The Sternwheel Graveyard

A side-trip on our visit to Dawson as part of my research for my Historical Fiction novel, A Drink of Darkness

There were two ways to get to the Klondike goldfields during the stampede of 1898. There was the treacherous and shorter (by mileage) overland route from Skagway over the Chilkoot or White Passes, then float the Yukon River from Bennet Lake through Carmacks up to Dawson. This route took longer (4 months on average), and could only be done when the passes were open. It could also only be done by those willing and able to pack the 1000 lbs of gear necessary to cross the Canadian border. The passes were too steep for horses, so the gear had to be packed by hand. It took a person on average 40 trips to lug the gear the 33 miles over the Chilkoot to Lake Lindeman.

Avalanches were common. Once the prospectors crossed White Pass, they built boats at Bennet Lake, the headwater of the Yukon (or Lindeman if they took the Chilkoot) . According to the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) over 7,000 boats, some of questionable seaworthiness were built and launched in the spring of 1898. But it was not smooth sailing. They faced the White Horse Rapids. Their choices were to either to shoot the rapids, or pack their gear around. After many rafts and canoes were lost in the rapids, the RCMP decreed that women could not shoot the rapids, but had to hike around. Klondike Kate (mentioned in a previous blog) is famous for having defied this order. She hopped into a raft at the last minute before they could stop her.

The longer route was by steamer from Seattle to St. Michael, then by Sternwheel (Paddleboat) up the Yukon to Dawson. The total trip usually took about 8 days (4 days travel up the Yukon). But in the summer of 1898, the year my main character Helena travels to meet her husband in Dawson City, water levels were notoriously low. The boat trip up the Yukon stretched into over a week. The boats ran out of food as they slogged the 1600 miles to the “Paris of the North.” This still seems like better option compared to 4 months on the trail, but it was expensive. Not only did you still need to have the 1000lbs of gear, you had to be able to afford a ticket on the boats. They were often overcrowded, dirty, unmaintained and got stuck often in the slow, muddy Yukon River.

They also could only run when this massive Northern River was free of ice. Break-up in the spring of 1898 (not necessarily ice-free) was May 8. The first paddlewheels did not get to Dawson until June. The last steamer out with a load of gold was mid-September. Freeze-up was October 31. This was a narrow travel window for those coming to Dawson in the pursuit of gold.

On our recent trip to Dawson we decided to take a tour of the Sternwheel Graveyard. We heard about it only by chance as we were researching things to do in Dawson. It is not located in Dawson City, but on the West side of the Yukon River. To get to the graveyard from Dawson, take the ferry across the river to the Yukon River campground. You’ll have to park then walk through the campground, then north along the river bank.

This site by Murray Lundburg has comprehensive information about the Sternwheeler Graveyard. Murray has been visiting the site since 1990 and has complied pictures of the decay of the wreckage over the years. He has also done a great job of putting together the known history of the site. Rather than try to duplicate his work I have included his link below:

http://www.explorenorth.com/library/ships/sternwheeler_graveyard.html

You can see information about the 7 ships that were originally believed to have been abandoned at the site, along with an original picture from 1938 of the Julia B (the sternwheeler closest to the Yukon). He also includes a comprehensive list of the boats that travelled the Yukon and the dates they were believed to have been in service. For the purpose of my story, I used the Alice, as I know from references this boat brought the Sisters of St. Ann to Dawson in August of 1898 to work for Father Judge as nurses at St. Mary’s hospital.

Here our some of our photos of the graveyard in August of 2019:

View from the bank of the Yukon:

If you are heading to Dawson and would like a unique activity, I would highly recommend this excursion. As you can tell from these pictures, this is a hazardous location with unstable structures. If you chose to venture forth, please do not enter or climb onto any of the wreckage or take “souvenirs.” Sturdy hiking boots are highly recommended.

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