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I have only ever heard of this island before, but maybe one day I’ll see it for myself. It was on this date in 1784 that Kodiak Island became the first Russian colony in Alaska. This island is the eightieth largest in the world and the second largest in America, coming in at 3600 square miles. A Siberian fur merchant who arrived at this island with two ships, Gregory Shelikhov, was the founder of this colony. The natives harassed him, and so he finally decided to kill and imprison them so they would be forced into submission. It always amazes me how so many of these people who settled places like this figured they were superior to the indigenous people, and they were willing to cheat, lie, steal, and kill to take over the island for themselves and their country. After all, the U.S. did it, too.
For more information:
http://kodiakisland.net/timeline.php
http://www.kodiak.org/russian_era
http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/russians-settle-alaska
http://famousdaily.com/history/kodiak-island-alaska-first-russian-colony.html
