First owned by Russia, Alaska was purchased by the United States of America in 1867 for $7.2 million. This equates to, roughly, two cents an acre, where an acre is about half the size of a football field. Originally, many considered the purchase to be a "folly" (a reckless act), but it has proved to be a wise investment because of the state's rich resources. Alaska became the 49th state in 1959, and it adopted the nickname "The Last Frontier" for its rugged environment and its isolation from the "Lower 48" states.