The Alaska Purchase: The Great Deal or The Great Scam?

The Alaska Purchase is a hilarious tale of how one country convinced another to pay 7.2 million dollars for a barren patch of ice and snow. Yes, you read that right, 7.2 million dollars for Alaska, which at the time was being called “Seward’s Folly.”

The purchase was made by the United States from Russia in 1867. So, what led the United States to buy a former communist country’s left-over land? Well, it all started with Secretary of State William H. Seward, who believed that Alaska had untapped potential to be a valuable center of commerce.

However, this idea made no sense to the average American, who couldn’t fathom why their country would want a desolate frozen wasteland of ice and snow. In fact, the popular joke of the time was that the United States had bought a “freezer whose door opens to the North Pole.”

And it seems that Russia knew exactly what the United States was getting into. The Russian Empire was going through a rough patch financially and needed money to fund its expansion plans, and selling Alaska seemed like an easy way out.

Legend has it that when Seward was asked about the purchase, he replied, “I tell you, we are purchasing a source of wealth beyond what the experience of man has ever known.” But, it turned out that the only wealth Alaska had was salmon, fur, and icebergs, none of which were incredibly valuable to the United States at the time.

However, over time, Alaska did prove to be a valuable asset, with the discovery of gold in the Yukon, development of oil industries, and opening of new shipping routes.

And yet, the original price tag of 7.2 million dollars is still shocking today, especially considering that the real worth of Alaska today is in the trillions. Is it safe to say that Alaska was a “Great Deal” or simply “The Great Scam” that Russia pulled on the United States?

Either way, the Alaska Purchase is a humorous tale that teaches us to always think twice about the things we buy, especially when it comes to barren patches of ice and snow.