Territory of Alaska in the context of "Solar eclipse of June 29, 1927"

Seal hunting, or sealing, is the personal or commercial hunting of seals. Seal hunting is currently practiced in nine countries: Canada, Denmark (in self-governing Greenland only), Russia, the United States (above the Arctic Circle in Alaska), Namibia, Estonia, Norway, Finland and Sweden. Most of the world's seal hunting takes place in Canada and Greenland.

The Canadian Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) regulates the seal hunt in Canada. It sets quotas (total allowable catch – TAC), monitors the hunt, studies the seal population, works with the Canadian Sealers' Association to train sealers on new regulations, and promotes sealing through its website and spokespeople. The DFO set harvest quotas of over 90,000 seals in 2007; 275,000 in 2008; 280,000 in 2009; and 330,000 in 2010. The actual kills in recent years have been less than the quotas: 82,800 in 2007; 217,800 in 2008; 72,400 in 2009; and 67,000 in 2010. In 2007, Norway reported that 29,000 harp seals were killed, Russia reported that 5,479 seals were killed and Greenland reported that 90,000 seals were killed in their respective seal hunts.

The District of Alaska was the federal government’s designation for Alaska from May 17, 1884, to August 24, 1912, when it became the Territory of Alaska. Previously (1867–1884) it had been known as the Department of Alaska, a military designation.

The designation as a district meant that Alaska became an incorporated but unorganized territory with a civil government. The governor of the District of Alaska was appointed by the president of the United States.

The Aleutian Islands campaign (Japanese: アリューシャン方面の戦い, romanized: Aryūshan hōmen no tatakai) was a military campaign fought between 3 June 1942 and 15 August 1943 on and around the Aleutian Islands in the American Theater of World War II during the Pacific War. It was the only military campaign of World War II fought on North American soil. At the time of World War II, Alaska was a territory of the United States.

The islands' strategic value was their ability to control Pacific transportation routes. U.S. General Billy Mitchell told the U.S. Congress in 1935, "I believe that in the future, whoever holds Alaska will hold the world. I think it is the most important strategic place in the world." The Japanese reasoned that their control of the Aleutians would prevent a possible joining of forces by the Americans and the Soviets and future attack on the Japanese mainland via the Kuril Islands. Similarly, the U.S. feared that the islands could be used as bases from which to launch air raids on West Coast cities such as Anchorage, Seattle, San Francisco, or Los Angeles.

The 1925 serum run to Nome, also known as the Great Race of Mercy and The Serum Run, was a transport of diphtheria antitoxin by dog sled relay across the US territory of Alaska by 20 mushers and about 150 sled dogs across 674 miles (1,085 km) in 5½ days, saving the small town of Nome and the surrounding communities from a developing epidemic of diphtheria.

Both the mushers and their dogs were portrayed as heroes in the newly popular medium of radio and received headline coverage in newspapers across the United States. Balto, the lead sled dog on the final stretch into Nome, became the most famous canine celebrity of the era after Rin Tin Tin, and his statue is a popular tourist attraction in both New York City's Central Park and downtown Anchorage, Alaska. Togo's team covered much of the most dangerous parts of the route and ran the farthest: Togo's team covered 261 miles (420 km) while Balto's team ran 55 miles (89 km).