However, the respective Inupiat of the North Slope and of the Northwest Arctic seldom consider themselves to be one people.[15]. [56] Most of Alaska's native languages belong to either the Eskimo–Aleut or Na-Dene language families; however, some languages are thought to be isolates (e.g. The cities, towns, villages, and region served by ARR tracks are known statewide as "The Railbelt". The primary crops are potatoes, carrots, lettuce, and cabbage. This allows it to have the lowest individual tax burden in the United States. » Alaska's court system has four levels: the Alaska Supreme Court, the Alaska Court of Appeals, the superior courts and the district courts. Federal subsidies are also an important part of the economy, allowing the state to keep taxes low. Many active volcanoes are found in the Aleutians and in coastal regions. Alaska's first independent picture entirely made in Alaska was The Chechahcos, produced by Alaskan businessman Austin E. Lathrop and filmed in and around Anchorage. The railroad played a vital role in Alaska's development, moving freight into Alaska while transporting natural resources southward, such as coal from the Usibelli coal mine near Healy to Seward and gravel from the Matanuska Valley to Anchorage. One of the most prominent movies filmed in Alaska is MGM's Eskimo/Mala The Magnificent, starring Alaska Native Ray Mala. The United States Lend-Lease program involved flying American warplanes through Canada to Fairbanks and then Nome; Soviet pilots took possession of these aircraft, ferrying them to fight the German invasion of the Soviet Union. Alaska has a longer coastline than all the other U.S. states combined.[10]. Because of limited highway access, air travel remains the most efficient form of transportation in and out of the state. Something that can surely be let to slide in the best place to live in Alaska. In 1795, the First Russian Orthodox Church was established in Kodiak. The 2007 film directed by Sean Penn, Into The Wild, was partially filmed and set in Alaska. Überrascht? [136] The 1999 John Sayles film Limbo, starring David Strathairn, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, and Kris Kristofferson, was filmed in Juneau. Things to Do in Alaska, United States: See Tripadvisor's 674,926 traveller reviews and photos of Alaska tourist attractions. This includes fish taken by hook, net or wheel.[92]. The conviction was set aside in April 2009 after evidence of prosecutorial misconduct emerged. Alaska is the kind of place you take in slowly, over a few trips. They organized a "provisional city government", which was Alaska's first municipal government, but not in a legal sense. [68] Alaskan Hindus often share venues and celebrations with members of other Asian religious communities, including Sikhs and Jains. Because of its population relative to other U.S. states, Alaska has only one member in the U.S. House of Representatives. The climate of Western Alaska is determined in large part by the Bering Sea and the Gulf of Alaska. “ There are some fun shops, the beautiful Alaska native art gallery, Marvin Oliver, places to eat, Dolly’s house to tour, etc. The fall in oil prices after the fracking boom in the early 2010s has decimated Alaska's state treasury, which has historically received about 85 percent of its revenue from taxes and fees imposed on oil and gas companies. The state capital of Juneau is the second-largest city in the United States by area, comprising more territory than the states of Rhode Island and Delaware. Large swaths of the Alaskan coastline offer wind and geothermal energy potential as well.[85]. [56] As of 2014[update] nearly all of Alaska's native languages were classified as either threatened, shifting, moribund, nearly extinct, or dormant languages.[57]. As such, this was where most of the initial non-indigenous settlement occurred in the years following the Alaska Purchase. [82] Prudhoe Bay was the largest conventional oil field ever discovered in North America, but was much smaller than Canada's enormous Athabasca oil sands field, which by 2014 was producing about 1,500,000 barrels per day (240,000 m3/d) of unconventional oil, and had hundreds of years of producible reserves at that rate. A vast, uninhabited wilderness overwhelms the comparatively small cities in the state, such as commercial-minded Anchorage, with its many things to do, and tucked-away Juneau (a curious state capital with no road access). An exclave of the U.S., it borders the Canadian province of British Columbia and territory of Yukon to the east and southeast and has a maritime border with Russia's Chukotka Autonomous Okrug to the west. Alaska's at-large congressional district is one of the largest parliamentary constituencies in the world by area. Kreuzworträtsel-Hilfe The state is considered the entry point for the settlement of North America by way of the Bering land bridge. [113] The first legal marijuana store opened in Valdez in October 2016. The Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development operates AVTEC, Alaska's Institute of Technology. Of Alaska's 2010 Census population figure of 710,231, 20,429 people, or 2.88% of the population, did not live in an incorporated city or census-designated place. Some of the highest and lowest temperatures in Alaska occur around the area near Fairbanks. The system also operates a ferry service from Bellingham, Washington and Prince Rupert, British Columbia, in Canada through the Inside Passage to Skagway. Alaska's economy depends heavily on increasingly expensive diesel fuel for heating, transportation, electric power and light. William H. Seward, the United States Secretary of State, negotiated the Alaska Purchase (also known as Seward's Folly) with the Russians in 1867 for $7.2 million. [40] Unalaska/Dutch Harbor and Adak became significant bases for the United States Army, United States Army Air Forces and United States Navy. The new law means people over 21 can consume small amounts of pot. As of 2004[update], well over half of all registered voters have chosen "non-partisan" or "undeclared" as their affiliation,[121] despite recent attempts to close primaries to unaffiliated voters. Many rural communities in Alaska are considered "dry", having outlawed the importation of alcoholic beverages. Die Passagiere und Besatzung der Boeing 737-700 der Fluggesellschaft Alaska Airlines kamen ebenfalls mit dem Schrecken davon, das Flugzeug wurde beschädigt, wie die Zeitung „The Anchorage Daily News“ berichtete. During World War II, the Aleutian Islands Campaign focused on Attu, Agattu and Kiska, all which were occupied by the Empire of Japan. Glacier ice covers about 28,957 square miles (75,000 km2) of Alaska. That same year, not coincidentally, Alaska repealed its state income tax. In 2008, Governor Sarah Palin became the first Republican woman to run on a national ticket when she became John McCain's running mate. [41], On March 27, 1964, the massive Good Friday earthquake killed 133 people and destroyed several villages and portions of large coastal communities, mainly by the resultant tsunamis and landslides. [26][27] The lowest official Alaska temperature is −80 °F (−62 °C) in Prospect Creek on January 23, 1971,[24][25] one degree above the lowest temperature recorded in continental North America (in Snag, Yukon, Canada).[28]. We have reviews of the best places to see in Alaska. The richest location in Alaska by per capita income is Halibut Cove ($89,895). Visit top-rated & must-see attractions. The governor of Alaska serves four-year terms. [119] The state government has had to drastically reduce its budget, and has brought its budget shortfall from over $2 billion in 2016 to under $500 million by 2018. Alaska (/əˈlæskə/ (listen); Aleut: Alax̂sxax̂; Inupiaq: Alaasikaq; Pacific Gulf Yupik: Alas'kaaq; Tlingit: Anáaski; Russian: Аля́ска, romanized: Alyáska) is a U.S. state on the northwest extremity of the country's West Coast, just across the Bering Strait from Asia. Alaska oil production peaked in 1988 and has declined more than 65% since then. Most of the state is uninhabited which makes for fantastic outdoor adventure. For other uses, see, Map of the United States with Alaska highlighted, Interactive map showing border of Alaska (click to zoom). Estimates for the number of Muslims in Alaska range from 2,000 to 5,000. The Man. Alaska Guide Co. is based in Valdez, Alaska and seeks to educate people on Alaska through adventure tours and online informational resources. The area is known for its massive reserves of crude oil, and contains both the National Petroleum Reserve–Alaska and the Prudhoe Bay Oil Field. [citation needed] CDPs have not been established for these areas by the United States Census Bureau, except that seven CDPs were established for the Ketchikan-area neighborhoods in the 1980 Census (Clover Pass, Herring Cove, Ketchikan East, Mountain Point, North Tongass Highway, Pennock Island and Saxman East), but have not been used since. Most of the population lives along the coast. [110] Local political communities have often worked on issues related to land use development, fishing, tourism, and individual rights. A total of 5.2% of Alaskans speak one of the state's 20 indigenous languages,[58] known locally as "native languages". Alaska's United States senators belong to Class 2 and Class 3. "Природа". Russia's contemporary ruler Tsar Alexander II, the Emperor of the Russian Empire, King of Poland and Grand Duke of Finland, also planned the sale;[37] the purchase was made on March 30, 1867. (The nearest link to the North American railway network is the northwest terminus of the Canadian National Railway at Prince Rupert, British Columbia, several hundred miles to the southeast.) [124] Many of the more densely populated parts of the state are part of Alaska's 16 boroughs, which function somewhat similarly to counties in other states. Alaska Natives, while organized in and around their communities, have been active within the Native corporations. Visit top-rated & must-see attractions. The Russians were the first Europeans to settle the area beginning in the 18th century, eventually establishing Russian America, which spanned most of the current state. The Gwich'in people of the northern Interior region are Athabaskan and primarily known today for their dependence on the caribou within the much-contested Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Eskimo was critically acclaimed and released worldwide; as a result, Mala became an international movie star. Alaska was occupied by various indigenous peoples for thousands of years before the arrival of Europeans. Some modern researchers associate Kheuveren with Koyuk River. Many reality television shows are filmed in Alaska. Statehood was approved by Congress on July 7, 1958. West of Fairbanks lies another concentration of small farms catering to restaurants, the hotel and tourist industry, and community-supported agriculture. Louis B. Mayer spared no expense in spite of the remote location, going so far as to hire the chef from the Hotel Roosevelt in Hollywood to prepare meals. McCain's running mate was Sarah Palin, the state's governor and the first Alaskan on a major party ticket.