Alaska, Russian: Alyaska is the largest state of the United States of America by
area; it is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent,
with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean
to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait.
As of 2007, the population was 683,478 with approximately 50% residing
along the Anchorage metropolitan areas.
The area that became Alaska was
purchased from the Russian Empire after Western Union discontinued
construction of its first electric telegraph line which ran from California,
up the coast of North America, across the Bering Strait, continuing to
Moscow and into the European telegraph network.
Despite $3 million in U.S. investment for the Russian-American telegraph
expedition, work ceased upon the completion of the competing Transatlantic
telegraph cable. The U.S. realized the potential of continuing the line to
Moscow and sent Secretary of State William H. Seward to negotiate with
the Russian Ambassador to fund the remaining phases of the telegraph line.
Russia did not see the potential in funding, so Alaska was offered in exchange
for the value of the Russian-American telegraph. The Russians feared that if they
did not sell Russian North America, it would be taken from them by the
westward expansion of the United States and Canada. They tried to play one
potential purchaser off against the other to start a bidding war, but this was
largely unsuccessful.
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