Alaska Purchase

Rare card · No. 28788

The Alaska Purchase in 1867 resulted in the transfer of Russian America to the United States for $7.2 million (equivalent to $136 million in 2025). On April 9 of that year, the United States Senate ratified a bilateral treaty that had been signed on March 30, and American sovereignty became legally effective across the territory on October 18. During the first half of the 19th century, the Russian Empire had established a colonial presence in parts of North America, but few Russians ever settled in Alaska. Alexander II of Russia, having faced a catastrophic defeat in the Crimean War, began exploring the possibility of selling the state's Alaskan possessions, which, in any future war, would be difficult to defend from the United Kingdom. To this end, William H. Seward, the U.S. secretary of state at the time, entered into negotiations with Russian diplomat Eduard de Stoeckl towards the United States' acquisition of Alaska after the American Civil War. Seward and Steckel agreed to a treaty...

Read on Wikipedia · Image Edouard de Stoeckl and William H. Seward, Public domain