The Klondike Gold Rush is full of fascinating stories showing us the scale of this human drama. We have learned about stampeder experience from thousands of historic artifacts, photographs, journal accounts, published memoirs, and archeological discoveries.
Dive into history to
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Courageous women from all walks of life joined the Klondike Gold Rush of 1897-98.
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Buffalo Soldiers of Company L
Company L, a unit of black soldiers, spent 3 years serving their country in Southeast Alaska. Learn about their time taming the frontier.
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Early Chilkoot Expeditions
Some of the early expeditions that crossed the Chilkoot Trail and helped it become a critical gold rush route.
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Baseball, football, basketball, hiking, and photography there was a club or sport for every Skagwegian.
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Showing results 1-10 of 15
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 Defying expectations of her era, Bessie Couture was an black entrepreneur in Skagway during the Klondike Gold Rush and beyond.  Edward Bordinghammer was a soldier in the segregated military for nearly 30 years. He served his country from New York to Alaska to Texas. During his time at Camp Skagway, Alaska, he was a musician for Company L, 24th Infantry.  Augustus Snoten served in the segregated military for nearly 30 years. His service took him from Puerto Rico to Alaska and many places in between.  Arriving in Skagway during the height of the Klondike Gold Rush, Martin Itjen tried his had at all sorts of businesses before he landed in tourism. As Skagway's original promoter, Martin Itjen drove a street car tour and operated a museum filled with strange taxidermy, gold rush artifacts, and early animatronic mannequins.  Arriving in Skagway with almost no money, Harriet Pullen baked pies, cooked for stampeders, and ran a horse team. Eventually she owned a dairy farm and the fanciest hotel in town, the Pullen House.  In the fall of 1897 Emma Kelly made her way north to report on the events of the Klondike Gold Rush for various Midwest newspapers. Despite being told she was too late to head north she pushed on, facing blizzard like conditions on the trail and the Yukon River freezing over while she was on it. She was one for adventure.  George Rapuzzi grew up with the legacy of the Klondike Gold Rush. Born in 1899 in Skagway, Alaska, he collected everything he could associated with the gold rush. His collection includes buildings, artifacts, and a streetcar. One person can make a difference and George truly was a guardian of the gold rush legacy.  Daughter-in-law of George Brackett who built the Brackett Toll Road up the White Pass Trail, Mollie Brackett took many photos of everyday life in Skagway from 1898 to 1900. Her non-professional but informative photos were labeled and included many well-known aspects of the Klondike Gold Rush, e.g., the internment of Soapy Smith's gang, the building of the Brackett Road, gold mining in Atlin, Alaska Natives, traversing the White Pass Trail in the snow, etc. Káa Goox, with three others, discovered the gold that spurred the Klondike Gold Rush leading him to become a rich man. After traveling in the continental United States his strong connection to Carcross, Yukon Territory brought him home to Canada. After arriving in Skagway, Annie Hall Strong wrote "Advice for women" in the local newspaper helping female stampeders plan for their trip to the gold fields.
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