Check for the Purchase of Alaska. Cancelled check in the amount of $7.2 million for the purchase of Alaska from Russia, issued August 1, 1868.
Alaska is known as the last frontier. It is home to unrivaled natural beauty and tremendous oil reserves. You would think that when the Russians offered to sell Alaska, it would have been easy for the federal government to decide to make the purchase.
The treaty to buy Alaska was negotiated largely in secret under the direction of Secretary of State William H. Seward in 1867. The deal struck by Secretary Seward was to buy the land at about two cents per acre ($7.2 million in total). That equals fifty acres for a dollar. A soccer field is very close to two acres. Can you imagine buying 25 soccer fields for one dollar? It may seem like a bargain today, but to many of those who lived at the time, it was seen as an underhanded and foolish move. The decision was mocked by many and labeled as Seward's Folly and Seward's Icebox.
The Senate approved the treaty with some debate, but that was not the end of the battle. Because it was purchased, the House of Representatives had to pass a bill providing the funds to pay for the land. In the House, there was considerable debate reflecting the divided mood in the nation. Those in favor of the treaty were often believers in Manifest Destiny, and they sought the acquisition of territory with vigor. Those opposed to the purchase did not like the way the treaty was negotiated and feared that the territory would prove to be without value. One such critic was Congressman C. C. Washburn of Wisconsin. In his speech against the bill appropriating money for Alaska, Washburn listed the following reasons for his opposition:
| At the time this treaty was negotiated, not a soul in the whole United States asked for it. |
| It was secretly negotiated and in a manner to prevent the Representatives of the people from being heard. |
| By existing treaties, we possessed every right that is of any value to us without the responsibility and neverending expense of governing a nation of savages. |
| The country is absolutely without value. |
In hindsight, Rep. Washburn was proven wrong, but the debate over the purchase shows the division over land acquisition.
