Why did William Seward want to buy the united states to purchase Alaska

There were multiple reasons why Seward wanted to buy Alaska including:

1) Spreading America's power - By purchasing this huge area of land (roughly 586,000 square miles) the US would be able to expand their political and economic power. This new purchase would allow businesses to sell their products to new markets. Along with this, the US government can spread their ideas of democracy and individual rights to more people.

2) Gaining resources - Alaska at this time was known for its fur trading. However, their was a huge part of this land that was not explored and held the possibility of valuable resources. This becomes a reality when gold is found in Alaska.