ALASKA Alaska is the northwest extremity of the North American continent and its the largest state in the

e US. Alaskas economy is dominated by the oil, natural gas, fishing industries and tourism. The name Alaska had been introduced in the Russian colonial period, it is derived from the Aleut word for the mainland. HISTORY: o 1732 the first European vessel to reach Alaska is Russian St. Gabriel during the expedition of Siberian Cossack (kozk) Shestakov. o 1774-1800 several Spanish expeditions which gave names to places such as Valdez and Cordova. o 1784 the first permanent European settlement established on Kodiak Island by Russians. o 1804 Novo-Arkhangelsk as the colonial capital of Russian America. After the Alaska Purchase it was renamed Sitka, first capital of Alaska Territory. o 1867 Alaska Purchase from Russia for $7,200,000 Reasons: Financial difficulties in Russia, the desire to keep Alaska out of British hands, low profits on trade with Alaskan settlements o 1867 The Department of Alaska o 1884 District of Alaska o 1896 discovery of gold in Yukon Territory brought many thousands of new settlers to Alaska in hope of finding more gold. First gold was found in Nome in 1899. o 1906 New capital city - Juneau o 1912-1959 Alaska Territory o 1958 President Dwight Eisenhower signed the Alaska Statehood Act into United States law. GEOGRAPHY: o There are six regions: South Central the most populous Southeast contains the capital Juneau, the closest region to the rest of the United States Interior much of it is inhabited wilderness, Mt McKinley (the highest point in the North America) Southwest sparsely inhabited, massive Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta (one of the largest river deltas in the world) North Slope mostly tundra with massive reserves of crude oil; Barrow, the northernmost city in the US Aleutian Islands the chain made up by more than 300 small, volcanic islands; because some of these islands fall in the Eastern hemisphere, this makes Alaska the northernmost, easternmost and westernmost state in the union. o Alaska has more than 3 million lakes with over 100,000 glaciers. Alaska is divided into 16 boroughs and one unorganized borough made up of all land not within any borough. o 1964 the Good Friday Earthquake struck South-Central Alaska 139 people killed o 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill the tanker ran aground in Prince William Sound, releasing 11 million gallons of crude oil into the water. Since June, 2009 Governor Sean Parnell Elmendorf SYMBOLS: o FLAG: Eight stars of gold on a field of blue. Designed in 1926 by 13-year-old Bennie Benson from Cognac, Alaska. Seven stars form the Big Dipper constellation and the eighth is the North Star. o SONG: Alaskas Flag o MOTTO: North to the Future Alaska adopted it in 1967 for the centennial of the Alaska Purchase. There was a contest for the best motto that would express the character of Alaska. It represents the visionary optimism for a state filled with promise. o NICKNAME: The Last Frontier o SPORT: Dog mushing Dog sled was one of Alaskan methods of transportation but its more of a sport now. Various races are held around the state, but the best known is the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race, a 1,150-mile (1,850km) trail from Anchorage to Nome. The race commemorates the famous 1925 serum run to Nome in which mushers and dogs like Togo and Balto took much-needed medicine to the diphtheria-stricken community of Nome when all other means of transportation failed. INTERESTING FACTS: o Nearly 1/3 of Alaska lies within the Arctic Circle. o Anchorage is the largest city. o II WW: Japanese landed on two Alaskan islands, Attu and Kiska. o 5,000 earthquakes every year. o At its closest point, Alaska is less than 3 miles (~4.83km) from Russia.