Wild Lands and Human History of Alaska
An Introduction to "The Great Land"
Alaska is by far the largest of the United States, with a land area of 586,4120 square miles (1,518,800 square kilometers). More like a subcontinent than a state, Alaska is equal in size to approximately one-fifth of the entire contiguous 48 states.
One of the least populated states overall, it has the lowest population density, with a population of just 683,478 according to the 2008 U.S. census. Approximately half of the state's population lives in the Anchorage metropolitan area.
The Great Land
Alaska has 33,000 miles of coastline (over 53,100 kilometers), more than the entire contiguous United States. It also has three million lakes and an estimated 100,000 glaciers, the largest of which is larger than Rhode Island.
The name Alaska comes from the Aleut word Alyeshka or Alakshak, meaning “the great land.” Of the 20 highest mountains in the United States, 17 are in Alaska, including Mt McKinley (Denali), the highest peak in North America at 20,320 feet. Alaska became a state in 1959.
The state consists of approximately 60 percent federal land, 28% state land, 11.8% native land, and 0.2% private land. Major economic sectors include tourism, the petroleum industry, fishing, and timber. Alaska residents pay no income tax and receive an annual payment (usually hundreds, if not thousands of dollars) from oil and mineral revenues.
Alaska's Wild Lands
Alaska contains almost two-thirds of the total acreage within the US National Park Service system, as well as 88% of the acreage within the US National Wildlife Refuge system. The state counts eight national parks, 10 national preserves, four national monuments, 16 national wildlife refuges, 26 national wild and scenic rivers, two national forests, and a state park system with more than 100 units.
Nearly 16% of Alaska is designated as wilderness, compared to only 2.5% (an area the size of South Dakota) in the contiguous United States. In one of the most sweeping pieces of conservation legislation in U.S. history, the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act of 1980 created 105 million acres of new protected areas.
Early Human History of Alaska
The first human inhabitants of Alaska crossed over a land bridge (now submerged beneath the Bering Strait) from Siberia during the end of the last Ice Age, about 12,000 years ago. Migrating through a broad ice-free corridor, they gradually made their way into the Americas in search of food and shelter. Others, dependent on fish for their subsistence, migrated along the coastline in boats.
The new arrivals spread out in various directions, with the Yupik and Inupiat settling in the far north, the Aleuts on the Alaska Peninsula and the Aleutian Islands, Athabascan peoples in the interior, and the Tlingit and Haida (and later the Tsimshian) along the southeastern coast. By the time the first European explorers arrived in the area, there were between 60,000 and 80,000 native people living in what is now Alaska.
Russian Alaska Becomes Seward's Folly
In July 1741 Vitus Bering and Alexei Chirikof claimed Alaska for Russia in the first recorded occupation of the region. The Russians established themselves along the southern coast, remaining in Alaska for 126 years, during which time they engaged in fur trading, nearly wiping out the sea otter population.
In 1867, the United States purchased Alaska from Russia for $7.2 million, approximately 2 cents per acre. The purchase was orchestrated by Secretary of State William Seward; newspapers promptly dubbed it “Seward’s Folly,” calling Alaska nothing more than an “icebox.” Over the years, the purchase of Alaska has proven to be far from foolish, as the state has proven rich in petroleum, fish, timber, and other resources...not to mention a magnet for travelers!
Glacier Bay National Park
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