Territory of Alaska - Origin

Origin

The passing of the 1899 Criminal Code, a tax on liquor among other things, heightened the cry for Alaskan representation in Congress, 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. By 1916, its population was about 58,000. James Wickersham, a Delegate to Congress, introduced Alaska's first statehood bill, but it failed due to lack of interest from Alaskans. Even President Warren G. 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.

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