the noyes-mackenzie scandal was resolved by a man named judge james wickersham, and james wickershamctually is the first great political leader of alaska who would articulate the need for statehood. >> narrator: some of the most powerful investors of the territorial period were j.p. morgan and the guggenheim brothers. their operations included huge copper mines, a railroad to bring the copper ore to tidewater, and shipping companies to carry the ore south. the integrated monopoly became known as the alaska syndicate, and by the early 20th century, it accounted for the majority of alaska's economy. alaskans needed the jobs the investors brought, but many resented outside control over their lives. >> one of wickersham's great foes for much of his career were the guggenheims. now, early on, it's a little bit confusing because he appears like he initially wanted to work for them after he actually left his judgeship. and maybe it's actually because they sort of spurned him that it was really alaska divided into two camps. it was the wickersham, or the wick camp, and the gug camp, and wick