Timeline / Defining Rights and Responsibilities / 1842–50s: Russian-American Company compels medical treatment of Native women
1842–50s: Russian-American Company compels medical treatment of Native women
Russian traders have forced Alaska women into prostitution for decades. When syphilis spreads in New Archangel and Kodiak, the Russian-American Company forces Native women to undergo treatment. Although treatment improves the women’s health, the prevention of sexual transmitted infection among company employees is the objective.
- Theme
- Native Rights
- Region
- Arctic, Northwest Coast
Chart of Kodiak, Alaska, with detailed insets of areas around dwelling places. From an annual report of the Russian-American Company, 1849.
Courtesy University of Alaska Archives Fairbanks