```

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 111 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]

<DOC>

115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 111

       Celebrating the 150th anniversary of the Alaska Purchase.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 4, 2017

 Mr. Sullivan (for himself and Ms. Murkowski) submitted the following 
             resolution; which was considered and agreed to

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION

 
       Celebrating the 150th anniversary of the Alaska Purchase.

Whereas Secretary of State William H. Seward agreed to purchase Alaska from 
        Russia on March 30, 1867, for approximately 2 cents per acre;
Whereas the Senate ratified the treaty with Russia regarding the purchase of 
        Alaska on April 9, 1867, and the House of Representatives approved the 
        fund appropriation for that purchase on July 14, 1868;
Whereas, on August 1, 1868, the Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary 
        of His Majesty the Emperor of all the Russias acknowledged that 
        $7,200,000 had been received from the United States Treasury as payment 
        in full for the cession of Alaska;
Whereas New Archangel, later Sitka, served as--

    (1) the capital of the territory of Alaska from the time of Russian 
rule until 1906; and

    (2) the location for the signing of the Alaska Purchase on October 18, 
1867;

Whereas Alaska is home to--

    (1) the highest mountain peak in North America, Denali, which rises 
20,310 feet above sea level;

    (2) the northernmost, easternmost, and westernmost points of the United 
States;

    (3) more active glaciers and ice fields than in the rest of the 
inhabited world;

    (4) a variety of animal species, including--

    G    (A) the largest concentration of American Bald Eagles and the 
largest species of brown bear in the United States; and

    G    (B) 90 percent of the sea otters in the world;

    (5) 24 national parks, including the 5 largest national parks in the 
United States, Wrangell-St. Elias National Park, the Gates of the Arctic 
National Park and Preserve, Denali National Park and Preserve, Katmai 
National Park and Preserve, and Glacier Bay National Park, which, together, 
are larger than the 8 smallest States combined;

    (6) the 2 largest national forests in the United States, the Tongass 
and Chugach National Forests, spanning more than 37,000 square miles;

    (7) more than 38 percent of the shoreline and nearly 54 percent of the 
coastline of the United States; and

    (8) more Federal land than there is total land in the States of Texas 
and Nebraska combined;

Whereas, in 1913, the first act of the first Territorial Legislature of Alaska 
        was to grant women suffrage;
Whereas there are 229 federally recognized tribes in Alaska and 20 Alaska Native 
        languages are spoken in the State;
Whereas, on December 18, 1971, the landmark Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act 
        (43 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) was signed into law, which established 13 
        Alaska Native Regional Corporations and more than 200 Alaska Native 
        Village Corporations;
Whereas more than 44,000,000 acres of land in Alaska are under Alaska Native 
        ownership;
Whereas the 3 most diverse census tracts in the United States are located in the 
        Municipality of Anchorage;
Whereas, during World War II, the Imperial Japanese Navy invaded and occupied 
        portions of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska;
Whereas Alaska has--

    (1) 12 major military bases and stations that are home to honorable men 
and women who serve the United States in the Armed Forces; and

    (2) the highest number of veterans in the United States per capita;

Whereas some of the highest producing oil and natural gas fields in the United 
        States are on the North Slope in Alaska;
Whereas more crude oil has been produced from State lands on the North Slope in 
        Alaska than from Federal lands in the Central Gulf of Mexico;
Whereas the ports of Alaska consistently process the highest volume of 
        commercial seafood that lands in the United States;
Whereas Alaska has vast reserves of minerals and the Red Dog Mine is one of the 
        largest zinc mines in the world;
Whereas Alaska has produced world record-breaking agricultural products, such as 
        the heaviest cabbage at 138.25 pounds and the heaviest broccoli at 35 
        pounds;
Whereas the Aurora Borealis is visible from Fairbanks an average of 243 days 
        each year;
Whereas Girdwood was recognized by National Geographic as the world's best ski 
        town;
Whereas, in the northernmost town in Alaska, the sun does not set for 
        approximately 80 days in the summer and does not rise for approximately 
        60 days in the heart of winter;
Whereas President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the proclamation admitting Alaska 
        to the United States on January 3, 1959; and
Whereas Alaska is the largest State in the United States in land area at more 
        than 586,000 square miles and constitutes almost \1/5\ the size of the 
        contiguous United States: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate commends the State of Alaska on, and 
joins with the people of the State of Alaska in celebrating, the 150th 
anniversary of the Alaska Purchase.
                                 <all>
```