Social engineering in Alaska
Due to early Russian settlement of Alaska, many native Alaskans coverted to Russian Orthodoxy. Below is a samovar from Anchorage’s Russian Orthodox Museum. Today, the attached church has several native Orthodox Priests.
In the 1890’s, Scandinavian Sami people came to Alaska to teach the Inupiaq tribe how to herd reindeer. Some Sami people stayed and intermarried with Native Americans.
During the Depression, the federal government sent Midwestern families to the Matanuska Valley of Alaska to try and start a self-sufficient farming community. Initially, families with Scandinavian roots were favored, since it was thought that they could withstand the cold conditions. After 60% of the initial families failed, they were replaced by a second group of colonists, who had previous farming experience. The experiment was eventually successful. Due to the long daylight hours in summer months, the area produces giant cabbages and other root vegetables, prized at the annual Alaska state fair.
I didn’t know about the relocation of Midwestern Scandanavian families to Alaska. It makes some sort of sense, I guess. Thanks for sharing such interesting tidbits.
Comment by sciencewoman — September 18, 2006 @ 2:18 pm