August 16, 1896

On this day in 1896 gold was discovered in the Yukon.

Finding Gold

The Yukon is in northern Canada just east of Alaska

The Yukon is in the northwest of Canada. It is north of British Columbia, east of Alaska, and west of the Northwest Territories. Gold rushes had been occurring, mainly in the United States, over the previous fifty years. One of the first major gold rushes started in California in 1848 and then another was set off in the Black Hills of South Dakota in 1876. Gold had also been found in Alaska, which was not a state yet, in 1872. By the late 1800s it seemed like the major gold strikes were all but over.

George Carmack moved to the Yukon from California after reaching dead ends there in his panning for gold. He went with two Native American companions to search along the tributary of the Klondike River where he'd heard of others finding gold. On August 16 he discovered gold in the creek bank, however his two companions later agreed Carmack's brother-in-law actually found the gold.

Another Gold Rush

George Carmack

The men found the creek bed was full of gold deposits and they staked their claim the day after their discovery. News of the gold strike spread throughout Canada and the United States leading to the last great gold rush in the American West. In the next two years 50,000 new people arrived in the region, hoping to strike gold. Carmack became rich off his discovery, finding more than $1 million worth of gold. Most gold miners sold their stakes to large mining companies who remained in the region until 1966 and found about $250 million in gold. There are still hundreds of gold mines operating in the region.