In March 1867, the United States bought a piece of land as large as all the states east of the Mississippi: Alaska. It was described as "a dreary waste of glaciers, icebergs, white bears, and walruses." Chief negotiator William Seward, the shrewd American Secretary of State, saw its strategic importance, but even he could not have foreseen that this purchase would pave the way for the world's most dramatic gold:rush.
The Russians had been eager to sell Alaska since the disastrous effects of the Crimean War. The purchase price was an incredibly low $7.2 million. But Seward faced an immediate and hostile public and press reaction.
