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The US $7.2 million check used to pay for Alaska (roughly $105 million in 2016).
The U.S. purchased Alaska on March 30, 1867. Secretary of State William H. Seward brokered the deal with Russia for $7 million, which equaled two cents an acre. The deal almost didn’t pass the Senate and was mocked in Congress. They called the new territory “Seward’s Folly” or “Seward’s Icebox.” People started looking at Alaska differently in the late 1890’s when gold was discovered during the Klondike Rush. But nearly a century would go by before it would officially become the 49th state on January 3, 1959.
Russia wanted to sell its Alaskan territory, due to the difficulty of living there, apparent lack of natural resources (gold was later discovered in 1896), and fear that it might be easily seized by the United Kingdom in case of war between the two countries. Russia’s primary activities in the territory had been fur trade and missionary work among the Native Alaskans. The land added 586,412 square miles (1,518,800 km 2 ) of new territory to the United States.
Reactions to the purchase in the United States were mostly positive; some opponents called it “Seward’s Folly” (after Secretary of StateWilliam H. Seward), while others praised the move for weakening both the UK and Russia as rivals to American commercial expansion in the Pacific region.
Nonetheless, most newspaper editors argued that the U.S. would probably derive great economic benefits from the purchase; friendship with Russia was important; and it would facilitate the acquisition of British Columbia. [17][18][19][20] Forty-five percent of supportive newspapers cited the
increased potential for annexing British Columbia in their support, [7] and The New York Times stated that, consistent with Seward’s reason, Alaska would increase American trade with East Asia
Originally organized as the Department of Alaska, the area was renamed the District of Alaska and the Alaska Territory before becoming the modern state of Alaska upon being admitted to the Union as a state in 1959.