Once attempting to expand their empire to America, the Russians sold their remaining land in America in the purchase of Alaska in 1867. The purchase ended Russian efforts to establish trade settlement on the Pacific Coast of North America and was an important stepping stone in the United State's rise to power in the Pacific. Beginning in 1725, when Russian Czar Peter the Great sent Vitus Bering to explore the Alaskan coast, Russia had a keen interest in the region because it was rich in natural resources and was largely uninhabited. In the 1800s, when the Americans expanded west, they soon found themselves competing with Russian explorers and traders. However, the Russians lack the financial support to continue settling in North American permanently. The Russian defeat in the Crimean War further reduced their interest in the America.
By 1859, the Russians offered to sell Alaska to the United States, hoping to create neutral relations with both Great Britain and the United States. However, the Civil War postponed the actual purchase to 1867 when Secretary of State William Seward quickly renewed the Russian offer. On March 30, 1867, the United States agreed to the proposal and bought Alaska for 7.2 million dollars equivalent to about 2 cents per acre. This purchase ended Russia's presence in North America and ensured US access to the Pacific.
For the three following decades after the purchase, the United States paid little attention to Alaska, which was governed under intermittent military, naval, and Treasury rule. Hoping to impose US laws, the United States constituted a civil government in 1884. While many labeled the purchase of Alaska as "Seward's Folly," when Alaska's rich gold deposits were realized, it became the gateway to the Klondike gold fields.
https://www.britannica.com/event/Alaska-Purchase
By 1859, the Russians offered to sell Alaska to the United States, hoping to create neutral relations with both Great Britain and the United States. However, the Civil War postponed the actual purchase to 1867 when Secretary of State William Seward quickly renewed the Russian offer. On March 30, 1867, the United States agreed to the proposal and bought Alaska for 7.2 million dollars equivalent to about 2 cents per acre. This purchase ended Russia's presence in North America and ensured US access to the Pacific.
For the three following decades after the purchase, the United States paid little attention to Alaska, which was governed under intermittent military, naval, and Treasury rule. Hoping to impose US laws, the United States constituted a civil government in 1884. While many labeled the purchase of Alaska as "Seward's Folly," when Alaska's rich gold deposits were realized, it became the gateway to the Klondike gold fields.
https://www.britannica.com/event/Alaska-Purchase
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