: Excerpt from Seward at Washington as Secretary of State: A Memoir of
His Life, with Selections from His Letters, 1861-1872 (New York: Derby and Miller, 1891),
367.
“But the purchase of the new territory was not consumated without a storm
of raillery in conversation and ridicule in the press. Russian-America was
declared to be a ‘barren, worthless, God-forsaken region,’ whose only
products were ‘icebergs and polar bears.’ The ground was ‘frozen six feet
deep,’ and the ‘streams were glaciers.’ ‘Walrussia’ was suggested as a fitting
name for it, if it deserved to have any. Vegetatation was ‘confined to mosses’
and ‘no useful animals could live there.’ There might be some few ‘wretched
fish’… but nothing could be raised or dug there... It was ‘Seward’s folly.’
It was Johnson’s ‘polar bear garden’.”
Vocabulary Key
consummated: completed
raillery: jokes
vegetation: plant life
wretched: extremely bad
L2-A
ALASKA’S RESOURCES
NAME:
Lesson 2 - Worksheet
Opposing the Purchase
1. What three names did opponents of the purchase call Alaska?
2. What animals did opponents think lived there?
3. According to opponents, what grew there?
4. Based on this description of Alaska, would you have agreed to buy the land?
L2-B
ALASKA’S RESOURCES
Lesson 3 - Images
Debate in the Press
IMAGE 1: Harper’s Weekly Cartoon, April 20, 1867
http://www.harpweek.com
L3-A
ALASKA’S RESOURCES
NAME:
Lesson 3 - Worksheet
Debate in the Press
Newspaper articles and political cartoons played a large part in the public debate over
the purchase of Alaska. Examine the political cartoon of President Andrew Johnson
and William Henry Seward. Use the cartoon to answer the questions.
1. Who are the two people represented in the cartoon?
2. What are the people doing?
3. What pictures are hanging in the background of the cartoon?
4. Does the artist support of oppose the purchase of Alaska? Why or why not?
L3-B
ALASKA’S RESOURCES
NAME:
Online Research
Lesson 4 - Worksheet
Go the State of Alaska web page at www.state.ak.us Using the information you find, complete
the chart below. The left side of the chart shows what opponents thought existed in Alaska at the
time of its purchase. Answer the questions on the right side of the chart explaining what Alaska
is like today.
OPPONENTS SAID:
IN ALASKA TODAY
“nothing grows”
What grows in Alaska today?
“wretched fish and polar bears”
What wildlife is in Alaska today?
“barren, worthless”
Name one useful natural resource in Alaska.
“The only product is iceburgs”
What industries can be found in Alaska today?
L4-A
ALASKA’S RESOURCES
Lesson 5 - Essay
NAME:
Purchasing Alaska
Was Alaska a Good Deal?
What were the reasons for and against purchasing Alaska and was it a
good deal for the United States? Using evidence from the previous set of
documents, write a well-developed essay explaining the debate over the
purchase of Alaska. Decribe which side of the issue you would have
chosen and how having Alaska as a state affects the United States today.
L5-A
Alaska’s Resources
Extension Activities
DESTINATION: ALASKA
Today, tourism is Alaska's second most important industry.
In Seward's time, few could even imagine traveling to
Alaska. Using the information gained from this unit, have
students create a 19th century travel brochure for Alaska.
DRILLING
FOR OIL?
Research current issues in Alaska (for instance, oil drilling
in the Alaskan National Wildlife Refuge). Write letters to
your congressman in favor or opposing an issue, clearly
stating a point of view and the reasons why.
ALASKA’S WILDLIFE
Conduct additional research on wildlife in Alaska and
complete a poster, bulletin board or other display.
WHAT’S ALASKA REALLY
LIKE?
Try to find pen--or Internet--classroom pals to tell you
about life in Alaska today. You could ask questions about
schools, the weather, hobbies, the landscape, or the kinds
of jobs family members have.
READ ABOUT IT
Cohen, Daniel, The Alaska Purchase: Spotlight on
American
History (Millbrook Press, 1996).
Doherty, Craig and Katherine Doherty, The Alaska Pipeline
(Black Birch Marketing, 1998).
Haight, Jane G. and Claire Rudolph Murphy, Children of
the Gold Rush (Roberts Rinehart, 1999).
Kent, Zachary, William Seward: The Mastermind of the
Alaska Purchase (Enslow Publications, 2001).
Miller, Debbie S., River of Life (Clarion Books, 2002).
Whitecraft, Melissa, Seward’s Folly (Children Press, 2002).
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