District of Alaska
| District of Alaska | |||||
| District of the United States | |||||
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| History | |||||
| • | Department of Alaska | May 17, 1884 | |||
| • | Territory of Alaska | August 24, 1912 | |||
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| History of Alaska |
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| Prehistory |
| Russian America (1733–1867) |
| Department of Alaska (1867–1884) |
| District of Alaska (1884–1912) |
| Territory of Alaska (1912–1959) |
| State of Alaska (1959–present) |
| Other topics |
The District of Alaska was the governmental designation for Alaska from May 17, 1884 to August 24, 1912, when it became Alaska Territory. Previously it had been known as the Department of Alaska. At the time, legislators in Washington, D.C., were occupied with post-Civil War reconstruction issues, and had little time to dedicate to Alaska. General Jefferson C. Davis, a U.S. Army officer, was put in charge as the first commander of the Department of Alaska, which between 1884 and 1912 was renamed the District of Alaska and was appointed a civil government by President Chester A. Arthur with the passage of the First Organic Act. During the Department era, Alaska was variously under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Army (until 1877), the United States Department of the Treasury (from 1877 until 1879) and the U.S. Navy (from 1879 until 1884), but now the area had its own government.
It was the discovery of gold in the Yukon in 1896 that brought attention to the United States' northern possession. A wave of fortune hunters clamored for passage to the Klondike, but the Klondike was in Yukon Territory, Canada, not Alaska as many a would-be miner believed. Still, the easiest route was by ship to Skagway, or Dyea, in Southeast Alaska. Miners had their choice of two passes across the mountains to the Yukon fields: The Chilkoot Trail, an old Native route, started in Dyea, and the White Pass, also called Dead Horse Trail, was in Skagway. The Chilkoot Trail was a shorter trip but had a considerably steeper climb. The White Pass took a little longer, but was at a lower elevation. Skagway and the White Pass trail also had a severe crime problem, organized and led by the infamous badman, Soapy Smith. Smith was killed in Skagway at the Shootout on Juneau Wharf.
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