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#               Entered Union   Year Settled

50th       Jan 3, 1959           1784

 

Last Frontier

 

Rank      Population

23rd       4,661,900

 

Rank      Square Miles

1st           663,267

 

State Bird

Willow Ptarmigan

 

State Flower

Forget-me-not

 

State Tree

Sitka Spruce

 

State Motto

North to the future

 

The nickname of the 49th state, Alaska, is the "Last Frontier." Purchased from Russia for $7 million in 1867, Alaska is the largest state in area and is the largest peninsula in the Western Hemisphere. Mt. McKinley in the Alaska Range is North America's highest peak at 20,320 feet and one of the greatest challenges for mountain climbers. Juneau is the state's capital, and the state flower is the pale-blue forget-me-not.

 

How much do you think a state is worth? On March 30, 1867, Secretary of State William H. Seward agreed to purchase Alaska from Russia for $7.2 million. Do you think this was too much to pay for a piece of land that was mostly unexplored? At the time, critics thought Seward was crazy and called the deal "Seward's folly." Seward was laughed at for his willingness to spend so much on "Seward's icebox" and Andrew Johnson's "polar bear garden."

 

But Seward had wanted to buy Alaska for a long time. Alaska is so large that the addition of this land would increase the size of the U.S. by nearly 20 percent. Russia had established a presence in Alaska in the early 18th century and offered to sell it to the United States during President James Buchanan's administration. But the Civil War stalled negotiations.

 

After the war, it was not easy for Seward to convince the Senate that Alaska would be an important addition to the United States. The Senate ratified the treaty that approved the purchase by just one vote. Was buying Alaska a good move?

 

Ultimately, buying Alaska proved to be a very good move. Major discoveries of gold were made there in the 1880s and 1890s. These discoveries brought attention and people to Alaska. Today, petroleum transported across the state through a pipeline is Alaska's richest mineral resource. Do you know when Alaska became a state?

 

In 1946, Alaskans approved statehood and adopted a constitution in 1955. On January 3, 1959, President Eisenhower announced Alaska's entrance into the Union as the 49th state. How much do you think Alaska, the nation's largest state, would be worth today?

 

Alaska's High Point

Do you know the name of the highest mountain in the United States? What about in North America?

 

The answer is the same: Mount McKinley. At 20,320 feet Mount McKinley is the highest mountain peak in the United States as well as North America. It is part of the 600-mile-long Alaska Range of mountains. Named for U.S. President William McKinley, the mountain is called "Denali," meaning "The High One," in the native Athabascan language.

 

Mount McKinley National Park was created in 1917 as a wildlife refuge. By 1980, it had been enlarged and renamed Denali National Park and Preserve. The park is enormous. At more than 6 million acres, it is larger than the state of Massachusetts. The park continues to be a refuge for wildlife such as caribou, moose, and grizzly bear

 

The Alaska Native Heritage Center

How many ways can you think of to say "Welcome"? In Alaska there are at least 11different ways! That's because there are 11 distinct cultural groups of Native Indians who live in Alaska and have their own languages, customs, and hunting and fishing practices.

 

The Athabascans say "Chin'an gu nin yu," which literally means, "Thank you, you came here." They come from the interior of Alaska, from Fairbanks to south central Alaska near Anchorage. The Yup'ik and Cup'ik come from southwest Alaska, and they, as well as the Athabascans, were a nomadic people. They traveled from place to place rather than settling in one area. When the Yup'ic welcome you they might say "Waqaa" or "Quyakamsi."

 

The Eyak, Tlingit, Haida and Tsimshian live in south central Alaska and the southeast Panhandle of the state. They depend upon the ocean and rivers for their food and means of travel. Although they have similar cultures, their languages are different. If you go to Saxman Village in Ketchikan, you might be greeted with "Yak' ei haat yigoodee," which means, "It is good that you have come." Think of how many ways you know to say "Welcome." Do they have slightly different meanings?

 

Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race

Have you ever been in a race? How long was it?

 

How would you like to be in a race that is more than 1,000 miles long, involves treacherous climbs, and lasts for nine to 20 days in sub-zero temperatures, much of it in darkness and blinding winds? Sounds incredible? Well, that is what some people do every year in the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race in Alaska.

 

Called "the last great race on Earth," the Iditarod (pronounced eye-DIT-a-rod) consists of teams of 12 to 16 dogs pulling a sled driven by a man or woman, called a "musher." The race, which begins on the first Saturday every March, runs from Anchorage in the south to Nome on the western Bering Sea.

 

The journey takes the mushers over mountains, through dense forests, and across frozen rivers and tundra. Each year 50 to 80 mushers leave the starting gate, and for many of them their main goal is just to complete the race. The Iditarod is the ultimate test of humans and animals against nature.