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History of Alaska
Prehistory
Russian Alaska (1733-1867)
Department of Alaska (1867-1884)
District of Alaska (1884-1912)
Alaska Territory (1912-1959)
Recent history (1959-present)
Other topics
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This article is about Alaska's history from 1912 to 1959, when the Alaska Territory was an organized, incorporated territory of the United States. For other periods of Alaskan history before statehood, see Russian Alaska (1740s–1867), Department of Alaska (1867–1884), or District of Alaska (1884–1912).

The passing of the Criminal Code, a tax on liquor among other things, in 1899 heightened the cry for Alaskan representation in Congress,^[1] and the debate finally ended on August 24, 1912, when the Alaska Territory became an organized, incorporated territory of the United States.

The Second Organic Act of 1912, renamed the District of Alaska as the Territory of Alaska.^[2] By 1916, its population was about 58,000. James Wickersham, a Delegate to Congress, introduced Alaska's first statehood bill, but it failed to due lack of interest from Alaskans. Even President Harding's visit in 1923 could not create widespread interest in statehood. Under the conditions of the Second Organic Act, Alaska had been split into four divisions. The most populous of the divisions, whose capital was Juneau, wondered if it could become a separate state from the other three. Government control was a primary concern, with the territory having 52 federal agencies governing it.

Then, in 1920, the Jones Act required U.S.-flagged vessels to be built in the United States, owned by U.S. citizens, and documented under the laws of the United States. All goods entering or leaving Alaska had to be transported by American carriers and shipped to Seattle prior to further shipment, making Alaska dependent on Washington. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the provision of the Constitution saying one state should not hold sway over another's commerce did not apply because Alaska was only a territory. The prices Seattle shipping businesses charged began to rise to take advantage of the situation.

The Depression caused prices of fish and copper, which were vital to Alaska's economy at the time, to decline. Wages were dropped and the workforce decreased by more than half. In 1935, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt thought Americans from agricultural areas could be transferred to Alaska's Matanuska-Susitna Valley for a fresh chance at agricultural self-sustainment. Colonists were largely from northern states, such as Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota under the belief that only those who grew up with climates similar to that of Alaska's could handle settler life there. The United Congo Improvement Association asked the president to settle 400 African-American farmers in Alaska, saying that the territory would offer full political rights, but racial prejudice and the belief that only those from northern states would make suitable colonists caused the proposal to fail.

The exploration and settlement of Alaska would not have been possible without the development of the aircraft, which allowed for the influx of settlers into the state's interior, and rapid transportation of people and supplies throughout. However, due to the unfavorable weather conditions of the state, and high ratio of pilots-to-population, over 1700 aircraft wreck sites are scattered throughout its domain. Numerous wrecks also trace their origins to the military build-up of the state during both World War II and the Cold War.

Alaskan participation in World War II was of great importance. From June 1942 until August 1943 the Japanese tried to invade the U.S. by way of the Aleutian island chain, in the Battle of the Aleutian Islands. This marked the first time since the War of 1812 that American soil was occupied by an enemy. The Japanese were eventually repelled by a force of 34,000 troops.^[3]

Eventually the U.S. government came to realize the vast potential of this land, and on January 3, 1959, Alaska became the 49th state. There was some delay because of concern by members of the national Republican Party that Alaska would elect Democratic Party members to Congress, in contrast to Hawaii, which was also a contender for statehood at the same time and thought to be have Republican Party support.^[4] In recent years these predictions have turned out to be just the opposite for both states.