This place was central to Russia's hopes of establishing a lucrative colony in America.
Finding a Foothold
Starting in the 1740s, Russians were attracted to Alaska's coast by abundant, valuable sea otters. Russia claimed Alaska and . . . — — Map (db m181348) HM
This site possesses national significance in commemorating the history of the United States of America. The hall is the place of importance in the native community. The original chapter of Alaska Native Brotherhood built this hall in 1914 to serve . . . — — Map (db m133827) HM
On October 18, 1867, the Russian eagle ceded its perch on this hill to the American eagle.
What a Deal!
By the 1860s, the Russian-American Company (RAC), which managed Russia's colonies in Alaska, was losing money, so Russia decided to sell . . . — — Map (db m181361) HM
has been designated a
Registered National
Historic Landmark
under the provisions of the
Historic Sites Act of August 21, 1935
This site possesses exceptional value
in commemorating and illustrating
the history of the United . . . — — Map (db m181330) HM
As Alaska evolved from department to district to territory, and finally, to state, this hill went through a series of changes, eventually becoming Baranof Castle State Historic Site.
Who's the Boss?
A short lull followed the excitement of . . . — — Map (db m181369) HM
Captain George Foster Emmons (1811-1884), commander of the USS Ossipee, sailed into the Sitka harbor with United States
and Russian Commissioners for the ceremony transferring the Alaskan territory to the United States on 18 October 1867.
Nearly . . . — — Map (db m118712) HM
Russians and Native Alaskans took the first tentative steps toward mutual understanding in the Russian Bishop's House. The bishop lived here alongside Tlingit students and Native and Kryol (mixed ancestry) men studying to become Orthodox priests. . . . — — Map (db m181607) HM
This two-story, wood clapboard and gambrel roofed cottage-style house was constructed during the summer of 1916 by the United States Department of Commerce, Coast and Geodetic Survey. Prior to the purchase of Alaska by the United States from the . . . — — Map (db m181580) HM
Blacksmiths and artisans who once lived and toiled on this hill were highly skilled workers of diverse ethnicities. Artifacts found here tell their forgotten story.
Under Your Feet
In 1997, archaeologists discovered Russian workshops . . . — — Map (db m181266) HM
Built about 1895, the Hanlon-Qsbakken house is on the National Register of Historic Places. It was home to three generations of the Hanion-Osbakken family, who trace their roots in Sitka to early Russian American days. The family held the property . . . — — Map (db m181588) HM
When the Kiksadi clan of the Tlingit Indians first migrated into this area from the south, they chose this promontory for the erection of their main houses. There were four of these community houses here when Baranof, governor of the . . . — — Map (db m181334) HM
Baranof and his party landed and parleyed with the Kiksadi who refused to permit another settlement. When the Russians attacked this hill they found the Kiksadi had moved to their fort ¼ mile east on Indian River.
After the battle and siege at . . . — — Map (db m181343) HM
The castle then served as the seat of the United States government until military forces were withdrawn in 1877. Following 1877 there was no government in Alaska until the Organic Act of 1884 authorized the appointment of an Internal Revenue . . . — — Map (db m181358) HM
The first American flag was raised by a colorguard from Company F, 9th Infantry, to signify the transfer of Alaska from czarist Russia.
The first 49 star American flag was raised on July 4, 1959, by a colorguard from the First Battle Group 9th . . . — — Map (db m133863) HM
Imagine your spouse is appointed as the top official in a distant land. You must now travel thousands of miles to Sitka and make this hill your family's new home.
Elisabeth von Wrangell
Ferdinand von Wrangell, the first governor of Russian . . . — — Map (db m181341) HM
They called this place Noow Tlein, Novoarkhangel'sk, and Castle Hill. They were the men who worked, fought, and lived here.
Andrew P. Johnson
1898-1986 — Prominent member of the Kiks.ádi clan and a child of the Kaagwaantaan . . . — — Map (db m181339) HM
Tlingit people established ties to this place long ago and those ties, though altered, remain.
The Land and the Tlingit
The ocean and the forest met the Tlingit peoples' needs as they moved from summer fish camps to autumn hunting grounds . . . — — Map (db m181331) HM
Step across the street to Novo Arkhangelsk, Imperial Russian colonial capital of Alaska and a busy trade center known as the "Paris of the Pacific.” The Bishop's House is the most visible actual remnant of New Archangel. It was built in 1841-42 by . . . — — Map (db m181617) HM
has been designated a
Registered National
Historic Landmark
under the provisions of the
Historic Sites Act of August 21, 1935
This site possesses exceptional value
in commemorating and illustrating
the history of the United . . . — — Map (db m181596) HM
The replica blockhouse before you, a symbol of Russia's role in Alaska's history, represents the walled fortifications that defined the limits of its control.
These blockhouses, or watchtowers, each housing cannons, protected the Russian . . . — — Map (db m133826) HM
On this site was built the first Protestant church in Alaska. It was founded in 1840 when Governor Etholén brought Rev. Uno Cygnaeus from Finland to establish a Lutheran congregation. The Russian-U.S. transfer agreement of 1867 specifically deeded . . . — — Map (db m181567) HM
The 'Cottage-by-the Sea' was constructed in 1897 by Norwegian prospector Captain Hans Christian Pande. While Alaska was still a Territory, the W.P. Mills Company donated this house to the Sitka Woman's Club for a clubhouse, which led to the . . . — — Map (db m181256) HM
Saint Michael's Cathedral, a National Historic Landmark, is the central point of interest in historic downtown Sitka and is recognizable statewide as the most prominent symbol of the Russian colonial presence in Alaska. It was the main edifice of a . . . — — Map (db m181574) HM
Norman E. Staton Sr. and Ethel L. (Milonich) Staton, lifelong Alaskans moved from Ketchikan to Sitka in 1955 opening their first restaurant, the Pioneer Grill on Katlian Street and their second, the Sitka Café on Lincoln Street before opening . . . — — Map (db m181259) HM
This hill's location and the fact that it was once practically an island during high tides made it an ideal and highly defensible site valued by three different nations. Here, the course of Alaska's history changed.
Noow Tlein
The Tlingit . . . — — Map (db m181263) HM
It would be more practical to … erect new [rental] houses … places built in the American way, that is frame houses … — Builder Peter Callsen in a letter dated 1887 to Father Vladimir Donskoi, advising the construction of new . . . — — Map (db m181613) HM
This large frame house was constructed as a Russian residence about 1835. Although there has been some modification the building is thought to be the finest remaining example of Russian secular architecture in Alaska. — — Map (db m133829) HM
