What is the story behind "Klondike Gold Rush" ?

Question

Today is th Anniversary..

Answer 1

In August 1896, three people led by Skookum Jim Mason (a member of the Tagish nation whose birth name was Keish) headed north, down the Yukon River from the Carcross area, looking for his sister Kate and her husband George Carmack. The party included Skookum Jim, Skookum Jim's cousin known as Dawson Charlie (or sometimes Tagish Charlie) and his nephew Patsy Henderson. After meeting up with George and Kate who were fishing for salmon at the mouth of the Klondike River, they ran into Nova Scotian Robert Henderson who had been mining gold on the Indian River, just south of the Klondike. Henderson told George Carmack about where he was mining and that he did not want any "damn Siwashes" (meaning Indians) near him. The group then headed a few miles up the Klondike River to Rabbit Creek, now Bonanza Creek to hunt moose.

On August 16, 1896, the party discovered rich placer gold deposits in Bonanza (Rabbit) Creek. It is now generally accepted that Skookum Jim made the actual discovery, but some accounts say that it was Kate Carmack. George Carmack was officially credited for the discovery because the "discovery" claim was staked in his name. The group agreed to this because they felt that other miners would be reluctant to recognise a claim made by an Indian, given the strong racist attitudes of the time.

Interesting story .... I hadn't read it before. Thanks for asking the question.

Answer 2

It was when Robert Henderson and George Washington Carmack discovered gold near Rabbit Creek. More than 500 claims staked out the area, and some of these claims made the owners rich beyond their greatest dreams. But there was not much gold left for the travelers who were attracted by the tales of wealth. Thousands of people came to the city of Dawson (which had not existed before, but due to the Gold Rush, gained a population of 20,000 people) to get to the Yukon Territory (which was where the gold was.

The journey was far from easy, as travelers had to bring 1 years' supply of food, or the money to purchase it. Prices in Dawson were extremely high, a pound of flour being $0.75 and a few potatoes being $1.75. A laborer in that time only made $1.25 a day. They had to cross Chilkoot pass and the White Pass Trail to get there, and often paid the natives to carry their bags for them.

But by the time they got there, there was not much gold, 40% could not finish the journey and half of the people never even tried looking for gold when they saw how many miners had already staked out the area.

For a major gold rush city, Dawson was peaceful and law-abiding due to the work of the Canadian Mounted Police or the Mounties. However, by the end of the gold rush, Dawson's population dropped from 20,000 to only 2,000 today.

Answer 3

The Klondike Gold Rush was a frenzy of gold rush immigration to and gold prospecting along the Klondike River near Dawson City in the Yukon Territory, Canada, after gold was discovered in the late 19th century.
Discovery

The mining records in Dawson City find that Thomas Flack located two placer mining claims in 1896; He wrote a Power of Attorney in June, 1897; Then returned to Vancouver, Canada where he built a four story office building in 1898, located at 163 West Hasting Street.

In August 1896, three people led by Skookum Jim Mason (a member of the Tagish nation whose birth name was Keish) headed north, down the Yukon River from the Carcross area, looking for his sister Kate and her husband George Carmack. The party included Skookum Jim, Skookum Jim's cousin known as Dawson Charlie (or sometimes Tagish Charlie) and his nephew Patsy Henderson. After meeting up with George and Kate who were fishing for salmon at the mouth of the Klondike River, they ran into Nova Scotian Robert Henderson who had been mining gold on the Indian River, just south of the Klondike. Henderson told George Carmack about where he was mining and that he did not want any "damn Siwashes" (meaning Indians) near him. The group then headed a few miles up the Klondike River to Rabbit Creek, now Bonanza Creek to hunt moose.

On August 16, 1896, the party discovered rich placer gold deposits in Bonanza (Rabbit) Creek. It is now generally accepted that Skookum Jim made the actual discovery, but some accounts say that it was Kate Carmack. George Carmack was officially credited for the discovery because the "discovery" claim was staked in his name. The group agreed to this because they felt that other miners would be reluctant to recognise a claim made by an Indian, given the strong racist attitudes of the time. Further evidence of Skookum Jim's discovery is that he was eagerly followed by other miners and caused a mini rush when he later staked some claims in the Kluane Lake area in 1905.

Answer 4

Go visit Dawson and Skagway. It is a wonderful history to go visit. You can drive from Skagway and see the mountains where the people went on to Dawson. Dawson is a great town to visit. You can see where the dredges took out gold in later years. There are museums. Have a great trip!

Answer 5

People went to Canada trying to find a good ice cream bar but
they had sold out. So, they looked around for something else and discovered gold.

Answer 6

Very interesting. Lots of info available on the internet, just google and read.