Ultimately, it was the gold in this land that lured these fortune seekers into Alaska and the Yukon Territory; however most left no better off than when they arrived.
The Klondike Gold Rush began in the summer of 1896 when Robert Henderson told George Washington Carmak and his two companions that he had found hundreds of dollars worth of gold in the creeks of the Yukon Territory. Carmak then found gold during his first day searching in Rabbit Creek (later named Bonanza Creek). The villagers at the nearest town - Fortymile - learned of his discovery and rushed to stake claims on the creek, thus starting the Klondike Gold Rush. However, it took almost a year for the rest of the world to learn of the discovery, when ships docked in Seattle and San Francisco carrying miners and their tales of gold. The newspapers rushed to print the story, but not the tales of heartbreak.
In 1897, other gold-seekers began making the journey to Klondike. Dawson, the final destination for most gold-seekers, became a booming city with fifteen hundred people by the spring of 1897. However, most of these prospectors would find very little gold, and would make the exhausting trip back to their homes empty handed.
By the summer of 1897, the idea of finding great wealth from the land and creeks of Alaska and northwest Canada had created a frenzy throughout the country and people from all over were rushing to the promising land. Between mid-1897 and 1898, over 100,000 gold-seekers set their sights for the Yukon, though only 30,000 completed the trip. The majority of those who did reach Dawson found the journey incredibly difficult and their new lives disappointing.
The Klondike Gold Rush began in the summer of 1896 when Robert Henderson told George Washington Carmak and his two companions that he had found hundreds of dollars worth of gold in the creeks of the Yukon Territory. Carmak then found gold during his first day searching in Rabbit Creek (later named Bonanza Creek). The villagers at the nearest town - Fortymile - learned of his discovery and rushed to stake claims on the creek, thus starting the Klondike Gold Rush. However, it took almost a year for the rest of the world to learn of the discovery, when ships docked in Seattle and San Francisco carrying miners and their tales of gold. The newspapers rushed to print the story, but not the tales of heartbreak.
In 1897, other gold-seekers began making the journey to Klondike. Dawson, the final destination for most gold-seekers, became a booming city with fifteen hundred people by the spring of 1897. However, most of these prospectors would find very little gold, and would make the exhausting trip back to their homes empty handed.
By the summer of 1897, the idea of finding great wealth from the land and creeks of Alaska and northwest Canada had created a frenzy throughout the country and people from all over were rushing to the promising land. Between mid-1897 and 1898, over 100,000 gold-seekers set their sights for the Yukon, though only 30,000 completed the trip. The majority of those who did reach Dawson found the journey incredibly difficult and their new lives disappointing.