The community now known as Kodiak was established in 1793 as Pavlovsk, and was the first permanent Russian settlement in North America, and served as its territorial capital until 1808. This building was built in the first decade of the 19th century as a storage facility (or "magazine") by the Russian American Company. When Alaska came under American control, the building was purchased by the Alaska Commercial Company, which continued the business operations previously engaged in by the Russians. In 1911 the building was sold to W. J. Erskine, who used the building as a private residence, constructing a new stone foundation for the building and enclosing its porch. He sold it in 1948 to a company which rented it out. After the 1964 Alaska earthquake and tsunami damaged the city, the building was acquired by a government redevelopment authority. Ownership was eventually transferred to the city, which leased it in 1967 to the Kodiak Historical Society. The society has since maintained the property, using it for office space and as a museum. The building was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1962, and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1966.