Operation Alaska facts for kids

Operation Alaska, also called Finalaska or New Finland, was an idea some US officials had. The plan was to bring people from Finland to Alaska if the Soviet Union took over Finland.

This idea came up during two wars: the Winter War and the Continuation War. The new Finnish home, called "New Finland," would have been in central Alaska, near the Tanana River. However, people living in Alaska were against the plan. One main reason was the Finnish language, which is hard to learn and not spoken much in Alaska.

Why Was This Idea Proposed?

During the Winter War, many people in the United States worried about the safety of the Finns. They feared that the Finnish people might be harmed or killed by the Soviet Union. So, the idea was to help save them by moving them to Alaska.

Alaska was chosen for a few reasons:

• It was thought to be a good place for Finnish people to live.
• It had a very small population at the time.

Later, during the Continuation War, the plan to bring Finnish refugees to Alaska grew even bigger. The US was ready to help move the entire Finnish population if needed. Also, having more people in Alaska would have made it safer. This was important because of the upcoming Cold War and worries about Soviet attacks.