Then came the day when the Russian was to withdraw from his colonies, and the United States was to occupy them as Alaska. An area as broad as an empire, equal in extent to Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Denmark combined, was to be handed over from the Imperial Ruler of all the Russias to the Republic of the United States, and Sitka, the Capital of the Colonies, was to be the scene of the actual transfer. The statesmanship of Secretary Seward, aided by the eloquence of Sumner, had secured for our country a domain one sixth as large as the whole United States. October 18th, 1867, Alexei Pestchouroff, the Commissioner of the Tsar, appeared in front of the Baranof castle, and beside him stood Lovell H. Rousseau, the Commissioner for the United States, who was to receive the Territory. The Russian soldiery were drawn up along the terrace which ran around the Baranof Hill, and next to them were the men of the United States Infantry.[22] The ensign of Russia was lowered, the flag of the United States raised to the accompaniment of the salutes from the batteries and of the guns of the ships in the harbor.[23] The few words of the ceremony of transfer were spoken, and Alaska became a possession of the United States. Most of the Russian residents went back to their native land as soon as they were able to do so, but some remained to cast their lot in the land that had so long been their home.[24] Among those who remained are the Kashavaroffs, the Kostromitinoffs, the Bolshanins, the Shutzoffs, and others, whose descendants now live in Alaska. The commanding officer of the American troops, Gen. Jefferson C. Davis, made his headquarters in the building on the hill that had been so long the residence of the Russian officers. The American soldiers were quartered in the barracks of the Siberian Battalion, and the sentries of the United States walked the beats of the Russian guards. Sitka gradually adjusted itself to the new conditions, to the crowds of adventurers who thronged its streets seeking a profit in speculations in lands and furs. They were doomed to disappointment, for the titles to lands were withheld and the fur trade was overdone, so most of the newly arrived drifted away as they came. Distinguished visitors came and were entertained in the old castle where the Commandant dispensed hospitality. Lady Franklin, the widow of the famous Arctic explorer, was once a guest at the mansion on the kekoor, and Secretary Seward was entertained there in 1869 when he visited the land he added to the possessions of the United States.