Seward Peninsula in northwest Alaska, Bering Land Bridge National Preserve. Bering Land Bridge National preserve protects a small remnant of the 1,000 mile (1,609 km) wide grassland that connected Asia and North America during the last Ice Age. (thanks to Google)
"natural resources" "natural resources" and a thriving "labor force" would all be factors. It should also be noted that the textile industry was already doing well.
