By SUZANNE DOWNING
March 29, 2026 – Monday marks Seward’s Day in Alaska , a legal state holiday that gives many state and some municipal employees a paid day off, while most private-sector workers continue their regular schedules. If you plan to file for your Permanent Fund dividend, you’ll need to do it online. Need other state services? Take a number.
The uniquely Alaska holiday is observed each year on the last Monday in March and commemorates the signing of the Alaska Purchase treaty on March 30, 1867, when US Secretary of State William H. Seward negotiated the acquisition of Alaska from Russia for $7.2 million, or about two cents per acre.
Deadline approaching: Alaskans have until March 31 to apply for Permanent Fund dividend
For many Alaskans, however, the practical effect is simpler: government offices close, but most businesses stay open.
Seward’s Day was first declared an official holiday on March 30, 1917, by Alaska’s third Territorial Legislature. Lawmakers that year also established Alaska Day (Oct. 18), marking the formal transfer of Alaska from Russia to the United States.
Because Alaska was still a US territory at the time, the designation applied at the territorial level. When Alaska became the 49th state in 1959, the holiday carried forward into state law.
In 1971, the observance shifted from March 30 to the last Monday in March, creating a three-day weekend that is similar to the federal move that created Monday observances for Presidents’ Day and Memorial Day.
Today, Seward’s Day remains one of two state holidays tied directly to Alaska’s origins under Russian rule, alongside Alaska Day in October.
The Alaska Purchase itself came together quickly. On the night of March 29–30, 1867, Seward and Russian diplomat Baron Eduard de Stoeckl negotiated through the night and signed the treaty around 4 a.m.
The Senate ratified the deal on April 9, 1867, by a 37–2 vote after critics complained about the rushed and secretive process. The formal transfer occurred months later on Oct. 18, 1867, in Sitka.
At the time, many critics mocked the purchase as “Seward’s Folly” or “Seward’s Icebox,” laughing off the remote territory as worthless. Later discoveries of gold, oil, and other resources transformed the perception of the acquisition into one of the most consequential land deals in American history.
Seward himself died in 1872, long before the purchase became widely celebrated in Alaska.
Seward’s Day is one of roughly a dozen paid holidays recognized by the State of Alaska. State offices close, and many local governments and school districts also observe the day. Federal offices, however, remain open because Seward’s Day is not a federal holiday.
Since Juneteenth was added to the calendar, state employees now receive about 11 core paid holidays annually, with some bargaining units receiving floating holidays or additional leave that can push the total higher.
The result is a familiar pattern: empty government offices on Monday, but normal operations for most private businesses.
Some Alaska Native leaders have criticized Seward’s Day and Alaska Day noting that indigenous peoples already inhabited the land and were not parties to the 1867 treaty between Russia and the United States. There were only about 30,000-40,000 indigenous people in the region at the time, members of far-flung tribes and nomadic groups.
Despite those complaints from Natives, the holiday continues to focus on the treaty itself and Seward’s role in expanding US territory.
For most Alaskans, though, Seward’s Day is simply another workday, unless you are employed by state or some local governments, in which case it’s a long weekend.
