Press Release nr98-72
Press Release · Monday, June 1, 1998

Washington, DC

In August 1896, prospectors discovered large amounts of gold near the Klondike River in Canada’s Yukon Territory. After the news reached Seattle and San Francisco the next spring, more than 100,000 adventurers headed to the remote Yukon between 1897 and 1899 to search for gold.

Most prospectors arrived on the southeast coast of Alaska, went north over mountain passes, and traveled northwest down the Yukon River to the gold fields, a trip of about 550 miles. Each Klondiker transported a thousand or more pounds of supplies, including a 6-month supply of food, equipment to build a boat for the Yukon trip, tools to build a cabin, and mining supplies.

One popular but hazardous route over the mountains led through the Chilkoot Pass. Most of the year the trail was covered with snow and ice; in summer, it was mud and slippery shale. Before the last steep slope to the summit, in a flat area called The Scales, the prospectors prepared for the final grueling ascent. An average man carrying about 50 pounds could climb the summit in one day, repeating the trip day after day until he moved his 1,000 pounds of supplies. At first, the Klondikers scaled the slope on foot and unaided. In 1898, near the end of the gold rush, a steam-driven tram with miles of steel cable aided the adventurers.

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