Territory of Alaska

The Territory of Alaska was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from August 24, 1912, until Alaska became the 49th state on January 3, 1959. Created by the Second Organic Act of 1912, it replaced the District of Alaska and was governed from Juneau by a governor appointed by the president and a legislature elected by residents. During this period the territory experienced the Alaska Railroad, the Matanuska colony, World War II and the Aleutian Islands campaign, and a growing statehood movement [1].

From District to Territory

Before 1912 Alaska was governed as a district. The Second Organic Act of 1912 renamed the District of Alaska the Territory of Alaska, took effect on August 24, 1912, and gave residents an elected legislature and a delegate to Congress. The capital had moved from Sitka to Juneau in 1906 [1].

Government

Governors were appointed by the U.S. president for four-year terms rather than elected, and Walter E. Clark was the first, serving from 1912 to 1913. The territory elected a delegate to Congress who could speak but not vote in the House. James Wickersham, one of the delegates, introduced Alaska’s first statehood bill, which failed because of limited interest among Alaskans at the time [1].

Population

The population was about 58,000 in 1916 and about 158,000 civilians in 1958, reflecting growth from the gold rush era, the war years and postwar development [1].

Native Alaskans and Civil Rights

In 1915 Native Alaskans gained the right to vote if they gave up tribal customs and traditions, a condition that reflected the assimilation policies of the time. In 1945 the territorial legislature passed the Alaska Equal Rights Act, which banned racial segregation and discrimination and is described as the first law of its kind in the United States [1].

Matanuska Colony

In the mid-1930s, settlers were moved to the Matanuska-Susitna Valley as part of a New Deal resettlement project. Most came from Upper Midwest states such as Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota [1].

World War II

During the war, more than 200 residents of Japanese origin were interned in April 1942. Japanese forces occupied islands in the Aleutian chain from June 1942 to August 1943, as covered in the entry on the Aleutian Islands campaign. Project Hula, based at Cold Bay, transferred 149 ships and craft to the Soviet Union and trained 12,000 Soviet personnel [1].

Road to Statehood

Statehood was delayed in part by concerns about the partisan balance of Alaska’s future congressional delegation. After years of campaigning, the Alaska Statehood Act was signed in 1958, and Alaska was admitted on January 3, 1959 [1].

Legacy

The territorial period set the pattern for Alaska’s political institutions, including its capital in Juneau, its approach to land questions and the tensions between local control and federal ownership. The shift to statehood is covered in the entry on the Alaska Statehood Act.

Territorial Legislature

The Second Organic Act created Alaska’s first legislative assembly, the first measure of self-government, but with many restrictions. It met only in odd-numbered years for 60 days, and its first session opened on March 3, 1913, in Juneau, in space in the Elks Hall. Members were paid a day plus 15 cents a mile in travel allowance, and trips by dog team, sleigh and steamer were long: Governor Walter Clark estimated an average round trip of 2,541 miles [2][3]. Four legislators from Nome even traveled by dog team to Valdez before taking a steamship to Juneau [2].

First Session of 1913

The first session passed 84 bills. Among them were women’s suffrage, seven years before the Nineteenth Amendment, compulsory education for children aged 8 to 16, mine safety codes, bank and corporation regulation, vital statistics registration, a head tax for road building, registration of lobbyists and boards for medicine, dentistry and pharmacy [2][3]. It also created the first Pioneer Home, in Sitka, for elderly miners [2]. Governor Clark signed the suffrage bill, although he said there had been no demand for it from Alaska women [3].

Limits on Self-Government

The legislature could not control fish and game, borrow money, create counties or manage public land. Congress kept authority over natural resources, land and money, could override territorial acts, and the governor could veto them. Taxing powers were limited, reflecting the influence of large fishing and mining interests [2][3]. Delegate James Wickersham described the act as giving home rule “without the expenditure of a nickel” [3]. Fish traps, for example, remained legal until statehood in 1959 [3].

Prohibition

Congress also retained power over liquor laws. A territorial advisory vote in 1916 favored prohibition by more than two to one, and Congress then passed the so-called Bone Dry Law, effective in 1918 [3].

Wickersham and the First Statehood Bill

As delegate, Wickersham lobbied Congress for a railroad, which was eventually built as the Alaska Railroad, and for a ban on fish traps. In 1916 he introduced the first statehood bill, modeled on Oklahoma’s 1906 admission act, and he framed the limits of territorial rule as the main reason for statehood [3].

FAQs

When was the Territory of Alaska created? On August 24, 1912, under the Second Organic Act.

When did the territory end? On January 3, 1959, when Alaska became a state.

Who governed the territory? Governors appointed by the U.S. president for four-year terms, with an elected legislature and a nonvoting delegate in Congress.

What was the Alaska Equal Rights Act? A 1945 territorial law banning racial segregation and discrimination.

What was the Matanuska colony? A mid-1930s resettlement project that moved families, mostly from the Upper Midwest, to the Matanuska-Susitna Valley.

Sources

1. Wikipedia: Territory of Alaska
2. Alaska State Legislature: 100 Years of Alaska’s Legislature
3. Alaska History and Cultural Studies: Governing Alaska

Editorially reviewed by Specialty Digest Editorial TeamLast reviewed November 12, 2026Researched and drafted with AI assistanceReport an issue