Digital Bob Archive

The Separation Convention, a non-partisan affair, got down to business at Juneau on November 19, 1923. There had been four previous non-partisan conventions, none of which achieved its purpose. The purpose of this one was to set up machinery for establishing the Territory of South Alaska, separate from the rest of the Territory of Alaska.

That movement had been sparked, at least in part, by a speech President Warren G. Harding gave in Seattle the previous July 27, upon his return from his Alaska trip. In the speech he said: \"Alaska is destined for ultimate statehood. In a very few years we can well set off the panhandle and a large block of the connecting southeastern part as a State.\"

On November 6 the question had been put to the voters of seven Southeastern towns, \"Shall the First Division be separated from the remainder of the Territory?\" The result had been 1,344 votes for separation, 89 against separation.

The heavy vote for separation was a result of a growing resentment of the Southeasterners against the Second and Fourth Division, represented by Fairbanks and Anchorage. It was pointed out that the population of all of northern Alaska had declined substantially between 1910 and 1920, while that of the Panhandle had increased. Taxes in the amount of $379,958. had been collected in the First Division in the years 1921 and 1922 but the Second and Fourth Divisions had produced only $86,902.

The northern districts had dominated the Legislature and imposed heavy taxes on the southern fishing industry while rejecting all except token taxes on mining.

Following the November 6 election, the City Council of each town selected thirteen delegates to the convention at Juneau. One of the first things they had to consider was a request from Cordova that the Prince William Sound area and a part of the drainage of the Copper River be included in the proposed new Territory of South Alaska. The request was favorably received but the proposed Organic Act had already been drafted and it was not revised. The delegates adopted a Memorial to the President and Congress asking for separation, and a proposed Organic Act.

The Organic Act was closely modeled on the existing Act for all of Alaska: Juneau would be the capital and the legislature would have 24 members. There was one major departure, however, in apportioning the members. In Alaska, members were elected at large within each of the four election districts. The new territory would have six election districts. The Ketchikan and Juneau districts would each elect four representatives and two senators. The Skagway, Sitka, Petersburg and Wrangell districts would each elect two representatives and one senator. There was also a reapportionment provision, a feature that was not added to the Alaska Organic Act until 20 years later.

One of the delegates, Ralph E. Robertson of Juneau, carried the Memorial and the Organic Act to Washington and duly presented them, but they didn't even get a committee hearing.

The Territory of South Alaska, conceived in great enthusiasm, was stillborn.