1. California Gold Rush of 1849 encouraged people
to begin looking for gold along the Yukon River in
Canada in the 1880’s.
California Gold Rush of 1849 encouraged people
to begin looking for gold along the Yukon River in
Canada in the 1880’s.

2. How it all began…
• Robert Henderson of Nova Scotia casually
mentioned where he had been prospecting
for gold to George Washington Carmack
in August of 1896.
• Carmack and his family prospected along
the tributaries of the Yukon River and
found “gold shining like cheese in a
sandwich.”
• Carmack staked three claims and then
boasted about his find.
• He should (by the miner’s code) have told
Robert Henderson.
• When Henderson returned, all the land had
been claimed.

3. ~Getting rich seemed great
to those experiencing hard
times due to the “Panic of
’93.”
So…when two ships loaded with gold arrived in
Seattle in 1897, everyone wanted to go to Alaska
to find gold and get rich.

5. How to get there:
~Boat from Seattle
~Then by mostly by foot
over hundreds of miles of
dangerous terrain
~Cost: $250-$500 per
person for supplies(outfit)
~100,000 people set out
~40,000 made it to Dawson
City
~½ looked for gold
~4,000 found it
~200 struck it rich

6. The tools

7. Rocks with specks of gold

8. Gold flecks

9. Mining Operation