Alaska photograph collection, 1899-1985

In the Upper Paleolithic period (around 14,000 BC), foraging groups crossed the Bering land bridge into what is now western Alaska. At the time of European contact by the Russian explorers, the area was populated by Alaska Native groups. The name Alaska derives from the Aleut word Alaxsxaq (also spelled Alyeska), meaning mainland or continent.

At the instigation of U.S. Secretary of State William Seward, the United States Senate approved the purchase of Alaska from Russia for 7.2 million dollars on August 1, 1867 (equivalent to approximately 166M dollars in 2025).

At the end of the 19th century and early 20th century, industry boomed in Alaska. Gold rushes in Alaska and the nearby Yukon Territory brought thousands of miners and settlers to Alaska.

Alaska's copper mining is centered in the Wrangell Mountains, dominated by the Kennecott Mines (1911–1938). These mines yielded over 1.2 billion pounds of high-grade copper ore. The industry spurred massive infrastructure development, including the 196-mile Copper River and Northwestern Railway.

Alaska was granted territorial status in 1912 by the United States of America.

World War II and the Japanese invasion of two outer Aleutian Islands highlighted Alaska's strategic position. This, alongside the discovery of oil in the Kenai Peninsula added weight to the movement for Alaskan statehood.

Under President Dwight D. Eisenhower, Alaska was made a state on January 3, 1959.