The United States bought Alaska from Russia in 1867, during the presidency of Andrew Johnson.

Quick Scoop

  • Alaska was purchased from the Russian Empire in 1867 for $7.2 million, about 2 cents an acre.
  • The deal is known as the Alaska Purchase and was negotiated by U.S. Secretary of State William H. Seward and Russian minister Eduard de Stoeckl.
  • At the time, many Americans mocked it as “Seward’s Folly” or “Seward’s Icebox,” thinking the land was useless, but it later proved rich in resources like gold and oil.

In simple terms: We bought Alaska from Russia, and what looked like a frozen mistake turned into one of the best land deals in U.S. history.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.