ABSTRACT
The development of agriculture has generally followed the pace of more important economic activities. The Russians grew food in the vicinity of their fur trading posts, and the limited agricultural activities continued under the United States' ownership of Alaska. Agriculture, from its meager beginning over 100 years ago, has the potential to be a major economic force in rural Alaska. The Klondike gold discovery of 1896 was the event that stimulated governmental interest in Alaska agriculture. The stage was set but a catalyst was lacking the coordinator of the Governor's special projects office became interested in the prospect of agricultural development in Delta. The Delta agricultural project is unusual in the United States in that its chief sponsor is a state and not the federal government. The point of disagreement is whether the state government has the legal right to require farm development plans from those wishing to participate in the lottery before the lottery takes place.
