Alaska History

The following important events in the history of Alaska affected political boundaries, record keeping, and family movements.

1741: Discovered by Vertus Bering, a Dane working for Russia.

1783: Russian fur traders established the first white settlement on Kodiak Island.

1804: Sitka was permanently founded by the Russians. It served as Alaska's capital until 1906, when the capital was moved to Juneau.

1824-1828: In treaties with the United States and Great Britain, Russia agreed to recognize latitude 54° 40 N as Alaska's southern boundary and longitude 141° W as the eastern boundary. Further boundary adjustments between Alaska and British Columbia were made in 1903.

1867: (October 18)The United States purchased Alaska from Russia.

1884: Congress passed the first Organic Act, providing a governor and federal courts for Alaska. May 17, 1867 Alaska became a territory.

1896: The Klondike gold strike started a rush to the Canadian Yukon Territory. Gold was discovered at Nome in 1899 and at Fairbanks in 1902.

1912: Congress passed the second Organic Act, establishing Alaska as a U.S. territory and providing for a territorial legislature.

1959: (January 3,) Alaska became a state.

An especially helpful source for studying the history of Alaska is William R. Hunt, Alaska: A Bicentennial History (New York, NY: W. W. Norton &amp; Company, 1976; Family History Library book 979.8 H2hu).

The Gold Rush

 * Site offers historic information on the discovery of gold, traveling to the gold fields, gold mining, daily life, gold rush stories and more:http://www.library.state.ak.us/goldrush/.
 * Finding your Gold Rush Relative: http://www.library.state.ak.us/hist/parham.html#alaska

Web Sites
http://fairbanks-alaska.com/alaska-history.htm

http://kodiakisland.net/timeline.html

http://www.infoplease.com/ipa/A0108178.html

http://www.akhistorycourse.org/

A list of ship wrecks occuring in Alaska from the earliest times (1741) to the present www.mms.gov/alaska/ref/ships/index.htm