Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/klgo/adhi/index.htm[1/14/2013 11:22:48 AM]

KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

LEGACY of the GOLD

RUSH:

An Administrative History of

the Klondike Gold Rush

National Historical Park

By

Frank B. Norris

1996

National Park Service

Alaska System Support Office

Anchorage, Alaska

TABLE OF CONTENTS

adhi/index.htm

Last Updated: 24-Sep-2000
Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Table of Contents)

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Cover

(left) The Pioneer Building, built in 1892, is an outstanding example of the turn-of-the-century

architectural complex that comprises the Pioneer Square-Skid Road Historical District. During the

early 1970s, the NPS considered puchasing the building as the site of the park's Seattle Unit.

(William Speidel, Seattle Underground, page 14)

(right) Several stampeders and a pack train are shown in this photo which was taken near Canyon

City, along the Chilkoot Trail, in the late summer of 1897. (Frank La Roche photo (unnumbered),

Special Collections Division, University of Washington)

List of Maps

List of Tables

List of Photographs

Introduction

Abbreviations

Part I: The Making of the Park

1. A Brief Gold Rush History

Native Use of the Area Before the Gold Rush

Europeans Eye the Chilkoot and White Pass Corridors

Skookum Jim's Discovery

Routes to the Gold Fields

Transportation Improvements

2. Skagway After the Gold Rush

Skagway's Economy, 1900-1960

Post-Gold Rush Use of Dyea and the Chilkoot Trail

Highway Construction in the Skagway River Valley

The Yukon-Taiya Project

NPS Activities in the Skagway Area, 1933-1960

3. State and Federal Agencies Show an Interest

State Work Crews Reopen the Chilkoot Trail

Federal Officials Evaluate the Skagway Area's History

Chilkoot Trail Improvements
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A National Park is Considered

Skagway Tourism Growth

The Chilkoot Pass Marker Dedication

The Yukon-Taiya Commission

Canadians Begin Managing the Chilkoot Trail

The Skagway Alternatives Study

Preserving the White Pass Depot

4. Authorizing the Park

The International Park Proposal

The Park Master Plan

The International Advisory Committee

Canadian Park Developments, 1971-1973

The Yukon-Taiya Commission Concludes Its Work

The Fate of the Pullen Collection

The Skagway-Carcross Road

Congress Introduces a Park Bill

Skagway Preservation Efforts

The Role of the National Park Foundation

Chilkoot Trail Activities, 1972-1976

The Environmental Statement and Affiliated Studies

The Park Bill Becomes Law

Part II: Management of the Alaska Units

5. General Park Administration, Skagway

Getting Started

The Land Purchasing Program

The Richard Sims Superintendency

Clay Alderson Takes Over

Parkwide Planning Efforts

6. The Building Rehabilitation Program

Initial Construction Plans

The NPS Reassesses Its Building Program

The Skagway Historic District Plan

Completing Emergency Stabilization Work

A Leasing Plan is Developed

Completion of the Headquarters and Visitor Center

Moore House Activities

Initial Building Leases

Mascot Saloon Rehabilitation

The Park Exhibit Package Takes Shape

Itjen House Rehabilitation

A Maintenance Facility is Constructed

Recent Rehabilitation Projects

7. Community Relations

Master Plan Implementation Issues
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Preservation Outreach Activities

Creation of a City-NPS Cooperative Agreement

Skagway Area Campground Assistance

Proposed Railroad Equipment Purchases

Proposed Skagway Building Purchases

The NPS Acquires an Administrative Site

NPS Activities at the Arctic Brotherhood Hall

Trail of '98 Museum Assistance

Management of Vacant Lots Along Broadway

The Revived Historic District Commission

City and Park Visitation

Broadway Traffic Questions

Updating the National Historic Landmark Nomination

Proposals for Acquiring the Rapuzzi Collection

Gold Rush Centennial Activities

Community Attitudes Toward the National Park Service

8. Administering the Dyea Area

The 1978 Cooperative Agreement

The Dyea Cemetery Relocation

Chilkoot Trail and Dyea Landmark Nomination

Preserving Long Bay

Initial Planning Efforts

Dyea NPS Improvements

The 1979 Archeological Survey

The Dyea Land Acquisition Plan

The West Creek Hydroelectric Project

Interpretive and Ranger Activities

Revising the Cooperative Agreement

The Grazing Issue Is Resolved

The Dyea Development Concept Plan

Historical and Archeological Research, 1984-1988

Lands Issues and Campground Activities, 1988-1992

The 1991 Land Protection Plan

General Management Plan Issues Pertaining to Dyea

9. Chilkoot Trail Management

Ranger Activities

Trail Use and Facility Development

Maintenance Activities

Interpretive Measures

Boundary and Ownership Proposals

The Mahle Native Allotments

Concessions Management Issues

Resource Management Activities

Canadian Trail Planning

10. The White Pass Trail Unit

Early Development Plans

Proposed Energy Projects

Archeological and Interpretive Concerns
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Ownership and Management Issues

Managing the Unit's Historical Resources

Development and Preservation Projects

Part III: Management of the Seattle Unit

11. Establishing the Seattle Unit

The Revitalization of Pioneer Square

The NPS Shows an Interest

An Interpretive Site is Acquired

Preparing the Visitor Center for Public Use

12. Operation of the Seattle Visitor Center

Site Development

Budget and Staff Growth

Interpretive Program Development

Outreach Activities

Cultural Resource Management

Appendices:

A. Budget and Visitor Figures for the Alaska Units

B. Staff List for the Alaska Units (and Chilkoot Trail NHS, Canada)

C. Budget and Visitor Figures for the Seattle Unit

D. List of Staff at the Seattle Unit

Notes

Selected Bibliography

Index (omitted from the online edition)

LIST OF MAPS

Map 1. Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, Alaska and Washington

Map 2. Major routes to the Klondike

Map 3. Alaska park units and surrounding features

Map 4. Alaska park units, showing land ownership patterns, September 1972

Map 5. Buildings in the Skagway Historic District

Map 6. Skagway Historic District, showing NPS-owned buildings

Map 7. Two maps of Skagway, Alaska

Map 8. Dyea as it probably appeared in 1898

Map 9. Dyea in the 1990s

Map 10. The Chilkoot and White Pass trail corridors

Map 11. The Klondike-Seattle Unit and the Pioneer Square Historic District
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LIST OF TABLES

Table 1. Construction Priority List for Skagway NPS Buildings

Table 2. Potential Uses for Skagway NPS Buildings

Table 3. Chronology of Construction Activity, Skagway NPS Buildings

Table 4. Chilkoot Trail Visitor and Support Facilities

LIST OF PHOTOGRAPHS

Photo 1. Martin Itjen, early Skagway tourism promoter.

Photo 2. Army troops marching in Skagway during World War II.

Photo 3. Hosford Sawmill, 1971.

Photo 4. Harriet Pullen at the Pullen House.

Photo 5. The Sheep Camp Shelter, constructed in 1963.

Photo 6. Footbridge along the Chilkoot Trail, 1968.

Photo 7. Taiya River cable crossing, September 1971.

Photo 8. Mike Leach, Canyon City ruins, 1967.

Photo 9. Skagway promoter Cyril A. (Cy) Coyne and his wife May.

Photo 10. Centennial plaque, just south of Chilkoot Pass.

Photo 11. Reps. Ralph Rivers and Roy Taylor, August 1, 1965.

Photo 12. NPS officials Alfred Kuehl, Robert Luntey, Merrill Mattes and Bailey O.

Breedlove.

Photo 13. The NPS Advisory Board on a WP&YR observation car at Bennett, B.C.

Photo 14. Three WP&YR steamboats at drydock in Whitehorse, Y.T. 

Photo 15. Upper Cabin at Lindeman City, September 1969.

Photo 16. Broadway Street, Skagway, looking north from Third Avenue, 1969.

Photo 17. Four participants in the Labor Day weekend hike of 1969.

Photo 18. Group shot of Labor Day weekend hike participants.

Photo 19. Map showing proposed Canadian-government Chilkoot park, 1973.

Photo 20. Interior of Pullen House, showing the museum collection. 

Photo 21. Group of federal and state historical officials visiting Skagway, June 1973.

Photo 22. NPS delegation during a Skagway visit, June 1974.

Photo 23. Regional and park NPS officials, seen during an October 1975 visit.

Photo 24. Lindeman Lake warden's camp, at the mouth of Moose Creek.

Photo 25. Skagway River Valley looking north, 1973.

Photo 26. Klondike Highway construction personnel at work.

Photo 27. Captain William Moore Bridge under construction.

Photo 28. President Gerald Ford, Rep. Don Young, and Sen. Ted Stevens, July 1975.

Photo 29. The park's first (1977) group of interpreters and rangers.

Photo 30. Richard Sims, Russell Dickenson, and Marvin Taylor at the 1984 depot dedication.

Photo 31. Superintendent Clay Alderson, shown in 1986.

Photo 32. Mascot Saloon Complex and adjacent buildings shown prior to rehabilitation. 

Photo 33. The Pullen House, as seen in 1983.

Photo 34. The Arctic Brotherhood Hall, the park's temporary visitor center.

Photo 35. Rehabilitation of the Boss Bakery building in 1985.

Photo 36. NPS archeologists Cathy Blee and Marianne Musitelli, working at the Moore

Cabin.

Photo 37. The 1987 archeological crew at the Peniel Mission.

Photo 38. The park's construction and maintenance crew, 1984.

Photo 39. The railroad depot and administration building in 1977, prior to rehabilitation.

Photo 40. The depot and administration building as it looked after 1984.
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Photo 41. Jeff and Diane Brady signing their historic property lease, 1986.

Photo 42. Dedication ceremony for the refurbished Moore Cabin, July 1987.

Photo 43. The Peniel Mission in 1983, prior to rehabilitation. 

Photo 44. The visitor center exhibits, shortly after their 1991 installation.

Photo 45. NPS interpreter Alice Cyr leading a walking tour down Broadway.

Photo 46. WP&YR locomotive #70 in front of the Skagway depot.

Photo 47. Red Onion Saloon and Trail Bench Gift Shop.

Photo 48. A group of Skagway tourism promoters, 1982.

Photo 49. Trail of '98 Museum directors Glenda Choate and Judy Munns.

Photo 50. Broadway Street being excavated in the fall of 1983. 

Photo 51. George Rapuzzi with Jan Wrentmore, 1984.

Photo 52. John McDermott, first head of the Skagway Historical Commission.

Photo 53. A 1983 cartoon dramatizing overcrowding along Broadway.

Photo 54. Willard "Skip" Elliott, who fought the NPS's 1980 Land Acquisition Plan.

Photo 55. Many Yukoners visit the Skagway area during Victoria Day weekend.

Photo 56. The Pullen Barn, in Dyea, remained standing until the winter of 1982-83.

Photo 57. A remote control flying enthusiast on Dyea flats.

Photo 58. Hauling fuel and other supplies to the Sheep Camp ranger station, 1979. 

Photo 59. A cache of canvas boats near the top of Chilkoot Pass.

Photo 60. Longtime trail crew members Roy Nelson, Bruce Hill, Jerry Watson, and Pat

Moore.

Photo 61. One of several wall tents which were installed along the Chilkoot in 1993.

Photo 62. Suspension bridge at 11 mile, completed in 1982.

Photo 63. Steel truss bridge at 1-1/2 mile, completed in 1991.

Photo 64. Scattered horseshoes along the trail near Stone Crib. 

Photo 65. Log bridge at 6-1/2 mile, completed in 1982.

Photo 66. White Pass City, as it looked in 1898.

Photo 67. Scattered artifacts at the White Pass City site, 1979.

Photo 68. WP&YR locomotive #73 seen in 1982, shortly after it was restored. 

Photo 69. Outflow of Goat Lake, site of a proposed hydroelectric project.

Photo 70. Early photo of the Pioneer Building, erected in 1892.

Photo 71. The Pioneer Building as seen in the early 1970s.

Photo 72. William C. Speidel, a local journalist and historian, in a mid-1960s photo.

Photo 73. Speidel speaking at the park's June 1979 dedication.

Photo 74. Reconstruction work was well underway on the Seattle Unit's interior, May 1978. 

Photo 75. Rep. Joel Pritchard and NPS official Russell Dickenson at the 1979 dedication.

Photo 76. NPS staffers posed at the Seattle unit, shortly before it opened to the public.

Photo 77. NPS officials James "Rocky" Richardson, Charles Gebler, and Glenn Hinsdale.

Photo 78. The program for the Seattle Unit's dedication, held June 2, 1979.

Photo 79. Exterior restoration of the Union Trust Annex facade, March 1978

Photo 80. Visitors viewing the unit's exhibits on opening day, June 2, 1979.

Photo 81. Elaine Hounsell, the Seattle Unit's first superintendent.

Photo 82. NPS Director William Penn Mott and Superintendent Willie Russell, 1986.

Cover design by Wyndeth Davis, NPS.

Printed on contract from the Government Printing Office, Seattle, Washington.

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Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Introduction)

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

INTRODUCTION

In accordance with the dictates of NPS-28 (the agency's Cultural Resource Management

Guideline), an administrative history

describes how a park was conceived and established and how it has been

managed to the present day. The park's legislative history and important issues in

planning, land acquisition, development, public relations, and other topics of

ongoing management concern are emphasized.

This study has endeavored to fulfill those goals as they apply to Klondike Gold Rush

National Historical Park. This park, which was authorized by Congress in a bill signed by

President Gerald Ford on June 30, 1976, is composed of four separate units: three units

located in and around Skagway, Alaska, and one unit located within the Pioneer Square

Historic District in downtown Seattle, Washington. All four units witnessed a flurry of

historical activity during the 1897-1899 Klondike Gold Rush period.

This park has several special characteristics which pertain to it. A number of parks, for

example, are located in more than one state, and several parks are also composed of more

than one distinct unit. But no park has one unit that is so distant from the others. Because of

that separation, NPS officials decided shortly after the park's authorization that two

superintendents, as well as two administrative staffs, would be necessary. Another factor that

makes the park a relative rarity is the location of the park's Skagway unit in the midst of

Skagway's business district. This fact has made the NPS, for better or worse, a major

influence in Skagway's economic and political life. The park's location along the Canadian

border, and the necessity to act in concert with Canadian authorities from time to time, is

another aspect of park operations that Klondike shares with few other NPS units.

Because of the park's specialized characteristics, this study has been organized both

temporally and spatially. The first four chapters, which describe administrative affairs prior

to park authorization, have been organized chronologically. Chapter 1 gives a brief synopsis

of the Klondike Gold Rush, with particular attention paid to existing park resources. Chapter

2 covers the long, relatively quiet decades between the gold rush period and 1960. Chapter 3

encompasses the 1960s, when the state, the Federal Government, and the Yukon government

all commenced efforts to protect and interpret the resources that remained from the gold rush

period. Chapter 4 is primarily concerned with the political and legislative activity during the

1970s that preceded President Ford's signing of the Klondike park bill. Except for brief

portions of chapters 1 and 4, the first four chapters deal with events in Skagway and vicinity,

both on the U.S. and Canadian sides of the border.

Chapters 5 through 10, which also focus on the Alaska units, have been organized on a

geographical basis. Chapter 5, an overview chapter, describes the early days of park

administration; in addition, it provides information on issues (such as staff growth, land

acquisition, and planning efforts) that concern more than one of the Alaska units. Chapters 6

and 7 provide a chronology of the agency's actions in the Skagway Historic District; Chapter
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6 is concerned with the building rehabilitation program, while Chapter 7 discusses NPS's

relationship with the City of Skagway and other issues unrelated to its historic buildings.

Chapters 8 and 9 discuss administrative issues in the Chilkoot Trail Unit; Chapter 8 focuses

on issues in the Dyea area, while Chapter 9 looks at activities in the Chilkoot Trail corridor.

Chapter 10 discusses the White Pass Trail Unit.

A chronological format is once again used in chapters 11 and 12, which deal with the Seattle

unit. Chapter 11 discusses the planning process which preceded the opening of the visitor

center in June 1979, while Chapter 12 is concerned with the operations of the center since

then.

The process of researching and writing this administrative history has been long and

somewhat convoluted. Work began in the fall of 1987, when Denver Service Center historian

Frank Williss was given the job. Williss wrote a task directive and was provided a budget. He

was not, however, able to devote time to the project. As a result, Alaska Regional Historian

Kate Lidfors asked Sandra Faulkner and William Hanable to work on it. Between June 1988

and September 1989, Faulkner and Hanable traveled to Denver, Skagway, Seattle and to

other points in the Puget Sound region. They did so in order to interview personnel that had

played a key role in park administration. Neither, however, was able to begin writing the

administrative history. The project lay on the shelf until the fall of 1993, when the present

author was asked to complete it. The report was completed in draft form in June 1995.

Because of the year-long delay in preparing the final report, information in this report on

park-related events that occurred during the last fourteen months is incomplete.

When the author began work on the project, he was already somewhat familiar with the park.

He served as a seasonal interpreter in Skagway from 1983 through 1985; in addition, he

worked as a historian there on various projects from 1984 through 1988. He lived year-round

in Skagway from 1983 through 1987. As a result of his residence there, he has had the

opportunity to get to know Skagway and its townspeople fairly well. For this, the author

makes no apology. Having lived in Skagway for some time, he has had the opportunity to

understand, to some extent, why local residents have formed their attitudes about the NPS.

The author has made every attempt to allow all sides to express their legitimate viewpoints.

Some, particularly agency staff, may feel that the text is biased against the Park Service;

those who are unaffiliated with the agency, however, may feel that this document is slanted

toward the NPS's point of view. Either of those conclusions, in the author's opinion, is

unintentional.

The author has many people to thank for bringing this project to fruition. Sandra Anderson,

the senior historian with the Alaska System Support Office, graciously allowed me the time

to complete the project. In addition, she and William Hanable conducted interviews with

former superintendents and other NPS officials. Former regional historians William E.

Brown, Robert L. Spude, and Kate Lidfors should also be thanked, both for project support

and for the scores of files they collected over the years, many of which I perused for project

data. I'd like to thank Dean Dawson at the Alaska State Archives, Jo Antonson at the State

Historic Preservation Office, and Bruce Merrell at Loussac Library for scrounging around

and gathering much-needed data. Ted Swem of Evergreen, Colorado, graciously provided

information photographs, and Barbara Walton of the Denver Public Library was likewise

helpful. And special thanks go to Mike Leach, formerly of the Alaska Division of Lands,

who gladly shared his experiences of managing the Chilkoot Trail during the 1960s.

In Skagway, many people deserve thanks. Longtime residents such as Barbara Kalen, Carl

Mulvihill, Edith Lee, Andrew Beierly, and the late George Rapuzzi have told me much of

what I know about the town's history. Kalen and Mulvihill, along with former Trail of '98

Museum director Glenda Choate, have also graciously offered to proofread portions of the
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text. I'd also like to thank the park staff, all of whom have been helpful. I'd particularly like to

tip my hat to Superintendent Clay Alderson, Cultural Resource Specialist Karl Gurcke,

former Chief Ranger Jay Cable, former Ranger Scott Home, and former Interpretive Chief

Betsy Duncan-Clark. Throughout the manuscript preparation period, they were subjected to

repeated requests for information and somehow remained consistenty patient and courteous.

Alderson and Gurcke deserve special thanks, because both read the entire draft and provided

many helpful comments. The same helpfulness applies in Seattle, where Superintendent

Willie Russell, Administrative Assistant Sue Kiefer, former ranger Mike Gurling, and various

currently-employed rangers and technicians have dug through the park files and given freely

of their time and talents. And in Whitehorse, I express my deep appreciation to the Parks

Canada staff, particularly David Neufeld, Tom Elliot, Bob Lewis, Dan and Debbie Verhalle,

and Christine Hedgecock. I thank my wife, the former Candy Wellenhoffer, not only for her

constant love and support, but for sharing her knowledge of the Chilkoot, gained by ten years

of experience as a warden patrolperson.

I'm quite sure that there are many others that should be included on the above list but I have

inadvertently omitted. To all of you, both named and unnamed, I offer my deepest thanks.

The project could not have been done without you. To you goes the credit for this volume.

For any and all errors that will inevitably surface, I alone am responsible.

Frank B. Norris

Anchorage, Alaska

August 1996
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Vicinity Map, Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park. Source: NPS, Draft

General Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement, Klondike Gold

Rush National Historical Park, June/July 1996, 1.2. (click on image for an

enlargement in a new window)

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

ABBREVIATIONS

AAO - Alaska Area Office, Anchorage (NPS acronym, 1975-1980)

AB - Arctic Brotherhood

ACHP - Advisory Council on Historic Preservation

AEC - Atomic Energy Commission

AHC - Administrative History Collection

AKSO - Alaska System Support Office, Anchorage (NPS acronym, 1995-present)

ALCAN - Aluminum Company of Canada

ALCOA - Aluminum Company of America

ANHA - Alaska Natural History Association

ANILCA - Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act

AP&T - Alaska Power and Telephone (Skagway)

APA - Alaska Power Authority

AR&T - Alaska Railroad and Transportation (Company)

ARC - Alaska Road Commission

ARD - Associate Regional Director (NPS)

ARO - Alaska Regional Office, Anchorage (NPS acronym, 1980-1995)

ASA - Alaska State Archives

BLM - Bureau of Land Management

CES - Canadian Environmental Services, Ltd.

CF - Correspondence File (part of Administrative History Collection)

CNR - Canadian National Railway

COSEP - Career Oriented Student Employment Program (Canada)

CPR - Canadian Pacific Railway

CPSU - Cooperative Park Studies Unit (NPS-university research unit)

CR&T - Chilkoot Railroad and Transport (Company)

CTHC - Chilkoot Trail History Construction (file name)

CUL - Commercial Use License

CVB - Convention and Visitors Bureau (Skagway)

DCP - Development Concept Plan

DED - (Alaska) Department of Economic Development

DES - Draft Environmental Statement

DKT - Dyea-Klondike Transportation (Company)

DNR - (Alaska) Department of Natural Resources

DSC - Denver Service Center (NPS)

EIS - Environmental Impact Statement

EL - Lands Division office, NPS

ES - Environmental Statement

FERC - Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

FES - Final Environmental Statement

FTE - full-time equivalent

FY - fiscal year

GIS - geographic information system
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GLBA - Glacier Bay National Monument (NPS acronym)

GMP - General Management Plan

GPO - Government Printing Office

GSA - General Services Administration

HABS - Historic American Buildings Survey

HAER - Historic American Engineering Record

HB - (Alaska) House Bill

HDC - Historic District Commission (Skagway)

HFC - Harpers Ferry Center (NPS)

HL&P - Haines Light and Power

HOST - Helping Our State's Students

HSAC - Historic Sites Advisory Committee

HSMBC - Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada

HSR - Historic Structure Report

I&RM - Interpretation and Resource Management

I&VS - Interpretation and Visitor Services

JIO - Joint Information Office (NPS-USFS, Seattle)

KGRIAC - Klondike Gold Rush International Advisory Committee

KGRNHP - Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

KLGO - Klondike Gold Rush NHP, Alaska units (post-1980 NPS acronym)

KLGR - Klondike Gold Rush NHP, Alaska and Seattle units (acronym until 1980)

KLSE - Klondike Gold Rush NHP, Seattle Unit (post-1980 acronym)

LCC - Lynn Canal Conservation

LCP - Limited Commercial Permit

M&O - Management and Operations

MF - Microfilm

MOU - Memorandum of Understanding

NARA - National Archives and Records Administration

NBA - National Bank of Alaska

NHL - National Historic Landmark

NHP - National Historical Park

NHPA - National Historic Preservation Act

NHSB - National Historic Sites Branch (Canada)

NHSS - National Historic Sites Service (Canada)

NPF - National Park Foundation

NPS - National Park Service

NRHP - National Register of Historic Places

NSHSB - National Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings

NTHP - National Trust for Historic Preservation

OAHP - Office of Archeology and Historic Preservation

OMB - Office of Management and Budget

ONPS - NPS operations budget

OSI - Office of the Secretary of Interior

PBS - Public Broadcasting System

PC - Print Collection

P.L. - Public Law

PLO - Public Land Order

PNNPA - Pacific Northwest National Parks Association

PNRO - Pacific Northwest Regional Office (NPS), Seattle

PSA - Pioneer Square Association

PSHSB - Pioneer Square Historic Preservation Board

QMI - Quebec Metallurgical Industries

RCR - Cultural Resources Division (NPS acronym)

RD - Regional Director
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RFP - Request for Proposals

RG - Record Group

RMP - Resource Management Plan

SAE - Systems Architects Engineers, Inc.

SAR - Superintendent's Annual Report

SB - (Alaska) Senate Bill

SC - Senior Curator, or Slide Collection

SHPO - State Historic Preservation Office

SSC - San Francisco Planning and Service Center (NPS acronym, 1966-69)

UAA - University of Alaska, Anchorage

UAF - University of Alaska, Fairbanks

U&EA - Urban and Environmental Affairs

UW - University of Washington

WAMCATS - Washington-to-Alaska Military Cable and Telegraph System

WASO - Washington, D.C. headquarters office (NPS)

WP&YR - White Pass and Yukon Route

WRO - Western Regional Office (NPS)

WSC - Western Service Center, San Francisco (NPS, 1969-1971)

Y&AA - (Alaska) Youth and Adult Authority

YCC - Youth Conservation Corps

YCI - Yukon Correctional Institute

YMCA - Young Men's Christian Association

YRCMC - Yukon Radio Control Modelers Club

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Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Chapter 1)

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

PART I: THE MAKING OF THE PARK

Chapter 1:

A Brief Gold Rush History

Native Use of the Area Before the Gold Rush

Most anthropologists consider that the area immediately surrounding the three Alaska units of

Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park is the traditional territory of the Chilkoot

division of the Tlingit Indians. Many consider that the Coast Mountains have served as the

tribal barrier between the Coastal Tlingits and the inland Athapaskan ("Stick") tribes. Such a

generalization is simplistic and only partially valid.

At the time of European contact, the Tlingit Indians occupied most of what is now

southeastern Alaska. Only the Haida and Tsimshian shared the region. The Tlingits' territory

stretched from the Canadian-U.S. border near Prince Rupert, north along the coast to the

Yakutat area. [1] The Tlingits were almost entirely a coastal people. The only exception was

a small but widespread group of Inland Tlingits which centered around present-day Teslin,

Yukon Territory and Atlin, British Columbia.

Local Natives have different interpretations of the subdivisions within the Tlingit population.

Some feel that the Chilkoot Indians, which formed the primary group to visit the Park area

prior to the gold rush period, are a subdivision within the Chilkat tribe, and that the Chilkats

occupy all of the Lynn Canal area. Many Chilkoots, however, consider themselves to be

distinct from the Chilkat tribe. According to them, their tribe populated Dei-shu, Chilkoot,

Dyea and other villages east of the ridge line of the Chilkat Peninsula. Chilkats, on the other

hand, lived in Chilkat, Klukwan, and other villages west of the ridge.

The area in and around the Park was relatively lightly populated by the local Natives. At

Dyea, there probably existed a small fishing and hunting camp--possibly permanent but more

likely seasonal--near the mouth of the Taiya River. The Taiya and Nourse River valleys were

used by Natives in pursuit of goats, bear and other game. Little evidence remains of their

long occupation. In the early 1980s, investigators turned up three pre-contact aboriginal sites,

each being small midden mounds, on a hill overlooking Dyea. Then, in the mid-1990s,

archeologists located several rock shelters on the hill between Sheep Camp and the Scales;

one, perhaps all, were used decades before Europeans began traversing the trail. [2]

Windswept Skagway was used less often than the Dyea area. Pioneers settling at the mouth of

the Skagway River reported evidences of only an occasional camp site, fox and bear deadfall

traps, and axe blazes on trees. [3] Goats were found in Skagway Valley as well, but no

evidence suggests that Natives hunted up the valley. Individual Natives, most notably James

"Skookum Jim" Mason, travelled up the valley and over White Pass; so few traversed the

route, however, that no trail existed until the gold rush period. [4]
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North of Chilkoot Pass, the inland tribes exercised a de facto if timid hegemony. The Tagish

tribe was encountered immediately north of the pass. Until 1900, the primary Tagish

settlement was Tagish village, along the waterway between Tagish and Marsh lakes; due to

the activity surrounding railroad construction, most of the village's inhabitants moved to

Carcross shortly after the turn of the century. North of Tagish country was the homeland of

the southern and northern Tutchone Indians; north of these tribes, surrounding the confluence

of the Yukon and Klondike rivers, lived the Han Indians.

During the historical period, the boundaries of the various tribal regions have proven rather

elastic. The coastal Tlingit often invaded Tagish and Tutchone territory as part of their

trading expeditions. [5] During the fifteen years leading up to the gold rush, and particularly

during the rush itself, Natives from a wide radius converged on the passes, particularly

Chilkoot Pass. For the first time the Tagish and Inland Tlingit invaded coastal Tlingit

territory. Moreover, competing bands of Tlingits--the Taku, Auk, Sitka, and other groups--

flocked into Chilkoot territory. After the flurry of activity subsided, most Natives returned to

their ancestral villages. [6]

Before contact, the Tlingits were a highly organized, warlike, sophisticated people. Their diet

was based largely on salmon, and to a lesser extent on halibut, herring, cod and other fish

and shellfish. They also availed themselves of the rich forest wildlife: deer, bear, ptarmigan,

goose and duck. Eulachon oil, herring eggs and seaweed rounded out their diet. [7]

The Tlingits used the local timber for many products central to their lifestyle. Many Tlingits

lived in substantial log houses; some were erected for the use of individual families, while

others were intended for communal village use. Others dwelled in large, earth-covered

barabaras, which featured a small piece of hide which served as a door. The local timber was

also molded into canoes that served both river and ocean travel. Those used for hunting and

fishing were generally small, from eight to twenty feet in length. Their finest canoes,

however, were reserved for wartime. These craft were up to fifty feet in length, and often

carried from forty to fifty men. [8]

Tlingits were well-known carvers of totems. Coastal Tlingits created them for a variety of

uses: to display a debt, to bury the dead or to commemorate any sort of special occasion. The

northern Tlingit tribes generally avoided large totems, preferring to erect house poles instead.

[9]

The Tagish, by contrast, were a peaceful people who led a simpler life than that of the

Tlingits. Their lake-based resources, while seasonally bountiful, were less abundant than that

available to the coastal Indians, and the interior winters were more severe. Thus the Tagish

villages were relatively small, as was, indeed, the entire Tagish population. [10]

Like the coastal Tlingits, the Tagish depended on salmon, but the lack of salmon in much of

their territory caused them to include other fish species (whitefish, trout and ling cod) as

equally important parts of their diet. The Tagish hunted woodchuck, caribou, moose and

sheep. Their lineage houses at Tagish village were timbered and relatively substantial. Their

seasonal fish camps, however, sported relatively rude, temporary brush or skin shelters. So

far as is known, the Tagish travelled south to Lindeman Lake and southern Bennett Lake only

on occasional fishing forays, and did not establish regular seasonal camps south of presentday Carcross. [11]

The local Chilkoots were inveterate traders. Before the arrival of the first Europeans, they

maintained a sophisticated, complex trading network with inland tribes. Using the Chilkoot

Trail as the point of passage, the Chilkoots visited Tagish fish camps on an annual basis. [12]
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A variety of goods flowed over the trail. Northward went eulachon oil, wooden boxes, dried

clams, seaweed, and other marine products. In exchange, the Tagish traded ground-squirrel

robes, tanned moose and caribou hides, and the lichen dyes and goat wool needed for Chilkat

blankets. [13] Such trading had gone on for hundreds of years before European contact

began. The trading process was often unfair to the Tagish; the sophisticated, warlike Tlingits

often intimidated and took advantage of their inland neighbors.

The Tagish, though bested by the coastal Tlingit, were superior traders to the other inland

tribes. They served as middlemen between the Tlingits and the northern Tutchone tribes who

lived along the upper Pelly River. The Tagish demanded high prices for trade goods from

their northern neighbors. The Tagish also served as guides for Tlingits who ventured north to

the Han country. [14]

Chilkoot Pass remained the lifeline of the trading network throughout the long pre-contact

period. The Tlingits, to be sure, formed trading networks through other passes--Chilkat Pass,

the Taku and Stikine rivers--to inland tribes. [15] The Chilkoot, however, was the primary

route to the vast drainage of the Yukon River.

Because eulachon oil was a primary ingredient carried over the pass, the route was

colloquially known as the "grease trail" by early European groups. As the dominant power in

the area, the bellicose Tlingits controlled passage over the Chilkoot, and warned inland tribes

that dire consequences would befall any who attempted to cross over to the coast by the

Chilkoot or any other route. [16]

It is not known how long the Chilkoot Trail witnessed Native use. Pre-contact Native

artifacts related to trail use have yet to be found. It is conservatively estimated that the trail

was used for two hundred years before initial European contact. [17]

Before being improved in the mid-1890s, the Chilkoot was a rough, rugged route. South of

the Nourse River junction, it crossed the Taiya River several times, and followed its bank

much of the rest of the way. North of the river junction, a narrow trail was perched over the

Taiya River gorge. Between the canyon and Stone House, the trail crossed the river several

more times, and as it neared Stone House often disappeared in jumbles of boulders. Above

that point the trail, then as now, coursed over open expanses of rock and snow on its way to

the summit. [18] Despite the trail's difficulties, however, the traders who used it negotiated

the trail rather quickly, often covering the twenty-seven miles between tidewater and the

lakes in one or two days. When necessary, they bivouacked in the open or under a rock,

wrapping themselves in few blankets or none at all. [19]

Europeans Eye the Chilkoot and White Pass Corridors

When the Russians became established at Sitka around 1800, they brought with them a new

culture, certain elements of which spread into the hinterland. While no Russians crossed or

even approached Chilkoot Pass, they made their influence felt to the Tlingits and neighboring

Native groups. The Russian demand for animal pelts soon depleted the supplies available in

southeastern Alaska. The Chilkoot Indians capitalized on this disparity by serving as

middlemen between the Russians and the interior tribes, the latter being able to provide a

continuing supply to the Tlingit traders. [20]

The Chilkoots' possession of the rights of passage over the pass was a linchpin to their power

base, so they guarded the pass jealously. They likewise regarded settlement in the vicinity

with alarm. When Hudson's Bay traders established Fort Selkirk, 200 miles to the north, in

June 1848, hostilities increased. The British-sponsored company was well aware of the pass;
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the post leader, via Chilkat traders, even sent a letter out over it shortly after he established

the post. But the warlike Tlingits became so incensed at this infringement into their trading

territory that they plundered and sacked the fort in August 1852. [21]

As European exploration continued, the settlement that followed brought increasingly strong

pressure into the Chilkoot Pass area. The Russians, which had remained on the lower Yukon

in the early 19th century, reached the mouth of the Tanana in 1861. Two years later they

paddled up to the mouth of the Porcupine. There they confirmed long-swirling rumors when

they observed that the Hudson's Bay Company had, quite illegally, established Fort Yukon at

the site 16 years before. [22]

In the early 1870s, the upper river began to open up when prospector-traders Arthur Harper,

Jack McQuesten and Al Mayo wandered into the country from the southeast. They set up Fort

Reliance, near the mouth of the Klondike River. [23] This isolated, temporary post posed no

threat to the Tlingit's empire. But a series of small placer deposits were found in the Yukon

drainage shortly after the trio became established, and their many letters Outside excited the

Pacific Coast mining fraternity. [24] The days of Native hegemony over the Yukon country

were beginning to draw to a close.

South of Chilkoot Pass, a similarly slow but inexorable growth took place. While the English

knew the Lynn Canal country as early as the 1790s, neither they nor the Russians who settled

at Sitka lingered in the area. [25] Tlingit intimidation held prospective Russian traders at

arm's length. Hudson's Bay traders had slightly better luck; they crept up Lynn Canal to

Chilkat Indian village by 1830 but dared go no farther. They continued to trade there for the

next half century. [26]

After the Russians sold Alaska to the Americans in 1867, American naval vessels patrolled

the area on an occasional basis. The first known excursion into the area, an 1869 venture

under Commander Richard Meade, penetrated all the way to the mouth of the Taiya River.

[27]

As in the interior, initial attempts at finding gold proved elusive. Only small finds, near Sitka,

took place during the 1870s, but huge strikes at Juneau and Douglas in 1880-1882 attracted

thousands. Miners and adventurers fanned out in all directions in search of a new strike. [28]

Missionaries into the newfound country located a Presbyterian reserve at Haines in 1879 or

1880, and two salmon canneries were erected near Chilkat village by 1883. The advancing

tide of civilization produced abundant trade goods for the Tlingit middlemen who controlled

the bastions of the Chilkoot, but forced them to redouble their vigilance to keep others away

from the key trade route. [29]

The Tlingit domination of the pass, and of its interior neighbors, was so complete that most

Tagish had little knowledge of the area. As suggested above, several of the Tagish--

Skookum Jim among them--had apparently crossed over to the coast, but their fear of

retribution from the dominant Tlingits was such that they typically feigned ignorance of route

specifics. [30]

Beginning in the mid-1870s, scattered parties of white miners attempted, on their own, to

ascend Chilkoot Pass. One by one they were turned away. Remarkably, however, at least one

prospector slipped past the Tlingits and over the Chilkoot. George Holt ascended the

mountain ramparts in 1872, 1874 or 1875. [31] Descending the chain of lakes to the north

end of Marsh Lake, Holt crossed the eastern ridge to the Teslin drainage. He found (or was

given) some "coarse gold" in the area. He then returned to the coast by the same route. He

travelled on to Sitka and, exhibiting the nuggets, invited others into the new region. [32]
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Holt's furtive trip to the Teslin country awakened the local miners to the possibilities of gold,

and to details surrounding the long-desired route over the Coast Mountains. Not surprisingly,

the miners reacted to the news by applying pressure to have the blockade broken. Capt.

Lester A. Beardslee, the de facto governor of Alaska at the time, helped open the pass by

taking advantage of internecine warfare among the northern Tlingit. Through an

intermediary, he played the role of peacemaker. In return for the safe passage of miners over

the pass, Beardslee promised to send over a number of duly-deputized Chilkat policemen to

restore order, and also promised to implement any other support necessary to preserve the

peace in the northern Tlingit country. He further agreed to a demand that the miners "acquit

themselves as becomes orderly, sober, reasonable men," and that they not carry "spirituous

liquor...into the Indian country for purposes of trade or barter with the natives." The peace

offer was accepted. The Sitka-based policemen visited the warring factions early in the winter

of 1879-1880, and returned in February 1880 with a formal invitation to cross Chilkoot Pass.

[33]

In May 1880 a party of 19, led by Edmund Bean, headed up to Chilkat village with a naval

escort. Final negotiations opening the pass were completed without delay, and the party

climbed the pass, arriving at Lindeman Lake on June 17. The Tlingits, who had been packing

trade goods over the trail for years, began a lucrative new industry when they switched to

carrying the equipment and supplies of miners. In this trade they continued their domination

over the inland tribes. They generally refused to allow interior Indians to work as packers,

and to a large extent refused all access to the coast. [34] Tagish packers, however, were

known to be used in both 1883 and 1887. Indeed, one traveller witnessed a camp of "Stick

Indians" at Dyea in 1883. During the 1880-1897 period, however, relatively few interior

Natives broke the Chilkoot stranglehold. [35]

Bean and his party had little gold to show for their 1880 prospecting venture, but scattered

finds soon began to be reported. An 1881 party located scattered "colors" along the Big

Salmon River; by the following year, miners were sufficiently optimistic about the country to

winter in the interior with traders McQuesten, Harper and Mayo. After 1883, the numbers

heading over the pass consistently increased as reports of interior riches began to spread. [36]

Most of those who crossed over the Chilkoot divide in the two decades before the rush were

quiet, self-effacing men whose activities and even identities have been largely forgotten. Two

such groups, however, were well known to outsiders. The first was the Frederick Schwatka

expedition of 1883. The second was the 1887 expedition of William Ogilvie. Both of these

exploring parties added enormously to the geographical knowledge of the Yukon country,

and brought publicity to the region as well as to the expedition leaders.

Lt. Schwatka, operating under the orders of Gen. Nelson Miles, launched an overall

geographical and strategic survey of the Yukon interior. His task was to report on the number

of Indians, their way of life, and their attitudes toward various European powers. He was also

to study the terrain, how to sustain a military force in the territory, and the extent of native

grasses capable of supporting Army stock. Finally, his summer excursion was sent to

investigate "the severity of the winters, and any other information that would be important to

the military service." [37] Considering the budget allotted to the expedition, the orders were

tall indeed. As it turned out, Schwatka and his six crew members were given "far less money

... to conduct it through its long journey than was afterwards appropriated by Congress to

publish its report." [38]

Because of opposition to the venture both inside and outside the War Department, a veil of

secrecy surrounded expedition planning and execution. On May 22, 1883, the group "stole

away like a thief in the night" from Vancouver Barracks, Washington Territory. Schwatka

took the fleet coaler Victoria to Pyramid Harbor, near Haines Mission; he then continued to
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Dyea, where the hike over the Chilkoot began. Hiring a team of Chilkat, Chilkoot and Tagish

packers, he left on June 8. He proceeded only four miles each of his first two days; the third

day he reached Stone House, near timberline. On June 11 he crossed the divide, which he

named Perrier Pass, and arrived at Lindeman Lake. He then built a raft that took the party

across the lake, through the rapids to Bennett Lake and continued on down the Yukon River.

[39]

Four years later, the Canadian government sponsored the George M. Dawson expedition.

Alarmed at continuing reports of gold in the Yukon interior and the predominant American

nationality of the miners, the Geological Survey of Canada sent several parties to explore the

country and determine the boundary between the U.S. and Canada. Dawson himself headed

into the Cassiar country, while fellow leader Richard McConnell explored the Stikine River

basin. William Ogilvie was assigned to cross Chilkoot Pass and fix a boundary, then to float

down the Yukon to the 141st meridian, where he was to mark another boundary line. [40]

To carry out his task, Ogilvie left Victoria on May 13. Eleven days later, he arrived at Haines

Mission aboard the Steamer Ancon. Transferring his goods to flatboats towed by the gunboat

Pinta, he continued up the Taiya Inlet to Dyea, and on June 6 headed up the trail with 120

Chilkoot packers. Because his packers deserted him atop Chilkoot Pass, it took him over a

week to bring the expedition's goods over to Lindeman Lake. [41]

While in Juneau, Ogilvie had heard rumors of another pass across the Coast Mountains near

the Chilkoot. To investigate the validity of the rumors, Ogilvie dispatched one of his party,

65-year-old "Captain" William Moore, to search for it. To accompany him Ogilvie chose

Skookum Jim, a husky Tagish Indian. The two canoed over from Dyea to the mouth of the

Skagway River, then began their trek up the trackless valley. After three days of climbing

they reached the drainage divide; a week later, the two rejoined Ogilvie at Lindeman Lake.

[42]

The two found that the alternate route confirmed earlier rumors of a lower if longer way to

the lakes. Ogilvie, recognizing the expedition's ultimate sponsor, named the new summit

White Pass in honor of Thomas White, Canadian Minister of the Interior. Moore, captivated

by the possibilities of the pass, envisioned it as a primary route to the interior. He predicted

that, as mineral development inevitably progressed, a road and eventually a railroad would be

constructed through the pass. Moore decided, then and there, to play a role in the region's

development.

The Ogilvie party remained at Lindeman Lake constructing boats until July 11. It then began

floating down the Yukon River. On August 12, near the confluence of the Pelly, Moore

caught sight of Bernard, his son, poling upriver with four others. Moore then left Ogilvie's

party, he and Bernard heading back up the Yukon. Ogilvie continued downstream and set up

a base camp at the 141st meridian; the Moores made a heroic trip back to Chilkoot Pass and

on to Dyea. Exhausted and close to starvation, the Moores reached Dyea on September 7.

They stayed and recuperated at John J. Healy and Edgar Wilson's trading post, which had

been established in the old Indian camp during the spring or summer of the previous year.

[43]

Once rested, Moore acted on his dream. The two proceeded down to Juneau, and after getting

resupplied they canoed back to Skagway Bay. They arrived there on October 20, 1887, and

immediately began to establish a 160-acre homestead just above the high tide line. They

spent three weeks at the site that fall and an additional two months the following spring and

summer. By that time, they had not only laid out the homestead but erected a cabin and

started work on a wharf. [44]
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The two decades before the Klondike strike witnessed many gold discoveries, but two major

finds spurred traffic over the Chilkoot. In September 1886, two prospectors made a rich strike

near the mouth of Fortymile Creek, near the 141st meridian, and for the next several years

the Fortymile diggings were the richest in the interior. [45] Then, in the fall of 1893, two

Russian half-breeds located gold in paying quantities on Birch Creek in American territory,

and the rush to Circle City was on. Although the latter camp was sufficiently far downriver

that many reached it via St. Michael, the route over Chilkoot Pass was both shorter and less

expensive. As a general rule, miners came into the country in the spring via the Chilkoot, and

left in the late summer on a St. Michael-bound steamboat. By the 1896 season, several

thousand miners were scattered throughout the Yukon basin, ranging from the Teslin

drainage to Circle City and beyond. [46]

Skookum Jim's Discovery

Gold was discovered on Rabbit Creek, a tributary of the Klondike River, on August 16, 1896.

At the time, few prospected in the Klondike drainage, and only meager results had been

obtained by those who had. One of the most dogged of these was Robert Henderson, who

had found small amount of "color" on several creeks. By the summer of 1896, Henderson had

been in the area for two years, and was working a claim on Gold Bottom Creek, fifteen miles

from the mouth of the Klondike. [47]

Skookum Jim, the Tagish Indian who had accompanied William Moore over White Pass nine

years before, was the first to locate the pay dirt that commenced the gold rush. Jim had spent

much of the time since 1887 in the company of Dawson Charlie and George Carmack. The

three were relatives; Jim was Charlie's uncle, and Carmack, a white prospector from

California, was married to Jim's sister. On August 14, the three were in the Klondike

drainage, meandering west from Gold Bottom Creek. Jim killed a moose near Rabbit Creek

that afternoon, then went to the creek for a drink. There he saw many golden flakes in the

shallow waters. Excited as he must have been, he calmly butchered the moose, then showed

the gold to his two partners. [48] Upon seeing the size of their discovery, the three celebrated.

They then spent the next two days perusing the creek for the most valuable deposits.

Carmack, arguing that an Indian would not be allowed to record a discovery claim, stepped

off the largest claim for himself, and secured an adjacent claim besides. His companions took

the land on either side. [49]

Word spread quickly of the discovery. Within a fortnight the creek, renamed Bonanza, was

staked from one end to the other, and a nearby side stream, called "Bonanza's pup" in the

parlance of the day, was quickly staked and renamed Eldorado when its potential riches were

revealed. Before long other nearby creeks, notably Hunker and Gold Bottom, were similarly

staked. Word of the discovery spread excitedly up and down the valley, and by Christmas

many of the roughly 3,000 miners in the Yukon Valley had deserted their diggings and

converged on the Klondike and its tributaries. [50]

Word to the Outside, however, leaked more slowly. William Ogilvie, the Canadian

government surveyor stationed in Fortymile, dutifully reported the goings-on to his superiors

in Ottawa, but such a report received scant popular attention. [51] The coming of winter,

already imminent in the earliest stages of the rush, made communications with the Outside

exceedingly difficult for the next eight months. Among the miners, however, the news

inevitably leaked out, causing considerable if skeptical interest in cities along the west coast.

In response the spring rush, which had been growing in force for years, was far larger than

was ever seen before. The City of Mexico left Seattle with over 600 stampeders on March 25,

and for two months afterwards every ship leaving for Alaska was crowded with prospectors.

[52]
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In mid-July, "Klondike fever" struck with full fury. Two ships steamed from the mouth of

the Yukon River to the west coast of the United States. The Excelsior arrived in San

Francisco on the evening of July 14; three days later, the Portland pulled into Seattle's

Schwabacher Wharf. Between the two ships, miners from the Yukon country brought with

them more than three tons of gold. The west coast, and soon much of the world, went mad

over the news. Thousands dropped everything to head toward an area that few had even

heard of and only a handful knew well. [53]

The lack of knowledge engendered a spate of guidebooks, some of which proved relatively

authoritative. Others, however, were almost entirely worthless. To prepare for the trip north,

guidebooks urged that prospective stampeders be equipped with a wide array of foodstuffs,

clothing, construction tools and other equipment. Such "Yukon outfits" usually cost from

$500 to $700 and weighed between 1000 and 2000 pounds. [54]

Routes to the Gold Fields

The sale of these outfits and all the other services required by the stampeders provoked an

intense rivalry among the various port cities of the west coast. San Francisco, Portland,

Astoria, Tacoma, Seattle, Port Townsend, Victoria and Vancouver all vied for the Klondikebound traffic. Most Canadians headed north from the latter two ports. American prospectors,

at first, had no particular preference. San Francisco, which had been the major entrepôt to

Alaska for decades, attracted much of the initial rush. But as "Klondike fever" raged over the

next few months, a well-orchestrated campaign by Erastus Brainerd and the Seattle Chamber

of Commerce paid off. Using a variety of innovative promotional techniques, Brainerd

almost single-handedly pushed Seattle into a position as the pre-eminent American port to

Alaskan points, a position it still maintains. [55]

The first prospectors headed north up the Inside Passage within a week of the epic

announcement. Because of the prevailing ignorance surrounding the gold fields, however,

prospectors chose many different routes. Due to historical usage, most guidebooks

recommended either the Chilkoot Pass route or the long river route by way of St. Michael

(see Map 2). Recent publicity surrounding the White Pass, however, convinced many to head

toward the mouth of the Skagway River, even though the trail up the valley was largely

untested. [56]
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Map 2. Major routes to the Klondike. Source: NPS, Master Plan, Proposed

Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, May 1973, 8. (click on image for

an enlargement in a new window)

Shadier promoters promulgated other routes. Civic development groups and steamship

captains seized on the rush as an excellent moneymaking opportunity, and many of this

element put profit in a more important position than the welfare of their patrons. The

Edmonton route, for instance, was an untried 2,000-mile overland slog that broke the fortunes

of hundreds before they turned back. A similar trail, almost as long and just as hopeless,

wound north out of Ashcroft, B.C. Both routes appealed to Canadians who wished to stay

within their borders. Two other routes that remained almost entirely in Canada were the

Stikine River route, via Wrangell, and the Taku River route via Juneau. Both routes proved

long and arduous; few stampeders reached the gold fields by either route. [57]

American promoters were just as zealous and perhaps even less morally inclined than their

Canadian counterparts. Several advertised an "all-American route to the Klondike," a

preposterous statement at best, although many erroneously felt that the gold fields lay in

Alaska. Steamship captains with more marketing skill than good judgment sent many to

ludicrously isolated areas. Some were sent to the Cook Inlet country, others were dropped off

at Valdez and asked to march over a glacier, still others were marooned on a beach near the

Malaspina Glacier and were pointed in the direction of high mountain passes to reach the

Klondike. All of these luckless stampeders met with grim disappointment, and many with

death, from these ill-advised ventures. [58] Even the supposedly easy "rich man's route,"

which went up the Yukon River from St. Michael, was so poorly implemented that most who

opted for it were forced to spend the winter along the river. [59]
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By the winter and spring of 1898, when the majority of the stampeders headed north, the

Chilkoot and White Pass routes had emerged as pre-eminent, and an estimated ninety

percent of all stampeders used one or the other. [60] The Chilkoot Pass, used for centuries by

the Chilkoot Indians, had been improved for pack animals as far as Sheep Camp in 1895.

The trail was in relatively good shape; the only improvements needed during the early stages

of the gold rush were the addition of log bridges and short sections of corduroy road. [61]

Travelers on the Chilkoot Trail in 1897 departed from the beach at the mouth of the Taiya

River. For the next two miles the trail followed the river's west bank through the rapidly

developing town of Dyea and past Healy and Wilson's trading post. A mile north of Healy

and Wilson's, the trail crossed the river then continued through the level riparian floodplain

for six miles. Near the point where river navigation became impractical, the trail again

crossed to the west side and continued another two miles to Canyon City. A small bridge

afforded a third crossing leading to a short, steep ascent taking stampeders along a trail

overlooking the deep, narrow Taiya River canyon. The trail perched on a bench along the

canyon's east wall for another two miles before dropping back to the water's edge. Crossing

the river a fourth time, the trail followed close to the river for the next three miles to Sheep

Camp. Although the trail rose and fell numerous times between Dyea and Sheep Camp, the

net elevation gain was less than 1,000 feet over the fifteen mile distance. [62]

After Sheep Camp, the trail began to climb in earnest as the traveller started up Long Hill. In

slightly over a mile, timberline was reached near Stone House. Thereafter the trail steepened

even more, and 1-1/2 miles later the end of Long Hill brought the traveller to the Scales, the

"foot of the summit." The Scales was only a half mile from the top of the pass, but it was 900

feet lower. An exhausting climb up an exposed 35-degree slope separated the two points.

Chilkoot Pass, despite its name, was hardly a pass at all; rather, it was a slight notch in the

towering Coast Mountains.

Once the pass was crested, a short, steep dropoff brought the stampeder to Crater Lake, at the

headwaters of the Yukon River system. The 1897 trail took stampeders around the east side

of the lake, but many rented boats to haul their supplies across. A stairstep of lakes followed:

Morrow Lake, Long Lake and Deep Lake. Trails wound around each of them, but in most

cases entrepreneurs with boats were available to carry freight. Ten miles north of the pass, the

trail descended to Lindeman Lake. Many stampeders built their boats here; others crossed the

seven-mile lake or circled its east end, then climbed over the low ridge separating it from

Bennett Lake. [63]

The White Pass Trail, like the Chilkoot, evolved from a rude path to an improved

thoroughfare during the short span of the gold rush. When the first stampeders stormed

ashore at Skagway in July 1897, a narrow, tortuous path connected Skagway Bay with the

summit of White Pass. Within a few weeks, however, traffic up the trail so overwhelmed its

capacity that it soon became an impassible morass of rocks, roots and mud. Trail blockages

became the rule rather than the exception, and horses and other beasts died by the hundreds.

The Trail of 1897 soon became world famous as the "Dead Horse Trail."

The trail faced by the earliest stampeders was first blazed in February 1895 by a small party

of California prospectors, and improved under the direction of Captain Moore in the spring of

1897. [64] The Dead Horse Trail started on the east side of the valley. A mile north of

Skagway Bay, it crossed the Skagway River on a rude bridge and continued north for another

mile before climbing up to Black Lake. The trail wound along the steep western slope of

Skagway Valley to Porcupine Creek; it then climbed over infamous Porcupine Hill before

slowly descending to the Skagway River, ten miles north of Lynn Canal. The trail then

followed the Skagway River for two miles to the river's confluence with the White Pass Fork.

The White Pass City tent camp was located near the confluence at 1,300 feet above sea level.
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The trail thereafter steepened considerably. Roughly paralleling the White Pass Fork, the trail

climbed 1,900 feet to the summit in just four miles. The 1897 trail summit was approximately

a mile east of the present railroad summit. [65]

The brawling port towns of Skagway and Dyea fed never-ending streams of stampeders onto

the two trails. Skagway, only a homestead before July 1897, quickly metamorphosed into a

ramshackle tent town and boasted a wide variety of businesses. The town quickly

overwhelmed the holdings of Captain Moore. He protested--to no avail--but grew wealthy

from his sawmill, dock and other businesses. The town began as a chaotically-arranged tent

camp, but within weeks hastily-erected wooden buildings had been thrown up along the

southern reaches of the White Pass Trail. By the onset of winter a grid pattern of streets,

surveyed by Frank Reid, was imposed over the random scatter of tents and shacks. Soon a

downtown area emerged between Fourth and Sixth Avenues and between Broadway and

Main Streets, and the air of a civilized if rustic community began to prevail. By June 1898,

an estimated 8,000 to 10,000 people lived in and around Skagway. [66]

Dyea grew in much the same way as Skagway. A trading post and tent camp before the gold

rush, Dyea witnessed hectic activity during the summer and fall of 1897 as hordes of

stampeders trooped north. Most, however, had disembarked from Inside Passage steamers in

Skagway, and had little reason to linger in the rival port. During October 1897 a downtown

grid, five blocks wide and seven blocks long, replaced the former riverside path that had

formerly constituted the southern end of the Chilkoot Trail. Dyea witnessed little business

activity, however, until January 1898, when a renewed migration of stampeders brought

boom times to the settlement. By April, Dyea had become a boisterous, transient aggregation

of some 4,000 to 5,000 souls. The town boasted some 200 businesses, most of which were

taverns, restaurants, hotels and supply houses. [67]

Both towns, situated as they were on the margins of civilized society, soon became hotbeds

of criminal activity. As one writer phrased it, Skagway was "conceived in lawlessness and

nurtured in anarchy," while Dyea, not to be outdone, carried on an equally sinful if less

infamous existence. [68] The two towns offered only a meager law enforcement apparatus.

They shared a series of ineffective deputy marshals, and their first commissioner was more

interested in financial gain than in the administration of evenhanded justice. [69] The two

towns were typical of frontier communities in that they attracted more than the usual share of

toughs, scoundrels and other persons of low character. The result was what eventually

became a well-organized criminal network, bent on taking every possible advantage of the

incoming prospectors. Jefferson Randolph "Soapy" Smith, a con-man from Colorado, arrived

in Skagway in October 1897, and by late January had assumed effective control of the town's

underworld. Through the first six months of 1898, Smith's status steadily increased, and by

July 4 he was widely recognized as the "uncrowned king of Skagway." Little was done

without his knowledge or consent. [70]

Soon after the first ships arrived, an enormous rivalry developed between Dyea and Skagway.

Both vied to be the primary port town, and loudly advertised their advantages while vilifying

conditions in other areas. In the summer and fall of 1897, Dyea appeared to have the upper

hand in the contest; it was better known, it was included in the gold rush guidebooks, and the

Chilkoot Trail was recognized as being the superior route to the interior. Skagway, however,

soon gained the upper hand because its port was superior to that of Dyea. By November

1897, Skagway boasted three docks by which ship captains could unload goods and

passengers quickly and cheaply. Dyea, on the other hand, offered a harbor that dropped off at

such a slight gradient that the only effective way to reach the high tide line was by lighter or

canoe. Given the difficulties of transferring their goods across Taiya Inlet, many opted for the

Trail of 1897 despite its acknowledged faults. Skagway thus ironically benefited in two ways:

first, it was easily accessible by water, and second, the difficulties in leaving town
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encouraged its commercial development. [71]

A tragic event that tipped the scales in Skagway's favor was a massive avalanche that

thundered down onto the Chilkoot Trail on April 3, 1898. Several snowslides descended that

Palm Sunday, the largest of which began on the east slope of Long Hill, less than a mile

south of the Scales. Together, the slides killed an estimated 65 stampeders. Publicity from the

slide caused thousands to reconsider a trip over the Chilkoot, and cast a pall of gloom over

the area for weeks to come. [72]

During the winter of 1897-98, a number of towns and camps sprang up along the Chilkoot

Trail. Five miles north of Dyea, a transient tent camp was established at Finnegan's Point. In

September 1897, seventy-five were camped at the site. Canyon City sprang up at the north

end of the Taiya River valley, and by the spring of 1898 its tents and shacks supported over a

thousand stampeders. Pleasant Camp, a roadhouse and camp, was established just north of

the Taiya River canyon. The largest trail settlement south of Chilkoot Pass, Sheep Camp,

grew from two stores in the late summer of 1897 to a mile-long tent city, 8,000 strong, the

following spring. The Scales similarly grew in the spring of 1898 to a cluster of over twenty

businesses, but the site was so raw and exposed that stampeders erected few tents there. [73]

Most stampeders hauled their goods directly from the summit to Lindeman Lake. Because of

the heavy snow cover--a reported seventy feet of snow fell at the summit during the winter of

1897-98--stampeders carried their packs or dragged their sleds directly over the string of

lakes north of the pass. Because of the downhill slope and the relative ease of transportation,

only small settlements were established between the summit and the southern end of

Lindeman Lake. There were one or two restaurants at Crater Lake, and short-term camps

cropped up at Happy Camp, both ends of Long Lake, and at Deep Lake. [74]

Large settlements were located at Lindeman and Bennett lakes. They grew quickly through

the winter, and just before breakup in May 1898 huge tent towns, housing an estimated

10,000 stampeders apiece, were clustered around the southern end of both lakes. Scattered

camps were found along the entire shoreline of both lakes, particularly in bays and coves.

Some camped as far north as the Windy Arm portion of Tagish Lake. [75]

Transportation Improvements

In the Skagway area, the winter of 1897-98 similarly brought changes. The Dead Horse Trail,

bad as it may have been, was mercifully short-lived. With the onset of winter, traffic soon

dropped off, and by December freezing temperatures allowed stampeders to clamber up the

frozen bed of the Skagway River. [76]

Meanwhile, capitalist George Brackett started building a wagon road to overcome the

difficulties of the Dead Horse Trail. A former mayor of Minneapolis, Brackett was one of

several Skagway businessmen that promoted a wagon route over the mountains. During the

fall of 1897, however, his collaborators slowly fell by the wayside. Undaunted, Brackett

himself shouldered the financial and technical burden of constructing the road. [77] Despite

delays brought about by weather and poor financing, initial work progressed quickly.

Commencing on November 8, the first four miles were completed in fifteen days, and an

additional four miles were almost ready by mid-December. [78]

However, he lacked a bridge across the East Fork of the Skagway River. The road--part

gravel, part corduroy--was completed to White Pass City and opened to traffic in early

March. Without a bridge, however, traffic continued up the frozen river bed. [79] The longawaited bridge was finally installed in mid-April, and with the river breaking up the majority
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of White Pass traffic began to flow over the newly-completed road. Brackett fully intended

to continue his wagon road to the summit and beyond, but a lack of financing forced a halt

just north of White Pass City. North of that point, however, he added minimal improvements

as far as the summit. He installed toll gates at both ends of his road, as well as at several

intermediate points. [80]

Camps and tent cities appeared along the various Skagway Valley trails, just as along the

Chilkoot. But because the White Pass Route carried fewer people--an estimated 5,000 to

10,000 during that first winter, compared with 25,000 to 30,000 for the Chilkoot--camps were

smaller and spread farther apart. In the summer of 1897, the Liarsville tent camp sprang up at

the base of the hill to Black Lake. Only scattered, small clusters of tents were found farther

up the trail. The only sizable tent clusters were located at the base of Porcupine Hill and at

White Pass City. [81]

By the spring of 1898, the Liarsville camp had disappeared. In its stead were a series of

temporary construction camps along the Brackett Road, and occasional stations for the major

packers. On the upper trail two camps appeared. The Ford was a short-term camp located

halfway between White Pass City and the summit, and an additional camp grew where the

Brackett Wagon Road, and later the railroad, crossed over the summit. White Pass City,

which served as a primary railroad camp as well as the Brackett Wagon Road terminus, was

probably the largest White Pass Trail camp between Skagway and Bennett Lake. [82]

The rapid influx of stampeders into the area, and the tremendous demand for carrying goods

across the passes, engendered a wide variety of technological ideas from incipient capitalists.

On the Chilkoot side, early ideas centered around the construction of a wharf in Dyea. The

Skaguay Wharf and Improvement Company planned a small dock on the west side of Lynn

Canal just south of Dyea, but the idea never got past the proposal stage. [83] Shortly

afterwards, however, the Dyea-Klondike Transportation (DKT) Company completed a dock

three miles southwest of the gold rush port, and blasted out a rough wagon road that

connected the dock with downtown Dyea. The dock opened in mid-February 1898. It was

sparingly used, however, because of its poor construction and because of the difficulty in

negotiating the wagon road. A far more substantial dock was constructed over the next few

months. Called the Dyea Wharf, Kinney Wharf or Long Wharf, it stretched across the tidal

flats south of downtown Dyea. The shallow dropoff, which required that the dock be over

7,500 feet long, delayed the opening of the dock until mid-May. By the time it opened the

gold rush had largely run its course, and as a result the dock was seldom used. Most

stampeders continued to come ashore on scows, canoes and lighters. [84]

To move freight most efficiently north from Dyea, the Chilkoot Railroad and Transport

(CR&T) Company announced early plans to build a road to Sheep Camp. Soon afterwards,

they declared themselves on the verge of constructing a railroad as far as Canyon City, and in

December went so far as to announce completion of the line. No such line, however, was

ever built. The only manifestation of such a scheme was a crude, wood-railed right-of-way

for a horse-drawn tram which wound north from Dyea to the first river crossing. But the line

itself, like the railroad, never came to fruition. What the CR&T did construct was a wagon

road to Canyon City, which was completed in April 1898. [85]

North of Canyon City, several schemes were attempted to move freight. The DKT Company,

in December 1897, proposed to construct a "narrow gauge tramroad with cars like those used

in the mines" from Dyea to the Scales. From there, they proposed an aerial tramway to the

summit. The tramway was constructed and opened for business in March 1898. The tramroad,

however, was never built. [86]

Opposing the DKT's plans were those of the Alaska Railroad and Transportation (AR&T)
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Company, an arm of the Pacific Coast Steamship Company. The AR&T, like the CR&T,

originally planned a railway along the Chilkoot; plans called for construction from Dyea to a

point halfway up Long Hill. No rail line was built, but plans also called for an aerial tramway

north of the proposed railway terminus. To implement these plans, a depot and warehouse

was constructed in March and April 1898. By late April, the AR&T aerial tram line was open

from the depot to the summit of Chilkoot Pass. [87]

The most ambitious plans belonged to the Chilkoot Railroad and Transport Company. As

noted above, original plans called for a railroad or road up much of the Chilkoot Trail.

Equally grandiose plans called for an aerial tramway over the pass, possibly as far as

Lindeman Lake. Financial constraints, however, forced the company to construct a wagon

road only as far as Canyon City, and to retract its proposed plans for a tramway beyond

Crater Lake. Original plans called for an aerial tramway from Canyon City to the summit

area to be completed by January 1, 1898, but with the coming of winter plans were repeatedly

delayed. The line apparently opened in late January for a short time, but did not re-open until

May 7 or even later. [88] The completed line ran in two sections; one 4-1/2 mile loop

stretched from Canyon City to Sheep Camp, while a second four-mile segment continued

north from Sheep Camp to its terminus, one-half mile north of the summit. [89]

During the spring of 1898, goods were being brought over the passes by a wide variety of

methods. Some stampeders carried goods on their backs or on sleds. On the Chilkoot, some

paid Indian packers or college students to haul their freight. [90] Others had their goods

taken by horseback to Sheep Camp, while still others had them taken by wagon road to

Canyon City. Beyond Canyon City or Sheep Camp, three different aerial tramways were

available. In addition, several surface trams ran from the Scales toward the summit of

Chilkoot Pass. On the White Pass Trail, those who packed their own goods were

supplemented by those who operated pack trains over the route. The main route over the

mountains was the newly-opened Brackett Wagon Road. [91]

Throughout the previous winter, rumors had circulated of proposed rail routes over the

passes. Early rumors, such as those of the AR&T and the CR&T, had focused on Chilkoot

Pass; the steep climb from Sheep Camp to the summit, however, forced promoters to look

elsewhere. In the Skagway Valley, the first serious bid for transportation over the pass was

the Skagway and Lake Bennett Tramway Company, which proposed to construct a horsedrawn tramway through the pass. By the spring of 1898, however, the company had fallen on

hard times, and all it had to show for its efforts was a bridge over the Skagway River at the

north end of Skagway. [92]

In the spring a serious railway bid surfaced. Financiers for the Close Brothers, an English

investment group, travelled to Skagway to investigate the possibilities of constructing a

railroad over White Pass. They arrived on April 10. The group, composed of Thomas

Tancred, Erastus Hawkins and John Hislop, possessed sufficient financial resources to build a

rail line across the mountains. After looking over the local terrain, however, they openly

despaired that such a line was technically feasible. By coincidence, the trio met Michael

Heney, a Canadian construction engineer, at the St. James Hotel on April 21. Heney had been

surveying in the White Pass area for several weeks, and he, unlike the Close Brothers group,

was personally convinced that a railway could be built to Bennett Lake. The meeting proved

to be fortuitous for all concerned. Within a fortnight, construction materials began to be

ordered for the newly-created White Pass and Yukon Route (WP&YR) railway. [93]

Ties and rails began to arrive in Skagway in mid-May 1898, and construction began on May

28. At first, construction proceeded quickly. Initial work was conducted up the valley from

the north end of town, and by mid-June the company was able to lay its line down Broadway

to the waterfront. [94] The first locomotive and cars soon arrived, and on July 21, the first
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WP&YR train chugged up Broadway. It continued on to the end of track, four miles up the

valley. By September, survey and construction camps stretched from Skagway to the top of

White Pass. Company officials confidently predicted that the line would be completed to

Bennett Lake by the onset of winter. [95]

As the summer wore on, however, a series of unexpected delays forced postponement of

progress on the line. Some equipment shortages ensued; more important was a lack of

available labor. The line could never seem to attract the full complement of workers it

needed, and to exacerbate the problem, early August brought word of the Atlin gold strike, 50

miles northeast of Skagway. Hundreds of workmen, company shovels in hand, left the force,

most never to return. [96] The harshness of the terrain also slowed work, for beyond the East

Fork bridge the track workers encountered increasingly hostile terrain. Despite the mounting

problems, the line was opened to Rocky Point (Mile 7.0) by August 15, and to Heney Station

(Mile 12.4) by mid-September. [97]

Winter presented new obstacles. Work slowed as snow began to accumulate on the upper

reaches of the line. As the amount of daylight decreased and the temperature dropped, work

performance diminished. By midwinter, laborers were forced to spend the majority of their

time getting to and from the worksite, shovelling snow and keeping warm. Many railroad

workers lived in White Pass City that winter; many reached the railroad right-of-way near the

tunnel site via a steep, winding trail. To ease access between Skagway and White Pass City, a

short, steep gondola line was built down the 300-foot slope between Heney Station (at end of

track) and the river junction. The Brackett Wagon Road bridge, which spanned the Skagway

River at this point, provided access to the main cluster of tents that comprised White Pass

City. [98]

Despite the daunting obstacles, the railroad was completed to the summit of White Pass on

February 18, 1899. Two days later, the first passenger train moved over the line; a summit

celebration was held in the sunny, frigid air. The Coast Mountains had, at long last, been

conquered. But many miles of construction remained. [99]

Construction work over the next three months was limited to rockwork and blasting in the

five mile stretch immediately south of Bennett Lake. Spring snowmelt, however, allowed

resumption of a fast paced construction schedule. Blasting along the length of the summitBennett segment was followed by the work of the grading crews, and it was not until June 21

that the first rails were laid north of the summit. Because all other work was already finished,

however, the rails were extended quickly. Log Cabin was reached by July 1, and five days

later they were extended to the shores of Bennett Lake. Completion of the line to Whitehorse

did not take place until July 29, 1900, over a year after the line had reached Bennett. [100]

Completion of the Skagway-Bennett line meant that prospectors and shippers, for the first

time, had fast, efficient transportation available to them from Puget Sound points all the way

to Dawson City. Completion of the line also tolled the death knell for alternative

transportation modes across the passes. The Brackett Wagon Road, a potentially vexing

competitor to the railroad, was bought out on December 1, 1898, and in May 1899, the line

purchased the combined operations of the three Chilkoot Pass aerial tramway lines. The

purchases left the White Pass and Yukon Route in an enviable position as the controlling

agent for all transportation into and out of the Yukon and surrounding territories. [101]

By the time the railroad reached Bennett, the gold rush was all but over. The tens of

thousands who had stormed over the passes in the winter of 1897-98 had found, upon

reaching Dawson, that the gold fields had been completely staked. Good wages were

available to those willing to work for others. The lure of gold for the taking, however, proved

illusory. The only ones who grew wealthy were either those on the ground first, or those who
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had the capital to purchase claims or operate businesses. [102]

Because opportunities were so limited, those in search of quick fortunes and adventure left

almost as soon as they came. Dawson's population peaked in the summer of 1898, and by the

following summer a general exodus began to Nome, Alaska, where thousands dug for gold

from the beach sands. [103] During the same period, holders of the most valuable Klondike

claims sold their properties to corporate interests. Owning large blocks of adjacent claims, the

corporations proceeded to use increasingly large scale methods to process the ore, and by

1900 the individual placer mine had largely given way to the hydraulic operation and the

dredging company. [104] Although the population of Dawson fell after 1898, the efficiency

of the large-scale operations were such that the annual yield of gold rose until 1900. The

output of Klondike gold after a few years dropped to a fifth of its turn-of-the-century level,

but rich returns continued for most of the next two decades. [105]

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

PART I: THE MAKING OF THE PARK

Chapter 2:

Skagway After the Gold Rush

Skagway's Economy, 1900-1960

Because it served as the critical transfer point for most passengers and freight going into or out

of the upper Yukon River valley, Skagway's permanence was assured during the years which

followed the Klondike gold rush. Like Dawson, however, it waned in significance as the gold

rush ran its course. From a peak of 8,000 or more in the spring of 1898, Skagway's population

dropped to slightly over 3,000 in April 1900. The number of local residents continued to fall

until 1910, when census takers tallied fewer than a thousand souls. [1]

As Skagway emerged from the fervor of the gold rush, its frontier character began to diminish.

Clubs, churches, schools, families and other signs of civilized society sprang forth. The coming

of the railroad, moreover, encouraged the development of a relatively steady work force. With

the passing of the gold rush went a large number of the local supply stores, saloons, hotels and

restaurants. The businesses that remained were dependent, directly or indirectly, on railroad

revenues. [2]

Dyea, meanwhile, proceeded to slip into oblivion. Its population, like that of Skagway, dropped

sharply after the spring of 1898; unlike Skagway, Dyea had no economic base to rely on once

the gold rush was over. The town's two newspapers, the Dyea Trail and the Dyea Press, hung on

for several months after the main wave of stampeders had headed north. But they, along with

most of the other businesses, eventually died and their proprietors headed off to Dawson,

Skagway or Puget Sound. [3] So dramatic was the dropoff in business that a visitor in early

1899 noted that Dyea was "the deserted city." Even so, the lingering tramway trade allowed the

town to boast some 250 residents as late as March 1900. [4] By the following February,

however, the tramways were gone and the town's population had dwindled to 71. Two years

later only two or three residents inhabited the site. If useless for other purposes, the land

underneath Dyea was sufficiently fertile to be used as farmland, and many of the old buildings

were torn down to make way for rows of cabbages, turnips and potatoes. [5]

As Skagway emerged from the flurry of the gold rush period, its appearance began to change.

The rough frontier architecture of the gold rush was slowly replaced with more substantial

buildings, larger and more elegant than their predecessors. Businesses made a concerted effort

to throw off their frontier appearance, and false fronts, double recessed doors and elaborate

lathework became commonplace on commercial buildings. The appearance of the town's

residences improved as well, and intermittent campaigns encouraged the dismantling of the

many vacant shacks left by the stampeders. [6]

The location of the business district also changed during the post-gold rush period. From 1897
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to 1899, the primary business streets had been Fourth Avenue, Fifth Avenue, Sixth Avenue and

Broadway Street. Little development took place below Fourth Avenue, because occasional high

tides required that the more substantial buildings be erected on pilings. [7] With the completion

of the railroad, however, businesses began to recognize the importance of being located on

Broadway, particularly on lower Broadway near the railroad station. Over the next fifteen years,

therefore, the town witnessed a gradual migration of buildings from the side streets to Broadway

and the withering away of off-Broadway businesses. As a result of that process, many of the

principal buildings located along Broadway today have been moved from elsewhere; notable

examples are the Red Onion Saloon, the Golden North Hotel, the Pack Train Saloon, and the

Eagles' Hall. With rare exceptions, no new buildings were erected on Broadway after 1904. By

1915, the town's realignment was complete. During the past 70 years, a few buildings have

burned or been demolished, and several others have been constructed, but even so, the

Broadway business district of 1915 largely resembles that seen by today's visitors. [8]

With its combination of history, natural beauty and frontier architecture, Skagway quickly

became an important stopping point for Alaska's tourists. Southeastern Alaska was a popular

area for excursion ships as early as the mid-1880s, and when the gold rush exploded into

prominence the ships that plied the Inside Passage route merely added an extra day onto their

itinerary in order to see the new, bustling town. [9] The first known tourists arrived in Skagway

in July 1898, when they joined local residents in celebrating the first train to operate on the new

White Pass line. By the following year, the Chamber of Commerce was urging local residents to

prepare for the upcoming tourist season, and the first Skagway Clean-up Day was scheduled to

beautify the streets and yards. [10]

With only a single excursion boat plying the waters of southeast Alaska, Skagway tourism

remained at a low level during the 1900-1910 period. Just before World War I, however, the

number of ships (and tourists) steadily increased, and Skagway developed a number of

attractions to lure the summer trade. Beginning in 1906, promotional pamphlets extolled the

town's many flower gardens, and tourists were seen visiting the grave of "Soapy" Smith as early

as 1908. During the same period, tourists began chartering trains to the top of White Pass, and

by the eve of World War I the day-long excursion to Bennett had become a popular excursion.

[11]

To extend the time that tourists spent in the north country, the WP&YR began issuing elaborate

brochures that invited tourists to visit the Canadian interior. The publication of these booklets

commenced shortly after the gold rush subsided. As an effusive 1913 brochure intoned, "to go to

Skagway and not see the interior is like going to the threshold of a fairyland and foregoing all

the interest and enchantment to be enjoyed within the magic region." [12] The most common

destinations were Whitehorse, Dawson, Atlin, and Ben-My-Chree, the latter being a homestead

at the south end of Tagish Lake. By the advent of World War I, tourism was an important

secondary industry; as local tour guide Martin Itjen told visitors to the Skagway railroad yards,

"all the people in this town who do not work the tourists work here." [13]

The fortunes of the WP&YR were closely tied to the status of the Yukon economy and, to a

lesser extent, to the number of tourists streaming north. The rate of gold production in the

Dawson area stayed high through World War I, and the seasonal movement of prospectors,

miners and transportation personnel were key to the success of the line. But the sinking of the

Princess Sophia in October 1918 cost 353 lives, many of whom worked for the railroad or for

Yukon mines, and business recovered slowly thereafter. In the 1920s gold production dropped

off, but was replaced in part by the movement of silver from the mines at Elsa and Mayo.

Increased tourism also helped fill in the void from the old-time prospecting trade. [14]

The early 1930s proved difficult for everyone. Both mineral production and tourism dropped

off, so the railroad fell back to offering two trains per week between Skagway and Whitehorse.
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The railroad did not significantly reduce its personnel, but wages were reduced and some

administrative personnel were forced to mortgage their homes or skip paychecks in efforts to

economize. The middle and late 1930s brought increased tourism to Skagway, and they also

brought additional sailings of Canadian Pacific and Canadian National ships. As a result,

railroad passenger traffic ballooned. Freight tonnage, however, remained anemic. Tonnage in

1940 remained less than that recorded in the late 1920s. [15]

The coming of World War II brought drastic changes, both to the railroad and to Skagway.

Tourism, a highly visible if minor element in the local economy, stopped altogether. More

important to the town was the U.S. Army's decision to build the Alcan Highway from Dawson

Creek, B.C. to Fairbanks, Alaska. The construction which followed that decision turned

Skagway into a major supply point, inasmuch as the railroad was the only logical access route to

the proposed highway right-of-way aside from the terminus points. The Army further decided to

build a major pipeline connecting Skagway with the Norman Wells oil fields, which were

located along the Mackenzie River in the Northwest Territories, 500 miles northeast of

Skagway. To implement these projects, the Army sent some 5,000 troops to Skagway. Some

troops took over the operation of the WP&YR, and the newly-designated Military Railway

Service often ran up to twelve trains per day over the line. Others constructed two barge

unloading docks, transferred highway construction materials from ships to the railroad, or

engaged in pipeline work. Both the highway and pipeline were completed by the end of 1943.

Troops remained, however, until early 1946. [16]

The war years had a major impact on Skagway's architectural composition. Between 1908 and

the day of Pearl Harbor attack, only two new residential or business buildings had been

constructed. (The National Bank of Alaska office was built in 1916, while the Presbyterian

manse, across the street from the church, was constructed by parishioners in the summer of

1941.) The town's stable population and the surfeit of gold rush-era buildings were largely

responsible for the lack of new construction, but the refusal of the National Bank of Alaska (the

town's only bank) to provide home loans to Skagway residents also played a role. But with the

coming of the soldiers, scores of quonset huts and ex-Civilian Conservation Corps wooden

barracks were built on whatever vacant lots could be secured. After the war, the military

authorities dismantled and removed most of the quonset huts. The various barrack buildings,

however, were given to Skagway-area veterans and remained in town. For decades afterwards,

barracks remained an important visual element of the townscape; even today, the majority of

Skagway's buildings date from either the 1897-1908 period or the 1942-1945 period. [17]

The end of the war left Skagway with more than just a surplus of barracks buildings. It also left

the railroad with a large number of relatively new engines, yard buildings and freight cars

(although many were in poor shape after the rugged use sustained during the war). Another

change brought about by the war was the removal of trains from Broadway. The tracks located

adjacent to the eastern bluff, which had existed since the gold rush period, became a passenger

route for the first time. In order to access the depot, new tracks were built from the east bluff to

the station's south side. The new tracks were used, and the Broadway tracks were effectively

abandoned, in 1944. Removal of the Broadway tracks, however, did not take place until several

years later. [18]

The sustained prosperity following World War II helped the line recover its battered equipment

and roadbed, and assured as well its long term profitability. The construction of the Alcan

Highway, and other wartime developments, left the Yukon with over twice its prewar

population. In Whitehorse alone, the population shot up from 300 to a peak of 5,000. The 1952

relocation of the territorial capital from Dawson City was a significant factor in the population

increase. The development of extensive ore bodies over the next twenty years--Clinton Creek,

Cassiar, Keno Hill, Watson Lake, and others--further brightened the economic picture in the

Yukon, in northern British Columbia, and in Skagway. [19]
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Tourism was another factor contributing to the economy, in Alaska as well as the Yukon. By the

late 1940s, more tourists than ever before were traveling to Alaska and the Yukon. The Alcan

Highway provided a new access route to the interior. Tourists hoping to visit southeastern

Alaska found the going more difficult because the Alaska Steamship Company stopped carrying

passenger traffic in the fall of 1954, in large part because the unionization of longshoremen

raised port costs. But the Canadian Pacific and Canadian National ships, continued bringing

tourists and residents to the area. (The Jones Act normally restricted foreign vessels from

carrying passengers between two U.S. ports; the lack of competition, however, allowed the CPR

and CNR to circumvent Jones Act stipulations.) Skagway continued to be served by the Prince

George of the CNR, the Princess Louise of the CPR, and other Canadian-registry ships. [20]

Two Alaska Cruise Line ships, the Glacier Queen and the Yukon Star, began serving Skagway

in the summer of 1957. The only other ship which regularly served the port was the M/V

Chilkoot, a small, privately operated ferry which began operating between Skagway, Haines,

and Juneau in 1949. The owner of the Chilkoot sold out to the territory in 1951. The Chilkoot

ran until 1957, when it was replaced by the M/V Chilkat. [21]

Post-Gold Rush Use of Dyea and the Chilkoot Trail

As noted above, Skagway remained active after the gold rush because of the successful

construction of the White Pass and Yukon Route railroad. Dyea, however, declined quickly

after its April 1898 peak, and by 1903 the primary land use at the lower end of the Taiya River

valley was agriculture. For the first time in hundreds of years, the valley was no longer a

commercial transportation corridor. For the next sixty years, the Chilkoot Trail corridor existed

in name only; the existing pathway fell into disuse and it remained in an unmaintained state.

Access to the trail remained elusive as well; no road connected Skagway with Dyea, and small

boats found it treacherous to travel by water between the gold rush-era town and its deserted

rival.

Many people, however, traveled up and down the Taiya River valley during the first six decades

of the twentieth century. In 1906, for example, an international survey team ascended the valley

to the U.S.-Canada frontier in order to erect boundary monuments. They found the trail

passable, although bridges along the route had been washed away. After that, local residents

made many trips over the route. Between 1910 and 1925, Skagway resident George Rapuzzi

made four sojourns over the trail, one of them being a 1924 trip with a Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

film crew. At that time, the wagon road between Dyea and Canyon City was still easily visible;

Rapuzzi himself cleared the road in order to ease the carriage of film supplies to Sheep Camp.

Another Chilkoot hiker during the period was Florence Clothier, who ascended the pass in 1928.

She spent four days on the U.S. side of the trail, and spent the intervening nights in abandoned

cabins at Finnegan's Point, Canyon City, and Sheep Camp, respectively. [22]

During the 1930s, the Dyea area became a popular picnic area with local residents, who boated

to the area. On the Chilkoot Trail, parties of individual hikers were supplemented by those that

accompanied Right Reverend G. Edgar Gallant, the longtime priest and superintendent of

Skagway's new (1931) St. Pius X Mission. Gallant led several groups of students over the pass

during the decade. In 1940 the Civilian Conservation Corps spent some time in the Dyea area;

participants refurbished both the Dyea (Native) Cemetery and the Slide Cemetery, repainting the

headboards at both cemeteries. Some may also have climbed over the nearby Chilkoot. Shortly

afterward, the coming of World War II brought a large number of soldiers to Skagway. Some of

them sought out the Dyea as a picnicking and hunting area. Others doubtless wanted to ascend

Chilkoot Pass. How many made the trip, however, is unknown. [23]

Homesteaders had lived in the Dyea area, on an intermittent basis, since the gold rush period.

The lack of access, however, prevented all but the most self-sufficient from living there. By
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1932, nine families were homesteading there, and in October of that year they petitioned the

government to construct a road to the valley from Skagway. [24] Officials from the Forest

Service, the Bureau of Public Roads, and the Alaska Road Commission all denied the

petitioners' request; the ARC did, however, provide sufficient funds to allow for the clearing of

a hiking trail which connected Skagway with the Taiya River. [25] Three years later, the

Skagway Chamber of Commerce again suggested the construction of a road to Dyea, but the

road commission curtly replied that it had no funds to spare for "tourist roads." [26]

The road project finally got off the ground in 1940. Ernest Gruening, who had been appointed

Alaska's governor in 1939, recommended the idea to the Territorial Road Board, and in May

1940, ARC engineers were dispatched to the area for a preliminary survey. [27] By August, an

engineer had estimated that the entire 8.5 mile road, from Skagway to Dyea, would cost

$257,500. Meanwhile, the ARC, having been given $27,000 for Dyea Road work, made plans

for the summer construction season. Work proceeded slowly due to a lack of equipment, but by

mid-September local foreman J. Ludwig Frolander and his crew had completed 2.3 miles of

gravel road. Dyea Road, by now, extended all the way from its turnoff from the main road to its

intersection with the Skagway Alpine Club's AB Mountain Trail. [28]

After the 1940 season, work continued on the Dyea Road project. By the following April, the

Army had made it known that it was proposing to construct an airfield on the Dyea flats,

because it was the only place in the Skagway area where a facility fitting the Army's needs

could be built. Perhaps as a result, Gruening insisted that $25,000 be allotted that year for the

project. [29] Frolander, supplemented by the U.S. Army 18th Engineers, completed only a half

mile of road that year because "practically every foot is heavy rock work with no choice for

evading it." By the end of the 1942 season, the road had been extended to the head of Long

Bay. [30]

Thereafter, road construction continued in small increments. Half-mile sections of road were

completed in 1943 and 1944; a mile was completed in 1945, and 0.6 miles of new road was

finished in 1946. [31] By the fall of 1946, the road had been completed far enough that the four

Dyea homesteading families--those of Wesley Patterson, Kenneth Lamoreaux, Alfred Nelson,

and Malcolm Moe--began to use the road to go to and from Skagway. But because the road had

not yet reached the flats, all four homesteaders could drive to their homesteads only at low tide

or over the ice. [32] That problem, however, was soon overcome. In 1947, the ARC extended

the road another 0.3 miles, and the following April the agency erected the 200-foot steel bridge

over the Taiya River. That same year, the road was completed all the way to West Creek.

Ceremonies dedicating the new bridge took place on September 2, 1948. Governor Ernest

Gruening, whose efforts were largely responsible for the completion of both the road and bridge,

attended the dedication ceremony. [33]

The completion of the road stimulated new homesteading in the Dyea area and opened up a new

recreational area for Skagway residents. [34] It also promised to increase the number of

Chilkoot Trail hikers. In anticipation of new hikers, the Territory of Alaska hired four Skagwayarea residents to rough out a recreational trail from Dyea to the top of Chilkoot Pass. (That trail

used the present-day "Saintly Hill" which is the bane of so many Chilkoot hikers. The trail in

that area, however, had probably been created by Dyea resident Al Nelson a decade earlier.) It is

not known how successful the trail clearing effort was in stimulating trail use. Several local

residents, however, took advantage of it. Wes Patterson, for example, hiked the trail a total of

seven times during the late 1940s and early 1950s. The names of others who crossed during that

period are inscribed on the walls of the so-called "trappers' cabin" at the south end of Lindeman

Lake. [35]

The postwar period also witnessed a series of logging operations in the lower Taiya River

valley. The White Pass and Yukon Route needed a source of lumber for wharf pilings, bridge
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timbers, and switch ties. In response, local resident Edward A. Hosford formed the Skagway

Lumber Company. In 1946 or 1947, he and Wes Patterson built a cabin three miles upriver from

Dyea. The construction of a mill, and the removal of lumber, began shortly after the completion

of the Taiya River bridge. Timber cutting operations continued on a year-round basis until 1956.

Hosford soon bulldozed a road from Dyea north to Finnegan's Point. During his eight or nine

years of operation, he removed most of the mature spruce forest between Finnegan's Point and

the mouth of West Creek. [36] Later, during the early 1960s, Hosford contracted with Mrs.

Mark R. Noyd, the owner of the Pullen and Matthews homesteads, and logged most of the

Taiya River valley south of West Creek. (He avoided the Dyea townsite, however, because the

area contained few trees of commercial size.) Finally, in the late 1960s, Hosford contracted with

the State of Alaska to log spruce in the West Creek drainage. [37]

The completion of Dyea Road, and its de facto extension to Finnegan's Point, rekindled the idea

of an airport on Dyea flats. Skagway citizens, at this time, were demanding a longer runway in

order to accommodate a new generation of Alaska Coastal Airline craft. A few bureaucrats

apparently preferred a Dyea location, but the Skagway City Council, in September 1949, voted

down the idea, opting instead to locate the new airfield in Skagway. Soon afterward,

construction work began at the present airport site west of Alaska Street. [38]

The existence of a road to Dyea also stimulated local boosters to consider new highway routes.

In the fall of 1949, for example, the Skagway Chamber of Commerce began to push for a road

from Skagway to Haines. Both the Skagway Chamber and the Haines Common Council passed

resolutions supporting such a construction effort. [39] A year later, the Skagway Common

Council passed a similar resolution, requesting the Alaska Road Commission to construct a road

from Dyea to the Alaska Highway. But John R. Noyes, Alaska's Commissioner of Roads,

denied the various requests. He noted that he had flown over the area in a search for possible

connecting roads but concluded that a road to Haines would be too expensive for the ARC's

limited budget. A road via Canada, moreover, would be impossible for political reasons. [40]

The Chamber of Commerce, undaunted, next suggested that the road from Dyea be extended to

Burro Creek. (This recreational area, which had once sported a popular dance pavilion, was on

the west side of Taiya Inlet; it was two miles southwest of Skagway and five miles south of the

Dyea road terminus.) The ARC, however, refused to back the idea, because the benefits of the

road would be entirely local. [41]

During the summer of 1952, the Aluminum Company of America announced its intention to

build a smelter in the Dyea area (see below), and on the heels of that announcement local

boosters were given renewed hope that a road would be extended beyond Dyea. Those hopes,

however, slowly faded, and by January 1953 the promise of additional road funds in relation to

the proposed aluminum plant had been retracted. [42]

Highway Construction in the Skagway River Valley

As noted above, Skagway residents began to lobby for a road to Dyea in the early 1930s.

Fifteen years later, their efforts finally paid off. Their efforts to construct a road to Carcross and

Whitehorse began even earlier and proved far more frustrating.

Local citizens first became interested in the construction of a road over White Pass shortly after

the Klondike gold rush had run its course. In 1905, citizens met to plan a road that would go up

the Skagway Valley to White Pass, then on to Whitehorse. Contacts were made with Col. Wilds

P. Richardson of the Alaska Road Commission, C. V. X. Molyneaux of the Road Commission in

northern British Columbia, and Robert Lowe of Whitehorse. All three were initially enthusiastic

about the plan, but Richardson lost interest and the plan was dropped. [43]
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In 1912 or 1913, local citizens again contacted Richardson, who by now was a major in the

ARC. Richardson promised that he would build the road, so a survey was effected and in 1914 a

construction gang built a road three miles up the west side of the valley. Road work stopped just

beyond Milepost 4 of the railroad. (Until 1938, the railroad crossed over the Skagway River near

the White Pass shops, ascended the valley for three miles, then crossed the valley again near the

site of Boulder station.) Somewhat later, local resident Charles Nye extended the road for

another quarter mile; he did so in hopes that he might more easily develop a hydroelectric site

on the Skagway River just above the confluence of the Porcupine River. [44]

Local residents underwent another round of frustration in the early 1920s. Several of them

contacted officials from the Bureau of Public Roads about the proposed road. The BPR

responded by conducting another survey, and with the help of Delegate Dan Sutherland, the

Department of Agriculture allotted $95,000 for the project, a sum deemed sufficient to construct

the road up to Clifton Station, and perhaps as far as Glacier Station. The appropriation,

however, was inexplicably diverted to other projects, and no construction work took place as a

result. [45]

Beginning in 1923, local townspeople also began to petition for the construction of a road up the

Skagway River's east fork to "S" Glacier. Alaska Road Commission representatives surveyed the

route, but nothing became of the plans. [46] The $100,000 road might never have left the

drawing board but for E. W. Rasmuson, the Skagway banker, and Mayor W. J. Mulvihill. In

July 1933, they met with various ARC officials on the road project. A month later, they

informed the ARC that 70 men were living in town with no means of sustenance, and unless

they were provided work they would soon be a burden on the town. Given that ultimatum,

Governor John Troy approved the expenditure of $25,000, sufficient to hire a 73-man crew for

two months. By October 1 the project was underway, and by mid-December visitors could drive

almost all the way to the East Fork railway bridge by using the old Brackett Wagon Road in

combination with the newly-constructed right-of-way. [47]

Given the funding levels of the fall of 1933, the Denver Glacier road would have been

completed in a few short years. But no new appropriations came, and by 1937 the project had

been abandoned. The southern end of the project--that portion which had once been the

Brackett Wagon Road--was converted to railroad right-of-way in 1938. The remaining right-ofway has, over the years, melded back into the surrounding forest, although today's springtime

visitor can still see it from the Klondike Highway. [48]

The idea of a road up the Skagway Valley lay moribund during the 1940s. On the Canadian side

of the pass, however, the war brought new road construction efforts. In conjunction with Alcan

Highway supply efforts, an all-season road was built from Carcross to Whitehorse and from

Carcross east to Jake's Corner. In addition, the decade brought renewed activity to the old Venus

Mine site, 13 miles south of Carcross along Tagish Lake's Windy Arm. The mine was supplied

by a road which parallelled the lake shore. [49]

During the early 1950s, the Skagway Chamber of Commerce began to push for a series of new

roads out of the Skagway area. In 1949 and 1950, as noted above, the Chamber had lobbied for

a road to Haines, and later for a road to the Alaska Highway. Those were followed, in January

1951, by a call for a road to Burro Creek. Therefore, it came as no surprise to the ARC, or to

others in the territory, that the Skagway Common Council in March requested the territory's

assistance and funds to construct a highway to Carcross. Skagway's interest was passed down to

Juneau where the House Committee on Judiciary and Federal Relations sponsored House

Memorial 51, which urged

that the appropriate agencies of the government of the United States immediately

begin surveys for a highway designed to connect Skagway, Alaska with the Alaska
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Highway via Carcross and Whitehorse; that construction be commenced at the

earliest feasible date and that negotiations be instituted with the appropriate

Canadian officials for the survey and construction of the portions of said highway

lying within Canada. [50]

The memorial, which was stimulated by activities surrounding the proposed Yukon-Taiya

hydroelectric project, was rushed through the Alaska House. It passed unanimously and was

signed by Governor Gruening on March 19. The proposed route was to ascend the west bank of

the Skagway River to a crossing of the river and railroad near the Glacier station house; it

would then ascend the Skagway River valley and cross over Warm Pass before continuing on to

Carcross. The route was remarkable in that it diverged significantly from the Brackett Wagon

Road or other gold rush-era routes; it also bore little resemblance to the route which was

constructed during the 1970s. [51]

Few outside Skagway, however, were interested in constructing such a road. Edward P. Chester,

an assistant to Governor Gruening, took the recently-passed memorial to a transportation

meeting in Vancouver, B.C. Chester presented the memorial to E. C. Carson, British Columbia's

Minister for Public Works. Carson was polite but firm. As Chester noted, "He appreciated my

views; but that he could not see any immediate prospect for such a road." [52]

Alaskans refused to get discouraged by Carson's lack of interest. In early June, the Skagway

Common Council passed a resolution calling for the Warm Pass road; the resolution cited ten

reasons justifying its construction. The resolution, however, ran into a solid wall of opposition

from both U.S. and Canadian interests. E. L. Bartlett, Alaska's delegate to Congress, responded

that such a road would need the approval of both the ARC and the military. But military

sponsorship would be unlikely because of the existence of both the White Pass railroad and the

Haines Road. [53] Joseph Flakne, from the Interior Department's Alaska Branch, noted that "It

is unlikely ... that U.S. funds can be made available until Canada agreed to build the section of

the route which will come under its jurisdiction," and John F. Walker, who was British

Columbia's Minister of Mines, told a Skagway resident that "to be quite frank, this Department

is more interested in other access routes through the Alaska Panhandle than the one from

Skagway to Whitehorse." It was also suspected that the White Pass and Yukon Route opposed

the proposed road. [54]

Despite the overwhelming odds, Alaskans continued to show their support for the Warm Pass

road. Delegate Bartlett argued in a letter to Interior Secretary Oscar L. Chapman that "a

compelling and valid case can be made for the construction of such a road," and spoke to the

Alaska Air Command regarding the proposed road's military merits. In addition, sufficient

pressure was exerted that the Alaska Road Commission, in July 1951, undertook a preliminary

reconnaissance of the proposed route. The reconnaissance revealed that a road over White Pass

was more feasible than the proposed Warm Pass route. [55]

Efforts to build the road continued on into the spring of 1952. Skagway residents orchestrated a

letter-writing campaign to Territorial officials, trying to convince them of the road's value, both

as a tourist corridor and a conduit for freight. Governor Gruening and ARC officials

sympathized with their plight, but could do nothing. The road, they claimed, cost more than the

meager Territorial road budget would allow, and without the assistance of the British Columbia

government, further progress was impossible. Canadians, given a preference, favored the route

between Juneau and Atlin more than the Skagway-Carcross road, but by June 1952 the

provincial government had made it clear that it was not ready to expend funds on any northern

roads during the foreseeable future. [56]

In August 1952, the Aluminum Company of America (ALCOA) announced its intention to

build a smelter in the Taiya River valley, and the giddiness that surrounded that announcement
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caused territorial officials to reconsider their plans for a Skagway-Carcross road. On September

6, Governor Gruening told Interior Secretary Chapman that he considered the plant's

construction "the most important event in the history of Alaska." He also noted that "we

consider [the road] project highly desirable, and when the Canadians definitely agree to

construct their part of the road, concerning which I anticipate no difficulty, funds for our portion

of the road will be duly requested by the Alaska Road Commission." [57]

As summer wore into fall, caution regarding the ALCOA plant began to set in because of

Canada's reluctance to provide water rights. Momentum for the road, however, was off dead

center, and in 1953 the Alaska Road Commission began a two-year reconnaissance of the

proposed Skagway-Carcross road. Construction also took place. During the summer of 1953, the

Territorial Highway Engineer kicked in $6,000 to extend the road north from Skagway. The

following year, another $6,000 was provided for new road construction, and in 1955 sufficient

new road money was allotted to allow the road to be extended to Black Lake. [58]

By 1957, prospects for a Skagway-Carcross road had improved, perhaps because new mines had

spurred economic development in the Yukon. British Columbia's Minister of Highways, P. A.

Gagliari, announced that the province would cooperate with Alaska in the construction of such a

road, and soon afterwards, the Yukon's Member of Parliament, Erik Neilsen, declared his

support for the road. All that was needed, it appeared, was the cooperation of the Alaska

territorial government. To secure that cooperation, a petition was sent to Governor Mike

Stepovich in May 1958 which was intended "to secure the badly needed highway between

Skagway and Carcross ... to help the economy and the defense of Alaska and adjacent Canada."

But no further movements took place on the subject that year. Action to bring about new road

construction would have to await a new decade (see Chapter 4). [59]

The Yukon-Taiya Project

One of the most long-running development chapters, and a source of enormous frustration to

Skagway and other Alaska development interests, was the Yukon-Taiya hydroelectric project.

The project was launched in the mid-1940s and peaked in a fervor of interest in the fall of 1952.

By 1957, however, the project had been all but abandoned. Since that time, there have been

numerous attempts to resurrect interest in it, and some in the Skagway area are still convinced

that the project may yet be built.

In the postwar years, the various agencies and bureaus in the Department of the Interior

embarked upon a program of identifying and classifying Alaskan resources preparatory to

devising a comprehensive development plan for the territory. The Bureau of Reclamation was

one of the agencies involved.

In November 1946, R. C. Johnson, an engineer with the bureau, concluded that an unusually

large hydroelectric power potential could be developed by diverting the headwaters of the

Yukon River in Canada to the Alaska coast at Lynn Canal. Initially, it was called the TagishLynn project; the name was later changed to the Yukon-Taiya project, named after Taiya Inlet,

the northern extension of Lynn Canal.

The proposed project would be huge. It would involve the construction of a 30-foot dam on the

Yukon River at Miles Canyon, located a few miles upstream from Whitehorse. (A wild river, at

that time, still flowed through the canyon; Whitehorse Dam, which created Schwatka Lake, was

not constructed until 1957-58.) The proposed dam would create an enormous lake, over 300,000

acres in extent--an amalgam of Marsh, Tagish, Atlin, Little Atlin, Bennett, and Lindeman lakes.

The proposed lake would be between 2,200 and 2,215 feet above sea level. As part of the plan,

the level of Bennett Lake would rise 50 feet; Lindeman Lake would rise 40 to 45 feet. The new
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lake would flood the villages of Carcross and Tagish, 30 miles of the White Pass and Yukon

Railroad, most of the Carcross-Tagish road, portions of the Alaska Highway, and many other

man-made features. [60]

Impacts would be felt on the U.S. side of the border as well. Yukon-Taiya project water would

be diverted from the southern end of Lindeman Lake into a 40-foot wide, 13.5-mile long tunnel

which would divert water under Chilkoot Pass to a series of penstocks and a powerhouse. From

there, another 7.7-mile tunnel would carry the water through another series of penstocks to a

second powerhouse. The first powerhouse would be at an elevation of 1,100 feet; the second

located near the confluence of the Taiya and Nourse rivers, at 250 feet above sea level. The first

powerhouse would be located at or near the ghost town of Sheep Camp; the second located at or

near the site of Canyon City. Large volumes of spoil rock would be created at the southern end

of both tunnels, and the Taiya River below Canyon City would absorb twice its usual peak flow

rate. [61]

More detailed studies soon followed Johnson's investigation. That November, the Bureau of

Reclamation sent two officials to the site and reported the results of their investigation in Report

on the Potential Hydroelectric Power of Southeastern Alaska and the Yukon Territory. Based on

their findings, the Bureau of Land Management, in January 1948, withdrew the entire Taiya

River valley--46,592 acres in all--from all appropriation under the land laws. Three months

later, the BLM withdrew approximately 5,000 acres in the upper Taiya River valley--a milewide, sinuous corridor between the Taiya-Nourse junction and Chilkoot Pass--after classifying

it as a power site. [62]

In the summer of 1947, the Aluminum Company of America became interested in the project.

Using private capital, the company hoped to harness the huge project water flow in conjunction

with an aluminum reduction plant which would be built at Dyea, near the mouth of the Taiya

River. Company officials visited the site of the proposed plant and became convinced that the

project perfectly fit company plans. In October, therefore, company officials contacted officials

in Canada's Department of Mines and Resources. After discussing the matter with them,

ALCOA executives decided to submit a formal proposal to the Dominion Minister of Mines and

Resources as well as to the appropriate British Columbian authorities. [63]

In order to streamline the permitting process, and to make a case for the project, ALCOA

officials, in March 1948, met in Ottawa with the Deputy Minister of Mines and Resources and

his staff. Company officials told them that Congressional approval of the project should come

first; after that, the company would make an effort to have Dominion, provincial, and American

authorities simultaneously announce the project. At that time, the company would make a formal

request to reserve project lands as a water withdrawal. ALCOA, however, soon ran into

difficulties with the U.S. Justice Department, and they made no attempt that year to gain

Congressional sanction for the project. Meanwhile, company officials went to Skagway and

began purchasing both property and waterfront rights. [64]

Through 1948, ALCOA had developed its plans in relative secrecy, working only with selected

officials from various executive departments. In early 1949, however, the U.S. Senate caught

wind of the project. Assistant Interior Secretary William Warne outlined ALCOA's plans to

several senators, who leaked the news to the press. Soon afterwards, on February 22, the

Dominion went through with its plans to withdraw from disposal all lands surrounding Marsh,

Tagish, Bennett, and Atlin lakes that were less than 2,215 feet above sea level. British Columbia

lands officials made a similar withdrawal. [65]

In May, ALCOA officials traveled to Washington, D.C., where they briefed Alaska governor

Ernest Gruening and Under Secretary of the Interior Oscar Chapman on the project. They

announced their proposal to construct a power plant which would generate 400,000 kwh,
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sufficient to manufacture 400 million pounds of aluminum annually, employing 4,000 workers

and supporting a town of 20,000 inhabitants. The construction of such a plant would mean that

bauxite, the raw material from which aluminum was derived, would be shipped to Skagway

from many distant points. It also meant that the plant would generate far more power than it

would need, and would pave the way for the development of a large iron-titanium deposit in the

Klukwan area, just 55 miles from the plant site. Company officials, at this time, were hopeful

but realistic. The project was still in its preliminary stages, and the company needed time before

making a final decision on the economic feasibility of the project. [66]

That same month, however, murky clouds began to loom on the horizon. British Columbia

officials took a closer look at ALCOA's scheme and decided not to grant the company any

special concessions because the province would "not benefit economically in any way from the

contemplated development." Canadian officials had stressed all along that maximum benefits

had to accrue to Canada from any diversion of Yukon waters to the United States. This

insistence presented another obvious point of contention, one which, at this point, was not

disputed by ALCOA representatives. [67]

ALCOA officials learned that other aluminum plants were also being planned in northwestern

North America. The Reynolds Metals Company of Virginia and the Aluminum Company of

Canada (ALCAN), both of which were competitors of ALCOA, had conducted surveys along

the British Columbia coast and selected two potential sites. By May 1949, ALCAN officials had

made a preliminary decision to build an aluminum plant in British Columbia, and provincial

officials recognized that the proposed ALCOA plant "would compete directly within the

protection of the American tariff on aluminum" with the ALCAN plant. Soon afterward,

provincial officials passed those concerns on to their counterparts in Ottawa. C. K. LeCapelain,

of the Lands Division in Canada's Department of Resources and Development, noted that

sometime in 1950 the federal government "began to get unsympathetic to this project," in part

because of American obstruction of the Kitimat proposal. [68]

In January 1951, the province and ALCAN moved closer to the construction of an aluminum

plant at Kitimat, largely because U.S. defense officials had made it known that they hoped to

purchase "a large quantity of aluminum" from the plant. At about the same time, a

Congressional committee reported that U.S. policy favored the expansion of existing aluminum

plants rather the creation of new ones. The two actions brought howls of protest from Alaska

legislators, because both actions promised to defer if not derail efforts to build the Yukon-Taiya

project. On January 25, 1951, the legislature passed House Memorial 1, which requested Federal

officials to "re-examine immediately the situation with respect to the Taiya Project...to the end

that this large development shall take place on American soil." A month later, on February 23, it

passed House Memorial 28, which asked "that the recent decision against the Alaska aluminum

project be reviewed, immediately, looking more closely to [its] merits." [69]

The legislature's protests fell on deaf ears. By the fall of 1952, project construction at Kitimat

was well underway. Throughout this period, ALCAN officials played a significant role in

lobbying against the Yukon-Taiya proposal. The company continued to influence both the

British Columbia and Dominion governments in order to protect its investment from ALCOA

competition. [70]

Meanwhile, the two nations cooperated in a series of studies investigating the economic,

geologic, and hydrologic aspects of the proposed project. The economic study was carried out

during the summer and fall of 1950 and involved a two-week field reconnaissance of the

affected area. It and other projects, however, were halted on March 31, 1951 at the behest of the

Canadian government. And on March 31, 1951, the Canadian government informed Ottawa's

U.S. Ambassador that it "could not take any further steps in a joint investigation of the Yukon

River Power Diversion project until the possibility of using these waters in Canada has been
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explored." The Americans, it appeared, had failed to present a convincing case demonstrating

the advantages of the development to Canada. Meanwhile, various Canadian agencies continued

making studies on their own. [71]

ALCOA, undeterred, continued its efforts to develop the project. During the summer of 1951,

Richard K. Mellon, a substantial stakeholder in several of the largest manufacturing and refining

companies in the country, visited Alaska and, accompanied by Alaska Development Board

general manager George Sundborg, visited Dyea, Whitehorse, and other project sites. Mellon,

along with senior ALCOA officials, were confident that obstacles to development could be

overcome. The Kitimat plant, in particular, was not a problem because of the ever-increasing

market for aluminum. In April 1952, ALCOA officially decided to develop the Yukon-Taiya

project. [72]

As ALCOA officials saw it, four obstacles to development remained. First, the project had to be

sold to official Washington as a high-priority Alaska request, as "a large and economically

sound hydroelectric development in...Alaska which everybody wants to develop...." Second, the

U.S. State Department had to work out a water-rights agreement, both with the Dominion and

British Columbian governments. Third, the company needed to obtain land for its power plants,

manufacturing facilities, townsite, and docks, because the April 1948 power-site withdrawal was

not applicable to such uses. Fourth, the Federal Power Commission needed to grant the company

a permit of sufficiently long duration that would allow it to amortize its development costs. [73]

Alaskan officials knew that they would need the full weight of the United States to bear in

overcoming those obstacles. In June 1952, therefore, both Governor Ernest Gruening and

Delegate E. L. Bartlett asked President Harry S. Truman to intervene. Bartlett was perplexed to

hear Truman's opinion, that the Yukon-Taiya project should not be turned over to private

interests. [74]

Despite Truman's negative response, ALCOA officials decided to publicly announce their

support for the project. On August 23, 1952, ALCOA official Leon E. Hickman addressed the

delegates to the All-Alaska Chamber of Commerce, at their meeting in Mount McKinley

National Park, and told them that the company was "ready, without reservation, to proceed with

the construction of a large aluminum-smelting project in Alaska, just as soon as the necessary

land can be purchased and the required governmental approvals can be obtained." [75]

Euphoria reigned in Alaska as a result of Hickman's announcement. Alaska newspapers, and

even the New York Times, ran lengthy articles on the project. In Skagway, property prices had

"risen sharply in the last 30 days after mysterious buyers appeared and were interested in

purchasing or optioning almost everything in town," according to an Anchorage Daily Times

report. [76] Future prospects looked so positive that a Juneau newspaperman, Elmer A. Friend,

moved to Skagway. The first issue of his Skagway Alaskan rolled off the presses on August 28,

1952.

Two months later, on October 21, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management withdrew

approximately 7,400 acres of land in the area immediately surrounding Skagway from all forms

of appropriation. That parcel, which adjoined the land reserved in the Taiya River valley in

January 1948, stretched from Sturgill's Landing up to the mouth of the Skagway River's East

Fork, and from Upper Dewey Lake west to Smugglers Cove. [77] Government officials felt it

necessary to withdraw the land in order to discourage speculative land claims.

The optimism felt in Alaska, however, was not reflected in Canada. Much work remained before

construction could begin, and in particular, no solid progress had been made in convincing

either British Columbia or the Canadian government to back the project. In mid-November,

more bad news followed when it was revealed that a Canadian company had proposed another
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major hydroelectric project on the Alsek River, in Canadian waters between Glacier Bay and

Yakutat Bay. As a result, the Minister of Canada's Department of Resources and Development,

Robert H. Winters, informed ALCOA in early December that his department had recommended

against the Yukon-Taiya project because his agency was responsible for making certain that the

maximum benefit from any power development accrued to Canada. [78] By January 1953, the

Engineering News-Record was reporting that "Canada has slammed the door conclusively in the

face of the Aluminum Company of America's plans for development of hydro power in Alaska."

Seemingly against all odds, ALCOA continued to press its case. In early 1953, the company

briefly considered seeking the assistance of the U.S. State Department in its efforts, but no

request was ever made. In January 1954, company officials visited British Columbia premier W.

A. C. Bennett and lobbied him on the proposal, but he was noncommittal and reiterated that the

needs of his province came first. [79] During the spring and early summer, newspapers in

Victoria and Vancouver speculated that ALCOA still might be able to construct its project as

part of a plan that would also result in another hydroelectric project being built on the Taku

River, in Canada, by Quebec Metallurgical Industries (QMI), a Canadian metallurgical

company. But in early August, the provincial government granted a conditional water license to

QMI's parent company--not to ALCOA. [80]

In 1956, the Honourable J. Aubrey Simmons, Yukon Territory's Member of Parliament, wrote

U.S. Secretary of State John Foster Dulles and proposed that there be negotiations with the

United States to provide an access corridor to the sea through southeastern Alaska for the Yukon

Territory and northern British Columbia. When asked his opinion of the proposal, Alaska

delegate E. L. Bartlett suggested that the U.S. grant such a corridor under a long-term lease

arrangement in return for the joint development of the Yukon-Taiya project. Dulles, however,

did not react favorably to Bartlett's proposal. Neither did Alaska Governor B. Frank

Heintzleman, and the matter was dropped. [81]

On March 1, 1957, ALCOA abandoned all plans for the Yukon-Taiya project. The political

situation remained untenable, and the economic advantages of an aluminum smelter at Dyea

had diminished so much since the early 1950s that the company could now no longer justify the

project even if the Canadians were cooperative. [82]

It should be noted, parenthetically, that the project's failure did not prevent the construction of

hydroelectric facilities in the upper Yukon basin. In 1957-58, soon after ALCOA bailed out of

the Yukon-Taiya project, the Northern Canada Power Commission constructed Whitehorse

Dam, just a mile south of Whitehorse. The waters behind the dam formed Schwatka Lake,

which inundated Miles Canyon and the Whitehorse Rapids. The power generated by the dam is

used primarily in Whitehorse and vicinity. [83]

NPS Activities in the Skagway Area, 1933-1960

Prior to the Congressional passage of the statehood bill in 1958, the National Park Service had a

minimal presence in Alaska. Only four NPS units existed in the territory. Sitka National

Monument was established in 1910 to protect a series of totem poles and a Russian-Tlingit

battle site. Congress authorized Mount McKinley National Park in 1917 to protect the

continent's highest peak and the excellent gamelands to its north. Katmai National Monument

was established in 1918 to protect the volcanic landscape created by the June 1912 eruption near

Mount Katmai, and in 1925, President Calvin Coolidge proclaimed Glacier Bay National

Monument to protect the glacial landscape north of Icy Strait. (In 1916, Woodrow Wilson

authorized Old Kasaan National Monu-ment on the shores of Prince of Wales Island. But the

monument was never staffed, and its resources slowly deteriorated. The monument was deauthorized in 1955.)
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No NPS unit was authorized in the Skagway area until 1976. Plans to establish a presence,

however, date to the 1930s. Three events brought the NPS into the area prior to the 1960s. First,

in the 1930s, Skagway residents urged the establishment of a "Chilcoot National Park." During

the mid-1950s, the NPS was asked to play a role in the preservation of the well-known Pullen

House antiquities collection. Later that decade, the NPS began to become interested in

Skagway's historical and architectural resources.

As historian Edwin Bearss has noted, the initial attempt to create a national park unit in the

Skagway area was the result of the efforts of Elmer A. Rasmuson, the president of the National

Bank of Alaska and a Skagway resident. In the fall of 1933, Rasmuson met with Governor John

W. Troy and discussed a possible NPS area that would include the "region around Skagway to

the Border north of town," Dyea, and the old Chilkoot Trail. The Skagway Chamber of

Commerce responded to Rasmuson's idea by forming a three-member committee to promote the

park proposal. [84]

In the fall of 1934, the committee wrote to Anthony Dimond, Alaska's delegate to Congress, and

asked him to present the park idea to the appropriate Washington authorities. Dimond presented

the idea to Arno B. Cammerer. The NPS Director admitted that he was unfamiliar with the area,

but worried that its values might be too similar to Glacier Bay National Monument to qualify

for inclusion in the system. [85]

Thereafter, the fate of the park was entrusted to Wallace Atwood. He resided in Worcester,

Massachusetts and was a geography professor as well as the president of Clark University. In

January 1935, Atwood made a presentation to the National Park Service Educational Advisory

Board and noted that "the mountains about Skagway could compare favorably with many of our

great National Parks...and that it would be a very appropriate and fortunate place for the

establishment of a National Park." Because the area was adjacent to the British Columbia

border, Atwood hoped that the boundaries might extend beyond the frontier by creating an

international park, similar to the Glacier-Waterton Lakes parks which were located along the

border between Montana and Alberta. To that end, he secured the support of V. I. Hahn,

president of the White Pass and Yukon Route and a man with considerable influence in Ottawa.

[86]

Cammerer remained cool to the idea of a "Chilcoot National Park," so Atwood presented the

idea to his superior, Interior Secretary Harold L. Ickes. Atwood, ironically, ignored the area's

historic resources; instead, he urged that a park be created on the basis of the area's scenic and

scientific resources, and because of its accessibility to tourists. [87]

Ickes became an advocate of the project largely on the basis of Atwood's enthusiasm for it, and

implored Cammerer to study the idea further. Cammerer referred the idea to two associates,

asking them to "see whether we can't make a monument out of it." The project eventually landed

on the desk of George M. Wright, a wildlife specialist who had little sympathy for historical or

cultural areas. On February 28, 1935, he reported that the proposed monument had several

drawbacks: it was too close to Glacier Bay National Monument, its scenic values were not as

great as those in other parts of Southeastern Alaska, and both the City of Skagway and the

White Pass and Yukon Route were "undesirable encroachments" into the proposed park. The

following month, the NPS Educational Advisory Board met again and formed a committee to

mull over Wright's conclusions. Nothing came of that effort, however, and the park idea was

dropped for another two decades. [88]

The next time NPS was called upon to look into the Skagway area was in an advisory capacity

regarding a well-known museum collection. The Pullen House, one of Alaska's great hotels, had

been operated since the gold rush by Harriet Pullen, who arrived in Skagway during the early

days of the gold rush. She opened the Pullen House in 1901 and had continued to operate it
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until her death in August 1947. Over the years, Pullen amassed a treasure trove of archeological

and ethnographic objects. These objects were displayed in the lobby of her hotel, and guests

from around the world both admired them and contributed to her holdings. Following her death,

however, the hotel closed. By the early 1950s it reopened, under the supervision of Mary (Mrs.

Max) Kopansky, Pullen's granddaughter. The museum collection, however, was neglected and

began to deteriorate. [89]

The fame of the Pullen Collection was not lost on authorities at both the federal and territorial

levels. In particular, NPS officials Aubrey Neasham and John Hussey called attention to the

collection's importance and to the necessity to preserve it if at all possible. [90] Perhaps based

on their recommendations, Bruce W. Black, the park naturalist at Glacier Bay National

Monument, visited Skagway in early 1954 and reported on the condition of the Pullen House

and its collection. Black noted that the Pullen House, though still an active hotel, was in a

"pitiful state of disrepair." Moreover, the relics there were in danger; they were not being

protected from possible fire damage, and many of the items in the collection were neither

identified nor recorded. He urged the Territory, or some other interested party, to acquire the

Pullen House property, rehabilitate the structure, and convert it into a museum. In the meantime,

he hoped that the museum specimens could be catalogued and saved from possible fire damage.

He requested the agency's regional historian, stationed in San Francisco, to look into it. [91]

For the next several months, Black's report landed on the desks of several prominent

bureaucrats, all of whom sympathized with the worsening plight of the Pullen collection. None,

however, were in a position to help. The report wound its way from Black to Sitka-Glacier Bay

Superintendent Henry G. Schmidt. It was then forwarded to the Director of Region Four,

Lawrence C. Merriam, who sent a copy to NPS Director Conrad L. Wirth. Merriam regretted

that the NPS, lacking a park unit in Skagway, was in no position to assume custody over its

"relics." Under the Historic Sites Act of 1935, however, it did have an obligation to discuss the

matter with the proper Territorial authorities. [92]

On March 2, 1954, NPS's Chief Historian, Herbert E. Kahler, met with George W. Rogers, an

economist in the office of Governor B. Frank Heintzleman, and with Maurice W. Goding, the

administrator of the federal Office of Territories. At the meeting, Kahler learned that

Heintzleman was unenthusiastic about purchasing the collection, and Kopansky was apparently

unwilling to either donate the collection or sell it on a piecemeal basis. He also heard that the

White Pass and Yukon Route, which was "contemplating" the construction of a new hotel in

Skagway, had no interest in acquiring the Pullen House collection. Lacking funds from either

federal or territorial sources, officials could only hope that the city might construct a building in

which the artifacts might be kept. [93]

The city, as it turned out, built no structures intended for the preservation of the Pullen House

artifacts. Therefore, when the Pullen House closed for the last time in 1959, owner Mary

Kopansky asked officials of the newly-proclaimed state of Alaska to purchase the artifacts.

However, she found no interest. Kopansky, therefore, built a fireproof building near her home in

Lynnwood, Washington, and moved the collection there. [94]

During the same period, NPS officials gave their first indication of interest in Skagway's

historical and architectural resources. On June 19, 1953, NPS Director Conrad Wirth issued a

memorandum calling for an investigation into new NPS units. John A. Hussey, the Regional

Historian for Region Four, responded in November and offered various suggestions for new

historical areas in the western states. Of Alaskan sites, he noted that two excellent candidates for

national historical sites were the site of the American flag raising and St. Michael's Cathedral,

both of which were located in Sitka. He also noted that "A western mining settlement not

connected with the California Gold Rush would also be a desirable unit of the National Park

System. Skagway, Alaska, and Virginia City, Nevada, are possible candidates; but preservation
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problems at towns of such size would be a deterring factor." [95]

Three months after Hussey's letter, Skagway was again brought to the attention of NPS officials

because of Bruce Black's report on the Pullen House collection. Regional Director Lawrence C.

Merriam regretfully noted that the agency was in no position to preserve any of the town's

buildings; he believed, however, "that an investigation might reveal them to be of more than

local significance." He hoped that Alaska authorities might "incorporate the historic section of

the town into a historical park as California has done at Columbia." (Columbia State Historical

Park, which was located in an 1850s gold rush town in the state's Mother Lode country, had

been established in 1945.) [96] George L. Collins, a recreation planner in NPS's Region Four

office and an old Alaska hand, noted that

There is no question in the minds of the experts with whom we have discussed the

matter of the historical importance of Skagway.... It is considered one of the key

places of the Northland for interpretation to the public of critically significant

Alaska and Canadian history.

But neither the Alaska legislature nor the NPS hierarchy were willing, at that time, to take steps

to preserve Skagway's resources. [97]

During the next few years, the Skagway citizens became aware of the advantages of a federal

presence. Cyril A. Coyne, who served as Skagway's mayor from 1954 to 1956 and again from

1957 to 1959, suggested the establishment of a historic site or monument both to Governor

Heintzleman and to officials in NPS's Region Four office in San Francisco. Through

correspondence and discussion, Coyne hoped to enlighten both territorial and federal officials

with the town's historical values and with the necessity to preserve them. [98]

In late 1958 or early 1959, the NPS announced to Skagway officials that as part of its National

Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings, it would finally study the town's history to determine its

eligibility as a national monument or historic site. Coyne responded by visiting NPS Director

Wirth and asking if the agency could provide immediate financial assistance to preserve the

town's historic structures, to display them to the public, and to set up a historical museum where

gold rush artifacts could be displayed and interpreted. Wirth did not approve any of Coyne's

various requests. He recognized, however, that Coyne was well known by other Interior

Department officials; perhaps for that reason, Wirth noted in an internal memorandum that "I

hope that we can help him out in some way." [99]

Washington officials forwarded the letter to Lawrence Merriam, the Region Four Director in

San Francisco. Shortly afterward, Merriam wrote a sobering note to Mayor Coyne. He noted

that

you are...well aware of our enthusiasm for the historical remains in Skagway and of

our sympathy with your efforts to preserve them. Unfortunately, the participation of

the Federal Government in such preservation efforts, particularly financial

participation, is not brought about by good intentions. The establishment of a

National Monument or National Historic Site is generally a long and complicated

process, and national recognition is accorded only to sites which are judged...to be

of outstanding national significance.

He repeated to Coyne that the agency was unable to participate financially in any restoration

plan, noting that "the greater part of the historical preservation work in the United States must

remain the responsibility of State and local governments." The NPS was certainly willing to

provide technical assistance on building preservation or museum displays, but given its

Congressional mandate and staff levels, it could do no more. [100]
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Several months later, Regional Archeologist Paul J. F. Schumacher visited Alaska. As part of

that trip, he spent June 4 and 5, 1959 in Skagway. While there, he met Cy Coyne and discussed

various methods by which other communities had undertaken historic building preservation

efforts. He also photographed several of the town's most prominent historical buildings,

including McCabe College, Pullen House, Arctic Brotherhood Hall, the Moore Cabin, and

Soapy Smith's Parlor. Schumacher noted that "Most of the minor structures of the turn of the

century period have now vanished. However, there remain about 20 public buildings of

historical and architectural interest," of which "possibly 5 or 6 are of primary importance as far

as the city and state are concerned." NPS officials looked forward to a Skagway visit by a

historian from the National Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings; only then would the agency

be in a position to make recommendations concerning the town's historical significance. [101]

(top) Martin Itjen, the owner and operator of the famed "Skaguay Street-Car," was well-known to Alaska tourists

between the two world wars. (bottom) During World War II, the U.S. Army and its contractors invaded Skagway.
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It operated the WP&YR railroad and the docks, and it built barracks and other buildings on scattered vacant lots

throughout town. This photo, taken on Memorial Day 1943, looks east along Third Avenue from the roof of the

Golden North Hotel. (KLGO SC #772 (top); KLGO SC #1216 (bottom))

(top) In 1948, Edward Hosford began logging the timber in the valley north of Dyea. He abandoned the area in

1956. In late September 1971, when this photo was taken, the main buildings in the logging camp were still

largely intact. (bottom) Harriet Pullen in the yard of the Pullen House. During the 1920s, tourism to Skagway

grew significantly, and the Pullen House became one of the best known hostelries in the territory. By the 1950s,

both the hotel and her museum collection were being recognized as valuable historical assets. (Theodore R.

Merrell photo, KLGO PC (top); KLGO SC #766 (bottom))

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

PART I: THE MAKING OF THE PARK

Chapter 3:

State and Federal Agencies Show an Interest

The authorization of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park was the result of a long,

complex series of actions by state and federal bureaucrats that began in 1961. Increasing

knowledge of gold rush history and the abundant evidence reflecting it brought increased

pressure to preserve the area as a unit of the National Park Service system. The area, however,

was difficult to preserve because it entailed two communities--one in Alaska, another in

Washington state--and rural land owned by several public and private entities. Co-operation

with various Canadian representatives was also needed. By the time the proposed park was

presented to Congress, the bill enjoyed a broad base of public support. The complexities of

creating a workable park plan delayed the park's authorization until June 1976.

State Work Crews Reopen the Chilkoot Trail

The State of Alaska showed its first sustained interest in the history of the Klondike gold rush in

early 1961. The Division of Lands, in the state's Department of Natural Resources, and the

Division of Youth and Adult Authority, in the Department of Health and Welfare, cooperated in

the reopening of the Chilkoot Trail.

The chief instigator of the project was Charles W. Pfeiffer, the Director of the state's Youth and

Adult Authority. (The Y&AA served as the state's corrections department from 1960 to 1968.)

The authority operated a Youth Conservation Camp and School for delinquent boys in Wasilla.

In order to provide them a structured work environment, it sought outside projects that offered

long-term recreational benefits. Pfeiffer felt that the Chilkoot Trail would be an excellent

demonstration project for his division, so he arranged for a meeting during the winter of 1960-

61 with Thomas Murton, his assistant, and Michael Leach of the Division of Lands in the state's

Department of Natural Resources. (As noted below, the Division of Lands was involved because

the state was on the verge of applying for most of the Taiya River valley as part of the 102.5

million acres Congress had granted it in the 1958 Alaska statehood act.) Leach, who was the

division's one-man Branch of Forestry, Parks, and Recreation in southeastern Alaska, soon

became an enthusiastic advocate of the proposal. The Y&AA was to provide and supervise

labor, while the Division of Lands would provide technical direction. Pfeiffer followed his

meeting by travelling to Skagway and discussing the project with various local citizens. [1]

Project work began on May 15, 1961. On that day, Murton and Richard Branton of the Youth

and Adult Authority discussed the project with Leach and Charles Mehlert, both of whom

worked for the Division of Lands in Juneau. The four travelled to Skagway, and the following

day they continued on to Dyea and began flagging the proposed route. Guided by Emil

Hanousek, a Dyea resident who was familiar with the trail corridor, the group hiked up the east

side of the valley to the site of Canyon City, flagging as they went. The following day, they
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continued on to Sheep Camp. They then returned to Dyea and left the area.

The trailblazers were unsure as to whether the path they followed was the same as that followed

by the gold rush stampeders. Hanousek had told them that "an old wagon road which began at

Dyea and proceeded along the river on the west bank of the river to Canyon City was, in fact,

the location of the original trail." Because they had not followed that route, Leach urged that the

route be located so as to be historically authentic. When the work crews arrived, however, they

eschewed Leach's suggestion and merely followed the flags. The route they pioneered that

summer is, with minor exceptions, the same one still used today. [2]

The Y&AA's original intention was to limit its participation to eight delinquent boys, aged 14 to

18. By the time work began, however, two groups of offenders--one youth, one adult--had been

enlisted. Nine youths began work June 9; adults, who hailed from jails in Juneau and Ketchikan,

arrived three days later. Both groups, led by Russel Lowell, had completed their work by July

20. [3]

The crews had accomplished a great deal during their summer's work. They had brushed out a

trail from the east side of the steel bridge, at Dyea, to a point one-half mile south of Sheep

Camp. In addition, they had installed a 500-foot tram cable across the Taiya River just north of

the West Creek Bridge. The cable allowed work crews to haul equipment up the trail without

having to ascend "Saintly Hill," just north of the steel bridge. Many of the improvements,

however, were basic, and some--such as the cable crossing--were wiped out that year by the

rising Taiya River waters. [4] Despite those losses, however, both the Division of Youth and

Adult Authority and the Division of Lands were pleased with the work. Both agencies looked

forward to continued trail work. Y&AA officials discovered, however, that some juveniles were

reluctant to perform the assigned work; besides, there were many restrictions imposed on the

use of juveniles. In future years, only adult work crews would be used. [5]

Federal Officials Evaluate the Skagway Area's History

During the 1930s, as noted in Chapter 2, the idea of an NPS area in Skagway and vicinity had

first been suggested. During the 1950s, occasional flickers of new interest were seen. In the

early 1960s, that interest was renewed and expanded as part of a statewide survey. That survey

was one element in the National Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings, a nationwide effort to

identify and evaluate important historical sites.

The National Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings (NSHSB)--known more informally as the

Historic Sites Survey--was a creature of the Historic Sites Act of August 21, 1935, which was

intended "to lay a broad legal foundation for a national program of preservation and

rehabilitation of historic sites." Secretary Harold L. Ickes, who testified in favor of the Act,

advocated "a thorough survey of all historic sites in the country...on the basis of their national

and local significance," and perhaps as a result, the Act directed the Secretary of the Interior to

"[m]ake a survey of historic and archaeologic sites, buildings, and objects for the purpose of

determining which possess exceptional value as commemorating or illustrating the history of the

United States." There was no indication, in the bill's language, that sites so nominated would be

included in the National Park Service system. Even so, the framers of the Act envisioned that

most of those places found to possess national significance (or "exceptional value") would be

acquired by the Service. [6]

The completion of the necessary surveys was entrusted to the agency's newly-formed Branch of

Historic Sites and Buildings. Survey work began in late 1936. Initial work took place in

Washington, but with the creation of the first four regional offices in 1937, survey work was

transferred to the field. By late 1941 eight studies had been completed. Some 560 historic sites
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had been identified, 229 of which were found to be nationally significant; in addition, an

archeological inventory had identified 334 sites, of which 31 were found to be nationally

significant. World War II halted survey activity, but the Mission 66 program brought forth

renewed interest. The Historic Sites Survey began again in late 1957. [7]

In 1961, the National Park Service funded a special historic sites survey for Alaska. That study

was composed of a general background narrative and a series of historical site evaluations. The

narrative was prepared by Dr. Benjamin F. Gilbert of San Jose State College, while the site

materials were written by Charles Snell, a historian assigned to the Region Four office in San

Francisco. Snell endeavored to visit as many sites as he could that summer, and travelled 13,000

miles in 34 days in pursuit of that goal. [8]

In early July, Snell visited upper Lynn Canal. He evaluated both the Skagway and Taiya River

valleys and identified two historic districts: Skagway and White Pass, and Chilkoot Pass and

Dyea. He discussed the importance of each in the context of the Klondike Gold Rush, and

described the condition of both districts. Of Dyea, he noted that

the only traces left of this boom town are two abandoned and very badly

deteriorated log cabins and two overgrown cemeteries. Except for two or three

modern summer log cabins widely scattered through the forest, Dyea has reverted

almost completely to a state of nature.

He also climbed to the summit of Chilkoot Pass--thanks, in part, to the efforts of a State trail

crew--and noted that "the Chilkoot trail and pass have also returned to a state of nature and are

unimpaired by modern intrusions. The general trace of the route is still visible through much of

its course." [9] Of Skagway, he noted that "approximately 100 original buildings still stand...that

date from the great gold rush days... These surviving structures are the finest examples of the

mining frontier town, 1897-1910, in Alaska." Snell noted that "the heaviest concentration of the

old buildings is to be found on Broadway Street, between First and Sixth Avenues," and

specifically listed as important the White Pass depot, the Arctic Brotherhood hall, the "old

Federal Court Building," and the saloon once occupied by outlaw "Soapy" Smith. [10]

Snell, in his report, listed both historic districts as being "sites of exceptional value" and thus

worthy to be nominated as historic sites. That determination, however, was left up to the ninemember Consulting Committee for the National Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings. The

Consulting Committee screened Snell's site reports and gave its recommendations to the elevenmember Advisory Board on National Parks, Historic Sites, Buildings, and Monuments. The

Advisory Board, which was created as part of the 1935 Historic Sites Act, met in late April and

early May of 1962. It declared that Skagway and White Pass historic district possessed

exceptional value and "that sites in Skagway (Historic District) be considered as possible

additions to the National Park System." It made no such recommendation regarding the Chilkoot

Pass and Dyea area. Those recommendations were forwarded to Secretary of the Interior

Stewart L. Udall, who on June 13, 1962 declared Skagway Historic District and White Pass area

to be eligible for National Historic Landmark (NHL) designation. [11]

The Skagway and White Pass area was one of the state's first sites declared to be an eligible

National Historic Landmark. The first NHLs in Alaska--two archeological sites along the

western Alaska coastline--were declared in January 1961. Skagway and White Pass, along with

four other properties (two in Sitka, one in Kodiak, and one on St. Paul Island in the Pribilofs)

were the next Alaskan properties to join the list. [12]

Although the Advisory Board gave a mixed evaluation of the two sites Snell had identified at

the head of Lynn Canal, Udall's declaration of the Skagway-White Pass area as an NHL

signalled the federal government's interest in the area. [13] As noted above, the NSHSB's
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identification of historical sites was considered to be the first step toward their inclusion in the

National Park Service system. Momentum, however slight, toward creating Klondike Gold Rush

National Historical Park had begun.

Chilkoot Trail Improvements

The work accomplished on the Chilkoot Trail in the summer of 1961 proved so successful that

the project was continued. In 1962, Y&AA officials hoped that the trail would be brought up to

U.S. Forest Service standards. In order to carry on its work, the Authority brought in a crew

from the newly-constructed Adult Conservation Camp near Palmer. That crew erected another

tram crossing at the site of the previous year's washout. Led by Don Davis, the prisoners spent

most of June and July working from a Canyon City base camp, and by the end of their season

they had improved the trail as far as Canyon City. Accomplishments included a three-mile trail

relocation around the unsightly Hosford millsite. Later, however, the existing logging road past

the mill was improved, courtesy of a rented bulldozer, and the rerouted trail was abandoned

thereafter. Workers also erected a 16' x 20' shelter cabin near Canyon City, replaced the Slide

Cemetery headboards, and cleaned up the Dyea (Native) Cemetery. [14]

In 1963, work continued farther up the trail. Major work consisted of improving the trail from

Canyon City to timberline, a mile above Sheep Camp, building a cable bridge across the Taiya

River at Canyon City, and constructing a shelter cabin near Sheep Camp similar in design to

that which had been constructed a year before near Canyon City. By summer's end, the trail had

been improved to a standard acceptable to both the Youth and Adult Authority and the Division

of Lands. During the trail construction period, about forty people had hiked over the trail. [15]

William A. Egan, Alaska's governor, reacted to the trail's completion by trying to arrange a

well-publicized inaugural hike over the trail during late July 1964, much as had been done for

the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal ten years earlier. He invited conservationist and Supreme Court

justice William O. Douglas and Interior Secretary Stewart L. Udall to take part in that hike.

(Douglas was one of several high-ranking officials who had taken part in the C&O Canal hike.)

Udall, however, had to decline Egan's invitation; perhaps for that reason, the hike was never

held. [16]

After 1963, Y&AA work crews returned to the trail each summer. The crews, led by Don Davis

or Lee Morrison, were involved in such tasks as bridge repair, maintenance of the trail tread,

and the installation of mileage and directional signs. They also, in 1965, installed a series of

trailside markers indicated each half mile of trail. (These, however, must not have remained

long because, as noted in Chapter 4, a new set of mileage markers was installed eight years

later.) They did not, however, attempt to maintain the hand tram across the Taiya. By the late

1960s, solo hikers found it almost impossible to use; by 1972 the cables were teetering and

unusable; and by 1974, the system was "down and beyond use." [17]

These crews, which continued to be led by Don Davis, camped along the trail each year until

1968; thereafter, they were replaced by crews from DNR's Division of Lands or the Division of

Parks. [18] During this period, the recreational use of the trail remained fairly limited, and as

late as 1969 only about 100 people traversed the route each year. Those who went, however,

were often destructive to the resource. When the trail was first opened to recreational hikers,

thousands of horseshoes and other gold rush remains were scattered along the trail. But as Rep.

Mike Miller noted in a 1979 letter, "virtually everyone who hiked the trail [during the 1960s]

brought home at least one or two light souvenirs of his or her trip. Because so many of us did

so, however, there are now no such items along the way for present visitors to see and enjoy."

By 1973, when NPS rangers began working along the trail, so many artifacts had been lost that

the rangers urged their superiors to abandon plans that would have restored the trail to its
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historical right-of-way (see Chapter 4). [19]

A National Park is Considered

In 1963, new evidence of Federal interest in the Skagway area surfaced. Sigurd Olson, the wellknown Minnesota wildlife biologist, author, and conservationist, was also a member of the

Advisory Board on National Parks, Historic Sites, Buildings, and Monuments. In his advisory

capacity, he had played a role in the nomination of the Skagway and White Pass area as a

National Historic Landmark. In the summer of 1963, Olson and NPS official Theodor (Ted)

Swem visited the Skagway area and hiked up part of the Chilkoot Trail. Impressed with what he

saw, Olson wrote to Mike Leach, of the Alaska Department of Natural Resources, and urged

that "the first two or three blocks of Broadway Street" be set aside. Leach shared Olson's

enthusiasm for the preservation of the area's gold rush history, but warned him of the difficulty

in purchasing several city blocks. He also told Olson that "in order to tell the complete story of

the Gold Rush, we will need the assistance of the Department of Interior, Canada and the City of

Skagway." Olson promised to recommend that the Advisory Board study the matter more

closely. [20]

In 1965, perhaps at the recommendation of the Advisory Board, historian Charles Snell wrote a

revised, expanded nomination form to the National Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings. [21]

Shortly after the form was completed, the Advisory Board, accompanied by NPS Director

George Hartzog, Assistant Director Swem, Rep. Roy Taylor (D-NC), Rep. Ralph Rivers (DAK) and other officials, visited the Skagway area. While there they visited Dyea, the museum,

and other local attractions. The local newspaper editor, Cy Coyne, noted that the Board

"appeared impressed with the history of the area and what present-day citizens were doing to

retain a place in the visitor world." Several Board members had also visited Skagway three years

earlier and remembered that their recommendations were instrumental in the area being declared

a Registered National Historic Landmark; the state, however, had not yet made use of that

designation. Stanley Cain, an Assistant Secretary of the Interior and a trip participant, spoke for

the Board when he observed that "It will take a national effort to restore and properly preserve

this historic district. Perhaps NPS should find a way to do this." [22]

Shortly after his return to Washington, Congressman Rivers began to express interest in an

expanded federal role. In a letter to Director Hartzog, he outlined eight development projects

that the agency should consider "to meet the needs of the rising tide of visitors to Alaska," three

of which dealt with the Skagway area. First, he asked the NPS to "explore with Canadian

authorities the possible establishment of an International Historic District embracing Skagway,

the Chilkoot and White passes, and the Klondike District"--in other words, a sort of transborder National Historic Landmark. Second, he asked the NPS to "consider discussions with

Canadian authorities toward the establishment of an international park with Canada." Finally, he

hoped that the NPS would "prepare recommendations for Federal participation in the restoration

and preservation of the historic community of Skagway." [23]

Perhaps in response to Rivers' request, the NPS decided to study the Skagway area in greater

detail. [24] That study, however, was delayed for over two years. In the meantime, legislative

interest grew in the area's gold rush history. In the U.S. Senate, Henry Jackson (D-WA) and

Gaylord Nelson (D-WI) introduced a bill in early 1967 which would have encouraged a

nationwide system of trails. The bill included a mandate that the Alaskan gold rush trails be

studied for inclusion into the system. Congress passed the bill, known as S. 827, and on October

2, 1968 President Lyndon Johnson signed into law the National Trails System Act (P.L. 90-

543). The officials asked to carry out the terms of the act specified that Chilkoot and White Pass

would be two of the seven trails studied in Alaska. Neither trail, however, received study

funding as a result of the bill's passage. [25]
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The State of Alaska, it should be noted, also began to plan for the area's use as a parkland. In

1966 Mike Leach of the Division of Lands wrote a Plan for the Development of the SkagwayDyea Natural, Historical, Recreational Complex. The plan identified areas of interest and

importance in the area, reported what had been accomplished thus far, served as a guideline for

future development, and served as a repository for additional information. It recommended,

among other things, that the state interpret the historical sites along the trail and that it establish

a visitor center in Dyea. It did not, however, recommend the establishment of a state park, due

to financial considerations. The state, as it turned out, ignored both of the report's

recommendations. The existence of the plan, however, signalled that the state recognized the

area's resources and was interested in protecting them. [26]

Skagway Tourism Growth

The NPS's increasing interest in the Skagway area coincided with a significant increase in local

tourism. Skagway residents were becoming aware of the importance of their history, and both

public and private entities began to take steps toward its preservation.

Throughout the postwar period, Alaska had experienced an increasing volume of tourists. In the

late 1940s, tourist facilities and tours had been minimal, but by the 1960s entrepreneurs had

developed a broadening network of hotels, gift shops, transportation facilities and related

amenities. [27]

There were relatively few ways, however, for tourists to visit Skagway. Many tourists drove the

Alaska Highway, then took the White Pass and Yukon Route railway south from Whitehorse or

Carcross. Others flew in from Juneau on an Alaska Airlines Twin Otter which served Skagway

on a daily basis, weather permitting. [28] But the only maritime vessels visiting Skagway in the

early 1960s were the Prince George, a small Canadian National cruise ship serving the Inside

Passage since 1948; the Princess Kathleen and the Princess Louise, Canadian Pacific ships

which began their tenure during the mid-1950s; the Glacier Queen and the Yukon Star, from

Chuck West's Alaska Cruise Line, which had served the port since 1957; and the M/V Chilkat, a

small ferry which connected Skagway with Haines and Juneau. [29]

The increasing demand for tourist travel to southeastern Alaska made it imperative that new

ships be found. In order to give residents and visitors an inexpensive way to travel between the

southeastern ports, Alaska voters in the November 1960 election approved the formation of the

Alaska Marine Highway System. The new system, which brought new ships and sent the

Chilkat elsewhere, was inaugurated in May 1963. New ships included the M/V Taku, the M/V

Matanuska, the M/V Malaspina, and several smaller ferries. The local newsletter editor

predicted that the ferries would bring forth a "second Klondike gold rush" which would "flood

the town" with visitors. [30]

Skagway also began to see additional cruise ships. In 1963 the Canadian Pacific replaced the

Princess Louise with the Princess Patricia. [31] Chuck West and his Alaska Cruise Line also

arranged for a third ship, the Polar Star, to serve the gold rush city. More cruise ships joined the

fray in 1969. [32]

In order to cater to the growing numbers of visitors, local residents began to open new tourist

facilities. In 1961, the Trail of '98 Museum, under the direction of Paul Sincic, opened in the old

Court House building. [33] Five years later, lifelong resident George Rapuzzi reopened the

long-dormant Soapy Smith Museum. The arch-villain's former saloon had been located on the

south side of Sixth Avenue since April 1916, but in May 1963 Paul Cyr, a White Pass

employee, moved it to its present location on Second Avenue. Rapuzzi, a recently-retired White

Pass mechanic, fixed up the old building, and featured on his tour many gadgets which Martin
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Itjen had first used when he conducted tours during the 1930s. [34] Chuck West of Westours,

needing a place to accommodate the extra travelers he brought, built the 30-unit Klondike Hotel

in early 1967. [35]

Another event which shed light on the area's history was the Alaska Purchase Centennial. The

centennial process, which began in 1963, made Alaskans throughout the state more aware of

their history. The most obvious event connected to the centennial was the construction of a large

fairgrounds in Fairbanks. Thousands of people visited the fair during the summer of 1967 and

enjoyed its atmosphere. Much of this was due to the presence of the S.S. Nenana, a Yukon

River steamboat, and to the numerous log cabins which had been moved to the site from

elsewhere in the Tanana River valley. But the centennial also had a lasting effect elsewhere in

the state because each town had its own centennial committee and designed its own projects.

Skagway was an active participant in the centennial celebration. The Skagway Centennial

Committee was formed in the summer of 1963 and remained until early 1968. During that

period, the committee considered several ideas for a major state-supported facility and finally

received funding for the Dahl Memorial Health Clinic, which was constructed in 1968 at the

corner of Eleventh Avenue and Broadway. [36]

Skagway's citizens also undertook many historical restoration projects during the centennial

period. The Skagway Women's Club, for example, provided a new foundation, a new roof, and

1898-style interior decor for the municipally-owned Arctic Brotherhood Hall; it then opened an

information and tourist center in the building. [37] Jack Kirmse, a jeweler and curio shop

owner, restored the old Moore cabin in 1964. Business owners, using their own funds, renovated

the old Canadian Pacific Railway ticket office (today's Trail Bench gift shop), the Golden North

Hotel, Dedman's Photo Shop, the Sweet Tooth Saloon, Skagway Hardware, the Red Onion

Saloon, and Moe's Frontier Bar. [38] The city renovated the old court house building, and

Engine 52, the WP&YR's first locomotive, was hauled into town from the Atlin area. [39]

Window displays were placed in several vacant buildings, and the Gold Rush Cemetery was

renovated and cleaned. City fathers, despite a "strong local movement" to lay cement sidewalks

along Broadway, decided to continue the use of the same type of wooden walks which had been

laid along Broadway since the gold rush period. [40] Some of these projects were funded, in

whole or in part, with centennial funds, but most had little or no relation to centennial activities.

It should be noted that tourism was not the only aspect of Skagway's economy that boomed

during the 1960s. The White Pass and Yukon Route boomed as well, largely because of mining

developments taking place in Yukon Territory. Large mines had been opening in the Yukon

since the late 1950s, but the mine which had the largest impact on Skagway's fortunes was the

Cyprus Anvil development at Faro. This silver-lead-zinc deposit, located 200 road miles north

of Whitehorse, was discovered in 1965. Large-scale processing commenced two years later. A

key part of the development agreement was the decision to send the ore out via Skagway. To do

so, trucks hauled the ore from the mine south to Whitehorse. The ore was then transferred to the

railroad, where specially-designed ore cars brought the freight to tidewater. [41]

The increased load requirements brought about by the Cyprus Anvil contract necessitated the

strengthening of many of the railroad's bridges and culverts. The huge "steel bridge," two miles

south of White Pass summit, was unable to be strengthened and had to be abandoned; it was

replaced by a tunnel and a smaller bridge. In Skagway, the railroad contractors filled in the

town's huge tidal flats and converted it into a flat, open industrial zone. Most of that area

remained empty, but at its southwestern end the railroad built an enormous ore terminal to store

the powdery concentrate. It also built the Anvil dock and a conveyor-belt assembly apparatus to

transfer the ore from terminal to ship. [42]
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The Chilkoot Pass Marker Dedication

A statewide project which began during the centennial period was a series of bronze historical

markers. The members of the local centennial committee recognized that Skagway was one of

Alaska's major historical centers, and at one point drew up a list of 16 local historical sites.

Costs, however, demanded that only 33 sites in the state be chosen. Skagway was favored with

four historical markers: at the Arctic Brotherhood Hall, at the Trail of '98 Museum (McCabe

College), in front of White Pass Engine No. 52, and near First Avenue and State Street, where

Soapy Smith and Frank Reid had their duel. In addition, it was decided that a marker be placed

near the summit of Chilkoot Pass. [43]

The idea of having a centennial-based ceremony commemorating the 1898 stampeders arose in

February 1964. George Benesch, a Juneau Boy Scout leader, expressed interest in having the

scouts take part in a dedication ceremony at the summit. Herb Adams, Executive Director of the

Alaska Purchase Centennial Commission, liked the proposal. [44] By 1966, officials began

working on the details of the event. Those who had been attending the international centennial

meetings hoped to make the commemoration a jointly-sponsored endeavor, and Governor Egan,

hoping to publicize the dedication, invited Secretary Stewart Udall once again to hike over the

Chilkoot. Sen. Ernest Gruening also invited Udall, and promised to accompany him. Those who

participated in the summit ceremony would dedicate a bronze centennial plaque which would be

installed shortly before the ceremony. [45]

In the plan which was finally settled upon, three Juneau masons were helicoptered to the top of

the pass on July 23; soon afterward, they erected the monument's base and installed the

historical plaque. Inscribed on it were the following words:

IN 1897 KLONDIKE STAMPEDERS BY

THE THOUSANDS FUNNELED OVER THIS

ANCIENT INDIAN TRAIL, ENDURING

INCREDIBLE DEPRIVATIONS AND

HARDSHIPS. THEIR TENACIOUS SPIRIT,

DOMINATING ALL OBSTACLES, CONTINUES

TO INSPIRE PIONEERS VENTURING NORTH

TO THE FUTURE. [46]

Following the installation of the monument, on August 3, a group of 53 Juneau-area Boy Scouts

and seven leaders left Juneau for the pass. [47] Plans called for them to be followed, a day later,

by an official party. (Secretary Udall, unfortunately, would not be among them; due to the press

of other business, he again had to opt out.) The two hiking parties would meet at the top of the

pass on August 6; they would be met by less hearty officials, who would be flown into Crater

Lake and hike the short distance to the top. The half-hour ceremony would take place beginning

at 12:30 p.m. on the 6th; after the ceremony, the officials would return to Crater Lake, after

which one and all would fly on to Whitehorse. The next day, officials would begin the weeklong Alaska-Yukon Flotilla to Dawson. [48]

The monument dedication ceremonies took place as scheduled on August 6. Overambitious

plans and poor weather, however, demanded major modifications in officials' plans. Although

the Boy Scouts headed up the Chilkoot as scheduled, there is no evidence that an official party

followed them. The weather, as it turned out, was poor on Chilkoot Pass on August 6, so

officials were flown instead to the Bennett, B.C. railroad station and the dedication was held

there. Just four officials--two from the Yukon, one from British Columbia, and one from

Alaska--attended the dedication in front of a crowd of a hundred or so tourists. The official

party was then flown to Whitehorse, and the river flotilla went on as scheduled. [49]
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Shortly after the plaque was dedicated, the Alaska Department of Natural Resources moved to

publish the first Chilkoot Trail hiker's guide. The 19-page guide, released in 1968, was written

by Mike Leach and Henry Hall of the Division of Lands. It included a history of the trail, an

explanation of the major historical resources found, a description of the two shelters and other

improvements, and notes about the area's weather and wildlife. Inasmuch as improvements on

the Canadian side of the trail began that year, the guide provided only a brief overview of (and

warning about) conditions on the Canadian side. [50]

The Yukon-Taiya Commission

As noted in Chapter 2, Alcoa Aluminum Company during the early 1950s made a serious

attempt to construct a hydroelectric project and aluminum manufacturing plant. Had it been

constructed, the aluminum plant would have been located in the Taiya River valley; it would

have resulted in a projected 4,000 jobs and a city of 20,000 people. That project died on the

drawing board because of the refusal of British Columbian and Dominion interests to contribute

the necessary water rights.

Alaskan development interests, however, retained an interest in the project, and refused to let it

die. In April 1960, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) informed Senator Ernest Gruening

that it intended to revoke the two land withdrawals which had been taken out in January 1948

and October 1952, respectively. (As noted in Chapter 2, Public Land Order 436, in 1948, had

withdrawn practically all of the Taiya River valley in one 46,592 acre parcel; PLO 868, in 1952,

had withdrawn approximately 7,400 acres in the area immediately surrounding Skagway.)

Shortly afterwards, the Federal Power Commission let it be known that they intended to revoke

the 5000-acre power site withdrawal which it had made in April 1948. [51] State officials, who

were also contacted, thought little of it at first; as DNR chief Phil Holdsworth noted in a

memorandum to Governor William A. Egan, "The[se] lands...are of no interest to the State of

Alaska in connection with State water conservation plans." [52]

Alaska officials, however, quickly had a change of heart. They had recently become more

conscious of the state's water resources because of increasing interest in the Rampart project

along the Yukon River. They apparently took the BLM letter as a wake-up call and, over the

next several months, attempted to interest several potential developers in the possibilities of

Taiya project water. In the summer of 1960, for instance, a consultant for the Aerojet-General

Corporation traveled to several Alaskan sites in search of a proposed missile fuel facility. The

governor's office responded to the trip by suggesting that he include the "Dyea Valley" in his

travels. [53] The consultant looked into the matter, only to conclude that "The tentative

judgment reached so far is that major hydroelectric development in Alaska does not appear to be

attractive [in comparison to thermal power costs] before 1980." [54]

Later that year, Gary Thurlow, an assistant attorney general for the state, became an enthusiastic

advocate for the project. He noted that the Taiya River site appeared to be "the best site in the

world for the cheap production of great quantities of electricity." Knowing the project's history,

Thurlow suggested the possibility of an atomic energy facility instead of an aluminum plant. He

suggested that the Atomic Energy Commission (AEC) request the construction of hydroelectric

facility at that location. Thurlow felt that the Canadians might look favorably upon the use of

project waters if devoted to a national defense installation. [55] Egan responded to Thurlow's

suggestions by urging the AEC to consider the idea. The AEC, however, responded that the

agency did "not have current plans for the development of new sites or of new facilities that

would require large amounts of electric power...." [56]

Senator Gruening, who in the early 1950s had actively promoted the Taiya project, also sought

someone to develop the area's water resources. He contacted an ALCOA official "wondering
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whether the [company] might again become a prospect to use energy in Alaska...." Several

months later, he wrote ALCOA again. "I would like some counsel," he noted, "on whether the

Aluminum Company of America--or any other company in your estimation--might be

interested in obtaining energy from this project for use for aluminum reduction in the Skagway

area." The company's response was not encouraging. Gruening, therefore, had to tell Skagway

mayor Cy Coyne that ALCOA

would not be interested now or in the future in a development such as that which so

nearly came to pass ten years ago. It is in the poorest possible political

location...literally astride an international boundary and subject to basic controls by

the federal governments of the United States and Canada, as well as the State of

Alaska and the Province of British Columbia. [57]

Having exhausted those possibilities, state and federal officials moved to revoke the various

land and water withdrawals. On March 6, 1961, the Federal Power Commission announced its

intention to vacate the April 1948 power site withdrawal. [58] By this time, state officials had

indicated that they would select Taiya Valley lands for themselves if the Federal land

withdrawals were revoked. The Skagway Chamber of Commerce, in a letter to Senator

Gruening, expressed concern that the power site revocation would jeopardize the state's ability

to select Taiya Valley lands. [59] Gruening, however, reassured the body that state selection of

Taiya Valley lands would not injure their power value. [60]

Based on that assurance, Secretary of the Interior Stewart Udall, on March 30, signed Public

Land Order 2317, which revoked both the 1948 and the 1952 land withdrawals. Three weeks

later, Assistant Secretary of the Interior John A. Carver, Jr. signed Public Land Order 2350,

which revoked the April 1948 water withdrawal subject to state selection. [61] PLO 2350

contained language which gave the State of Alaska until July 24 to select the lands in question

before they reverted to unrestricted Federal ownership. [62] Given that deadline, the state

applied for lands in Dyea, the Taiya Valley and vicinity on June 23. The state selected those

lands, at least in part, for their recreational value; state work crews that summer had begun

clearing the Chilkoot Trail (see above). But the state was also interested in the area's water

development possibilities, and officials had no intention of precluding the construction of a

future Taiya project should political conditions change. [63]

Interest in Taiya development lapsed for the next several years, and Alaskans hoping to develop

the state's hydroelectric resources focused their attention on Rampart Dam, on the Yukon River.

But in early 1964, the Rampart Project ran into a temporary roadblock. Morgan Reed, a

Skagway resident who served in the state's House of Representatives, responded to the situation

by introducing a legislative resolution (H.R. 10) on March 6 which asked that the Taiya project

be revived if Rampart efforts were quashed. Reed and others recognized that the Yukon-Taiya

project was second only to the Rampart project in the total electrical capacity which could be

generated from northern waters; therefore, it was only logical that if the Rampart could not be

built, Yukon-Taiya should. Reed was less than successful with his resolution. It passed the

Resources Committee, but then got bogged down in the Rules Committee and went no further.

[64]

That September, the Governor of Alaska, the Premier of British Columbia, and the Yukon

Commissioner conferred in Whitehorse on a variety of regional issues. Ray Williston, the

powerful British Columbia Minister of Lands, Forests, and Water Resources, spoke at the

meeting and sounded an optimistic note when he stated that "There is no doubt that the most

attractive scheme of development for [Yukon basin water] resources would be one based on the

Nechako-Kitimat model with a tunnel directly to tide-water near Skagway." He recommended

that a joint effort be made toward early project development. The three leaders, therefore,

resolved to set up a power development commission to look into Taiya's power potential. [65]
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A joint power committee was quickly organized. It was composed of two men: Phil Holdsworth,

Alaska Commissioner of Natural Resources, and A. F. Padgett, British Columbia's Deputy

Minister of Water Resources (and Williston's assistant). The men met twice during the next two

years and held extensive discussions about the proposed project. [66]

On January 27, 1967, Elton Engstrom, Jr. of Juneau, who represented Skagway in the Alaska

State Senate, introduced a bill which called for the creation of the Yukon-Taiya Commission.

The bill, SB 32, called for a three-member commission that would

make a preliminary determination as to the feasibility of a diversion dam at Miles

Canyon on the Yukon River above Whitehorse, with the water of the upper Yukon

being diverted from Lindeman Lake under Chilkoot Pass to the Taiya River. If the

Yukon-Taiya diversion project is feasible, the commission shall take action

necessary to initiate a more detailed combined Canadian-American feasibility of

this project. The commission shall make every effort to instigate concurrent

international negotiations concerning the development of this project.

Engstrom's bill experienced virtually no opposition. It passed the Senate on March 7 and the

House on April 6, both by unanimous votes, and was signed into law by Governor Walter Hickel

on April 19. [67]

Engstrom introduced two other Yukon-Taiya bills during the 1967 session. One, known as

Senate Joint Resolution 1, "resolved that a combined Canadian-American feasibility study be

initiated, resulting in the aggressive promotion of this project." The non-binding resolution

passed the Senate on February 10 and the House on March 28, both by unanimous votes, and

was signed by Governor Hickel on March 31. As a result, copies of the resolution were dutifully

sent out to the Yukon Commissioner, the Premier of British Columbia, and the Canadian Prime

Minister. [68] But a companion bill to finance the commission did not fare so well. SB 33,

which called for a $25,000 appropriation, never got out of committee.

The following year, two major actions took place regarding the Yukon-Taiya Commission.

First, the commission gained its first funding. In addition, the legislature passed a bill, SB 356,

that raised the number of commission members from three to five, and stated that its duties

would be simplified. (Its new purpose was to "seek the initiation of a joint United States-Canada

study of the Yukon-Taiya hydroelectric project and related resources development.") Senator

Engstrom introduced SB 356 in February 1968. It was approved by the Senate on March 6, by

the House on April 5, and by Governor Hickel on April 23. [69] The commission was finally

ready to begin its work.

Canadians Begin Managing the Chilkoot Trail

During the same period that the Americans were making plans on how to manage lands on their

side of the border, Canadians were making plans as well. The Canadians' interest in the area

surrounding the Chilkoot and White passes grew in much the same way as it had on the U.S.

side of the border. Corrections personnel, who hoped to clear out a recreational pathway over

Chilkoot Pass, were the first to become involved; after that, park planners joined the fray and

began to consider protecting the area because of its historical qualities.

Prior to the 1960s, few Canadians or Americans expressed much concern about the Chilkoot

Trail. When work crews began brushing out the south end of the trail in 1961, Alaskan officials

informed provincial officials in British Columbia of their actions and tried to stir up interest

among them. [70] No response came from B.C. officials, but two years later, Canadian Federal

officials began showing an interest when James R. Lotz, a research officer with Canada's
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Department of Northern Affairs and National Resources, asked Michael Leach about trail

conditions. Lotz hiked over the trail that August and penned a short report on trail conditions.

He then discussed the trail with Yukon Commissioner Gordon R. Cameron, who was interested

in the idea of rehabilitating the trail. [71] (The northern half of the trail is situated in British

Columbia. B.C. officials, however, had little interest in the area, because traffic in the SkagwayWhitehorse corridor had virtually no economic impact on the province. It fell to Yukon

Territory officials, therefore, to work with the Americans on this and similar area projects.)

Cameron's interest in the Chilkoot, however, did not lead to a trail restoration project. Alaskan

officials, who encountered their Canadian counterparts at the annual meeting of the Alaska-BCYukon Centennial Committee, tried to encourage such a project. James Lotz, from Canada's

Department of Northern Affairs and National Resources, hiked the Chilkoot a second time and

issued an updated trail guide, and other Canadian officials investigated the possibility of

obtaining funds from the Historic Sites Branch. By 1966, however, those officials had told them

that they were restricted to expending funds on designated park areas only. Therefore, it was

doubtful that they could do anything on their section of the trail since it was not a park. [72]

Yukon officials, undeterred, embarked upon a new course of action. In early 1967, the Yukon

Corrections Department was planning to open a new medium security institution as well as a

new minimum security camp. Once the department established those operations, it hoped to be

able to undertake responsibility for clearing and maintaining the Chilkoot. Upper-echelon

British Columbia officials expressed no objections to the idea, and on May 8, the territory's first

Corrections Director, William R. Morrow, predicted that trail work would begin shortly. But

Morrow's plan bogged down because the anticipated institutions did not open as soon as he had

hoped. In addition, Yukon officials had to obtain permission from British Columbia's Forestry

Services branch as well as the province's Attorney General. Plans to clear the trail were

postponed indefinitely. [73]

That summer, however, momentum tipped in the opposite direction. At Morrow's behest, Dick

North and other members of the Yukon press corps spoke out against the delays and about the

lack of trail improvements, and they further argued that a completed trail would generate

tourism income. Readers were urged to write Kenneth Kiernan, the British Columbia Minister

of Parks and Recreation, and protest the lack of a trail crew. [74] A month after those editorials

were printed, a 61-year old Juneau woman, Verona Bowles, got lost on the trailless Canadian

side; she was stranded for three days before being rescued--in good condition but hungry--by a

WP&YR railroad crew. After that well-publicized incident, the Yukon news media issued a

renewed call for trail work. In response, Morrow sent out a small crew from the Wolf Creek

Bush Camp to mark out a likely path for recreational trail. The crew flew in to the trail corridor

by helicopter over the Labour Day weekend. It discovered that "the trail was almost non-existent

so an easy walking route was picked and blazed with yellow paint at about 200 foot intervals."

[75]

Morrow kept pressing on the issue, and by the following March he was hopeful once again. In a

letter to Michael Leach, he remarked that

You have probably thought that the renovation of the Canadian section of the

Chilkoot Trail was a lost cause, however ... I am very optimistic, in that we will be

in a position to commence a program this summer. [76]

Four months later, the trail renovation was a reality at last. Victor L. Ogison, who became

Corrections Director after Morrow's death, finally got the project going. He sent a crew of three

staff members--R. Gary McLaughlin, John B. Maloney, and Harry Deneron--and six inmates

from the Yukon Correctional Institute to commence trail work. The crew left Whitehorse on

July 18; the same day, they had established a base camp at the former site of Lindeman City.
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The summer's primary task was the construction of the Upper Cabin, built between July 30 to

August 15. [77] In addition, the inmates marked a trail from Lindeman to the railroad tracks at

Mile 37.4, four miles south of Bennett. They also marked another trail south to the south end of

Long Lake, built a bridge over Moose Creek, and revamped the old Lindeman City graveyard.

The crew returned to Whitehorse in early September. [78]

Ogison was so encouraged by the results of the first year's work that he laid out a long-term

work plan for the trail. Noting that "the 17 miles on the U.S. side of the border took four years

to complete," he postulated that there was "enough work out there to keep inmates busy three or

four years." He made plans to dispatch eight inmates to the trail in 1969. [79]

On June 2, however, just six inmates along with two staff members returned to their previous

camp. Tasks that year included the clearing of the entire Canadian portion of the trail;

construction of a bridge just south of Deep Lake, a bridge at Bare Loon Lake, and three other

bridges; and the erection of a "Chilkoot Trail" sign at mile 37.4. Work also began on the

construction of the Lower Cabin at Lindeman Lake. The crew returned to Whitehorse on

September 2. [80]

Groups of inmates returned to the trail each year until 1973. In 1970 they completed Lower

Cabin; the following year, crews moved into it. (The new site was preferred because it provided

inmates better protection from the wind, fresh water from nearby Moose Creek, and an

improved boat launching area.) Beginning in 1971, crews were primarily engaged in the

maintenance of the existing trail. [81]

The inmates' work, which was intended to popularize the Chilkoot as a recreational pathway,

was an immediate success. In 1968, the Canadians' first year on the trail, fewer than one

hundred hikers signed the logbook which the YCI crew had installed at Lindeman Lake. But in

1969, more than 160 hikers signed the register; in 1970, "close to 500" hiked over the trail; in

1971, between 600 and 700 made the hike, and in 1972, an estimated 800 to 1,000 hikers

crossed over Chilkoot Pass. [82] Almost all of those that crossed the trail in those early days

were independent travellers who made the entire trip on foot. Some, however, rode on

horseback from Dyea to Sheep Camp. Wes Nelson, a Dyea resident, conducted horseback trips

up the Chilkoot from 1966 through 1973. Others took the trip under the guidance of local

resident Robert O. "Skip" Burns, whose Klondike Safaris began operating in 1970 and

continued until after the creation of the park. [83]

During the late 1960s, when the Yukon territorial officials were taking steps to refurbish the

Chilkoot Trail for recreational purposes, Canadian federal officials began to consider

designating certain sites in the area because of their historical value.

Canadian involvement in preserving Klondike-era gold rush sites had begun in 1959 when the

White Pass and Yukon Route donated to the federal government four sternwheelers: the S.S.

Keno, S.S. Klondike, S.S. Casca, and the S.S. Whitehorse. A year later, in August 1960, the

National Historic Sites Branch (NHSB) floated the S.S. Keno from Whitehorse down to

Dawson; it was the only one of the four which fit under the Carmacks bridge. In 1961, the

Branch repaired the old riverboat, and it was used the following year as a casino during the

much-ballyhooed Dawson City Gold Rush Festival. During this early period, the NHSB also

showed an interest in the old Palace Grand Theatre. The deteriorated building was declared a

National Historic Site in 1959, and the Branch acquired it in 1961; soon afterward, however, it

was demolished because of it was deemed unsuitable as a Dawson Festival venue. (The NHSB

erected a replica in time for the festivities, which took place during the summer of 1962.) [84]

Events also took place in Whitehorse. In 1966, as a result of recommendations of the Historic

Sites and Monuments Board of Canada, the S.S. Klondike was moved across town to the

Whitehorse waterfront. The HSMBC designated both the Keno and the Klondike as National
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Historic Sites. [85]

In 1967, the HSMBC made an additional recommendation regarding the Chilkoot Trail. It asked

That the Department [of Indian Affairs and Northern Development] explore the

possibility of establishing an interpretive centre at Bennett to tell the story of

transportation to the Yukon, including trails and the building of boats and barges,

using the shell of the Presbyterian Church. [86]

That same year, the National Historic Sites Branch began making many of the same plans as its

American counterparts had earlier in the decade when, on a nationwide basis, it established a

Historic Sites Planning Committee. It began to study and inventory sites soon afterward, and in

the summer of 1968 the committee visited Whitehorse, Dawson, and the Klondike gold fields.

In conjunction with that effort, the Branch established a staff presence. In the fall of 1967 a fulltime custodian began work in Dawson; the following March, R. Bruce Harvey moved from

Winnipeg to Whitehorse and became the first Superintendent of Historic Sites for the Yukon.

[87]

By January 1968, the head of the National Historic Sites Service (NHSS), Peter Bennett,

contacted American officials and indicated an interest in being informed of their park planning

efforts. [88] The Canadians, by that time, had been working on plans for historic sites in

Whitehorse, Dawson, and the Klondike creeks for some time. They had little interest in the

Chilkoot; their primary goal in that sphere, as noted above, was the preservation of the Bennett

church and the creation of an interpretive facility within it. Beyond that, Mr. Bennett indicated

that the NHSS was "studying this chapter of Canadian history with the object of determining

how best to preserve the relics and interpret the story of those exciting days." [89]

In May 1968, as noted below, various NPS planners travelled to Whitehorse and met with

Yukon Commissioner James Smith. (Neither Bennett nor Harvey were able to join them.)

Smith, who was familiar with both Federal and Territorial programs, told the team that the

American study would dovetail neatly into their plans. [90] Thereafter, Canadian historical

officials awaited the outcome of the Skagway Alternatives Study so that more concrete action

could take place regarding an international park proposal.

The Skagway Alternatives Study

During the summer of 1967, the long delay in beginning an NPS study of Skagway and vicinity

finally came to an end. Robert Luntey, an NPS official from San Francisco, headed a small

team which made a quick reconnaissance of Skagway and took the White Pass Railroad to

Whitehorse. [91] Soon afterwards, on October 10, NPS representatives met in Juneau with

Governor Hickel in a meeting which had been arranged by Joseph Fitzgerald, the chairman of

Federal Field Committee for Development Planning in Alaska. [92] The two NPS officials,

Director George Hartzog and Assistant Director Ted Swem, broached the idea of a national park

for the Skagway area. Parks were also proposed for the Arrigetch Peaks area (Gates of the

Arctic), Lake Clark Pass, the Wood-Tikchik Lakes area, all of which had been the subject of

NPS reconnaissance studies. The governor's support was critical at this juncture because the

NPS, at the time, lacked a broad national basis of support for Alaska parks. At that meeting,

Hickel expressed a definite interest in the Skagway park proposal. He agreed to speak to local

officials about the project, and he assigned Dr. Carl McMurray (one of his staff assistants) as a

contact person. The governor, however, gave no such support for the other three projects,

perhaps because they involved relatively large amounts of acreage. [93]

The Skagway Alternatives Study, which was proposed after that meeting, was intended to
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examine alternative ways of ensuring the preservation of the historic scene; it was to do so by

"exploring ways and means of achieving this through the cooperative efforts of private owners,

and various levels of government." The study was to be organized by Merrill J. Mattes of the

agency's San Francisco Service Center. He was to be assisted by Reed Jarvis, a regional-office

historian; Robert E. Howe, Superintendent of Glacier Bay and Sitka national monuments; and

Bailey O. Breedlove, the landscape architect who anchored the Alaska Field Office in

Anchorage. Howe was asked to serve as "keyman" or local contact person. [94]

The study finally began in March 1968. The NPS, well aware that any proposed park would be a

multi-agency affair, asked the governor's office to seek the advice of Skagway officials. State

Park representatives, as well as a state legislator, were also invited to assist in study preparation.

NPS officials also contacted their counterparts in Canada. Peter Bennett, who served as the

Assistant Director in charge of historic sites in the National and Historic Parks Branch of the

Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, immediately showed a keen interest

in the project. [95]

Field work for the study was conducted in late April and early May. Study organizer Merrill

Mattes, along with Howe, Breedlove, and Jarvis, spent a week in and around Skagway; as part

of the trip, they spoke to civic and railroad officials and flew over the Chilkoot and White Pass

trails. The team then took the train to Whitehorse, where they and DNR official Mike Leach met

with James Smith, the Commissioner of Yukon Territory. [96]

Mattes spent much of the summer traveling, but by September he was in the midst of efforts to

complete a preliminary study on NPS management alternatives in the Skagway area. He

entrusted historian Reed Jarvis with writing the report; Jarvis, however, was sidetracked for

months with other duties. [97] It might well have been delayed even more, but NPS staff

became so concerned about the fate of the White Pass railroad depot (see section below) that

they rushed the study through to completion. An advance copy of the alternatives study was sent

off for Washington review on March 19, 1969. [98]

The Skagway Alternatives Study, designated as a "report to explore alternatives for Federal

participation in a program to save historic Skagway, Alaska, from extinction," offered three

visions of National Park Service involvement in the area. Alternative One retained the status

quo, and called for no direct NPS involvement in the area.

Alternative Two called for the designation of Skagway as a National Historic Site. The NPS

would establish a superintendent in Skagway; it would acquire, however, "only those structures

needed for an orientation, information, and interpretation complex." Planners recommended the

acquisition of the three-building Mascot Block, the "Salvation Army Building" (now called the

Boas Tailor and Furrier Building), the two-building White Pass and Yukon Railway passenger

station, and the old Customs House adjacent to the station. [99] Both the Chilkoot and White

passes would be managed by the state. The proposed NHS would encompass a total of 2.4 acres.

Alternative Three, which called for the largest degree of NPS involvement, gave the agency

management control over the 17-mile Chilkoot Trail and the 12-mile White Pass Trail. This

plan, though more comprehensive than the others, called for little more involvement in Skagway

than Alternative Two had outlined; regarding the two trails, it envisioned NPS management over

just a 208-foot wide corridor. It also called for the preservation of 160 acres in Dyea, which

included the two Dyea cemeteries, and 40 acres in the White Pass City area. The three-unit

proposal, which planners termed "admittedly unusual," encompassed just 977 acres. It called for

three permanent and two seasonal staff. The Skagway and White Pass Trail areas were

tentatively called "Skagway National Historical Park;" the Chilkoot Trail corridor would

become a segment of the "Klondike Gold Rush International Trail," which would stretch from

Dyea to Dawson. [100]
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The plan was significant for several pioneering concepts. Included, for example, was the first

compilation of data on the historical buildings in the downtown area. Most of the historic

business district was included; off-Broadway buildings included the Alaska Cable Office (at

First and Main), City Hall, the Pullen House, and Captain Moore's Log Cabin. The report

proposed the first historical district--an essentially rectangular area which included all lots

within 100 feet of Broadway--and proposed an ordinance and advisory board to regulate the

appearance of the structures contained within it. The NPS was quick to point out that it was not

the first agency to delineate a historic district in Skagway (the Alaska State Housing Authority

had described a "Historical Commercial" area five years earlier when it prepared a

comprehensive plan for the city), but it was the first to suggest a protective status for the gold

rush-era buildings. [101]

The report also proposed several ideas that would later prove controversial. For instance,

Alternative Three proposed the elimination of parking along Broadway and the laying of

railroad tracks down the center of the street. Planners also called for the two trainsets--Engine

52 and an 80-series engine, each with period cars--to become static displays along Broadway.

[102]

The NPS planning team recommended that Alternative Three be adopted. The principal

difficulty of the first alternative, they noted, was that "barring a miracle in the form of a private

Rockefeller-type philanthropist, it cannot succeed. The resources of Skagway and Alaska alone

can only lead to a pessimistic conclusion about the fate of historic Skagway." The agency was

more hopeful about the second alternative, primarily because it called for a historic zoning

ordinance, the creation of a Historic Advisory Board, and the establishment of tax benefits for

landowners who were willing to participate in an historic preservation program. But the final

alternative was considered

most desirable in terms of interpretation, preservation, and management.... [It]

incorporates the best feature of Alternative Two--joint participation in Skagway--

and suggests a pathway to preservation and interpretation outside of the city.... The

strength of the alternative lies in its enlistment of more people outside the Service,

yet actually requires a relatively small amount of land in direct National Park

Service control. [103]

Others in the agency concurred with the recommendations of the report writers. Northwest

District Director John Rutter gave an informal "unqualified endorsement" of Alternative Three

on March 25. The Office of Archeology and Historic Preservation agreed as well. The agency's

Washington planning office noted that

this alternative, we think, is the only one which would permit an adequate job to be

done in communicating the historic theme and its significance. If we are to become

involved at Skagway at all, we should avoid limiting ourselves to the town itself,

lest we end up communicating only the tinseled and somewhat shopworn dancehall

aspect of the history of the Alaskan gold rush. The trails up to the gold fields are at

least equal to the town in importance to the story. [104]

William Bowen, the Director of the Western Regional Office, also preferred the third

alternative. He was skeptical, however, that the NPS could do much to preserve Skagway's

historical resources. Citing the report's contention that the preservation of Skagway through

zoning and voluntary action could not succeed barring a Rockefeller-style "miracle," Bowen

noted that

We do not see that you have made it clear how Service participation under

Alternatives Two and Three would remedy this basic situation. No large Federal
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appropriations for preservation are recommended, and no other source of funds is

suggested except a tax benefit to private owners for historic features of private

development.... It is not made clear in your report exactly what State or Federal

funds would be forthcoming and why they would not be available without National

Park Service participation.

Bowen also expressed concern about the report's emphasis on a cooperative planning effort.

Noting the agency's failures on the subject at Nez Perce National Historical Park, he cautioned,

"Remember that enforcing a zoning ordinance depends upon the so-called 'police power' of the

community and that enforcement can be very lax if an unsympathetic city administration should

come into power at a future date." [105] Bowen's concerns were valid in any situation where the

agency had less than total control; as noted in later chapters, they have resulted in frustrations

experienced by each of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park's superintendents.

By May 1969, the NPS had publicly announced its decision to back Alternative Three. In a

brief released that month, which in retrospect appears both biased and hyperbolic, the agency

recommended that the Congress establish the Skagway National Historical Park,

preferably placing under Federal ownership approximately 977 acres of land....

While some kind of miracle has spared a substantial number of buildings to date,

their numbers are dwindling rapidly from neglect, abandonment, or deliberate acts

of destruction.

Given the completion and approval of the Alternatives Study, NPS officials looked forward to

coordinating their efforts with Canadian officials and to the eventual preparation of a master

plan for the proposed park areas. [106]

Preserving the White Pass Depot

A major issue which confronted Merrill Mattes and the other NPS park planners was the fate of

Skagway's turn-of-the-century White Pass and Yukon Route railroad depot. Soon after the

planning team began its investigation of the area's historical resources, it met with WP&YR

officials. Roy Minter, assistant to the WP&YR president and a Vancouver resident, happened to

be in Skagway. He informed the team that a few months earlier, the company had decided to

erect a new depot. Once it was completed, the company planned to demolish the existing depot.

Mattes, clearly alarmed at the prospect of the town losing one of its most significant buildings,

quickly alerted his superiors in San Francisco. [107]

Minter did his best to articulate the railroad's position on the subject. He noted that "during the

last five years the old depot has been the subject of many discussions within our Company." He

was well aware that the depot was "full of history and nostalgia." The building, however, was

quickly falling victim to the elements; it had crooked beams, a heaved floor, a poor heating

system, and a virtually nonexistent foundation. A new depot was clearly needed. The land

where the old depot stood, moreover, was needed as a parking and service area for the railroad's

increasing auto-carriage traffic. NPS officials were told that the depot would not be torn down

for another year; the decision to raze it, however, had already been made. [108]

NPS officials did what they could to publicize the impending demolition. They realized,

however, that they were still in the early stages of studying the Skagway area; a park, should it

be authorized, was many years in the future. The best they could do, therefore, was to pass their

concern on to the two state officials that managed tourism and historical sites, respectively. They

hoped that the two state officials would request Governor Hickel to personally intervene in the

affair and halt demolition long enough to allow the planning effort to reach its logical
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conclusion. [109]

The NPS's pleas for help began to have some effect. Martin Schafer, the Director of the state's

Department of Economic Development, was fully cognizant of the value of the depot in

Skagway as a tourist destination. He expressed surprise at the recent turn of events and wrote

Minter about it. Secretary of State Keith Miller called him as well. Minter was cordial and

cooperative to both, and even offered the building, without charge, "to anyone who has the

financial means to move the depot to a new location and preserve it as a historical building." If

no such arrangement could be made, the depot was to be demolished. The company scheduled a

demolition date of late May 1969. Meanwhile, in late November 1968, construction work began

on the new depot. [110]

Word of the depot's impending demise spread throughout the NPS's Washington, D.C. and San

Francisco offices. Most officials could do little but wring their hands over the matter; Mattes,

however, vowed to fight the matter as best he could. He soon learned that Governor Hickel was

reluctant to intercede prior to the completion of the alternatives study. [111] Mattes also knew

that because Skagway was a company town to a large extent, few there were in a position to

influence the railroad's actions. Mattes could only hope that "someone with 'official clout' might

yet convince the WP&Y RR people that they should at least defer demolition long enough to

enable the NPS, the State, and the city of Skagway to explore the possibilities of salvation." He

also knew that the depot was located within the Skagway and White Pass National Historic

Landmark, and that the demolition of the depot, although legally permissible, would jeopardize

the quality of that NHL. Therefore, he hoped that Ernest Allen Connally, chief of the NPS's

Office of Archeology and Historic Preservation, would write to Frank H. Brown, WP&YR's

president. A letter from Connally, forcefully reminding Brown of the depot's historical

importance, might cause Brown to appeal to his "better instincts" and preserve the building.

Better yet, he hoped that either NPS Director George Hartzog or Interior Secretary Hickel might

be able to convince President Brown to delay the impending demolition. [112]

On April 7, Hartzog wrote Brown and asked him to reconsider the WP&YR's decision, noting

that in the professional judgement of NPS planners "the Yukon and White Pass station is the

most significant surviving structure in Alaska illustrating and commemorating the Klondike

gold rush period." He asked for a meeting between NPS and WP&YR officials "to discuss ways

of preserving this important historic structure." [113] Meanwhile, Howard Pollock, Alaska's

Congressional representative, was notified of the situation.

Hartzog's original letter to Brown somehow got lost in the mail, but Rep. Pollock's office

intervened and provided him a copy. Roy Minter of the WP&YR, who replied to Hartzog,

painstakingly explained the situation. The railroad, he noted, had no malicious intent in the

matter and had even publicized the depot situation in area newspapers. He restated, however,

that little could be done to save the depot. He wrote that

The old building is done. It is with regret that we announce its passing. Many

people have written to us urging reconsideration. Unfortunately, we have received

no specific or practical suggestion as to how its removal and preservation are to be

engineered and financed.

He reiterated that it would be a highly expensive proposition to move the building (something

that even Mattes had admitted was "a rather sorry idea"), and remained firm that the building

had to go. He delayed the scheduled demolition date, however, until the end of July, and as per

Hartzog's suggestion, agreed to meet with NPS officials. [114]

Recognizing the immediacy of the situation, the NPS dispatched two architects, Richard C.

Mehring and A. Lewis Koue, to Skagway to determine the feasibility of moving the depot and
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the adjacent customs building. Mehring noted that "all buildings are structurally sound" and that

each, theoretically, could be moved. Each building, however, presented special problems, of

which the vault in the depot's administration building was perhaps the most egregious. In Koue's

opinion, "Disuse and neglect of some areas has resulted in obsolescence and disrepair of some

elements, resulting in a dilapidated appearance; but the authenticity and integrity of the

buildings are very well preserved." The architects made a historical analysis and completed

measured drawings of the depot. [115]

Koue noted that if the depot and customs buildings could not be preserved in situ, they should

be moved over to the north side of Second Avenue, in the vacant lots behind the various

Broadway businesses. But Robert Luntey, a San Francisco-based NPS planner, offered an

alternative plan. He recommended that the NPS purchase the vacant land between Second and

Third avenues for use as a WP&YR parking lot. Such an action would necessitate the removal

of the customs building--perhaps to the west side of Broadway--but would keep the depot

intact. If the WP&YR were unwilling to do so, consideration would then be given to moving

both the depot and customs building to the south side of the railroad tracks and west of

Broadway. [116]

The NPS was also quick to arrange a meeting with WP&YR executives. That meeting took

place in Vancouver on June 23-24 and was attended by Merrill Mattes, John Rutter, Roy Minter,

and other railroad officials. The discussion was long and cordial, but the railroad was unyielding

in its position that both the depot and the U.S. Customs office had to be either demolished or

moved. The NPS, however, gained several concessions. First, at Mattes's insistence, it saved the

customs building, at least for the time being. (Company employees were about to proceed with

demolition when Minter sent a telegram ordering them not to do so.) Second, WP&YR officials

agreed to delay depot demolition until July 1970, but only if a workable way could be found to

remove the building by that date. (The new depot, which began to be constructed in November

1968, would be completed a year later, thus exacerbating the need for adjacent space.) Finally,

White Pass officials agreed to a less tangible though critical concession. They were fully aware

that they had been suffering poor public relations because of their intransigence on the depot

issue. Therefore, NPS officials perceived that railroad officials would fully cooperate if a depot

relocation effort were attempted. [117]

Given a new window of opportunity, NPS officials did what they could to save the various

buildings. On September 12, Merrill Mattes and Bailey Breedlove visited Skagway to consider

alternatives for their preservation. While there, they were glad to learn that the WP&YR was

planning to move the customs building across Second Avenue and sell it to the Brotherhood of

Locomotive Firemen and Enginemen. [118] But no other opportunities came forth.

Lacking other possibilities, the NPS looked into the possibility that a new organization, the

National Park Foundation, might be able to help preserve the old depot. The NPF had been

established by Congress on December 18, 1967; it had held its first meeting on July 31, 1968.

The tax-exempt, non-profit, charitable Foundation was created, in part,

to accept, receive, solicit, hold, administer, and use any gifts, devises, or

bequests...of real or personal property...Provided, that the Foundation may not

accept any such gift, devise, or bequest which entails any expenditure other than

from the resources of the Foundation." [119]

The regional offices knew little about the NPF before October 1968, and not until June 1969

was it considered as a possible solution to the dilemma over the depot. At that time, it was one

of several organizations to be contacted "to determine if any party or parties exist who can

provide needed funds and continuing responsibility for the structures pending consideration of a

park proposal by Congress." [120] But none of those other possibilities were successful, and by
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October 1969, Mattes recognized that "the only hope for these buildings is to secure the interest

of the National Park Foundation in spending the necessary funds," estimated to be $75,000 to

$100,000. Funding the building relocation would require a "definite show of interest" by

Director Hartzog. [121]

In order to convince both Director Hartzog and the National Park Foundation of the project's

worthiness, NPS Western Region officials hurriedly produced a report entitled Project

Prospectus, Preservation of Historic Railroad Structures. The report noted that the Service still

hoped, if at all possible, to preserve the depot in situ. The Service had no illusions about the

intransigence of WP&YR officials, but still felt that

one more effort should be made to convince the officials that the buildings should

remain in their original location, since any alternative location would be inferior by

preservation standards. Accordingly, it is proposed [as historian Edwin Bearss had

suggested during an August 1969 visit] that we first confront the railroad with an

offer to buy the eight vacant lots in Block 35 exchanging this real estate for the two

lots which contain the old railroad structures.... This offer [which would cost the

NPF $35,000] should be made "cold turkey" to the railroad with no mention

whatever of other possible alternatives.

If the WP&YR proved adamant that the buildings had to be moved, the NPS would adopt Lewis

Koue's suggestion that they be relocated to the vacant lots on the north side of Second Avenue.

If that possibility proved unworkable, then the buildings could be moved to city land at the

southeast corner of Third Avenue and Spring Street. The two alternative plans each entailed

$45,000 in relocation costs; the cost of either plan totalled $80,000. [122]

The completed report was passed along to the Director in early November. Secretary of the

Interior Walter Hickel, the former Alaska Governor, also backed the plan. The proposal thus had

strong support when it was presented to the National Park Foundation board at their December 4

meeting; based on that support, the Foundation board approved the NPS proposal. [123] The

Foundation then proceeded to negotiate directly with White Pass. On March 6, 1970, several

NPF officials met with railroad officials Roy Minter and John S. Butterfield. The NPF

expressed its desire to acquire the depot, and asked once again that the company refrain from

any actions that would result in its demolition. Moving the building was not discussed; instead,

the NPF encouraged the railroad to take advantage of the tax benefits to be gained from

donating the structure to the Foundation. [124]

By early 1971, White Pass finally told the NPS that it would be willing to consider leaving the

depot complex in situ and transfer it to the National Park Service. Soon afterward, the company

agreed to donate the complex to the National Park Foundation, recognizing that by doing so

they could obtain tax credits from the donation. On May 19, the NPF at long last acquired the

land and buildings via a quit claim deed, and soon afterward, it assumed maintenance of the

property. [125]

More than a year later, on May 27, 1972, the White Pass and Yukon Route officially donated

the depot to the National Park Foundation at a ceremony in Skagway. White Pass was

represented by Marvin P. Taylor, the company's vice president in charge of operations, while

Assistant Secretary of the Interior Richard S. Bodman represented the National Park Foundation.

(The Secretary of the Interior is the ex officio chairman of the NPF board.) Both men made

brief remarks. Additional speakers that day included Roy Minter, the special assistant to White

Pass president Albert P. Friesen, and John Bryant, an assistant secretary of the NPF. [126]
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(top) The Sheep Camp Shelter was constructed by Alaska Youth and Adult Authority honor camp inmates in

1963. It served as a camping spot and day use area until 1993, when NPS personnel completed the laying out of a

new campground, half a mile south of the shelter. (bottom) Footbridge typical of the Dyea end of the trail, 1968.

(Mark Bollinger photo, KLGO SC #1627 (top); Alaska DNR, "The Chilkoot Trail, Trail of '98," 5)
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(top) The Alaska Youth and Adult Authority built this cable crossing to transport goodsacross the Taiya River. In

September 1971, when this photo was taken, the tram was still standing, but it collapsed soon afterward. (bottom)

Mike Leach, of the Alaska Division of Lands, examines an old suitcase while standing in the ruins of a Canyon

City building during a 1967 trip. By the late 1970s, the building had collapsed. (Theodore R. Merrell photo, KLGO

PC #5466; Alaska DNR, "The Chilkoot Trail, Trail of '98," 1968, 9)

(top) Cyril A. (Cy) Coyne, shown here with his wife May, was instrumental in getting federal authorities

interested in preserving the Skagway area's historical resources. Coyne served as Skagway's mayor during the

1950s and 1960s; he was also a real estate agent, insurance agent, and newspaper editor. (bottom) The Alaska

Purchase Centennial Commission contracted to erect this plaque, just south of Chilkoot Pass, in August 1967. The

centennial plaque was one of 33 that were placed around the state that year; others in the Skagway area were

located at the Trail of '98 Museum, Arctic Brotherhood Hall, and WP&YR Engine 52. (North Wind, June 1976, 8
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(top); KLGO SC #1058 (bottom) )

(top) Rep. Ralph Rivers (D-AK) and Rep. Roy Taylor (D-NC) with two Chilkat dancers at Port Chilkoot
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(Haines), Alaska, August 1, 1965. Rivers recognized the need for federal involvement; Taylor, the head of the

House Interior Committee, held a hearing on the Klondike park bill a decade later. (bottom) NPS officials (l-r)

Alfred Kuehl, Robert Luntey, Merrill Mattes (in front) and Bailey O. Breedlove met in Glacier Bay in 1967.

Mattes, a historian, headed a 1968 team that compiled Skagway, a Study of Alternatives, the first agency document

directed specifically at the Skagway area. (Ted Swem Collection (top); GLBA Photo #828 (bottom))

The NPS Advisory Board on a White Pass & Yukon Route observation car at the Bennett (B.C.) station on August

2, 1965. Group includes Rep. E. Y. Berry (R-SD), left on ground and Rep. Roy Taylor (D-NC) on right. On

platform of car, left to right, are Paul L. Phillips, Dr. Joe B. Frantz, Dr. Emil W. Haury, Frank Melvin, Anthony A.

Buford, Mrs. Buford, Dr. Wallace L. Stegner, Richard Witmer, and Frank P. Briggs. Of those standing on the car,

all were advisory board members except Melvin, who was an NPS employee; Witmer, who was on the House

Committee staff; and Mrs. Buford. (Ted Swem Collection)
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(top) WP&YR steamboats were the primary means of transport between Whitehorse and Dawson, for both tourists

and residents, prior to the early 1950s. During the 1960s, the Canadian government began to get interested in

preserving these and other Yukon historical resources. This photo shows the Aksala, the Casca, and the

Whitehorse on drydock at Whitehorse. The Aksala was later hauled away; the other two boats burned in a 1974

fire. (bottom) In 1968, inmates at the Yukon Correctional Institute constructed the so-called Upper Cabin at the

south end of the Lindeman City townsite. This photo, taken a year later, shows the cabin (left) and the tents of the

YCI workers (lower right). (Dedman's Photo Shop (top); Ted Swem Collection (bottom))
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(top) Broadway Street, Skagway, looking north from Third Avenue. The photo was taken in 1969, before

restoration efforts had commenced by either the private or public sectors. The Pack Train (left, with tower) was

restored with private funds in 1981; the Lynch and Kennedy store, adjacent to the Pack Train, was restored by the

NPS in 1991-93; Igloo Liquors and the Sourdough Inn were destroyed by fire in July 1979; and Keller's Curios is

still a privately-owned business. (bottom) During the Chilkoot Trail hike which took place over Labor Day

weekend 1969, Peter Bennett (National Historic Sites Survey, Canada), Ted Swem (NPS), Mike Leach (Alaska

Division of Lands), and Terry Brown (CBC Whitehorse) are shown where the Chilkoot Trail cut-off meets the

WP&YR at mile 37.4. Note the railroad tracks at bottom of photo. (Ted Swem Collection (both photos))
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Over Labor Day weekend 1969, seventeen Canadian and U.S. representatives hiked the Chilkoot Trail in order to

help organize interest in a future park. Members of the group (from left to right) include Ed Hanousek, Mayor of

Skagway; Peter Bennett, National Historic Sites Survey, Canada; Terry Brown, CBC Whitehorse; Don Cline, park

planner, Ottawa; Ruth Moulton, Anchorage; Bob Howe, NPS; Yvonne Esbensen, U.S. Interior Department; Vic

Ogison, Yukon Corrections; Ron Hodgkinson, Assistant Commissioner of the Yukon; Ted Swem, NPS; Ed Leon,

Skagway Chamber of Commerce; Gary McLaughlin, Yukon Corrections; Bruce Harvey, Yukon National Historic

Sites director, Whitehorse; and Robbie Harvey, Whitehorse. (Mike Leach photo, Alaska Division of Lands; Ted

Swem Collection)

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

PART I: THE MAKING OF THE PARK

Chapter 4:

Authorizing the Park

The International Park Proposal

As noted in Chapter 3, Alaska corrections personnel opened up the U.S. side of the trail in

1961-64, and by the winter of 1967-68, both state and NPS officials were aware that a park

proposal was in the works. Canadian officials, during this period, watched the ongoing activities

with an increasing degree of interest.

They had little knowledge of the Chilkoot, however; the only Chilkoot trips yet taken by

Canadian officials had been James Lotz's hikes in 1963 and 1965 and a 1967 reconnaissance by

Yukon Corrections officials.

In order to spur interest in the trail by officials from both sides of the border, Canada's National

Historic Sites Service (NHSS) chief Peter Bennett, in April 1968, proposed an international

Chilkoot hike. Such a hike would take place late that summer and would include representatives

from a wide variety of agencies that had an interest in the Chilkoot Trail. The purpose of such a

hike would be to discuss the trail's desirability as an international trail. [1]

Because of the impending Skagway Alternatives Study and the crisis over the Skagway railroad

depot, the proposed hike had to be delayed. [2] By the following summer, however, the

alternatives study had been completed, and a joint, late-season hike was planned.

The long-anticipated event was held over Labor Day weekend, 1969. Seventeen hikers

participated in the four-day event. The state of Alaska was represented by Mike Leach from the

Division of Lands. NPS representatives included Robert E. Howe, the Superintendent of Glacier

Bay and Sitka national monuments, and Ted Swem, the Washington-based Assistant Director

for Cooperative Activities. The Interior Department was represented by Yvonne Esbensen, a

assistant to Secretary Hickel. Yukon Territory representatives included Ron Hodgkinson, the

Assistant Commissioner, and both Victor Ogison and Gary McLaughlin of the territory's

Corrections Department. The National and Historic Parks Branch was represented by Peter

Bennett, Director of Historic Sites in Ottawa; Don Cline, an Ottawa-based planner; Gordon

Gilroy, the Assistant Regional Historic Sites Director in Calgary; and Bruce Harvey, the NHS

representative in Whitehorse. Several Skagway residents also made the trip. They included

Mayor Edward Hanousek, Chamber of Commerce President (and local banker) Ed Leon, and

packer Dave Hunz. [3]

Officials from the two countries had organized the Chilkoot hike as part of a larger effort to

publicize the historic resources along the entire gold rush corridor. Participants, therefore,

followed the hike by taking the train from Bennett north to Whitehorse; they then flew to
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Dawson and spent a day examining that area before returning to Whitehorse to evaluate what

they had seen during the previous week's activities. On September 4, Swem and Bennett jointly

produced a confidential report which outlined their proposal for an international historic park

based on the Klondike Gold Rush theme. [4]

The hike and its aftermath were successful by all accounts. Director Hartzog, who received a

copy of the joint report, noted in a memorandum to Interior Secretary Walter Hickel that

it greatly stimulated interest in the need to conserve the historic and scenic values of

the entire Gold Rush route starting at Skagway and terminating at the gold fields

near Dawson in the Yukon. The Canadian Department of Indian Affairs and

Northern Development officials and the National Park Service enthusiastically

endorsed not only their own respective historical preservation proposals, but also

the concept of an international historical park. [5]

Less than a month after the hike took place, Ted Swem met with Merrill Mattes in Washington

and gained more background on the Skagway National Historical Park/ Klondike Gold Rush

International Trail proposal. By early November, Northwest District Director Rutter had

officially approved the concept, and Swem had gained the Director's approval for the new park,

to be called Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park. [6] Hartzog, in turn, recommended

the park's establishment to Interior Secretary Hickel. That park was to include

a historic district in Skagway, a small area at Dyea, including reconstruction of

three buildings [a barn, store, and house] at the old townsite, and sufficient lands

along both the Chilkoot and White Pass Trails to allow public use and facility

development and to protect adequately the historic and natural scene. [7]

The Canadians were likewise active. On November 11, 1969, the Minister of Indian Affairs and

Northern Development, Jean Chrétien, flew to Whitehorse. Before a crowd at the Chamber of

Commerce, he announced the creation of new national historic sites at Dawson City (where four

buildings were to be designated) as well as at Bonanza Creek, Whitehorse, and Bennett. He also

unveiled a $2 million development package designed to assist in site restoration. Along the

Chilkoot, the Canadians planned to stabilize the Bennett church and construct a historical

interpretation center. [8] Beyond that, they hoped to coordinate their Chilkoot Trail

development activities with those on the U.S. side. Hartzog, for instance, recommended the

implementation of a series of measures, all of which had been agreed to by Swem and Bennett

in September. The NPS director suggested

that a standard sign and marking system be used on both sides to reflect a unity in

approach and the true international aspect of the project, that we issue joint maps

and publications covering the Gold Rush story, and that we cooperate in interpreting

the story of the Gold Rush.... Also, we would hope to move ahead to establish

certain stretches of the Upper Yukon River in Canada and the United States as a

historic riverway as a part of the Klondike package.

To help achieve this coordinated effort, we recommend the appointment of an

international advisory committee made up of representatives of all levels of

government involved, plus outsiders, to advise on implementation of this proposal,

and also a steering committee comprised of representatives of the park agencies

from both countries. We believe the legislation on our side and any official action

on the Canadian side should recognize this as a truly international park, even

though each country would be responsible for development and operation of its own

park units. [9]

Hickel, who because of his Alaska background had a personal interest in the proposal, approved
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of Hartzog's recommendations on December 16. [10] Two weeks later, Hickel and Canada's

Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, Jean Chrétien, simultaneously issued

press releases announcing an international historical park, based on the Klondike Gold Rush

theme, which would include sites in Alaska, British Columbia, and the Yukon. Chrétien's

announcement noted that

A significant feature of the proposed Klondike Gold Rush International Historic

Park will be the joint development and interpretation by both countries of the

historic Chilkoot and White Pass Trails from Dyea and Skagway to Bennett. Also

under study is the establishment of a Yukon Historic Waterway, embracing the

water route to Dawson City and designed to preserve the historical environment of

its more significant features. [11]

The Canadians also announced plans for a historic preservation program in the Yukon, while the

Americans recommended that Congress establish a Klondike Gold Rush National Historical

Park. [12]

The Park Master Plan

Following the December 30 announcement, officials of both countries began to prepare more

specific land management proposals. Several months later, Canada's National Historic Sites

Service issued a document entitled Klondike International Historic Park: Provisional

Development Plan. That plan, which reflected the concerns of both U.S. and Canadian

authorities, called for the "protection of the unspoiled and remarkable historic and scenic

attractions of both [the U.S. and Canadian] Trails by the acquisition of land from skyline to

skyline on the Chilkoot Trail from Skagway to Bennett." At Bennett, it proposed that the NHSS

stabilize, preserve and fence the Presbyterian church, and acquire two or three railway cars "to

establish exhibits featuring the story of transportation to the Yukon." The plan also called for a

directional and historic marking system from Skagway to Dawson, the restoration of the S.S.

Klondike at Whitehorse, and a broad plan of improvements along the Yukon River and in the

Dawson area. The plan recommended that a consulting company be chosen to write a

provisional master plan study for the Chilkoot Trail. [13]

On the U.S. side, the NPS began to prepare a park master plan. (A master plan was necessary

before any bill establishing a new park unit could be submitted to Congress.) Crucial to the

success of the park proposal was the support of the State of Alaska, the City of Skagway, and

the White Pass and Yukon Route railroad. In January 22, 1970, therefore, the NPS's Ted Swem

began that effort. He met in Washington with Alaska Department of Natural Resources

Commissioner Thomas Kelly, who was primarily concerned with the management of the

Chilkoot Trail corridor. Swem told him that the NPS

would like basic responsibility for administration of the Chilkoot and White Pass

Trails, Dyea, and a Historic District in Skagway, but that if the State didn't feel that

it could give up the State selected lands involved right now, that we might be able

to work out [a cooperative agreement]. I told him, however, that because of the

international scope of the historic story, and the varied nature of the resources

involved, I thought the Federal government was probably in a better position to

handle this project than the State. He said he agreed and wouldn't mind working out

some arrangement like this, providing that they could make up for the loss of these

selected lands by being able to select other public lands that they desired.... I asked

whether he was agreeable to pushing for revocation of the [1948] water withdrawal

on the Taiya River and he said he would do anything possible to get rid of it; that

he wanted no part of a water project in this location. [14]
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By mid-February, Regional Director John Rutter had also been informed about the proposal,

and on April 2 he flew to Juneau to ascertain a broad range of opinions from state officials.

Rutter met with Tom Cantine of the Alaska State Power Commission, with the director of the

state museum, and with two members of the Department of Economic Development (DED); he

also had a second meeting with Tom Kelly of DNR. Rutter ran across few problems during

those meetings; the DED personnel, in particular, were enthusiastic about the proposal. Both

Cantine and Kelly, however, criticized the NPS's plans because they were unwilling to ignore

the proposed Yukon-Taiya power project. Both were well aware of the Canadians' opposition

and were likewise aware that little active planning had taken place in recent years. But Cantine

was quick to note that "of all the State's [proposed] water power projects, the Yukon-Taiya

Project offered the fewest problems from an engineering standpoint," and Kelly "wondered if a

balance between water and historic projects could not be made." [15] Governor Keith Miller

was skeptical that a historical trail and hydroelectric plant could co-exist in the same narrow

valley. But Walter Hickel, who was Secretary of the Interior as well as Miller's predecessor,

declared that "I do not think it is possible nor appropriate ... that one particular use is the highest

and best for the area." "The Taiya River Valley," he noted, "might well permit both uses without

any real diminishment in the value of either." [16]

NPS officials also travelled to Skagway. In March, they had preliminary discussions with Mayor

Malcolm Moe and White Pass officials. Then, on May 15, 1970 they had a public meeting on

the proposed park. The NPS officials in attendance, who included Bennett Gale and Rodger

Pegues of the Pacific Northwest Regional Office, Bob Howe of Glacier Bay National

Monument, and Ernest Borgman from the Alaska Group Office in Anchorage, were sensitive to

local Chamber of Commerce concerns and promised that the proposed park "would not interfere

with multiple use of [the local] area." [17] The city council, at the time, was split on the issue.

Some on the council were in favor of the NPS's plans, both in town and in the Taiya Valley, but

others were fearful that renovating Skagway's buildings would give the agency a foothold which

might eventually tie up the Taiya Valley to further development. Some, attempting to

compromise, wanted the city to request State Park status. But Ted Smith, head of the state's

Division of Parks, replied that he would prefer to see the NPS take over the trail. [18]

It appeared that the only substantial difficulties which state and local officials had with the

proposed park concerned the Yukon-Taiya project. In order to iron out those difficulties,

Bennett Gale, the agency's Associate Regional Director in Seattle, flew to Juneau in midDecember 1970 and met with Gus Norwood, the head of the Alaska Power Administration. As a

result of that meeting, the two decided that "with proper planning and management, the two

proposals can be reasonably compatible." [19] Because the NPS had satisfied each of the state's

major concerns, Governor William A. Egan, in a letter to Interior Secretary Rogers C. B.

Morton, gave his enthusiastic support to the gold rush park idea. [20]

Crucial to the success of the NPS's efforts in the area would be the preparation of a report that

would link the physical resources in the proposed park to the area's history, and assess that

history in the context of nationwide historic themes. Edwin C. Bearss, a historian in the agency's

Office of History and Historic Architecture, was assigned that task in mid-1969. That August,

he travelled to the Skagway and Dyea areas and hiked over the Chilkoot and upper White Pass

trails. Using a broad array of source material, Bearss compiled a historic resource study which

included more than 300 pages of text and more than 80 maps and photographs. His study was

released in November 1970. [21]

The preliminary working draft of the conceptual master plan was submitted to the Pacific

Northwest Regional Director in January 1971. Two months later, he approved the document and

submitted it to the Advisory Board on National Parks, Historic Sites, Buildings, and

Monuments. When the Advisory Board met in April 1971, its chairman noted that
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it is considered appropriate...to recommend not only a national historical park, but a

further step to join with Canada for an even more imaginative proposal, a Klondike

Gold Rush International Historical Park. An integrated effort by the two countries to

awaken a historical resource that has long been slumbering should not be delayed.

On May 6, the regional office released the document to the public and issued a press release

announcing the proposed park plan. [22]

The plan adopted in the spring of 1971 was, in many ways, similar to Alternative Three which

had been promulgated in March 1969 and approved that November by Regional Director Rutter.

It still called for the establishment of a narrow historic district and the NPS acquisition of just

three buildings: the depot complex, the Mascot complex, and Boas Tailor and Furrier. The

proposed park, however, was to encompass 22,000 acres in and around Skagway--far larger

than the 900-odd acres in the 1969 study. It called for the in-fee purchase of a mile-wide

corridor for the entire length of both the Chilkoot and White Pass trails; in addition, it called for

the protection, through cooperative agreements with the State of Alaska and the Forest Service,

of the Taiya and Skagway river valleys from one topographic crest to the other. [23]

The plan also provided the park's first clear statement of purpose. The Alternatives Study was an

ad hoc document which was intended to prevent the imminent destruction of Skagway's

historical architecture. By March 1971, that threat had certainly not abated, and indeed, the

preservation of the railroad depot was still by no means certain. The 1971 plan, however, put the

preservation of Skagway's buildings squarely in the context of American gold rush history. It

noted that

Although several mining communities in the Rocky Mountain West and Great

Basin area of mainland United States are recognized as national landmarks, no area

within the Park Service System has been singled out to illustrate a gold rush as part

of our national heritage. No town in America offers a finer array of historic

resources than Skagway for interpreting the story of a historic gold rush. The

Klondike Stampede has all the dramatic ingredients necessary to create a

magnificent historical and recreational park which transcends international

boundaries. [24]

NPS officials distributed a large number of copies of the preliminary master plan, hoping to get

as much feedback as possible on it. [25]

In order to collect public comment on the plan, an NPS master planning team from San

Francisco headed up to Skagway. They held a public meeting on May 26 and remained in the

area for a week. The public meeting revealed that the basic proposal propounded in the March

report was far too vague. The plan, for instance, called for many specific improvements--from

boardwalk improvements to building restoration to the installation of new railroad tracks--but it

was categorically unspecific as to who would pay for them. Local citizens demanded answers,

and the planning team could not immediately supply them. The state, while broadly supportive

of the park concept, was worried that the provision of broad scenic protection to both river

valleys would stifle area residential and industrial development. [26]

Local citizens were more vehement in their opposition to land use controls. The May 1971 plan,

and the public meeting which followed the plan, was the first time in which Skagway's citizens

had been confronted with a park which included the Skagway and Taiya river valleys within its

boundaries. Many feared the loss of the recreational activities which they had long enjoyed.

Longtime resident Joseph E. Herpst was so frustrated at the NPS's plans that he circulated a

petition that was quickly signed by 166 local residents--over half of Skagway's registered voters.

The petition said, in part:
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We, the undersigned citizens of Skagway, Alaska, do not wish to have Skagway or

the surrounding area made into a State or Federal Park that would have any

restriction on any firearms, snow machines, trail bikes or restrict hunting in any

way.... We surely do not want to be part of a Park that would have certain hours or

seasons which the park can be used. Hunting, fishing, shooting, using snow

machines and trail bikes are recreation for a lot of people in Skagway. Why must

we give up our recreation so outsiders can walk in a park 3 months out of a year?

[27]

Although local citizens felt that the government was interfering too much in the area's affairs,

certain agency personnel came away convinced that a greater governmental presence was

needed in order to preserve the area's history. Douglas Cornell, part of the NPS team, felt that

Reed Jarvis's development plan, as laid out in the March 1971 Master Plan, offered too little

NPS involvement. Cornell recommended that the agency take one of three new paths as it

related to Skagway buildings management. At a minimum, Cornell recommended that the NPS

purchase 24 lots in the Historic District and obtain one historic building (the city library) as part

of those purchases. A second, stronger alternative called for the agency to acquire

approximately ten additional buildings in the Historic District for restoration; these buildings

would then be leased or sold back to the private sector for business use. [28] It also urged the

NPS to pave the streets, repair the boardwalks, and replace street lighting with period fixtures. A

third, even stronger alternative called for the acquisition of eleven more buildings than had been

called for in the second alternative.

Cornell suggested other alterations to the March 1971 plan. The Historic District, for example,

had to go beyond the boundaries which had been suggested in the 1969 alternatives study.

(These were the boundaries that had originally been delineated in the city's 1964 community

plan.) Areas to be added to the Historic District included the eastern extension of Fifth, Sixth,

and Seventh avenues. He also recommended a stronger historic zoning ordinance, the

establishment of a historic district commission, and an improved zoning ordinance. At Dyea, he

suggested that a campground as well as a ranger station should be constructed. [29] Rod Pegues,

who was the region's assistant director, agreed with Cornell's assessment, and noted that "I think

we should shoot for a major project--including Seattle as well.... The significance and the

potential visitation exists, and we ought to go after it." [30]

Before planners could proceed with the preparation of a revised master plan, they spent another

week in the Skagway area. Their August visit featured a conference with personnel from the

Canadian Environmental Services, Ltd. (CES, a Vancouver-based consulting company, had

been selected to prepare a provisional master plan for the Canadian side of the Chilkoot Trail.)

The NPS team also held a public meeting in Skagway and took part in a second internationallysponsored Chilkoot Trail hike. More than 20 took part in the hike. The NPS planning team

included Douglas Cornell, Bob Howe, Gerald Patten, and Rod Pegues, while the Canadian

consulting team members included Rainer Fassler, Erik Karlsen, and Jack Shadbolt. Pierre

Berton, the well-known author of Klondike, a popular gold rush history, was also on the team.

Other Canadian participants included Bruce Harvey, V. P. "Sandy" Rolfson, and Peter

Matrosovs, all from the National and Historic Parks Branch; Gary McLaughlin, from the Yukon

Department of Corrections; Lee Munn, a tourism official from Ottawa, and T. R. Broadland,

from British Columbia's Historic Parks and Sites Division. Other American officials included

John Hall, U.S. Forest Service; Jack Tripp, Alaska Travel Division; and Michael Leach, Alaska

Division of Lands. [31]

After returning from the field, the combined planning teams met in Skagway and Whitehorse.

The NPS planners began to prepare a master plan which was modelled, to a large extent, on the

ideas which Douglas Cornell had outlined in June. The agency still envisioned a 22,000-acre

park composed of lands along the Chilkoot and White Pass trails as well as parcels in Skagway
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and Dyea. But major changes took place in Skagway and Dyea. In Dyea, 12 residences and

recreational cabins were to be purchased, while in Skagway, park officials planned to purchase

25 commercial buildings as well as the library. Planners also proposed a unit in Seattle and the

purchase of a single commercial building in the Pioneer Square area. Appraisers estimated that

the cost of the park proposal would be approximately $2.4 million: $1.3 million for land

purchases, $0.5 million for building improvements, and $0.6 million for administrative and

other costs. [32]

The most dramatic changes in the new plan were felt in Skagway. The NPS planned to

purchase, restore, and interpret fourteen buildings in the historic district. (These buildings

included the Moore House and adjacent cabin, the three-building Pullen House Complex, the

two-building depot complex, Boas Tailor, and the three-building Mascot Saloon complex.) The

NPS also proposed to purchase and restore eleven other downtown buildings but to allow them

to be used for private commercial purposes. (The eleven included the Idaho Saloon, the Lucci

Grocery, the Principal Barber Shop, Verbauwhede's Confectionery, and the four-building Pack

Train Saloon complex.) The Red Onion saloon was to be used as a living interpretive exhibit,

jointly used by the NPS and a concessioner. The plan also called for three private commercial

buildings and another three interpretive structures to be moved to the historic core from offBroadway locations. [33]

By December 1971, a second draft of the master plan was reported to be nearly complete, and

NPS planners were hopeful that it would be ready for public distribution in early 1972. [34]

State officials, however, balked when they saw what had transpired since the issuance of the

preliminary draft. They feared that the park would block any future efforts to construct and

operate the Yukon-Taiya power project; the new park might also prevent the establishment of

new port facilities near the mouth of the Taiya River. To address these concerns, the state

proposed the preparation of an area land use plan. The NPS had no comment on the port

proposal, but agreed with the state's objections regarding the Yukon-Taiya project and agreed to

participate in the creation of the land use plan. Because of the conflict, the issuance of the

revised draft was delayed until late June. [35]
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Map 3. Alaska park units and surrounding features. Source: NPS, Draft General

Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement, Klondike Gold Rush

National Historical Park, June/July 1996, 1.4. (click on image for an

enlargement in a new window)

After receiving comments from interested parties, a five-man international team (Don Campbell,

Bob Howe, and Laurin Huffman of the NPS, with Bruce Harvey and Roman Fodchuk of

Canada's National and Historic Parks Branch) once again travelled to the Skagway area and

made a trip over Chilkoot Pass. They met at Lindeman Lake and discussed trail standards,

artifact security, trail markers, signing, and similar measures. [36]

During the preparation period of the second master plan draft, NPS officials learned that Natives

had applied for three land claims along the Chilkoot Trail. Andrew C. Mahle, a longtime

Skagway resident, applied for a 160-acre allotment in the Sawmill-Finnegan's Point area in

April 1971. His brothers, Fred and Harlan, had each applied for 80-acre allotments in the same

area that October. The brothers claimed occupancy dating back to 1950, 1952, and 1961,

respectively. Later that year, BLM surveyors visited the three claim sites and established corner

posts. No one knew, at this point, whether the Mahles' claim would prove to be valid, but NPS

officials recognized that they and the state of Alaska were not the only possible Taiya Valley

landowners. [37]
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Map 4. Alaska park units, showing surrounding land ownership patterns,

September 1972. Two years later, the State of Alaska assumed effective

ownership of most of the Chilkoot Trail Unit, the western portion of the White

Pass Unit, and much of the surrounding territory. Source: NPS, Final

Environmental Statement, Proposed Klondike Gold Rush National Historical

Park, Alaska-Washington, 1974, 12. (click on image for an enlargement in a

new window)

By December 1972, the park proposal--this time, for a park not to exceed 12,000 acres--was

declared to be complete. [38] Just before the plan was ready to be printed, however, Director

Rutter had a change of heart and decided that the planned purchase of 26 of Skagway's historic

structures was simply too great of a resource commitment. He reduced the building restoration

program back to 16 buildings. Nine buildings were to be retained by the NPS for interpretive

purposes: they included the two-building depot complex, Boas Tailor and Furrier, the threebuilding Mascot Complex, the Moore Cabin, the Boss Bakery, and the Tanner Building. The

agency would purchase seven other buildings, then lease them to private commercial uses; these

seven included Verbauwhede's Confectionery and its associated cribs, the four-building Pack

Train complex, the Principal Barber, and the Idaho Saloon. [39]

The need to create new maps in response to Rutter's decision, and the vagaries of the printing

process, delayed the publication of the final master plan until September 1973. Because of

approval delays by the Interior Department in Washington, widespread distribution did not take

place until February 1974. Chief among those who awaited its publication were Congressional
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leaders. Both senators and representatives had introduced a Klondike park bill in April 1973,

but hearings on the bill could not take place until the master plan was completed. [40]

The master plan called for the creation of a park that, in many respects, resembles that seen

today. The proposed park was to be not larger than 14,300 acres in extent and was to consist of

four separate units: a Seattle interpretive unit, the Skagway historic district, a Chilkoot Trail

unit, and a White Pass unit. In Skagway, the plan called for the depot buildings to be used as a

visitor contact station; in addition, the historic district would be extended all the way to the

railroad right-of-way between Fifth and Seventh avenues. Plans for Dyea called for the

construction of a staffed interpretive center and trailhead contact station. For the Chilkoot Trail,

the plan called for the scenic protection of the Taiya River valley, and the protection of historic

trailside ruins. (It made no mention of the three Mahle claims.) For the White Pass unit,

planners called for the scenic protection of the Skagway River valley and the protection of the

ruins at White Pass City. [41]

Many ideas in the master plan, however, have not been fulfilled or were later seen as

unrealistic. The plan, for example, proposed the installation of Engine #52 and a 70-class

locomotive on Broadway; the creation of three off-Broadway parking lots; and an outdoor

display area at Fifth Avenue and Broadway devoted to describing Skagway's function as an

outfitting center. Planners also proposed that some of the NPS buildings along Broadway

"would be restocked with vintage items and contain various historic exhibits," and that "NPS

personnel would be dressed in Klondike period attire to recreate the sense of this gold rush

town." Plans for Dyea called for the brushing of the historic street alignment and the

establishment of two walk-in campgrounds. For the Chilkoot Trail, the plan called for the trail

to be rerouted "to its true historic location, where feasible." For the White Pass unit, planners

proposed the restoration of the upper portion of the White Pass Trail, a portion of the Brackett

Wagon Road, and the construction of a connecting trail from the proposed Skagway-Carcross

road to the park unit. [42]

A key difference between the preliminary (March 1971) working draft and the final (May 1973)

master plan was the addition of a Seattle unit. Seattle was first suggested in May 1971, when

Regional Director John Rutter asked Seattle Mayor Wes Uhlman to comment on the plan. Rutter

noted at the time that "we believe this proposal ties in quite closely with some of the concepts

you are considering in your Pioneer Square and Seattle Waterfront Park Programs." (The

Pioneer Square-Skid Road Historical District had been placed on the National Register of

Historic Places less than a year before, on June 22, 1970.) Two weeks later, NPS officials sent

copies of the plan to the Washington state Congressional delegation. Regional officials, who

resided in the Seattle area, were well aware that the Klondike had played an influential role in

Seattle's history. The role was particularly evident in the early 1970s, as the city prepared its

two-year "Klondike Festival" to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the gold rush. By June 1971,

as noted above, NPS official Rod Pegues was tilting in favor of a Seattle unit, and by

September, the NPS had gone on record in support of it. The following January, Mayor Uhlman

became an enthusiastic supporter as well. [43]

Planners originally conceived that the Seattle unit would consist of the Pioneer Building, a turnof-the-century, multi-story structure on the east side of Pioneer Square. In 1971, the Pioneer

Building was in imminent threat of being razed, so the NPS proposed that the agency purchase

and restore it. But during the summer of 1972, Mel Kaufman and Tim Morgan purchased a 50

percent share in the Pioneer Building, and with co-owner Jack Butnick announced restoration

plans. [44] For the next two months, NPS planners continued to assume that they would

purchase the building, then lease out those areas not needed by the agency. An NPS appraisal,

however, revealed that an adaptive restoration of the Pioneer Building would cost $7.4 million.

Such a cost was far more than Congress was ever likely to authorize for such a project. By April

1973, therefore, planners reluctantly decided to lease space within the building rather than
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purchase it. [45]

Eagle, Alaska, and other sites were briefly considered, but later rejected, as units of the

proposed international park. Governor Egan first broached the idea of Eagle's inclusion in

February 1971. (The Eagle Historic District, which included the non-native townsite and Fort

Egbert, had been added to the National Register of Historic Places just one year earlier.) Seven

months later, at the initial meeting of the Klondike Gold Rush International Advisory

Committee (KGRIAC), members from the two countries agreed that "the Park concept should

be confined to Seattle-Victoria (and/or Vancouver), Skagway/Dyea, Chilkoot-White PassBennett, Whitehorse-Yukon Historic Waterway, [and] Dawson-Bonanza Creek-Eagle." [46] By

February 1972, a briefing statement elaborated on the concept, noting that

The proposed park will have units in Seattle, Vancouver, Victoria, Skagway, and

Dawson City. It may also include Eagle.... The development concept for Seattle,

Victoria, and Vancouver consists of restoration of one or two buildings in each

place for use as a visitor center and museum.

Soon afterwards, the NPS toyed with the idea of including both the Eagle historic district and

Circle in the proposed park. But the Bureau of Land Management made a recreational

withdrawal of the Eagle area in mid-1972, and the NPS, which was developing plans for a

major park unit in the nearby Yukon-Charley Rivers area, did not protest the move. The NPS's

draft master plan, issued in June 1972, contained no references to either the Eagle or Circle

areas, nor did any other planning documents issued after that date. [47]

The International Advisory Committee

After the 1969 Labor Day hike, parks officials from both countries had made it clear that they

wanted to coordinate their efforts over the long term. Ted Swem and Peter Bennett, meeting in

Whitehorse on September 4, recommended that the two countries should

set up an International Advisory Committee for consultation in connection with the

planning of the program, with representation from appropriate State, Provincial and

Territorial Governments as well as the Federal Government Departments concerned,

but with the development and operation of the program to be entirely in the hands

of the respective National and Historic Park Services....

No such committee was mentioned at the time of the joint accord agreed upon by Hickel and

Chrétien that December. Just a week afterwards, however, NPS personnel presented Hickel with

the idea of a 13-member Klondike Gold Rush International Advisory Committee. On February

9, he passed that suggestion on to Chrétien, who was equally enthusiastic about it. [48]

The idea of an international committee to coordinate national park planning was not new. The

Canada-United States Joint Committee on National Parks had first met in Ottawa in 1967. It had

been established informally, by an exchange of letters between the Minister of Indian Affairs

and Northern Development and the Secretary of the Interior, rather than through diplomatic

channels. Since then, it had met annually; at Everglades National Park in 1968, and in Jasper

National Park in 1969. [49]

Once the two agency heads had agreed to the committee's establishment, more than a year

elapsed before official letters were exchanged and the necessary committee members could be

appointed. [50] The first meeting took place in September 1971 in Whitehorse. The committee,

as finally constituted, consisted of five Americans and eight Canadians. The U.S. members

consisted of the Assistant Secretary of the Interior, the Director of the State Division of Lands,
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the Mayor of Skagway, and two outsiders; Canadian members included the Senior Assistant

Deputy Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, the Deputy Provincial Secretary

of British Columbia, the Executive Assistant to the Yukon Commissioner, the mayors of

Whitehorse and Dawson City, and three outsiders.

The Klondike Gold Rush International Advisory Committee (KGRIAC) remained an active

organization for most of the remainder of the decade. During that period they played a crucial

coordinating function. The full committee met twice annually during 1972 and 1973; in

addition, several subcommittees met in order to investigate specific problem areas. The full

committee met once per year in 1974 through 1976. But the authorization of Klondike Gold

Rush National Historical Park, on the U.S. side of the border, removed much of the committee's

reason to exist. It met just once more, in 1978, then faded away. [51]

Canadian Park Developments, 1971-1973

In 1970, as noted above, the National and Historic Parks Branch decided that a consulting

company should be employed to formulate a provisional master plan study of the Chilkoot

Trail. That consultant, Canadian Environmental Services, Ltd. of Vancouver, was selected in

April 1971. CES quickly assembled a study team which included, in addition to its in-house

staffers, three outside experts: author Pierre Berton, Jack Shadbolt, a well-known painter; and

Abraham Rogatnick, a professor of architectural history. The CES team travelled to Skagway in

August and, as noted above, hiked the Chilkoot in conjunction with NPS, state, territorial, and

provincial officials. Working in conjunction with an international advisory team, the consultant

issued a February 1972 report which proposed that the Chilkoot portion of the Klondike Gold

Rush International Park include a hotel at Bennett, along with campsites and cooking shelters at

Happy Camp, "Bridge Camp" (Deep Lake), Lindeman, and Bennett. It recommended that a spur

road be constructed from the proposed Skagway-Carcross Road into Bennett, and that sites in

the Gastown area of Vancouver and the Bastion Square area of Victoria be chosen similar to

what the NPS was doing in Seattle's Pioneer Square. The National and Historic Parks Branch,

upon receiving the report, noted that it "was not in full agreement with many of the statements

and the way they are presented." In particular, the agency felt that "apart from emergency

shelters we should not provide permanent type accommodation between Sheep Camp and

Lindeman Lake." [52]

Meanwhile, planners had to contend with more immediate concerns. In January 1972, a National

and Historic Parks Branch official, V. P. "Sandy" Rolfson, recommended the implementation of

a protection and interpretation program on the Chilkoot. Such a program was needed to provide

public safety and supervision, to catalogue and photograph artifacts, and to mark and maintain

the trail. In order to develop the program, Rolfson urged the construction of a headquarters

camp at Bennett and an overnight camp in the vicinity of Chilkoot Summit or Crater Lake.

Three patrolmen would be needed to guarantee public safety, while additional personnel would

be needed to catalog and store trailside artifacts. The Western Regional Director, Ron P. Malis,

recognized that artifacts along the trail were quickly being lost and consented to the cataloguing

proposal. [53]

To carry out the cataloguing plan, a special summer employment program under the supervision

of Bruce Harvey brought four students--Bill Massé, Ken Berube, Alex Hermann Kerr, and

Andrew Holmes--out to the trail in July and August 1972. The four lived at Lindeman Lake in

three 10' x 14' plywood-and-canvas tents which were constructed for their use by members of

the nearby Corrections crew. The quartet took 240 photographs of artifacts and building

remains, each keyed to catalogue cards and located on a topographic map. Upon the advice of a

regional office curator, some of the most valuable artifacts were brought back to Whitehorse

and placed in storage in the National and Historic Parks Branch warehouse. [54]
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Central to the establishment of any park unit on the Canadian side was the transfer of potential

park land from British Columbia to the Federal government. To effect that transfer, Peter

Bennett of the National and Historic Parks Branch contacted L. J. Wallace, British Columbia's

Deputy Provincial Secretary, in the spring of 1972. For the next several months, provincial

officials weighed the value of the proposed park over possible resource utilization in the area.

Finally, in mid-June 1973, Jean Chrétien, the Minster of Indian Affairs and Northern

Development, reached an agreement in principle with Jack Radford, British Columbia's Minister

of Recreation and Conservation. Part of that agreement provided for the eventual transfer of

some 80 square miles from the province to the federal government and allowed the inclusion of

that parcel in the Chilkoot Trail Unit of the so-called Klondike Goldrush International Historic

Park. The parcel in question included the Chilkoot Trail corridor, along with the adjacent

drainage to the west. [55] All signs seemed to point to the creation of a large historic park on

the Canadian side of the Chilkoot Trail.

By the time Chrétien and Radford had signed their historic agreement, a second year of

Chilkoot Trail field work had begun. Due to the efforts of Bruce Harvey, a second group of

students continued the previous year's work. Alex Hermann Kerr, who had been part of the

1972 crew, returned to the trail; he was joined by Bruce Murphy, Collyne Bunn, and Patricia

Smith. A corrections crew was also deployed that summer for trail maintenance purposes. [56]

The Yukon-Taiya Commission Concludes Its Work

As noted in Chapter 3, the Yukon-Taiya Commission had been established by the 1967 Alaska

Legislature in order to provide a forum for the investigation into the area's hydroelectric

resources. The commission, however, was not funded until 1968, and its first meeting was held

that fall. Elmer Titus, from Ketchikan Public Utilities, was appointed as chairman. The

remaining committee members included Glenn Waterman, an Anaconda Ltd. executive from

Britannia Beach, B.C.; Don Mellish, the president of the First National Bank in Anchorage;

Elton E. Engstrom, the Juneau-based state senator who had organized the effort to create the

commission; and Malcolm Moe, the former mayor of Skagway.

Just a few days before the commission was to meet, the primary focus of their efforts became

clear. In Ottawa, personnel from the U.S. Embassy met with officials from the Canadian

Department of External Affairs (i.e., Canada's Department of State) and exchanged International

Notes for a cooperative power market potential study. U.S. efforts would be organized by the

Juneau-based Alaska Power Administration, part of the Interior Department, while Canadian

efforts would be organized by the Department of Energy, Mines, and Resources. Together, the

two agencies formed the ad hoc Canadian Upper Yukon River study group. [57]

The commission's first meeting took place in Juneau on December 20, 1968. Recognizing that

project development would depend first and foremost on the development of new power sources,

commission members asked several Federal agencies involved with mineral exploration to

ascertain the area's mineral development potential. [58]

When the commissioners met again three months later, they obtained updated information on

Alaska and Yukon minerals potential. They were informed, however, that there was little

present demand for new power. One expert noted that in order to justify the 400,000 kilowatts

which would be generated by such a project, 20 to 50 new mines--each within economic

transmission distance of the project--would have to be developed. Even under an optimistic

development scenario, such demand was not expected until 1985. The commission responded to

the news by demanding an expedited minerals exploration program. [59]

The commission met in Anchorage in December 1969, and again in Juneau in April 1970. By
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this time, the U.S. and Canadian authorities had announced their intention to create a park

which included the Chilkoot Trail. Commission members knew that such a park could ruin any

hydroelectric development plans, so they passed a resolution which "strongly recommends that

the power project be designated the prime use of the area and that the historical trail be

developed in concert with this primary use." [60] Those concerns were relayed to state and

federal authorities. As noted above, most Alaska officials agreed with the commission, while

Federal officials (most notably Interior Secretary Hickel) felt that the two uses were not

necessarily incompatible. Because of the state's concerns, both the master plan and proposed

legislation contained a provision which insured that the park's establishment could in no way

jeopardize future hydroelectric development in the Taiya Valley. [61]

At their April 1970 meeting, commission members received a progress report on the work of the

Canadian Upper Yukon River study group. They recognized, however, that they could do little

until the group had completed a preliminary draft of its power market potential study. [62] The

report, scheduled to be completed by the end of 1970, had still not been completed by

September 1971, so the commission which convened in Skagway that month visited the

proposed development site and was updated on the study's progress, the park proposal, and other

relevant matters. [63]

By October 1971, it had become apparent that little was to be done regarding the joint study in

the foreseeable future. Data and preliminary views relating to power potential had been

exchanged between the two countries. The data thus far gathered did not support further water

development, and no further studies were planned. [64] Yukon Commissioner James Smith,

perhaps reflecting the prevailing mood in Canada, was quoted as saying, "As far as the Taiya

power project is concerned, it was just a glimmer in somebody's eye which could be written off

and forgotten." [65]

By the following January, Alaskans had arrived at the same glum conclusion. Rush Hoag, an

economic development consultant, published The Promise of Power, a Commission-sponsored

study of southeastern Alaska's power potential. (Hoag had completed a similar study for the

state Department of Economic Development three years earlier.) Hoag concluded that because

power costs in Southeast were not significantly lower than those in major industrial centers, the

development of large power sources would depend upon processing domestic raw materials

rather than imports. The region did not have readily-accessible raw materials that demanded new

power sources; there was little immediate need, therefore, for the Yukon-Taiya project. Hoag

recommended that two other power projects be constructed in southeastern Alaska before serious

consideration be given to Yukon-Taiya. [66]

The Fate of the Pullen Collection

As noted in Chapter 2, owner Mary Kopanski moved the Pullen Collection out of Skagway

shortly after the Pullen House closed in 1959. The collection was stored in a new, fireproof

building in Lynnwood, Washington (a suburb of Seattle) where it remained until shortly after

the completion of the 1962 Seattle World's Fair. At that time, much of the collection was

displayed in a building in Seattle Center (the site of the fair), where it remained for another ten

years. Many hoped that the stay in Seattle would be only temporary and that the collection

would soon return to Skagway. [67]

In 1972, however, a new crisis loomed. Seattle Center's management announced plans to

remodel its facilities, and informed Mrs. Kopanski that the collection would need to be moved.

Citing financial difficulties, she responded by declaring her intention to sell the collection. [68]

She expressed the hope that the entire collection could be sold to a museum or other facility that

would be able to properly curate and display her grandmother's memorabilia. Many Alaskans,
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particularly those who had seen the collection, were similarly hopeful that the collection could

remain together, preferably in Alaska. They recognized that if no institutional purchaser could

be found, the collection would have to be sold off piecemeal, something that was to be avoided

if at all possible.

Speculation on potential purchasers of the collection centered on either the federal or state

government. The NPS, which had shown an interest in the collection in the initial draft of the

master plan, reiterated the need to preserve the collection. They could do nothing, however,

until Congress authorized the establishment of the park--something that was not expected for

several years.

Action then moved to the Alaska legislature. On January 24, 1973, the Alaska House and Senate

introduced bills which would have authorized $200,000 to purchase the Pullen Collection and

display it in the Alaska State Museum. [69] House Bill 125 was passed out of the State Affairs

Committee on February 1 on a 2-1 vote; on February 27, it passed the House Finance

Committee, 6-2. Three days later, it passed the House on a 31-9 vote. [70]

On March 6, the bill was sent on to the state senate, where it received a rocky reception. On

April 3, HB 125 lost a Senate Finance Committee vote, 3 to 2. The two Democrats, one of

whom was Bill Ray of Juneau, voted in favor of the bill. All three Republicans, however, voted

against it, one of them noting that "We cannot afford this luxury." Despite the setback in the

Finance Committee, the bill was forwarded to the full Senate for its consideration. On April 7,

the last day before the Senate was to adjourn, the Senate voted 11 to 9 against returning the bill

to the Finance Committee; shortly afterward, the Senate voted 12 to 8 in favor of HB 125.

Because Governor William Egan, a Democrat, had announced his intention to sign the bill, its

passage by the Senate appeared to be the last hurdle needed in order to preserve the collection

and keep it intact. [71]

After the Senate completed its vote, however, Senator Clifford Groh (R-Anchorage), the

Finance Committee chair, gave notice of reconsideration of his vote. A notice of reconsideration

is a procedural motion that holds the bill over until the next legislative day. Groh, who had

previously voted against HB 125 when it had been in the Finance Committee, effectively killed

the bill for the 1973 legislative session by utilizing this parliamentary maneuver on the last day

before adjournment. [72]

Faced with stonewalling by the state and federal governments, and with few other financial

reserves, Kopanski decided to sell the collection on the auction block. From July 1 through July

5, 1973, James Greenfield of Seattle's Greenfield Gallery sold some 5,000 items, organized into

2,238 lots. Museum curators from six states along with scores of independent collectors

attended the auction. The sale of the collection, held at Greenfield's auction house, brought

Kopanski significantly more than the Alaska legislature was willing to offer. Sources variously

estimate that she grossed anywhere from $269,000 to $350,000. [73]

The Skagway-Carcross Road

As noted in Chapter 2, Skagway citizens had been lobbying for a road across White Pass since

the century's opening decade. The city council, the chamber of commerce, the media, and

individual citizens had repeatedly taken the matter up with state, federal, and Canadian officials.

Local residents, over the years, had often been given verbal support for their efforts, but during

the Territorial period funding levels were never sufficient to provide more than token

construction work.

Skagway residents, and economic development interests throughout Alaska, hoped that
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statehood would bring sufficient funding for a road to Carcross. Initial signs, in fact, were

optimistic. In the fall of 1960, Alaska's Department of Public Works was allotted $1 million to

extend the highway another mile toward White Pass, and in the summer of 1961 the road was

extended from Black Lake to Porcupine Creek. [74] In the meantime, Alaskans regularly

discussed the road, and similar topics, with their counterparts in British Columbia and the

Yukon. [75] In March 1961, Alaskans were dismayed to hear that the huge Battelle Memorial

Institute report on north-country transportation routes, Transport Requirements for the Growth

of Northwest North America, did not recommend that the road be built. But they knew that the

Alaska Marine Highway System would soon be operating and felt confident that pressure to

construct a highway would follow soon afterwards. [76]

During the 1960s, as in previous decades, local residents used every opportunity at their

disposal to push for a road. [77] Area leaders were sensitive to those concerns, and in

September 1964 the Premier of British Columbia, the Yukon Commissioner, and the Governor

of Alaska jointly supported the idea of a Skagway-Carcross road. [78] No action followed their

resolution, however. The following year, the need to re-energize the effort induced volunteer

parties at both ends of the highway to extend the road, if only to a symbolic degree.

In the federal election of 1965, Canada's Progressive Conservative party announced that they

would build their share of the road immediately if successful at the polls. The Liberals, however,

were successful. Despite that setback, the Canadians made a preliminary survey of the road the

following year. That fall, the Alaska Highway Department upgraded the 2-1/2 miles of existing

roadway. [79]

The NPS also became interested at this time. Roger Allin, a Washington-based planner who had

extensive experience in Alaska, wrote a document which called for the designation of five

scenic roads in Alaska, the road between Skagway and Carcross being one. Allin, who was

convinced that the highway would be built in the "early future," noted that "Scenic road

concepts and standards to guarantee the appropriate development of this beautiful and historic

valley should be important elements in such construction." [80]

In 1967, a series of events rekindled local interest in the road. In March, the Canadian

Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development asked Travacon, a Calgary consulting

firm, to study the Yukon transportation system. As part of that study, the consultants spoke

about the Skagway-Carcross road to various Alaska commissioners; in addition, Canadian

officials visited the proposed right-of-way that spring and did some preliminary survey work.

Then, in September, Senator Ernest Gruening visited Skagway. Gruening knew that Congress

was set to give Alaska a substantial payment for highway improvement, so he suggested that a

petition be gathered to show local support. Skagway resident Ed Feight obliged him, and before

long a 300-signature petition had been sent to Governor Hickel. During his visit, Gruening

received the White Pass company's approval for the proposed road. (Many local residents had

worried that the railroad would fight against the proposed highway.) State legislators did what

they could to push the road as well. On February 23, 1968, senators Elton Engstrom and John

Butrovich introduced a resolution (SJR 44) which advocated the highway's construction, both on

the U.S. and Canadian side of the border. The resolution, however, did not get beyond the

committee stage. [81]

The Canadian study, which was completed in 1968, concluded that a Skagway-Carcross road

"would offer some advantages, but these would not be sufficient to offset its high costs."

Although they were tepid to the idea of a road to Skagway, officials from the Canadian

Department of Public Works agreed to meet on the matter with their counterparts in the Alaska

State Highway Department. The meeting took place in Skagway in the summer of 1969. At that

meeting, officials agreed to again study the feasibility of the proposed road. That survey was

completed in June 1970. [82]
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Meanwhile, both the Americans and the Canadians were gradually improving their roadway. In

1969 state maintenance crews upgraded the five existing miles of roadway near Skagway; in

1970, a new bridge was constructed at Carcross; and in 1971, in conjunction with activity at the

Venus Mine, construction crews extended the Klondike Highway 2.5 miles to the Yukon-British

Columbia border. [83] The summer of 1971 also witnessed the continuation of aerial surveys

over the proposed right-of-way. The British Columbia government, however, refused to support

the road because they saw no benefit in it for themselves. [84]

Planning finally turned into decision making in 1972. In February, Commissioner James Smith

of the Yukon announced that the federal government had agreed to build and maintain the 33.6

miles of road needed to cross British Columbia. That same month, Alaskan officials also agreed

to construct the 9.4 miles of road that would be needed to complete the highway, and proceeded

to prepare a draft environmental impact statement for the project. (The DEIS was completed

later that year.) The only remaining hurdle to progress was British Columbia's grant of a rightof-way to the federal government. [85] In the fall of 1972, B.C. Premier David Barrett met with

Governor Egan and assured him that provincial officials "would do their share and would

proceed to work out details with Ottawa." By December, the B.C. government finally agreed to

grant the road right-of-way; Canadian federal officials, as a result, got ready to make firm

commitments for funding their portion of the highway. [86]

In March 1973, in anticipation that road construction was in the offing, state highway officials

held a hearing in Skagway on the proposed right-of-way; as part of that hearing, they described

why the so-called West White Pass route was favored over routes which crossed Chilkoot Pass

or Warm Pass. Soon afterwards, city, state, and federal officials met in Skagway to ensure that

the proposed construction would minimally impact the Skagway and White Pass Historic

District. [87] The road enjoyed broad support. The only dissent came from conservationists,

who worried that the construction of a road would jeopardize the historical values found along

the White Pass Trail corridor. [88]

Finally, on June 13, 1973, road construction was assured when Northern Affairs Minister Jean

Chrétien met with Jack Radford, British Columbia's Minister of Recreation and Conservation.

In the same agreement which expressed the province's willingness to transfer its lands for park

purposes to the federal government, Canada announced its intention to cooperate with the

United States in the construction of the Skagway-Carcross road. Soon afterwards, Governor

Egan praised the Canadian officials' pact and detailed the state's plans regarding the road.

Recognizing the need to plan for a historical park in the Skagway business district, officials

from the city, state, and the National Trust for Historic Preservation met in Skagway and agreed

to reroute the state highway from Second Avenue to First Avenue, to replace the existing bridge

across the Skagway River, and to construct 9.4 miles of new road to the Canadian border.

Leaders from both countries hoped that initial construction would take place later that summer

and that the road would be completed by 1976. [89]

The announcement of the highway's construction gave Skagway residents the outlet to Canada

that they had been anticipating for over 60 years. The selection of the West White Pass route,

moreover, reduced the pressures which had intermittently arisen over the years for construction

of alternate routes. Interest in a highway over Chilkoot Pass, for example, had first surfaced in

1950, shortly after the road to Dyea was completed, and in 1961 a state official noted that a

proposed route for the Skagway-Carcross road ascended the Taiya River valley. [90] The idea

re-emerged in 1971, when an assistant to Governor Egan openly worried that the NPS would

prevent the construction of a Chilkoot Pass highway. The following year, the Alaska Highways

Commission recommended such a highway to Senator Ted Stevens (R-AK), but by the fall of

1972, NPS planners had been assured that the state had no plans to build a road over Chilkoot

Pass. [91] Another road that was proposed during the early 1970s would have gone from the

Log Cabin area to Bennett. The province of British Columbia, which hoped to develop the area,
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was behind the idea. The Klondike Gold Rush International Advisory Committee, however, was

firmly against a road to Bennett; perhaps for that reason, plans for its construction were shelved.

[92]

The NPS had no qualms with the construction of the Skagway-Carcross highway. At no point

did the agency oppose it. It recognized that the road would not only stimulate tourism to the

Skagway historical district, but it would also provide an access point to the park's White Pass

unit. The Park Service even offered the state the services of a landscape architect in order to

minimize the adverse impacts of construction. [93] The state, however, had difficulty accepting

the NPS boundaries proposed in the June 1972 revised draft master plan, because it showed the

proposed highway passing through the White Pass Unit. Instead, it argued that the NPS

recognize the existence of a designated highway corridor. [94] The NPS, responding in the

master plan, reiterated its support for the road but did not provide for a designated corridor. The

agency specifically intended that the road would become an access road to the proposed park; in

fact, the boundaries of the White Pass Unit were configured to give the NPS full management

control over a trail which would connect the road to the White Pass City area, the Brackett

Wagon Road, and the White Pass Trail. [95] For awhile in early 1973, the conflict between the

state and the NPS resulted in a proposed park boundary that parallelled the road's right-of-way.

Later, however, the boundary was extended west to the next section line, where it remains

today. [96]

Although some authorities were confident that the road could be constructed in two or three

years, more than five years would elapse before the project was completed. On the Alaska side,

the surveyors finished their work in 1973 and bids opened for road construction in July 1974.

[97] By October, Central Construction Company of Seattle was awarded a $10.9 million

contract. [98] Work began immediately. By the end of 1975, a pioneer road had been roughed

out as far as Captain William Moore Creek, and by August 1976 the bridge across the creek had

been completed. [99] By year's end the road had been pushed a mile beyond the bridge, and by

September 1977 workers were able to report that the completed highway was "within sight of

the border." By season's end, the highway had been blasted as far as the summit. [100]

Canadian crews had to construct far more roadway than the Americans, so two different

construction contracts were let. By October 1973 the first contract had been let to Ben Ginter

Construction, Ltd. of Prince George, B.C., for 16 miles of roadway between the Yukon-B.C.

border and the south end of Tutshi Lake. That contract should have been finished by the end of

the 1974 season, but project work was delayed for a full year. Construction work was stalled for

so long that the Alaska legislature passed a resolution calling for a "timely completion" of the

highway; a more strongly-worded resolution, calling for the two countries to complete the road

at the same time, died in a House committee. [101] The second contract, for the remaining 20

miles of the highway, was let in the spring of 1976 to General Enterprises, Ltd. of Whitehorse.

[102] By September 1977, General had completed a tote road to within seven miles of the

border. They finally reached the border on July 28, 1978, and by September 1, construction

workers were able to drive over White Pass summit. [103] A few hardy Skagway residents were

able to drive to Whitehorse that year. Most, however, waited until 1979 to use the new road.

[104] The highway was dedicated on May 23, 1981 at the Liarsville campground, near

Skagway. [105]

During the early stages of the road planning effort, the NPS demanded that a turnout--intended

as a viewing area and trail head--be placed within the mile-long stretch of road included within

the proposed park boundaries. [106] During the summer of 1975, the NPS was called on to

select a specific location for the turnout. A location was suggested which would provide a view

of White Pass City; a proposed signpost would describe the history of the White Pass area.

[107] The NPS intended, at this time, to have only one interpretive location along the SkagwayCarcross road. By the time construction took place, however, authorities decided that a second
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pull-out (located between Black Lake and the Porcupine Creek crossing) was necessary as well.

Congress Introduces a Park Bill

Alaska's Congressional delegation introduced the first bills to establish Klondike Gold Rush

National Historical Park in April 1973. By that time, the NPS had been working for more than

two years on the language to be contained in such a bill. Work had begun in January 1971 when

the Western Service Center had completed the preliminary master plan. The preparation of a

planning directive and legislative support data allowed officials to begin compiling a draft

legislative bill in April 1971. Senator Stevens and NPS officials cooperated in preparing the text

for the bill, and in January 1972, a preliminary draft for a 22,000-acre park was shown to

Governor Egan. [108] By March, the agency had shown a new draft of the bill (revised because

of state objections) to the remainder of the Alaska Congressional delegation, and Stevens

informed the agency that he planned to introduce a park bill that summer. [109] In August,

however, Stevens notified regional officials that "it would probably be too late to hold hearings

on it this Congress," and action was delayed until 1973. [110] For the next nine months, the

language of the proposed bill changed several times in order to conform with ongoing changes

in the park's master plan.

By April 2, 1973, the draft bills were ready to be submitted. Stevens planned to introduce a bill

on April 17, and fellow senator Henry Jackson (D-WA) had already agreed to co-sponsor it.

[111] On the 17th, Stevens introduced S. 1622; it was co-sponsored by senators Jackson, Mike

Gravel (D-AK), and Warren Magnuson (D-WA) The same day, Representative Don Young (RAK) introduced an identical bill (H.R. 7121) in the House of Representatives; it was cosponsored by Brock Adams (D-WA) and Joel Pritchard (R-WA). Adams and Pritchard had

special reasons for joining as early co-sponsors; Adams's district covered part of the Pioneer

Square historical district, including the Pioneer Building, while Pritchard's district covered the

remainder of the Pioneer Square area. [112]

Once the bills were submitted, they were filed in the Senate and House Interior and Insular

Affairs committees. There they waited for committee action. Meanwhile, the regional office

prepared legislative support data packages for the proposed park. [113]

The National Park Service, which had worked with Congress in the preparation of the two bills,

agreed with most of the language contained within them. On December 16, 1973, however, it

recommended four amendments to S. 1622, and a month later, it recommended two more. Of the

six, only two were substantive. First, the NPS urged that the park's maximum size be increased

from 12,000 acres to 13,300 acres, in order to coincide with the areas the NPS had identified as

being required for the park. The second amendment dealt with the Yukon-Taiya project. The

original bill, as crafted by Congress, contained a subsection which specifically authorized the

construction of the Yukon-Taiya power project and the use of lands and waters within the park

for the project. The NPS, in response to that subsection, had no quarrel with the intent of that

language. But an Interior Department lawyer recommended that reference to the project be

deleted, since Congress--regardless of the bill's contents--was capable of authorizing the project

should it wish to do so. [114]

In February 1974, the park master plan was released. That same month several Alaska House

members, including local representatives Mike Miller and Mildred Banfield, introduced House

Joint Resolution 74, which advocated the passage of a Klondike park bill. Within a month the

resolution had passed both chambers with unanimous votes, and on March 11 Governor Egan

signed the measure. In mid-May, the Juneau Chamber of Commerce approved a similar

resolution, and on June 17, the Seattle City Council did the same. [115]
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Although the bills to authorize the park, by this time, enjoyed broad support, they did not

receive Interior Department approval until May. They were then sent to the Office of

Management and Budget where they were held up for several months. When the bills emerged

from OMB, Ted Stevens asked Alan Bible, the chairman of the Senate Parks and Recreation

Subcommittee (part of the Interior and Insular Affairs Committee), to schedule hearings on S.

1622. By that time, however, the session was winding down. As a result, neither S. 1622 nor

H.R. 7121 were acted upon by their respective committees during the 93rd Congress. Signs were

good, however, for action in the next Congress. A logjam of other park legislation was being

cleared away, and the Interior Department had recommended that the Klondike park proposal be

included in President Ford's legislative program. [116]

During this period, the Canadians also hoped to make progress on the establishment of a park in

the area surrounding the Chilkoot Trail corridor. The Chrétien-Radford announcement of June

13, 1973 portended continued momentum toward a new park. After that announcement,

however, the park proposal got bogged down in British Columbia's bureaucracy. Jack Radford,

the Minister of Recreation and Conservation, hoped to proceed with park plans, but the

Provincial Water Resources Chief Engineer was less than enthusiastic about the idea. The

engineer objected to the 80-square-mile land transfer because the Chilkoot Trail corridor was

still covered by a power withdrawal, made in February 1949, that had been related to the

proposed Yukon-Taiya Project. (See Chapter 2.) To the engineer, the ability to develop that

power had to be preserved. Another roadblock that arose during this period was one of

aboriginal land rights; the B.C. government did not recognize these rights, and the province

feared that a land transfer with the Federal government (which acknowledged Native land rights)

might imply that the provincial government similarly recognized them. The Provincial

Environment and Land Use Committee was given the task of resolving these conflicts. In the

meantime, no action took place on the land transfer. [117]

Skagway Preservation Efforts

The National Park Service had decided, almost from the beginning of its involvement, that

preservation controls would have to be enacted if a park unit in Skagway was to have any real

chance of success. Thanks to the Alaska State Housing Authority, the city's first zoning map

had been created in 1964 as part of a comprehensive plan. Included in that map was a Skagway

Historical Zone. But Skagway had neither a historic ordinance nor any other kind of zoning

ordinance.

In March 1969, NPS planner Bailey O. Breedlove consulted officials from the Alaska State

Housing Authority, the Anchorage Area Borough, and the Department of Housing and Urban

Development. Soon after, he began to fashion a model Historical Preservation Zoning

Ordinance. As noted in Chapter 3, the Skagway Alternatives Study of March 1969 suggested

that the city, as a prerequisite to NPS involvement, would be required to adopt 1) a zoning

ordinance with a strict definition of "the historic district," and 2) a Historic Advisory Board to

advise the Mayor and City Council on matters of historic preservation. [118] The agency

approved the implementation of the alternative which included these provisions. Two years

later, the park's preliminary master plan noted that the city would need to 1) "establish by

ordinance the historic district..." and 2) "adopt local zoning laws which would help to preserve

the historic integrity of the privately owned remaining historic buildings within the historic

district...". [119]

NPS planners--chiefly Rod Pegues, assisted by Laurin Huffman--then worked with the city in

order to establish an appropriate historic district zoning ordinance. At first, agency officials were

unsure whether it was legal for the city to enact such an ordinance. (No other city in Alaska had

a specially-zoned historic district.) Both the Interior Department Solicitor and the state Attorney
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General, however, issued opinions stating that the city could legally do so. [120] Over the next

few months, Pegues worked with the Skagway City Council and the city attorney to craft a

citywide zoning ordinance which provided for a historic district. That ordinance was finally

presented to the City Council in the summer of 1972. It was given its third reading and was

passed at the October 3 council meeting. The new ordinance called for the creation of the

Skagway Historic District (or zone) with boundaries identical to those called for in the second

draft of the master plan. The new ordinance, which became effective in November, was

administered by the city's planning commission. There was no attempt at this time to establish a

commission specifically for historic district affairs. [121]

During this period, several owners of Skagway's business properties contacted the NPS seeking

architectural advice. The old Idaho Saloon, at the northwest corner of Third Avenue and

Broadway, had suffered a fire in early 1972. Repairs were needed. [122] The Principal Barber

shop changed hands, and the new owner hoped to restore it. Verbauwhede's Confectionery

suffered a fire in the fall of 1973, and restoration of the Nettles hardware store was proposed.

[123] The owners of these and other local historical properties were aware that their investments

were becoming increasingly valuable, and all were eager to obtain the services of a historical

architect if one were available. The NPS had an architect in its Seattle office, and promised his

services to local residents. The architect, however, was constrained by his position; he could

give general advice, for instance, but as a public sector employee he could not draw detailed

plans and specifications. Besides, he was often too busy with other duties to provide much direct

assistance. [124]

By the fall of 1973, the Skagway city council had finally moved to implement the provisions of

the historic district zoning ordinance which had been created the previous October. John

McDermott, owner of a business located in a Broadway historical building, was asked to head

the Skagway Historical Commission. Other members included Jim Hamilton, Jean Richter, Jack

Brown, Jewell Knapp, and Rex Hermens. As McDermott understood it, the commission's

primary duty was to review and approve building plans for new construction or remodelling in

the historic district. He and the other members, however, knew little about architectural detail.

They prevailed on the NPS, therefore, for drawings, photographs, and other backup materials.

[125]

In addition, John Rutter was able to relay their concerns to the National Trust for Historic

Preservation. The Trust responded by sending staff members John Frisbee, Robertson Collins,

and Carol Galbreath to Skagway for two technical workshops which were held in mid-March

1974. NPS and State officials also attended. One workshop was held for the city manager, the

Skagway Historical Commission, and the Skagway Planning Commission; another was

presented at the high school for the community at large. The National Trust came away from

their visit with a number of suggestions for improving the historical commission's function;

many of those were packaged into an ordinance which passed the City Council later that year.

[126]

By June 1974, it was evident that the historical commission was still having trouble getting

started. In addition, local citizens became alarmed when cedar shingles began to be applied to

the Nome Saloon, at the northeast corner of Sixth Avenue and Broadway. In response to those

problems, and to a spate of new renovation activities, the commission invited NPS planner Don

Campbell to Skagway. [127] The NPS recognized that many local architectural problems could

be solved only with professional expertise. Therefore, it entered into a cooperative agreement

with the city that July which called for an architect to provide regular consultation to the

historical commission. [128] The man chosen to fulfill that role was Laurin Huffman, the

Historical Architect in the Pacific Northwest Regional Office, who had been visiting Skagway

since 1972. [129]
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The Historic District Commission, which McDermott had organized in the fall of 1973, had its

first regular meeting on October 24, 1974. NPS planner Don Campbell was in attendance. Two

months later, the commission more than doubled in size, to 13 members. [130] Laurin Huffman,

the NPS advisor, continued to consult with the commission on an intermittent basis. Interest in

the commission, however, soon declined. It met only once in 1975, in May; meetings scheduled

during other months were postponed for lack of a quorum. [131] The commission's inactivity

resulted in the disestablishment of the historic commission within months of the park's

authorization. The city planning commission assumed its functions and became the Planning,

Zoning, and Historic Commission. [132]

The Role of the National Park Foundation

The National Park Foundation, which had become the owner of the former White Pass and

Yukon Route depot in May 1971, became increasingly involved in the preservation of

Skagway's buildings during the mid-1970s. The 1973 master plan, it may be remembered,

proposed that the NPS purchase nine Skagway buildings, restore them, and retain them for

interpretive purposes. Except for the two-building White Pass depot complex, the other seven

buildings were privately owned. These included the three-building Mascot Complex, Boss

Bakery, Boas Tailor and Furrier, the Tanner Building, and the Moore Cabin. The master plan

also identified seven buildings which it hoped to purchase and restore, then lease back to private

parties; these buildings included the Verbauwhede's Confectionery complex, the four-building

Pack Train complex, the Principal Barber shop, and the Idaho Saloon. National Park Service

officials were worried that many of these buildings would lose their historical importance if they

were not immediately purchased. The NPS, however, could not purchase any buildings until the

park had been authorized. The agency, therefore, enlisted the National Park Foundation to serve

as a holding agency.

During the early months of 1973, NPS personnel examined each of the above buildings and

made cost estimates for their acquisition and restoration. The Foundation was kept apprised of

those costs. [133]

That July, NPS personnel traveled to Skagway and obtained a series of options to purchase

several Skagway properties. From Malcolm Moe, the agency obtained a 12 month option to

purchase the Verbauwhede's Confectionery complex for $17,500. He also agreed on a 12 month

option to sell the Boss Bakery building for $4,000, but only if it could be moved to another

location. Cy Coyne agreed to a 12 month option, for $7,500, for the lot at the northwest corner

of Broadway and Fifth Avenue. Finally, Charles Hermens, George Rapuzzi and their wives

offered to sell the Mascot complex for $40,000, but only if a deal could be consummated by

December 23, 1973. [134]

Over the next few months, the NPS dropped its option on Cy Coyne's lot and obtained an option

on the Principal Barber shop. [135] Lacking available funds, it showed little immediate interest

in purchasing most of those properties. The Mascot complex, however, was another matter. The

agency had been interested in the Mascot buildings since the late 1960s, and as Regional

Director John Rutter told NPS Director Ronald H. Walker, the buildings were "the key to the

planned living history interpretive exhibits on city life in the historic district of Skagway."

Rutter was worried that "these unique historical buildings might be sold to a new owner unless

the offer is promptly accepted." In addition, he hoped to consummate the sale in order to curry

favor with George Rapuzzi, "one of the most knowledgeable persons on the Klondike Gold

Rush." Rapuzzi, over the years, had

collected an estimated five buildings full of antiques--original bars, signs,

documents, pictures of the original Klondike, and many other miscellaneous items
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which will be essential in developing an interpretive program for the Klondike Gold

Rush National Historical Park. [136]

John L. Bryant, Jr., who had recently replaced Stuart Cross as president of the National Park

Foundation, was well aware of the Mascot's importance. Bryant, however, was doubtful that the

Foundation would be able to raise $40,000 in the three months which remained before

December 23. [137]

Rutter, determined to find a way to orchestrate a deal, sent NPS staff back to Skagway and tried

to get Rapuzzi to extend the sale offer or to lower his price. Rapuzzi refused on both counts. He

then wrote to Director Walker about the situation and spoke to him as well, and asked the NPF

to again consider the matter. [138] What happened next is unclear. By mid-December, however,

the NPS was on the verge of wrapping up a deal. Rapuzzi, recognizing that fact, agreed to

extend his offer until January 23, 1974. He evidently extended it awhile longer, because the

transaction was not finalized until March 18. On that date, the National Park Foundation

purchased the Mascot complex from George and Edna Rapuzzi and Charles and Virginia

Hermens. [139]

The NPF, meanwhile, attempted to raise the funds to purchase the remaining options. Signs

were initially pessimistic; at a September 21, 1973 meeting, Foundation board members sensed

that the park would not be established in the immediate future, and concluded that the body

"would not want to find itself in the position of purchasing land for which the NPS was not

actively supporting legislation authorizing reimbursement." They promised, however, to

undertake a fundraising campaign. Soon afterwards, letters were sent out to several key

Alaskans who might be able to provide fundraising assistance. [140] The following spring,

Bryant and NPS official Bill Collins traveled to Anchorage on a fundraising trip; while there,

they met with various business and fine arts patrons. Their fundraising efforts, however, were

largely unsuccessful, and the National Park Foundation made no more purchases in the Skagway

area. [141]

During its period of ownership, the Foundation protected its Skagway buildings by hiring a

watchman--first John Edwards, then Bob Vaughan--and providing fire insurance. Edwards and

Vaughan made minor repairs and served as local points of contact when Glacier Bay

Superintendent Bob Howe visited. [142]

Throughout the 1970s, NPS personnel were well aware that the White Pass depot was rapidly

deteriorating. In October 1972, shortly after a destructive windstorm, wall bracing (using NPF

insurance funds) was installed on the administration building. Intended to be temporary in

nature, the bracing remained for another eight or ten years. In February 1974, it was reported

that plaster was falling on the second floor; that fall, Don Campbell noted that the roof was

leaking badly. Campbell asked Laurin Huffman, the regional historical architect, to investigate.

Huffman discovered that the railroad annex had suffered a total roof failure and that a chimney

on the depot side was ready to collapse. He warned that "If this condition is allowed to remain

for any length of time, the building will become a total ruin and collapse in a few years." He

suggested two ways to fix the roof: a plastic membrane, which would work for an estimated two

years, and a full roof replacement, which would work for twenty. [143]

The NPS, wishing to minimize expenses, opted to protect the roof using plastic sheeting. It was

prepared in May 1975 and installed in July. Huffman, using all the good humor he could muster,

was "betting...about 50-50 as to whether the covering will be effective and will weather out the

winter winds." "It gives one great humility," he noted, "to have to report that at least 97 per cent

of the citizens of Skagway are betting against the durability of this roof repair (the other 3

percent had not heard about it yet or were too young to care)." By this time, the depot chimney

which Huffman had noted the previous fall had fallen down. [144]
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No sooner had the Foundation acquired a title to their depot and saloon than outside parties

began to show an interest in using them. Soon after the Mascot Saloon was purchased, local

resident Cheri Burns expressed an interest in using it for a summertime theater. Several months

later, Tom Biss, an actor who portrayed Soapy Smith, made a similar request. Insurance

provisions, however, prevented such activities from taking place. [145] In October 1975, the

Foundation, without the Service's knowledge, actually did lease the Mascot complex to local

resident Kurt Kosters. But NPS regional officials were more interested in displaying a

bicentennial exhibition of photo murals, display cases, maps, and artifacts on the property, and

prevailed upon the NPF to cancel Kosters' lease. [146]

More serious attempts were made to develop the railroad depot into a cultural attraction. Local

resident Richard Haupt, with a 1973 proposal, was the first person that tried to rent the facility.

But more serious interest developed in 1975. Skagway citizens had long sought a large meeting

hall, and as a result, members of the Skagway Fine Arts Council spoke with Bob Howe

regarding the use of the depot as a performing arts center. That September, Rick Goodfellow,

from the Alaska State Council for the Arts, wrote to regional officials about the idea. The NPS

gave Goodfellow the same answer they had given Haupt; they would be glad to consider the

idea of a theater, but not until the park was authorized. [147]

Beginning in December 1975, the cause of a depot theater was championed by Eldon Elder, a

New York-based consultant in the employ of the Southeast Alaska Regional Arts Council. The

Council hoped to establish a series of performing arts and visual arts centers throughout the

panhandle, and the Skagway Fine Arts Council designated the depot as the Skagway location for

such a facility. At first, signs were encouraging for a theater development; the NPS was willing

to cooperate and provide information, and the passage in February 1976 of the Rail

Revitalization and Regulatory Reform Act (S. 2718) promised funds for the utilization of

historic railroad buildings. [148] Arts groups and the Alaska Congressional delegation were

vocal in their support for the project.

Even so, the idea never got beyond the conceptual stage. NPS officials made it known that the

primary interest in restoring the depot's first floor was the creation of a setting for NPS

interpretive activities. A community theatre, tangential to that goal, was acceptable if it was

otherwise compatible. The agency, however, bridled at Elder's proposal, which would have

gutted the depot's interior. Furthermore, any restoration efforts were years away; the agency

could not allot funds for the depot complex until the park was authorized by Congress, and

restoration efforts would take several years to complete. As a result of these factors, the idea of

a community theatre in the depot had been shelved by February 1978, more than a year before

the NPS began active restoration work on the depot. [149]

The NPS made no attempt during this period to open its buildings to the public. In response to

local chamber of commerce concerns, however, the agency offered to create an informal

interpretive display at the Mascot Saloon. In May 1975, NPS officials removed the boards that

George Rapuzzi had used to protect the building's windows. By late July they had installed a

message board and six poster-sized black-and-white prints. [150]

Chilkoot Trail Activities, 1972-1976

During the late 1960s and early 1970s, the Chilkoot Trail had witnessed an explosion in

recreational visitation, from less than 100 during the 1968 season to an estimated 1000 during

the summer of 1972. Through the 1972 season, however, there was no ranger presence on the

Chilkoot. The only staff on the U.S. side during the 1969-1972 period were maintenance

personnel from the Alaska Division of Parks, who spent just a few weeks on the trail each

summer. On the Canadian side, the only staff from 1968 through 1971 had been a crew of
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Whitehorse-based inmates. In 1972, the inmates were supplemented by a crew of students, who

spent the summer photographing and collecting artifacts.

That situation soon changed. The state's Department of Natural Resources, which had selected

the land along the trail corridor, recognized that the NPS had spent a considerable amount of

effort developing a proposal for a Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, and it also

realized that it was unable to provide season-long protection for hikers or the area's historical

resources. The Bureau of Land Management owned most of the land in the Taiya Valley.

Neither that agency nor the state, however, had available staff to protect the area. Based on

those assumptions, the NPS, the BLM, and the state entered into a cooperative agreement on

August 11, 1972. The agreement stated that the NPS "shall undertake to provide management

and protection and do what may be necessary to administer, protect, improve, and maintain the

lands and associated resources" in the Chilkoot Trail corridor. The parties maintained, however,

"that this cooperative agreement shall in no way be deemed to be a transfer of title to any lands

or associated resources, nor constitute in any way a disavowal or relinquishment of any right,

title, or interest by any of the parties...." The agreement was to terminate "at such time as

legislation is enacted to establish the proposed Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park or

at such time as the parties hereto may hereafter agree." [151] The NPS was to undertake its new

responsibility beginning in the summer of 1973.

The same week in which the cooperative agreement was signed, NPS and Canadian staff were

meeting at Lindeman Lake to agree on a common set of trail standards, signs and markers.

Officials agreed that the trail should have white-on-black mileage markers established each halfmile between Dyea and Bennett; in addition, six-inch orange triangles were to be stenciled in

the rocks "in a neat and appropriate manner" between Stone House (approximately a mile north

of Sheep Camp) and the Pass, after which orange snow markers would be used as far as "Small

Lake" (Morrow Lake). No new shelters would be built along the trail; instead, wall tents would

suffice. Camp tents would be constructed at Canyon City, Sheep Camp, and Deep Lake, while

administrative tents would be erected at the Scales and at Morrow Lake. Finally, they agreed to

establish a series of small, unobtrusive metal interpretive signs on both the U.S. and Canadian

sides of the trail. [152]

Most of the August 1972 trail recommendations eventually came to pass. That winter, the NPS

chose Scott Sappington and Chuck Nelson to be its first Chilkoot Trail rangers, and asked them

to undertake a state-sponsored law enforcement course that deputized them as state park

rangers. The two, under the guidance of Superintendent Bob Howe of Glacier Bay and assisted

by local resident Bob Vaughan, began working along the trail in late May 1973 and continued

their duties until late September. Sappington and Nelson established a new ranger headquarters

at Sheep Camp, which consisted of an A-frame wall tent located one-quarter mile south of the

state-built cabin. (The wall tent had been prefabricated at Glacier Bay and transported to the

site.) They spent the summer providing guidance and information, enforcing regulations, and

educating hikers on the importance of the area's historical resources. Beyond that, they asked

each hiker where they had camped, their direction of travel, the size of their party, the age and

sex of hikers, and their state or country of origin. This was to be the first of five years in which

hikers would be thus surveyed. Sappington, who was trained as a biologist, also made detailed

notes of the plants and animals he observed along the trail; he included an extensive species

compendium in his season-ending report. [153]

In early June 1973, the State of Alaska trail crew joined the rangers and spent the next few

weeks maintaining the trail, much as they had been doing since 1969. As part of their work, they

installed mileage markers each one-half mile along the U.S. side of the trail. (These did not

continue north of the summit.) On the Canadian side, both the corrections crew and the students

who photographed and collected artifacts continued their work, much as they had in 1972. [154]
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In 1974, Parks Canada dispatched its first protection and maintenance personnel on the

Canadian side of the Chilkoot Trail. Bruce Harvey, the agency's Superintendent of Yukon

Historic Sites, installed a four-person crew consisting of warden patrolpersons Shirley Moore

and Marina McCready and maintenance personnel Manfred Hedgecock and Gordon Blasko. The

team established a new camp at Lindeman Lake, at the site of the present headquarters camp (on

the left bank of Moose Creek, east of Lower Cabin), which consisted of two two-person wall

tents and a cookhouse. Hedgecock and Blasko replaced, and continued the work of, the Yukon

Correctional Institute crews, while Moore and McCready pioneered ranger activities along the

trail. Beginning that year, and for years thereafter, the trail was managed not as a separate park

area, but as a unit of Yukon National Historic Sites. [155]

On the U.S. side that year, Scott Sappington returned as a trail ranger. He was accompanied by

Art Mortvedt, who was replaced in mid-season by Doug Sanvik. The U.S. rangers continued the

work they had begun in 1973. In addition, they teamed up with Canadian trail personnel and

installed a series of 24 aluminum interpretive signs. These signs, created and designed by Laurin

Huffman, had been manufactured in 1973 under a Parks Canada contract, courtesy of Bruce

Harvey. Most (though not all) hikers were happy with the signs, which remained on the trail

until the early 1990s. [156] By the end of the 1974 season, U.S. and Canadian trail personnel

had implemented most of the recommendations made at the August 1972 Lindeman Lake

meeting. The only idea which never came to fruition concerned the trailside wall tents.

The proposed park master plan, which was effectively completed in 1973, noted that one of the

NPS's chief objectives, as it pertained to the Chilkoot Trail, was to "relocate the present trail to

its true historic location, where feasible." [157] In order to investigate the practicality of moving

the trail, the NPS rangers were asked to submit their comments on the subject. The rangers,

after a summer's work, took a dim view of the subject. In 1973, a ranger discovered the original

trail in the Canyon City area; the following year, the old pathway between Pleasant Camp and

Sheep Camp was found. In both instances, dramatic evidence was presented that well-travelled

historic trail segments contained far fewer artifacts than the more remote segments. Perhaps as a

result of those efforts, the NPS has made no attempt to relocate the recreational trail to its

historic right-of-way. [158]

After 1974, trail operations remained relatively stable until 1977. The NPS continued to support

a two-person crew, assisted by Skagway resident Robert Vaughan and a short annual visit from

State Division of Parks maintenance personnel. Parks Canada continued with its four-person

crew. Four new buildings were constructed along the trail during this period. They included a

third residential tent at the Lindeman Lake warden's camp (1974), an additional tent frame at

Sheep Camp (1975), a wooden A-frame supply cache, located east of the trail opposite the

Sheep Camp ranger station (1975), and a wooden A-frame at Stone Crib, just north of Chilkoot

Pass (1976). During the same period one de facto overnight site, the Dan Johnson cabin near

Bennett, was purchased by Parks Canada and closed to public use. Visitation increased

dramatically during the period (see Appendix A), from 1,070 hikers in 1973 to a total of 1,508

who made the trip in 1976. [159]

Communication along the trail improved enormously during the mid-1970s. In 1973, Bob Howe

gave the trail rangers a radio and attempted to keep in touch with them from the Glacier Bay

headquarters at Bartlett Cove. Radio transmissions, however, were often less than reliable and

were occasionally impossible. Communication between the U.S. and Canadian sides was more

primitive; rangers met at the summit and conversed, or notes were passed from camp to camp

by willing hikers. In 1974, the NPS acquired a portable single sideband transceiver, and radio

transmissions between Glacier Bay and Sheep Camp were reported to be "loud and clear."

[160] In 1975, the Canadian wardens were provided with portable radios, and communication

became possible between Whitehorse, Lindeman Lake, Sheep Camp, and Bartlett Cove. The

quality of radio communication was spotty that summer. In 1976 it fared no better, being
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operational for just 20 percent of the season, and rangers still had to direct their

communications via Bartlett Cove on many occasions. [161]

During the 1973-1977 period, Parks Canada made few moves toward implementing the park

plans which had been announced so dramatically in June 1973. The agency did, however,

decide on a shift in emphasis. Rather than focusing its interpretation on the Bennett church, as it

had in the early 1970s, the agency decided that the entire Chilkoot Trail was of interest; it did so

by the Chrétien-Radford decision to create a park and by the agency's appointment of trail

personnel, both before and after that announcement. In addition, problems which developed at

Bennett between Parks Canada and the White Pass railroad demanded that Bennett be deemphasized as a point of historical interest. Park planners decided, therefore, that the main

Chilkoot Trail orientation and interpretation center should be located at Carcross. Bennett was

relegated to secondary status. [162]

Throughout this period, hikers traversing the Chilkoot continued to receive state-sponsored trail

guides. These guides, as noted in Chapter 3, had first been published in 1968. In late 1972 a

revised guide was published with the cooperation of the Corrections Branch of Yukon

Territorial Government; it included detailed information about the Canadian side of the trail. In

early 1974 the state published a second revision that reflected the NPS's new management

presence, the new interpretive signs, and other changes. Soon after its publication, members of

the Klondike Gold Rush International Advisory Committee began to demand further revisions.

The result of that effort was "The Historic Chilkoot Trail," a cooperatively-produced trail guide

printed in Canada and distributed during the summer of 1976. [163]

The Environmental Statement and Affiliated Studies

As noted above, a master plan had to be completed before Congress would consider the

Klondike gold rush park proposal. But other documents would be necessary as well. In order to

satisfy the dictates of Sec. 102 (c) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (P.L. 91-

190), NPS personnel had to complete a park environmental statement. As a necessary adjunct to

the ES process, state and local interests wanted to know how the park would impact Skagway's

economic and social fabric; reports were prepared, therefore, which addressed those questions.

Additional studies which were prepared during the period which preceded the park's

authorization included a survey of Chilkoot Trail hikers, a community planning project, and a

state-sponsored land use plan for the Haines-Skagway area.

NPS personnel began writing a draft environmental statement in 1972, during the same period

in which the park's master plan was being finalized. The first draft of the DES was issued in

March 1973. Soon afterwards, it was distributed for public review. The document, however, was

held up in Washington according to the same schedule (and for many of the same reasons) as

the master plan. The revised DES was not completed until April 25, 1974, and it was not

distributed until mid-May. [164]

The DES, which merely reflected the same information which had been contained in the master

plan, was distributed to the general public as well as to the various governmental agencies. The

document proved to be relatively non-controversial. The Bureau of Mines castigated the report

for the incompleteness of its coverage of mineral resources, and a Juneau-based Sierra Club

spokesman questioned the agency's support of the Skagway-Carcross road. [165]

NPS regional office personnel responded to those concerns, and a panoply of others, during

their preparation of the Final Environmental Statement. The FES was under way by July 1974,

and by September it had been passed on to Washington. By November, it had been approved by

both NPS and Interior Department officials, and by mid-December it had been approved by the
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President's Council on Environmental Quality and had been distributed to the public. [166]

In addition to the master plan and environmental statement, planners on both the U.S. and

Canadian sides of the border hoped to obtain additional data on Skagway and the trail corridor

before the park was established. The idea of an additional study was first broached at the

October 1972 meeting of the Klondike Gold Rush International Advisory Committee, where "It

was agreed that an economic study of the proposed park would likely have beneficial effects in

Alaska and British Columbia as well as with Congress and the American administration." [167]

Canadian planners investigated the matter, and in July 1973 they presented NPS officials with a

proposal for a $32,000 economic study of the Chilkoot Trail, which would entail obtaining

questionnaires from a thousand Chilkoot hikers. Half of the cost of the proposed study would be

paid by each country. Regional Director John Rutter liked the idea, but Park Planner Don

Campbell rejected it as inappropriate and too costly. Instead, he suggested that the NPS

undertake a study (on its own) which would project the economic impact of the park on the

town and region of Skagway and the sociological changes which Skagway would face as the

park was developed. [168]

Campbell's idea was passed on to Dr. Donald R. Field, a professor at the University of

Washington's College of Forest Resources who also served as the agency's Regional Chief

Scientist. Field, who was enthusiastic about the proposal, responded by organizing a study team.

The economic study was to be completed by two Washington State University economists,

James C. Barron and Kenneth L. Casavant. The sociological study would be written by Stephen

R. Wells, a Yale-trained graduate student who had recently applied to UW. Finally, a visiting

professor from the University of Kentucky, Dr. Rabel Burdge, was asked to head a study

profiling Chilkoot Trail hikers. Field himself would serve as the principal investigator for the

combined studies, which would begin in fiscal year 1974 and continue until June 1975. [169]

On May 28, 1974, the University of Washington and the National Park Service signed a contract

whereby the two parties would cooperate in the preparation of the various socioeconomic

studies, which together would serve as an addendum to the ES. [170] Work on the economic

impact study began immediately. Field, Barron, and Casavant visited Skagway in late May and

interviewed John Bowers, the city manager. Barron, who specialized in economic matters, and

Casavant, who investigated the area's transportation system, completed a draft version of their

$4,500 study in December 1974. The NPS, however, did not release their study to local officials

until the following November. [171] NPS officials were cautious about the report's findings,

noting it as a draft report which "should not be looked upon as a basis for decision making."

[172] Officials in Skagway, however, were happy with its findings, and no final report was

issued.

Stephen Wells' sociological study followed. It was intended to be a social history of the

community, a sociocultural profile of present-day Skagway, and a basis for measuring the social

impacts of the new park. In July 1974, Wells kicked off his study by spending the month in

Skagway. He then returned to Seattle and spent the next school year as a student. He made a

formal study proposal to the NPS in May 1975; based on that proposal, he gained approval for

the $6,500 study in June. [173] Wells worked on the study extensively in 1975 and 1976, and

used the data he collected as the basis for his Ph.D. dissertation. His study was completed in

March 1978. [174]

The last of the three NPS-sponsored projects to begin was the Chilkoot Trail hiker survey. As

noted above, the U.S. trail rangers had begun surveying hikers, on an informal basis, in 1973. A

more formal trail survey had first been suggested by Canadian park personnel in 1972-73, but

the U.S. had balked at their plans. A trail survey, headed by Rabel Burdge, was included in the

May 1974 contract. By that time, however, the Canadians' study plans had been delayed. Parks

officials reluctantly agreed to defer the project for a year. That October, Field and Burdge met
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with Dr. Jay Beaman, a Parks Canada statistician, to develop a suitable questionnaire. Officials

also made logistical plans. Parks Canada, unable to hire personnel to assist in the data gathering,

agreed to pay approximately one-third of the study's $5,100 price tag. The NPS would shoulder

the remainder of the costs; field workers would be graduate students from UW's Sociology

Studies Program. [175]

Plans seemed to be on course for data collection during the summer of 1975. That April,

however, Glenn Gallison of the NPS requested that the project be postponed for another year.

His reasons for doing so were political, not logistical. (See section below.) Well aware that the

Senate, at long last, was about to hold a hearing on the park, he tactfully told Peter Bennett, his

Canadian counterpart, that the NPS "would prefer not to initiate any new research studies until

the park is established, since we do not wish to stir up the residents of Skagway at this critical

time." [176]

By January 1976, political feelings had calmed down, and plans were made yet again to survey

hikers on the Chilkoot. The NPS called for proposals to be submitted in February for work that

was to begin in May. Two full-time data gatherers were chosen; Wendy Wolf and Peter

Womble from UW. The two spent the summer of 1976 in and around the Lindeman Lake Parks

Canada camp, and by mid-September they had collected survey forms from 1,516 Chilkoot

hikers. Working with the assistance of Dr. Field, rangers at both ends of the trail, and NPS

regional personnel, they compiled Hikers on the Chilkoot Trail: A Descriptive Report, which

was published by UW in January 1978. [177]

Another area project carried out during the mid-1970s was a community planning study. The

$7,500 project, which began in April 1974, had been suggested by the National Trust for

Historic Preservation, that wanted

a comprehensive inventory of the entire city, evaluating each structure as to its

present use and its retention potential... This material should be integrated into an

historic preservation master plan for the city, not limited to the historic commercial

core. [178]

The study was sponsored by the City of Skagway and by the Division of Community Planning

in the Alaska Department of Community and Regional Affairs. These two entities had a slightly

different interest in the project; they felt that "since the city's continued prosperity is so heavily

dependent upon the successful preservation of its past, it is felt that an overall review of land

use and historic structures...is an essential first step in updating the 1964 comprehensive plan."

The study, to be completed by the end of June, called for an inventory of land use, which

included an area building inventory, and an inventory of structures of historic significance. The

contract also called for the development of a community preservation plan. [179]

Local resident Marvin Taylor was selected to write the report. Taylor was a former mayor, city

councilman and city clerk; in addition, he was a longtime White Pass & Yukon Route official.

Recently, however, he had severed his relationship with the railroad and established a

consulting company, M. P. Taylor and Associates; he also operated a travel agency, engaged in

a car-rental business, and served as a stevedoring agent. During May 1974, Taylor met with

NPS contact Don Campbell, who hoped that the study would "form the basis of a national

registry application to place the entire city under national landmark designation." [180] (The

Skagway and White Pass National Historic Landmark, as noted in Chapter 3, had been

designated in 1962 and revised in 1965. That designation, however, gave no specific

information about the specific historical resources located in the NHL.) The project was

submitted shortly after its June 15 due date. When finally submitted, Taylor recommended the

designation of the following structures as national historic landmarks: the old cable office

building on the southwest corner of First Avenue and Main Street; the old city hall on Fifth
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Avenue, between State and Broadway streets; the Reno (Case-Mulvihill) residence at Seventh

Avenue and Alaska Street; the Roehr (Nye) residence, just east of the Reno residence; the

Fairway Fast Freight (Rich) building, the gold rush cemetery, and portions of the Brackett

Wagon Road. Taylor's land use and planning data was edited by Gillian Smythe, the Community

and Regional Affairs planner that served as the project's overseer. [181]

The state, which had a keen interest in the proposed park, compiled a land use plan for the

Haines and Skagway areas during the mid- to late 1970s. The idea of a state-sponsored land use

plan originated in early 1972, when Governor William Egan was asked to respond to an early

draft of the Klondike park bill. Egan was worried that the bill, if enacted in its present form,

might hinder economic development in the Dyea area; it would not provide adequately for the

Yukon-Taiya power project, and it might hinder future expansion of port facilities. Egan,

therefore, urged the creation of a land use plan which would allow for those uses. [182] It would

be the state's first land use plan.

During late 1972 and early 1973 the Division of Lands (within the state's Department of Natural

Resources) organized its land use planning team. Most members represented the various state

land management agencies, but two federal agencies--the Forest Service and NPS--also had

representatives on the panel. Rodger Pegues, who was the regional chief of co-operative

activities, was the first NPS representative; he was later succeeded by Park Planner Don

Campbell, and still later by Glacier Bay Superintendent Bob Howe. NPS lands were a relatively

small part of the area covered by the land use plan; even so, NPS personnel remained an active

part of the committee in order to guarantee the agency's interests.

The Haines-Skagway Land Management Planning Team held its first meeting in Juneau on May

10, 1973. During the next year they held three more meetings, two in Juneau and one in Haines.

[183] By May 1974, the team held its first public hearings on the plan. The Skagway hearing,

which was held on May 29, was attended by only six local citizens; by the admission of one

participant, "nothing of significance occurred" there. [184]

The land use team held another meeting, in July; soon afterwards, DNR personnel began to

prepare the land use plan's preliminary first draft. The draft, which called for "compatible

management on lands outside the proposed park boundaries," was released on December 9, and

was immediately followed by a second round of public hearings. The December 11 Skagway

hearing, attended by 24 local residents, was more lively than previous meetings but few concrete

criticisms were offered to the recently issued draft. Bob Howe, who had attended both the May

and December hearings, confidently predicted that "I believe that the land use planning

recommendations will be altered very little before final drafting." He attended one more team

meeting, in early April 1975, and found that his predictions were confirmed. He noted

afterwards that "the needs of the National Park Service at Dyea were re-confirmed with no

opposition." [185]

By mid-1975, the Haines-Skagway land use planning process was by no means over. Over the

next few years, plans would continue to be revised and expanded upon, and the three-volume

final plan would not be completed until 1979. But after 1975, the role of the NPS was minimal,

and the recommendations in the later versions of the plan, as they pertained to lands within the

proposed park, did not change. [186]

A significant event related to the state's interest in the Taiya Valley took place in the midst of

the land use planning process. As noted in Chapter 3, the state had selected lands in Dyea, the

Taiya Valley, and the surrounding area in June 1961. The BLM had been slowly processing the

selection application ever since. Then, on June 25, 1974, the BLM informed the state's Division

of Lands that it had tentatively approved the transfer of an 84,000-acre parcel that included the

above-named lands. The BLM's granting of a tentative approval was tantamount to fee-simple
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ownership. Since 1974, the final step--that of issuing a patent--has not been completed, but the

state has been managing its Taiya Valley lands as if it owned them. [187]

The Park Bill Becomes Law

As noted above, a Klondike park bill had first been submitted in April 1973; House and Senate

bills were introduced within days of each other. A variety of delays in both the agency and

Congress, however, prevented action on the bills in the 93rd Congress. Though no hearings or

other legislative activity took place during this period, the Alaska Congressional delegation

promised action on a park bill early in the next Congress.

On January 14, 1975, the first day of the 94th Congress, Rep. Don Young (R-AK) introduced

H.R. 1194 in order to establish Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park. The following

day, Ted Stevens introduced S. 98, numbered so as to commemorate the "Days of '98"

associated with the Klondike Gold Rush. S. 98 was co-sponsored by senators Gravel, Jackson,

and Magnuson, just as S. 1622 in the 93rd Congress had been. [188]

As noted above, the National Park Service had, by this time, already completed both a master

plan and a Final Environmental Statement for the park, and agency staff were hopeful that

Congress would adopt the recommendations contained in those documents. State legislators--

most notably Mike Miller, a state representative whose district included Skagway--were

likewise enthusiastic about the proposal.

Several residents of Skagway, however, had growing misgivings about the bill. In December

1974, when the Alaska Division of Lands held its public meeting on the Haines-Skagway Area

land use plan, several local residents expressed their unwillingness to accept restrictions on

almost any kind of "development" or "progress" in the area. [189] A Chamber of Commerce

spokeswoman complained that "except for the area encompassed in the present city boundaries

and the proposed park area, the balance appears to be all withdrawn." Because of the combined

efforts of the state and the NPS, she noted that "apprehension is developing on how restricted

the park corridor and the other State withdrawals are going to effect the potential commerce of

our area." [190]

Shortly after the public meeting on the state land use plan, local citizens began to receive copies

of the Final Environmental Statement. Although the information contained in the FES was little

different than that contained in the master plan, the issuance of the FES gave fuel to those

citizens who, for whatever reason, were philosophically opposed to an increased federal land

management presence. These citizens, who appear to have been in the minority, approved of the

park's economic benefits, and were specifically supportive of the Park Service's plans to

rehabilitate various buildings in downtown Skagway. They were less enthusiastic, however, with

the proposed park units in the Taiya and Skagway River valleys, because they held the potential

of limiting land use activities, either for recreational or economic-development purposes.

Skagway's residents, who by reasons of topography were an isolated population, had long

treated Dyea, the Chilkoot Trail corridor and the White Pass area as their own, and several local

citizens resented any attempts, by state or federal authorities, to limit their freedom to use the

local public lands as they saw fit. The election in October 1974 of a more development-oriented

"old city machine" (city council) merely exacerbated the situation. [191]

Those simmering resentments came to a head in late January 1975. Marvin Taylor, the president

of the Skagway Chamber of Commerce, gave a speech before the chamber critical of the NPS's

plans. Although he professed his support for the park concept, he was concerned about the

agency's plans in Dyea, about the Chilkoot Trail cooperative management zone, and that the

proposed White Pass unit would preclude the construction of new transportation routes over
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White Pass. Taylor, a former White Pass official, was not on the city council, but he was an

acknowledged "power behind the scene" in Skagway politics. Taylor had not taken part in the

two public meetings on the state's land use plan, nor had he discussed either the park's master

plan or the environmental statement with NPS officials. But his criticism of the newly-released

Final Environmental Statement in a public forum tilted local momentum against the park, at

least for the time being, and forced the NPS to do some quick damage control.

Bob Howe, the Glacier Bay superintendent and local "keyman" for the agency's efforts, made a

quick trip to Skagway to assess the situation. He contacted several local leaders, and soon

discovered that Taylor and city councilman Evron (Ed) Fairbanks had gone to Juneau to see

Governor Hammond. The two had also written to Senator Stevens and asked for a local hearing

on the park. In order to investigate the basis for their criticisms, Howe contacted Taylor soon

after he arrived in Skagway. The chamber of commerce president repeated the points he had

made in his speech; he also was adamant that the NPS would be taking Dyea's valuable water

frontage, land that might be needed for a port, for industry, or for other purposes. [192]

Howe soon discovered that there was more to Taylor's criticisms than a philosophical inclination

toward development. In the spring of 1974, the ex-railroad official had opened a consulting

business, and several times since then he had harangued the NPS because the UW, not an

Alaska entity such as his own, had been chosen to write the various socioeconomic impact

studies. [193] Howe also learned that Taylor's insistence on keeping Dyea flats open for

development was based on the expectation that he would soon be named as the Skagway Port

Director. In that capacity, he hoped to oversee the dredging of the Dyea mud flats and invite

shipping and industry into the area. [194]

Although Taylor's plans may have been far-fetched, his standing in the community was strong,

and NPS officials did all they could to investigate the basis of his complaints. The agency had

already held several public meetings on the park, and the city had already given its approval to

the park concept, but they were certainly willing to go along with his idea of having a local

public hearing on the park proposal. Henry M. Jackson, who was head of the Senate Interior and

Insular Affairs Committee, had little interest in holding a committee hearing outside of

Washington. But Alaska House member Mike Miller, in response to the concerns of several

Skagway residents as well as the NPS, was willing to hold a local meeting on a house resolution

which, similar to HJR 74 of the 1974 legislature, would urge Congressional passage of S. 98 and

H.R. 1194. [195] Accordingly, Miller introduced HJR 16 on February 26, and scheduled a

public hearing, which was technically a subcommittee meeting of the House State Affairs

committee, in Skagway on March 8.

In preparation for the upcoming hearing, Bob Howe visited Skagway in late February. While

there he met with city leaders, distributed copies of the environmental statement, and attended a

meeting of "concerned citizens" where he was questioned for three hours on the park proposal.

While there, he met head-on with those who were against the park proposal, including hunters

and other outdoor recreationists, and by meeting's end all of those present supported the park

proposal. [196] On March 7, Howe returned to town; that evening, he and five local residents

discussed the park proposal on an hour-long, locally-broadcast television program.

Miller's subcommittee hearing took place on March 8 in the Eagles Hall. Some 80 local citizens

attended; also in attendance was Bennett T. Gale, an NPS official from Seattle, and several state

officials. Thanks in large part to Howe's advance work, the meeting was relatively

noncontroversial. No one spoke in opposition to the resolution or the park proposal, although

some concern was expressed about hunting access, the joint management zone and future use of

the Dyea area. Miller felt that "the consensus of the very large crowd attending the hearing was

unquestionably positive in regards to the creation of the park," and the head of NPS's legislative

office told Congressman Young that "Based upon our recent observations, public support for the
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Klondike park has never been stronger." [197]

The success of the Skagway meeting, combined with the high priority which Senator Stevens

gave to the Klondike bill, resulted at long last in a Congressional hearing. On April 16, the

Alaska delegation sent word that the Senate National Parks and Recreation Subcommittee would

hold a hearing on S. 98 on May 12. J. Bennett Johnston, Jr. (D-LA), the subcommittee chair,

would preside. [198]

Miller knew that legislative business would prevent him from attending the Washington hearing.

In Juneau, however, he played an instrumental role in pushing through another resolution

supporting the park. On April 26, HJR 16 passed the Alaska House 29-0. Then, on May 9, just

three days before the U.S. Senate hearings were to begin, the resolution passed the Alaska

Senate by a 16-0 vote. Governor Jay Hammond signed the measure the same day and

immediately forwarded it to Interior Secretary Rogers C. B. Morton in Washington. [199]

The May 12 Klondike hearing was sandwiched between bills dealing with Assateague Island

National Seashore and Guadalupe Mountains National Park. In addition to J. Bennett Johnston,

who chaired the meeting, only two members of the subcommittee were in attendance: Clifford

Hansen (R-WY) and Richard Stone (D-FL). Speakers at the hearing included Alaska's two

senators, Ted Stevens and Mike Gravel. Stevens noted that the bill "has no opposition from any

area that I know of in the state." Gravel, suggesting the area's importance, intoned that

Alaska has its culture, with respect to the Russian influence, and it has its gold

rush. Those are the only two cultural pillars we have to look back upon. I would

hope that the Government would see fit to enshrine this in a park.

Washington's two Democratic senators, Henry M. Jackson and Warren Magnuson, also spoke,

along with Pacific Northwest Regional Director Russell Dickenson and National Trust for

Historic Preservation representative Robertson Collins. Those who submitted written statements

included Governor Jay Hammond, Guy Martin, and Mike Miller, from the state of Alaska;

Governor Daniel Evans of Washington; Edward J. Kurtz of the NPS; Lillian Litzenberger of the

Skagway Chamber of Commerce; and Cyril A. Coyne, Jack C. Lee, and Marvin Taylor from

Skagway. Telegrams in support of the park came from Mr. and Mrs. Richard E. Turner, George

and Edna Rapuzzi, Rand Snure, the Skagway Inn, Charles L. Hermens, the Keller family, and R.

A. Derr; all who sent them hailed from Skagway except for Derr, who represented the Greater

Juneau Chamber of Commerce. [200]

The hearing, like that in Skagway, proved to be relatively noncontroversial. No opposition was

expressed to the park, and the only change made as a result of the hearing was the deletion of

language pertaining to the Yukon-Taiya hydroelectric project. The subcommittee felt that the

project was inactive, and that mention of the project was unnecessary since the Congress would

ultimately have to pass on it. [201]

Once the hearings were over, the Senate acted quickly on S. 98. On May 16, the subcommittee

met and approved the amended bill. Five days later, the full Interior and Insular Affairs

Committee unanimously passed it, and on June 4, the full Senate gave its approval. [202]

Action soon shifted to the House of Representatives. Hearings were needed in the House

Subcommittee on National Parks and Recreation, which was chaired by Roy A. Taylor (D-NC).

Some Congressional staffers hoped that hearings could be held in July, but it soon became

apparent that Taylor would not address the bill until after he completed an August trip to

Alaska. [203]

August came and went, and although Taylor included a visit to Skagway and a ride on the

White Pass as part of his Alaska trip, he made no immediate moves to schedule a park bill.
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Finally, in late September, Rep. Joel Pritchard (R-WA) requested a hearing. (A portion of

Pritchard's congressional district was located in the Pioneer Square historical district; in

addition, the Congressman had just returned from a family hike over the Chilkoot Trail.) Taylor

responded by setting a hearing for November 17. [204]

As the time for the hearing approached, Taylor received plaudits for the bill from the National

Park Service, the Alaska Historical Commission, and the Governor of Alaska. [205]

Affirmations for the bill continued during the hearing itself. Speakers at the hearing included

Rep. Don Young (R-AK) and Pritchard (R-WA); NPS Director Gary Everhardt, along with Park

Planner Don Campbell; Norman Banfield, a White Pass and Yukon Route attorney; Ed

Fairbanks, from the Skagway City Council; and a three-man panel from Washington state. The

three included Ralph Munro, from the office of Governor Daniel Evans; Bruce Chapman, the

Secretary of State; and Bill Speidel, the tourism entrepreneur who had played a significant role

in publicizing and interpreting Pioneer Square. All supported H.R. 1194, Representative

Young's Klondike park bill. The hearing record also included written statements submitted by

Walter B. Parker, the Alaska Commissioner of Highways; Lowell Thomas, Jr., Alaska's

Lieutenant Governor; Leonard Gerber, of the Pioneer Square Association; H. J. Musiel, a Seattle

tourism retailer; and Anchorage entertainer Larry Beck, who contributed a poem urging the

solons to enact the park bill. [206]

The House subcommittee suggested three minor modifications to the Senate bill. First, the

White Pass and Yukon Route was considering changing from narrow-gauge (3' 0") to standardgauge (4' 8-1/2") tracks, and the changeover would require broader curves. Therefore, Norman

Banfield suggested that a clause be added to H.R. 1194 which gave the railroad the ability to

move its right-of-way, so long as it remained within the area that the General Land Office (now

the Bureau of Land Management) had allotted to it back in 1899. [207] A second modification

dealt with the Yukon-Taiya project. As noted above, the Senate subcommittee had suggested

that specific project language was unnecessary. Don Young, however, insisted that the language

be retained; removing it, he argued, might prevent the project from being reconsidered should

the two governments ever agree to construct it. [208] As a final suggestion, Ed Fairbanks of the

Skagway City Council asked for a guaranteed right-of-way across the Chilkoot Trail Unit

should a road ever be built from Skagway to Haines. As noted in Chapter 2, a road between the

two cities had first been proposed in 1949. It had been rejected as too expensive at that time,

and a quarter century later, NPS official John Rutter reacted to the city's plea by noting that the

construction of such a road "would be an engineering marvel to accomplish." But he was

willing to add an appropriate clause to the park bill if the Alaska Congressional delegation

insisted on it. [209] The subcommittee had no further disagreements. It did, however, ask the

NPS to answer eleven questions regarding the park proposal, questions that Everhardt and

Campbell had been unable to answer to Congress's satisfaction. [210]

Agency officials mulled over the suggested modifications and the eleven questions posed to

them, and by January 6 they had sent a reply which ironed out the remaining areas of

disagreement. Regarding the WP&YR's concerns, the agency agreed to add a clause to H.R.

1194 (which became Sec. 1 (c) of P.L. 94-323) which recognized the "valid existing rights" for

transportation lines "provided that significant adverse impacts to park resources will not result."

The NPS was also willing to include a clause (Sec. 1 (d)) which authorized a highway right-ofway across the Chilkoot Unit under certain conditions. It did not, however, recommend new

language regarding the Yukon-Taiya project. It recognized that any such language, as noted

above, would be superfluous. Perhaps equally important, it contacted the Alaska Power

Administration and persuaded the agency to shift the site of the project's main facility from the

Finnegan's Point area "to a location which would be away from the trail and on the edge of the

park boundary." Given that shift, the two agencies felt that the park and the hydro project "could

coexist without greatly altering the historical integrity of the area." Rep. Young, the other

members of the Alaska Congressional delegation, and the Republican members of the House
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Subcommittee on National Parks and Recreation were apparently willing to accept that

compromise. [211]

Slowly but surely, momentum built toward passage in the House. In early January, the NPS

responded to the subcommittee's information request, and soon afterwards the subcommittee

passed H.R. 1194. [212] On April 7, the House Interior and Insular Affairs unanimously

approved the bill; the day of its passage, Rep. Young proclaimed that "This bill is welljustified...To my knowledge, no one does not support it." [213]

On June 8, the amended H.R. 1194 passed the House of Representatives. Later the same day,

however, the bill was vacated, and S. 98 was substituted for it. Ten days later, members of the

House and Senate Interior committees met to resolve their differences on the bill, and the Senate

agreed to accept each of the amendments which the House had made as a result of its November

hearing. On June 21, both the House and the Senate agreed to accept the bill which had emerged

from the conference committee. The bill, still called S. 98, was almost identical to H.R. 1194;

the only portions remaining from its passage in June 1975 were the title, bill number, and

introduction. [214]

On June 21, S. 98 was forwarded to President Gerald Ford. Six months earlier, the president had

announced his support for the measure, so gaining his approval was a mere formality. On June

30, 1976, he signed S. 98 into law (Public Law 94-323), and Klondike Gold Rush National

Historical Park became a reality. [215]

The Alaska Congressional delegation took justifiable pride in the recently-passed bill. Senator

Ted Stevens remarked to the editor of the local North Wind that

The creation of the Klondike National Park [sic] preserves the legacy of the

historical and colorful goldrush era for future generations.... This area has much to

offer the tourist interest in this important part of the nation's past, and the park will

provide the facilities and management to help attract and accommodate these

visitors.

Representative Don Young was also proud to have shepherded the park bill through Congress.

In the quarterly report that was sent to his constituents, he declared that "He did yeoman's

service in helping resolve the Klondike Gold Rush National Park which will help Skagway

terrifically!" [216]

The path toward the establishment of the park had been long and tortuous. Fourteen years had

elapsed since the Skagway-White Pass area had been nominated as a national historical

landmark, and it had been eleven years since Congressman Ralph Rivers had urged that the NPS

investigate the area as a potential park site. Authorizing the park involved a broad range of

agencies at the local, state, national and international levels. The bill which authorized the park

elicited little controversy by the time it reached the halls of Congress. Considering the number

of agencies which had to be consulted, however, it is not surprising that it took as long as it did

to authorize Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park. The park, after all, was substantially

different than most other units in the National Park System; few other parks, for instance, were

composed of scattered, individual buildings within a living town. Most agencies and individuals,

however, saw the wisdom in establishing a modest park based on the gold rush theme.

Relatively few disputes, as a consequence, erupted over land ownership or land use.

Critical to the park's establishment were the efforts of the National Park Service and the

Klondike Gold Rush International Advisory Committee. The National Park Service played a key

role by holding frequent public meetings, by designating a "keyman" who made frequent trips to

Skagway, and by providing technical expertise in the preservation of Skagway's privately owned

historical buildings. In addition, the efforts of the Klondike Gold Rush International Advisory
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Committee cannot be overemphasized. Formed in 1970-71, the committee provided a regular

forum in which bureaucrats from all levels of government, in both the United States and

Canada, could meet and deliberate. The committee was primarily organized in order to stimulate

international negotiations, but the opportunities it provided for communication between Alaskan

and federal officials cannot be overlooked.

In mid-June 1973, British Columbia tentatively agreed to transfer parkland to the Canadian federal government.

Skagway's North Wind (June 1973, p. 11) published this map, which had previously appeared in the June 13, 1973

Whitehorse Star.
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(top) Skagway's Pullen House was famous for its museum collection. When the hotel closed in 1959, the

collection was moved to the Seattle area. In 1973, the state legislature considered purchasing it. But it did not do

so, and in July its owners sold the collection at an auction. (bottom) On June 5, 1973, key federal and state

historical officials visited Skagway. They included (l-r) Rod Pegues and Don Carpenter, NPF; Ted Smith, Alaska

State Parks; Stuart C. Cross, NPF president; John Frisbee III, NTHP; Father David Melbourne, Skagway;

Robertson, NTHP; Robert Howe, NPS. (KLGO SC #422 (top); North Wind, June 1973, 3 (bottom))
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(top) In June 1974, Skagway visitors included John Rutter, the NPS's regional director; Roy Minter, a consultant

for the WP&YR; and NPS Director Ronald Walker. (bottom) During the fall of 1975, key NPS staff journeyed to

Skagway. They included Don Campbell (PNRO), Tom Ritter (GLBA), Bob Howe (GLBA), and Loren Huffman

(PNRO). (North Wind, June 1974, 8 (bottom) and October 1975, 5 (top) )
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(top) In 1974, Parks Canada established the Lindeman Lake warden's camp at the mouth of Moose Creek. It has

grown slowly over the years; this photograph was taken in 1986. (bottom) For many years prior to the mid-1970s,

the road heading up the Skagway River valley (left) terminated near Porcupine Creek. On the right is the WP&YR

right-of-way. (Mark Bollinger photo, KLGO SC #1673 (top); Dedman's Photo Shop, in North Wind, September

1973, 4)
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The Skagway-Carcross Highway was constructed from 1974 to 1978. In the top photo, construction personnel

work in the Skagway River valley; the bottom photo shows the Captain William Moore bridge under construction.

(Dedman's Photo Shop (both photos))

On July 17, 1975, President Gerald Ford (left) met with Rep. Don Young (R-AK) and Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK).

Young and Stevens sponsored the Klondike park bill in the House and Senate, respectively; on June 30, 1976,

President Ford signed the bill into law. (Courtesy Gerald R. Ford Library, photo A5566-13A)

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

PART II: MANAGEMENT OF THE ALASKA UNITS

Chapter 5:

General Park Administration, Skagway

Getting Started

Less than two weeks after President Ford signed Public Law 94-323, which authorized Klondike

Gold Rush National Historical Park, Regional Director Russell Dickenson met with his Pacific

Northwest Region associates and laid plans for the new park. No action could be taken until

Washington's official notification came through. Upon receipt of that notice, the Alaska park

units would become the concern of Bryan Harry, the Alaska Area Office Director. Dickenson

recognized that the interim park perspective called for the Seattle and Alaska units to be

managed by the same individual. For the time being, however, he decided that the Seattle unit

would be directed from the regional office. [1]

On August 17, the agency's Acting Associate Director for Legislation finally issued the

activation memorandum to the regional director. Dickenson, in turn, sent the memo on to Bryan

Harry in Anchorage on September 14, directing him "to establish the Park in accordance with

the provisions of P.L. 94-323, by the appropriate programming, staffing, operation, and overall

administration." Meanwhile, an official from the regional office ordered a 750-copy reprinting

of the park's May 1973 master plan, updated to include a copy of the recently-passed

legislation. The revised master plan was completed in October. [2]

Area officials recognized that the first task to be undertaken was the appointment of a person to

evaluate and acquire buildings and lots in Skagway's historic district. A historical architect was

the logical person for the work. Officials were unsure, however, whether to appoint that person

as a superintendent as well. In mid-July, the regional director assigned his associate, James B.

Thompson, to look for a historical architect to be the "manager" in Skagway. [3] Then, a month

later, the chief historical architect at the agency's Denver Service Center, Vernon Smith, offered

the park superintendency to one of his employees, Gary Higgins. Higgins, however, had no

interest in becoming a line administrator and turned down Smith's offer. Soon afterward, it was

decided that the superintendency and the historical architect should be two separate positions.

Given that arrangement, Higgins accepted the historical architect position in October. He arrived

in Skagway on an introductory visit in December, and on January 23, 1977 he commenced work

as the park's first Alaskan employee. Thereafter, Higgins replaced Glacier Bay superintendent

Tom Ritter as the agency's local contact person. [4]

Higgins worked under primitive conditions for his first few months on the job. Prior to his

move, arrangements had been made to lease office space upstairs in the theater-supermarket

building on Broadway north of Fourth Avenue. When he arrived, however, the office was not

yet ready. As a result, for the next several months the park's de facto "office" was the living
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room of Higgins's apartment. [5]

Soon after Higgins began work, Richard E. Hoffman was hired as the first park superintendent.

Hoffman, who had been working for the National Park Service since 1961, had been a four-year

superintendent at Manassas National Battlefield Park at the time of his selection. In order to

prepare for the position, he visited Skagway in February 1977. Two months later, on April 24,

he began work on a full-time basis. [6]

A skeleton staff--barely sufficient for interim needs--was assembled over the next several

months (see Appendix B). The first clerk-typist, Barbara Montgomery, was hired in August

1977 on a subject-to-furlough basis. Peter Bathurst, a preservation specialist who hailed from

Longfellow National Historic Site near Boston, was hired as an assistant to Gary Higgins. He

arrived in early November. In addition, the first seasonal workers came on board. In May 1977,

two women--Janet Ross and Meg Jensen--began work as the first locally-supervised Chilkoot

Trail rangers. (NPS staff had patrolled the trail since 1973, but they had worked under the

supervision of Glacier Bay National Monument personnel.) Four other seasonal rangers were

hired to work as the first Skagway interpreters; they consisted of Linda Chesney, Russell

Plaeger, John Jackson, and Craig Juleen. All four interpreters also spent short-term stints serving

as Chilkoot Trail rangers. [7]

One of the first duties assigned to the newly-appointed permanent staff was the organization of

a park dedication ceremony. Planning for the event began in March 1977. Personnel from the

park and the city government, who co-sponsored the dedication, invited many of those who,

over the past ten years, had been significant contributors to the creation of the park. More than

fifty local, state, provincial, and federal dignitaries were invited; even President Jimmy Carter

reportedly received an invitation. [8]

The dedication was held on Saturday, June 4, 1977, on Broadway in front of the Arctic

Brotherhood Hall. Sunshine prevailed that day, and observers noted that "the whole town turned

out" for the event, many of them dressed up in Gold Rush era outfits. Among the attendees was

Fairbanks resident Robert Sheldon, age 94, who had lived in Skagway during the gold rush and

its aftermath. Dignitaries in the audience included U.S. Senator Ted Stevens, Yukon

Commissioner Dr. Art Pearson; Mike Miller and Jim Duncan, of the Alaska State Legislature;

and scores of other luminaries. [9]

The program featured a variety of speakers and musicians. The master of ceremonies was NPS

Regional Director Russell Dickenson, and welcoming remarks were made by Skagway Mayor

John Edwards and NPS Superintendent Richard E. Hoffman. Additional remarks were provided

by Alaska Lieutenant Governor Lowell Thomas, Jr.; W. Warren Allmand, Canada's Minister of

Indian Affairs and Northern Development; John I. Nicol, the Director General of Parks Canada;

and John D. Hough, a special assistant to Cecil Andrus, the U.S. Secretary of the Interior. The

man chosen to give the primary address was James Smith, the Chairman of the Northern Canada

Power Commission (in Whitehorse); a decade earlier, Smith had been the Yukon Commissioner

when the first park studies were being completed. Music was provided by the Skagway

Community Band, the Skagway Community Chorus, and the Midnight Sun Pipe Band of

Whitehorse; and entertainer Larry Beck recited a poem he had written for the occasion. The

sounding of a cannon, a fire bell, locomotive and steamship whistles, and the performance of a

Native dance troupe rounded out the program. Visitors that day, as part of the dedication

ceremonies, were invited to tour the various park buildings. [10]

One and all seemed glad to welcome the new park into existence. Skagway's residents hoped

that the park would be a spur to tourist development, and voices on the national and

international levels were happy to see the preservation of critical lands through which the gold

rush stampeders moved. Alaskans were just as happy with the new park as outsiders. Many
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Alaskans during this period were fuming at the federal government's attempts to preserve tens

of millions of acres in parklands via the so-called "d-2" process. But editorials across the state

praised the new park. The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner noted with surprise that "we have seen

a park formed at the request of Alaskans by a bill sponsored by our delegation," and pointedly

observed that the park "does not extend out to cover an entire ecosystem, but simply protects an

established recreational area which thousands of people will want to enjoy as long as the tales

of the Klondike Gold Rush days are told." [11] The Anchorage Times offered similar praise,

noting that

Even those Alaskans who oppose the idea of reshaping much of their state into a

supernational park complex under various D2 land proposals can applaud the recent

dedication of the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park in Skagway.... And

there is strange irony in noting that the North that was tamed by these colorful

exploiters, entrepreneurs and developers is not protected from modern-day

exploiters and developers by national governments who recognize that the trail of

these bold pioneers is worth preserving. [12]

The Land Purchasing Program

At the time of the June 1977 dedication, the park consisted of little more than a rented office

and the buildings that the National Park Foundation had purchased for the NPS in 1971 and

1974. Those buildings, the WP&YR railroad depot and the Mascot Saloon complex, had been

transferred from the NPF to the NPS in November and September 1976, respectively. The

purchase price for the depot had been $122,000; for the Mascot complex, the price had been

$42,722.06. [13] The park also owned a small (270-acre) triangular-shaped parcel west of the

Chilkoot Trail and adjacent to the Canadian border; that parcel had been transferred from the

Bureau of Land Management to the NPS on June 30, 1976 as part of a broad, interagency

agreement.

The purchase of private lands, engineered by personnel in the Pacific Northwest Regional Office

lands division and by Klondike Superintendent Richard Hoffman, did not begin until the spring

of 1977. The master plan, published in 1973, noted that "National Park Service involvement

would require the purchase and restoration of a significant number of historic structures that are

now mostly vacant or used for storage." The plan envisioned that most of the buildings

purchased would be restored in situ; the plan also noted, however, that "In order to achieve a

more cohesive historical district, the National Park Service would relocate some historic

buildings on Broadway, to bring them together for interpretive and management purposes."

The master plan, produced four years earlier, had called for the purchase of eight privatelyowned buildings or lots in Skagway:

1) the Idaho Saloon, on Broadway at Third;

2) the Principal Barber Shop, on Broadway between Fourth and Fifth;

3) a lot on Broadway at Fifth;

4) a lot on Broadway between Second and Third;

5) Verbauwhede's Confectionery, on Broadway between Second and Third;

6) Boas Tailor and Furrier, on Broadway between Second and Third;

7) the Pack Train complex, on Broadway between Fourth and Fifth; and

8) the Moore Cabin, on Fifth east of Broadway. [14]

By the spring of 1977, however, changing fiscal priorities, new construction on Broadway, and

raised expectations on the part of Skagway's historic building owners combined to force

alterations to the above list. NPS regional office lands staff, working in concert with local park
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staff, made it known that they would be willing to purchase any historic building or lot within

the historic district, from willing sellers, for fair market value. (They showed the most interest,

however, in buildings that were unused and badly in need of repair.) [15]

Map 5. Buildings in the Skagway Historic District. Source: NPS, Design Guidelines for

Skagway Historic District, 1981, 2. (click on image for an enlargement in a new window)
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Map 6. Skagway Historic District, showing NPS-owned buildings. Source: NPS, Draft General

Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement, Klondike Gold Rush National

Historical Park, June/July 1996, 2.4. (click on image for an enlargement in a new window)

Given that offer, some 45 landowners stepped forward and expressed a tentative interest in

selling their properties. The first to finalize a deal with the agency was Marie Kallstrom. On July

25, she sold the Pantheon building, at Fourth and Broadway, and the adjacent vacant lot on

Broadway (the former Rainier Hotel site) for $129,000. Two weeks later, Kallstrom sold another

of her Broadway properties, the Lynch and Kennedy building (part of the Pack Train complex),

for $45,000. In mid-September, the NPS acquired from Cy and May Coyne a third property, the

vacant lot at the northwest corner of Broadway and Fifth Avenue, for $20,000; it did so in

anticipation of moving a historic building to the site in the not-too-distant future. (As noted in

Chapter 6, the Goldberg Cigar Store was moved to the site in August 1978.) And in late October

1977, the NPS finalized a deal with Malcolm and Mary Lou Moe, the owners of Moe's Frontier

Bar. The Moes were willing to sell the Boss Bakery building, located across the alley from his

tavern; they were not, however, willing to sell the lot on which it stood. The building was sold

for $5,200. The purchase of most of these buildings had been contemplated as part of the 1973

master plan; the Pantheon building, however, had not been among them. [16]

Those who sold the various properties were no doubt pleased by the recent transactions, because

the sale prices were substantially higher than private parties had previously been willing to pay.

Public officials, however, began to worry about the potential effect of the sales on the tax base.

In reaction, they pressured the NPS to authorize so-called payments in lieu of taxes. That

pressure was eventually manifested in a cooperative agreement between the city and the NPS;

the actions that led to that agreement are documented in the following chapter.

City officials, by now, began to worry about a federal takeover of the downtown historic

district. To quell their fears, Superintendent Hoffman attended a series of city council meetings

in the fall of 1977 and explained what the agency would and would not be doing in the

community. By the end of November, Skagway Mayor Robert F. Messegee was able to report
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that "We all now have a much better appreciation of your methodology for planning and

programming the development of the park. We welcome your offer to participate in similar

meetings from time to time in order to keep the city advised of your progress." But city officials

remained fearful. Superintendent Hoffman, in a December 1977 note, lamented that at a recent

city council work session

They put it to us hot and heavy on our land acquisition program and its impact

upon the city tax base. We were able to go over our program in sufficient detail to

dispel the fears that we "were buying all of Broadway and kicking all the people

out...." In general we feel very good about our relations with the city, and the hard

data backs up our public relations efforts. [17]

Having cleared those hurdles, the agency continued its Skagway land purchasing program. On

November 22, 1977, the NPS purchased the Peniel Mission property from John and Roberta

Edwards for $65,500. Four weeks later, Jack and Georgette Kirmse sold three properties: Boas

Tailor and Furrier, the Moore Tract (which included both the Moore House and the Moore

Cabin), and the vacant lot between the Sweet Tooth Saloon and Dedman's Photo Shop. The

three lots were sold for $66,809, $119,405, and $12,786, respectively. [18]

The agency purchased five additional Skagway properties in 1978. In late February 1978, the

NPS purchased Verbauwhede's Confectionery, and the cribs behind it, from Malcolm and Mary

Lou Moe for $30,000. In the late spring, it purchased a vacant lot on Broadway south of Second

Avenue from the Longshoremen's Union for $28,100, where they intended to relocate the

historic Martin Itjen house. Shortly afterwards, it bought the Itjen house (without the

surrounding lot) from Jack and Marjorie Brown for $5,000. In September, Harold and Mavis

Henricksen sold a large, vacant tract between Broadway and the Moore cabin for $75,000. The

final purchase in the Skagway land acquisition program was completed in late December when

Herbert and Georgina Riewe sold the Goldberg Building, again without the surrounding lot, to

the NPS for $1,000. [19]

During the two and a half years since the park's authorization, NPS purchasing agents had

bought significantly more properties in Skagway than the master plan had called for. They had

made a total of 15 purchases: 8 with improved lots, 4 with unimproved lots, and 3 buildings

which did not include the surrounding lots. (The agency had purchased ten parcels from private

parties, instead of eight as called for in the master plan; three of the eight parcels that had been

proposed for purchase in the plan had been bypassed.) The agency had purchased a total of 1.94

acres of land in downtown Skagway; for both the lots and the associated improvements, it had

paid a total of $767,522.06. [20]

The agency also sought to purchase land in the Dyea area. Initially, it met with a cool reception

from Dyea landowners. [21] Then, on June 27, 1978, it completed the purchase of the largest

Dyea land parcel--335.89 acres--when it bought the old Pullen and Matthews homesteads from

Mark R. Noyd and Mary L. Joseph for $646,000. The only remaining large parcel in Dyea was

located north of the former Noyd-Joseph property. At one time, Wesley W. and Vivian R.

Patterson had owned the entire 153.69-acre parcel which comprised the North Dyea area.

During the 1960s and early 1970s, however, the couple had subdivided the homestead and had

sold several small parcels to Skagway residents. On July 25, 1977, the Pattersons sold what

remained of their homestead (83.12 acres) to the Park Service for $203,475. The agency also let

it be known that they would buy back any of the other unimproved, privately-owned parcels in

north Dyea. In response to that offer, three owners of 12-acre parcels agreed to sell in 1979 and

1980. The sellers were Wesley W. and Vivian R. Patterson; Wesley C. Patterson; and David and

Bondy Logan. The parcels sold for $36,000, $50,000, and $52,000, respectively. [22]

In late 1980, the NPS acquired two additional land parcels. On November 26, the NPS acquired
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1,690 acres of land which the U.S. Forest Service had previously managed in the White Pass

Unit, east of the White Pass Fork of the Skagway River. Shortly afterward, on December 17, the

agency purchased 0.34 acres of improved land in Skagway at 14th Avenue and Main Street

(outside of the historic district) for use as an administrative site. The sellers, who had a trailer, a

shed, and a garage on the property, were Lawrence and Mary Pagnac; the purchase price was

$80,000. [23]

By the end of 1980, the agency had completed its initial land purchases. It had bought a total of

2.28 acres in Skagway for $847,522.06. (Within the Skagway historic district, 1.92 acres had

been purchased.) In the Dyea area, it had purchased 455.01 acres of land for $987,475.00. In the

Chilkoot Trail and White Pass units, Federal agencies (namely, the Forest Service and the

Bureau of Land Management) had transferred to the park an additional 1,886.87 acres at no cost.

Altogether, the agency had acquired 2,357.29 acres, which was just 17.7% of the 13,291 acres

which Congress had included within the park's boundaries. (The State of Alaska held most of

the remaining acreage, because it owned almost all of the Chilkoot Trail corridor and

approximately half of the White Pass unit.) The total cost that the NPS had paid for the land and

associated improvements had been $1,834,997.06. Congress, in Section 4 of its implementing

legislation, had granted the agency $2,665,000 "for the acquisition of lands and interests in

lands...." The price paid thus far for its Skagway properties was more than $800,000 under the

Congressional ceiling. [24]

By 1980, NPS leaders felt that the land acquisition program had proceeded to the point that they

were ready to formally establish Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park. Section 2 of

Public Law 94-323 noted that the Secretary of the Interior would establish the park "at such time

as he deems sufficient lands, waters, and interests therein have been acquired for administration

in accordance with the purposes of this Act." On May 7, 1980, Interior Secretary Cecil D.

Andrus declared that the park would be established as of May 14. A Federal Register

announcement and an accompanying press release, both signed by Acting NPS Director Ira J.

Hutchison, noted that "legal establishment is a step taken by the government to signify that the

majority of the authorized property has been acquired for the park's historic resources.

Establishment of this park assures the protection of a unique part of our history." [25]

NPS officials, who ideally sought to obtain title to all of the park's lands, were not able to obtain

two major properties located within the new park boundaries. Both of these properties were

owned or selected by the State of Alaska. The larger parcel constituted most of the Chilkoot

Trail corridor. This parcel, 8,570 acres in extent, comprised over 64 percent of the land within

Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park; it stretched from Long Wharf, south of Dyea, to

the Canadian border. (As noted in chapters 3 and 4, the land was owned by the Bureau of Land

Management, but the State of Alaska had selected the Taiya Valley lands in June 1961 and they

had received de facto ownership of them in June 1974.) The NPS had been managing the state's

interests in this area since August 1972, when the two parties had signed a cooperative

agreement for the Chilkoot Trail. (A third signatory to the agreement was the BLM, which

owned the state-selected lands in the Chilkoot Trail corridor. The BLM also owned a small

parcel of non-selected land west of Chilkoot Pass.) The NPS hoped to acquire the Chilkoot

parcel in order to ensure the protection of area resources. The master plan, however, did not

specify the need for acquisition, and the legislation authorizing the park demanded that the NPS

could acquire state-owned lands only by donation. The state's Department of Natural Resources,

for its part, was in no position to donate lands that it did not yet own. Based on those

constraints, the NPS could do little except continue the status quo. On April 6, 1978, as noted in

Chapter 8, the NPS and the Alaska DNR renewed their cooperative agreement for a three year

period; the new agreement included Dyea and White Pass as well as the Chilkoot Trail. [26]

The other parcel, which was 1,630 acres in extent, comprised roughly the western half of the

White Pass unit. Specifically, the state owned all of the land located west of the White Pass
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Fork north of White Pass City, and all land west of the Skagway River south of White Pass

City. The NPS, at first, had no cooperative agreement to manage these lands, as they had in the

Chilkoot Trail unit, and due to the lack of recreational usage in the White Pass area neither the

NPS nor the state showed much interest in the area. The state, however, was no more willing to

donate to the NPS its White Pass parcel than its Chilkoot Trail lands, and as noted above, the

White Pass was included in the expanded cooperative agreement worked out in 1978 between

the NPS and the state's Department of Natural Resources. [27]

The NPS was also unable to purchase several properties in the Skagway Historic District in

which it had shown an interest. The 1973 master plan, as noted above, had called for the

purchase of the Idaho Saloon, Principal Barber, Verbauwhede's Confectionery, the Pack Train

complex, Boas Tailor and Furrier, the Moore Cabin, and two other buildings (in addition to the

depot complex and the Mascot Saloon complex, which were already owned by the National

Park Foundation). As noted above, this "wish list" of properties changed significantly between

1973 and 1977-78, when regional lands division staff carried out their purchasing program. As it

turned out, the only properties on the 1973 "wish list" that were actually purchased were

Verbauwhede's Confectionery, Boas Tailor and Furrier, the Moore Cabin, and the Lynch and

Kennedy store (which was part of the Pack Train complex). Memoranda generated during the

late 1970s suggest that NPS personnel were unable to come to terms on only two properties--the

Pack Train Inn and the Pullen House--in which they had shown an interest. The details

surrounding the purchase negotiation, and later developments, are outlined in Chapter 7.

Three other major activities took place during the late 1970s. First, the administration of the

three Alaska park units was formally severed from the Seattle unit. Soon after Congress

authorized the park, an interim prospectus was drawn up which suggested that the park would

be run as a single unit and managed by just one superintendent. Regional Director Russell

Dickenson, however, recognized that "it will be not be practical, for the time being, to have the

Seattle Unit...managed by the Superintendent ... in Skagway." Because of the "unusual situation"

brought on by the 900 miles separating Skagway from Seattle, the Pioneer Square facility would

be managed by the Pacific Northwest Regional Office. [28]

By October 1977, new superintendent Richard Hoffman began to argue that the time had come

for Klondike Gold Rush to be managed as a single, comprehensive park. [29] Some regional

officials, including Assistant Regional Director Temple A. Reynolds, supported Hoffman's

position and urged that the regional office divest itself of direct responsibility over the local

park unit. Regional Director Russell Dickenson and Deputy Regional Director Edward J. Kurtz,

however, thought otherwise; consequently, the regional office made no moves to relinquish

management control. [30] Management of the two units, therefore, continued to be separate.

Hoffman soon recognized that the Seattle unit would become "the play thing of the Division of

Interpretation of the Regional Office," and he demanded that the two Klondike units be formally

split. Such a move, however, was not immediately forthcoming. Until 1979, most Klondike park

documents pertained to both the Alaska and Seattle units; since then, however, the paper stream

of the two park units has been almost entirely separate. [31]

A second major activity witnessed during the late 1970s was a slow, steady increase in staff. In

July 1978, Jay E. Cable was hired as the park's first Chief Ranger. Cable arrived in Skagway

after having served as a ranger at Capital Reef National Park, Utah and Mammoth Cave

National Park, Kentucky. Cable was destined to work at the park for the almost thirteen years--

until June 1991--far longer than any of the other new staff. [32] Robert Spude, a graduate

student at the University of Illinois, began work that June as a historian with the University of

Alaska's Cooperative Park Studies Unit. He was hired on a six-month contract to research the

history of the various NPS buildings in Skagway, and the major structures in the Chilkoot and

White Pass corridors; he was also asked to set up the park's library and photograph collection.

His superiors, however, found his work exemplary and his contract was extended until
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December 1979. [33]

A third aspect of park activities during the late 1970s was an attempt to compile park planning

documents. This was accomplished even though the park was new and staff levels were low.

Planning documents written during the late 1970s, primarily by Superintendent Hoffman,

included the Outline for Planning Requirements, completed by the regional office staff in mid1977, and the Statement for Management, which was approved by regional officials in October

1978. (The latter document was largely finalized in November 1977; however, its publication

and distribution was delayed because of the sensitive political situation surrounding the Alaska

Lands Act.) The documents pertained to both the Seattle and the Alaska units; most of the

enclosed verbiage, however, described conditions in Skagway and vicinity. In addition,

Hoffman wrote a draft Dyea management plan (see Chapter 8); that plan, however, was rejected

by Alaska Area Office staff and was never implemented. [34]

On the Canadian side of Chilkoot Pass, officials attempted (but failed) to advance the park

planning process. As noted in Chapter 4, Canada's Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern

Development, Jean Chrétien, had signed an agreement in principle with Jack Radford, British

Columbia's Minister of Recreation and Conservation. That agreement, consummated in June

1973, provided for the eventual transfer of some 80 square miles from the province to the

federal government and allowed that parcel to become a National Historic Park. In order to

transfer the parcel, however, the B.C. parliament in Victoria had to act. During the summer of

1977 Radford's successor, Sam Bawlf, introduced a measure in the legislative assembly that

would have effected that transfer. The measure was evidently given serious consideration; that

fall, Gary Higgins declared that "Parks Canada anticipates Klondike will receive official

designation as a national park in the near future," and as late as January 1978, the editor of

Skagway's North Wind noted that "we are unofficially informed that the province of British

Columbia has taken a step towards cooperating in this permanent Klondike Gold Rush

Historical Effort." [35] Bawlf's bill, however, was not enacted and legislative matters remained

at a standstill. Meanwhile, the management of the Chilkoot Trail continued as it had since 1974;

the trail was managed from a headquarters in Whitehorse, and summer field patrols were

operated from the remote campsite located at historic Lindeman City.

The Richard Sims Superintendency

On August 2, 1979, Superintendent Richard Hoffman announced to a meeting of the Skagway

City Council that he was leaving his post (and was also resigning from the city's Planning and

Zoning Commission). He said at the time that he was "very sad about leaving Skagway" and

that the move was not his choice. His tenure, to be sure, had been a rocky one, and at various

times he had clashed with his staff as well as with regional officials. He noted with pride,

however, that he had accomplished his main job: buying buildings, starting programs and

getting the park in motion. Hoffman was transferred to the Pacific Northwest Regional Office,

where he became the region's Environmental Protection Specialist and Public Involvement

Coordinator. [36]

Replacing him in Skagway was Richard H. Sims, who obtained the job by switching positions

with Hoffman. Sims' appointment was announced in mid-August; three weeks later he visited

Skagway and hiked the Chilkoot Trail. He assumed his new duties on September 24. [37]

Sims, a 26-year veteran of the National Park Service, had begun his career as a ranger at Scotts

Bluff National Monument, Nebraska. After serving stints as a ranger at Badlands National

Monument, South Dakota and Shenandoah National Park, Virginia, he became a

superintendent--first at Oregon Caves National Monument, and later at Crater Lake National

Park. [38]
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Soon after Sims assumed his post, new staff began to arrive. By the end of the year, the park

had hired its first Interpretive Specialist, Dave Cohen, and the following year Amy Caldwell

became the park's first administrative secretary. Both were experienced NPS hands; Cohen had

worked in Anchorage on the so-called "d-2" issue and was currently working for the Heritage

Conservation and Recreation Service, and Caldwell had served in a seasonal capacity for

several years on the north rim at Grand Canyon National Park. Caldwell later married Andy

Robertson, a member of the park's trail crew. [39]

Others came in to replace employees who had completed their service at the park. In 1980,

Emily Olson began serving as an administrative technician in Barbara Montgomery's former

position. In late April, David Snow began work as Alaska's first Area (later Regional) Historical

Architect; in so doing, he carried on many of the same duties which Gary Higgins and Pete

Bathurst had formerly undertaken. (Higgins, the previous architect, had left in April 1979, while

Bathurst, a preservation specialist, had exited in January 1980.) And in April 1982, Eugene

Ervine began work as an exhibit specialist. [40]

Additional new employees were added to the workforce during the mid-1980s. In March 1983,

the park gained its first maintenance foreman, John B. Warder, Jr., who moved to Skagway after

a long career at Olympic National Park in Washington. A month later, the park gained a new

Interpretive Specialist when it hired Betsy Duncan-Clark. Ms. Duncan-Clark, who replaced

David Cohen, had previously worked for the NPS at Herbert Hoover National Historic Site,

Iowa, and Johnstown Flood National Memorial, Pennsylvania. In February 1984, Andrew

Beierly was added to the park staff as a maintenance man. Beierly, a local hire, was a longtime

Skagway resident and railroad worker. Beierly, Duncan-Clark, and Warder became the

backbone of the Skagway workforce, because all three served on the Klondike staff for more

than a decade. [41]

By 1983, six permanent personnel composed the Klondike staff, a number that increased to

seven when Beierly commenced work in 1984. The permanent staff level, however, belied the

size of the NPS labor force. Each summer, for example, brought seasonal crews of trail rangers,

Skagway-area interpreters, and (beginning in 1980) Chilkoot Trail maintenance workers. In

addition, the ongoing restoration efforts of the Skagway historical buildings demanded the

employment of carpenters, laborers, and ancillary personnel. As a result, the number of seasonal

employees reached as high as 30 individuals at a time. [42]

Park personnel tried, but failed, to hire local residents on park projects during this period. In

1980, and again in 1981, the NPS announced its intention to sponsor a 10-member Youth

Conservation Corps group for the summer. Intended for high school workers (those aged 15 to

18 years old), corps members would have worked on the Chilkoot Trail, on the Dewey Lake

trails, and at the Gold Rush Cemetery. Because of high prevailing wage levels, however, the

NPS was unable to attract youth interested in working in the low-wage YCC positions. [43]

The park's operations budget reflected the relatively high staffing levels. During fiscal year

1980, when the Alaska units began operating with a budget separate from the Seattle unit,

$558,800 was allotted for park operations. That figure rose by more than 35 percent, to

$768,400, by fiscal year 1983. For the remainder of the decade, however, park budgets declined

as often as they rose, and by 1989 the operating budget stood at $792,700, just 3.1 percent

higher than it had been six years earlier. [44]

Two early employees later moved to the Alaska Regional Office (ARO), in Anchorage, where

they continued to influence park policy. Robert Spude, who had worked on a park contract

between June 1978 and December 1979, later worked for the BLM and the Heritage

Conservation and Recreation Service (both in Anchorage) before returning to the NPS in 1981.

(Two years later, he became ARO's Regional Historian.) Dave Snow, when appointed to his
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Klondike position, became the Alaska Area Office (later Alaska Regional Office) Historical

Architect. During his tenure in Skagway, Snow worked primarily on the restoration of the depot

complex and other Klondike assignments. After his 1984 departure to Anchorage his work load

diversified, but Klondike projects continued to comprise a significant portion of his work load.

One of the major events of the Sims superintendency was the completion of the park's

reconstruction of the White Pass and Yukon Route depot and administration building. As

explained more fully in chapters 4 and 6, the depot's restoration process had begun with Laurin

Huffman's roof stabilization efforts in 1975, and large-scale efforts had begun when the building

was jacked up and archeological surveys were undertaken in 1979. The restoration process was

completed in early 1984. Soon afterward, park officials moved their offices from rented space

on Broadway near Fourth Avenue to the new building. The visitor center was opened to the

public in May, and the depot dedication took place on July 1. [45]

Relatively few planning documents were completed during Sims' tenure as chief. The park's first

Statement for Management, which was prepared in 1978 and included both the Seattle and

Skagway-area units, was revised in 1981 and tailored to conditions in and around Skagway.

Regional Director John E. Cook approved the document on September 9, 1981. Three years

later, on May 7, 1984, Sims issued an updated version. [46] Park staff also compiled a resource

management plan. After two years of effort, a draft version was completed in February 1982.

That plan, however, was criticized by various regional officials, and after two years of

discussions the document was quietly tabled. [47]

After more than six years at the Klondike helm and 33 years of government service, Sims retired

on November 30, 1985. Sims was proud of what he had accomplished during that period,

particularly in the work completed on the various building restoration projects in Skagway. He

was quick to admit, however, that the management of an urban historical park was more

challenging than his previous assignments in natural resource parks had been--"at times more

challenging than I would have preferred...." The local newspaper editor, Jeff Brady, gave him a

large part of the credit for improving local relationships for the park when he editorialized,

When Sims came to Skagway, many townspeople were still having second thoughts

about having let the park service in here. For a long time, it was tough being a

"parkie." But as Sims leaves his post this month, many will thank him for what the

park has done during his tenure, and what it has not done.

Park staff, in recognition of his efforts, held an open house on November 15 in which he and his

wife Phyllis were honored guests. A large crowd attended. [48]

Clay Alderson Takes Over

After Sims' departure, Chief Ranger Jay E. Cable served as the park's acting superintendent.

Cable led the park through the 1986 summer season. Then, in mid-August 1986, NPS Regional

Director Boyd Evison announced the appointment of Russell C. (Clay) Alderson as the park's

third superintendent. Alderson, who arrived in Skagway over Labor Day weekend, had been

working for the agency since the late 1950s. He had served seasonal stints as a laborer and trail

crew foreman at Grand Teton National Park. After working in the Kansas state park system, he

worked as a trails foreman at Grand Teton until he was chosen, in 1975, as the first

superintendent at Knife River Indian Villages National Historic Site near Stanton, North Dakota.

He remained there until 1979, when he left to fill the superintendency at Cedar Breaks National

Monument near Cedar City, Utah. That position, which also grew to include administration over

the Kolob Canyon portion of Zion National Park, occupied him until he moved to Skagway.

[49]
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Under Alderson's direction, further increases in the permanent staff have taken place. In March

1987, the new position of Cultural Resource Specialist was created and filled by Karl Gurcke, a

historical archeologist who had been working for the park on a seasonal basis since 1984.

During the off-season, he had previously been the assistant curator at the University of Idaho's

Laboratory of Anthropology. That summer, the park was busier than it had ever been; at one

point it had a work force of 43, of which 21 were local hires. [50] In 1988, a new half-time

position for procurement clerk and a new half-time administrative assistant were created. The

former was filled by Evelyn Meyer, the latter by Niki Hahn, both of whom hailed from

Skagway. In 1990, the park created a new subject-to-furlough park ranger position. The

individual selected, Jeff Mow, became the lead Chilkoot Trail ranger during the summertime

and assisted the Chief Ranger during the off-season. [51]

In 1991, the park hired its first full-time painter, George Barratt; the same year, Debra Sanders

became Klondike's first full-time museum specialist. [52] A final selection made that year was

Mike Colyer as project construction supervisor. Colyer, a longtime Skagway resident and

former railroad worker, had begun working on the park's preservation crew in the mid-1980s;

then, in 1988, he moved to Williamsport, Maryland, where he attended the agency's

Williamsport Preservation Training Center. The park had had several construction supervisors

after Regional Historical Architect Dave Snow left for Anchorage in 1984; only one of those

men, historical architect Ray Todd, had remained in his position for more than a year. Alderson

expressed confidence that Colyer "gives us the continuity of leadership that this project has not

had since it was started." [53]

The following January, Bruce Reed began work as the new Chief of Interpretation and Resource

Management. Reed, who hailed from Guadalupe Mountains National Park in Texas, replaced

Jay Cable, who had vacated his position the previous July. Later that year, Doreen Cooper

began work as the park's first project archeologist; her position, funded by the agency's Denver

Service Center, continued the work which Cathy Blee, Marianne Musitelli, and other DSC

archeologists had carried on for more than a decade. The number of seasonal workers during

this period, as before, remained high. In 1988, for example, 38 employees were on board during

the busiest summer months, 17 of which lived year-round in Skagway or Dyea. [54]

The park's budget has reflected the recent increase in staff. During the middle to late 1980s, as

noted above, the park's operating (ONPS) budget consistently hovered between $725,000 and

$800,000. In 1990, however, the budget rose 7.7 percent to $854,000, and in 1991, it rose

another 34 percent to $1.14 million. The ONPS budget has continued to increase since 1991; as

of 1995, it stood at $1.36 million.

Alderson has been the superintendent since 1986 and remains in that position. He has, however,

taken two remote assignments during his tenure. In May 1991, he moved to McCarthy, Alaska

and spent the next five months coordinating structure engineering and environmental surveys of

the Kennicott mill property, which the agency was proposing to purchase. Thereafter, Jay Cable

served as Acting Superintendent. Cable, however, accepted a position as the Regional Safety

Officer and moved to Anchorage in July. In his stead, Dave Mills (from the Northwest Alaska

Office in Kotzebue) replaced Cable as Acting Superintendent for the next three months. Two

years later, Alderson was detailed to Anchorage and spent five months working as a special

assistant in the Alaska Regional Office. (He had been hired to be the state coordinator for

President Clinton's "Rebuild America" jobs program. The bill authorizing that program,

however, ran into a Republican-led filibuster and did not become law.) Janet McCabe, a

longtime special assistant in Anchorage, took Alderson's place in Skagway and became acting

superintendent. [55]

Parkwide Planning Efforts
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Soon after his arrival at the park, Alderson realized that little planning had taken place in the

past several years. In order to update action plans for the park, he and his staff prepared a

Statement for Management. A draft copy was completed by the end of 1987, and by the end of

1988 the regional office had granted its approval to the final report. [56] Alderson also

attempted to complete the writing of the Resource Management Plan, a draft version of which

had been completed during the early 1980s. Public scoping sessions on the RMP were held in

1989 and writing began in 1990, but staff shortages prevented the document from being

completed. [57]

During the same period in which activity was taking place on both the Statement for

Management and the Resource Management Plan, Superintendent Alderson raised the idea of

writing a park General Management Plan (GMP). No master plan had been written in the 13

years since the park had been created; the only previous plan was dated May 1973. (It had been

nominally updated in September 1976, in response to the passage of the park bill.) The park,

moreover, was one of only two Alaska units without an updated general management plan; all

the other units except Sitka had undergone a planning process during the mid-1980s. In order to

correct that deficiency, the regional office's Division of Planning made an effort in late 1989 to

come up with some of the funding necessary to initiate the process. [58] Then, in 1990, it gave

the park a small sum to initiate the scoping process. The Washington office and the Denver

Service Center were notified of the need for a new plan. By the end of the year, DSC had

pledged $125,000 to prepare a Development Concept Plan for Dyea and the Chilkoot Trail. The

Washington headquarters, however, refused to release funds for the preparation of a GMP. [59]

The scoping process finally began in 1991. Public meetings were held that spring in Skagway,

Anchorage, Whitehorse, Haines, Juneau, and Seattle seeking public comments on what the GMP

should address. NPS officials also held a meeting with their Canadian Parks Service

counterparts, looking for their input during the early stages of the planning process. [60]

The agency digested the comments made at the scoping meetings and in mid-May 1992, it made

public its intention to prepare a general management plan and accompanying environmental

statement. A month later, it held a series of meetings in which it endeavored to familiarize the

public with park management, to ask its ideas about future management, and to offer the public

a choice of park management options. [61]

Meetings were held in six cities in Alaska, Washington and Yukon Territory. The most lively

discussion, however, took place at Skagway's city hall on June 22. Despite the flurry of

summertime activity, fifteen local residents attended and gave planners a passel of suggestions,

most of which related to access and interpretation in the Chilkoot Trail and White Pass Trail

units. Planners at the meeting promised to respond to those suggestions and have draft plan

alternatives ready for public comment by the year's end, followed by the preparation of a draft

general management plan and EIS in 1993. [62]

Agency planners were delayed in their response to the public comments, but in mid-June 1993

they distributed a series of three preliminary management alternatives. Based on the degree of

development desired, these included a "no change" alternative, a plan that called for a modest

facilities increase, and a plan calling for a substantial facilities increase. The agency held

another series of public meetings, and Janet McCabe, the acting superintendent, asked the city

for its reaction. [63] The city, in response, held a July 21 hearing on the matter, and for two

hours local citizens provided comments, many asking the NPS to keep additional facilities

investments to a minimum. The city council, as a result, tentatively decided to pass a "no

change" resolution. McCabe, however, prevailed on the council to delay the vote on its

resolution until the next meeting. During the intervening period, she was successful in revising

the council's original language. The final resolution, passed on August 6, asked the NPS to take

"a conservative approach" to development; it asked for the agency to adopt a "no change"
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alternative, with modifications. [64]

The plan was then entrusted to the regional office for the preparation of the draft GMP and EIS.

Work on the document began during the fall of 1993. [65] A series of delays by regional

personnel, however, postponed the publication of the draft document for more than a year, and

the Draft General Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement for the park was not

released to the public for comments until June 1996.

The other major park plan pursued in recent years has been the Resource Management Plan. The

RMP, as noted above, had been written in draft form in the early 1980s but had never been

completed. When Karl Gurcke was hired as a resource management specialist in the spring of

1987, it had been hoped that one of his first responsibilities would be the completion of an

RMP. The Scope of Collections Statement, which Gurcke wrote in March 1988, noted that the

RMP was "currently being rewritten." He was able to make little progress, however, until Bruce

Reed became the Chief Ranger in January 1992. [66] Reed decided to split project work into

two areas; he would write those sections pertaining to natural resources, while Gurcke would

write about the park's cultural resources. The two men completed a rough draft of their

respective sections in December 1993 and submitted the plan to the regional office. The plan

was considered acceptable but for a few minor modifications, and the park submitted a revised

plan in the fall of 1994. The final plan was signed by Acting Regional Director Paul Anderson

on December 15, 1994.

The park's first (1977) group of seasonal interpreters and rangers posed at the old White Pass depot, which served

as the park's visitor center that year. Richard Hoffman, the park's first superintendent, is seen at left. To his left are

Russell Plaeger, Meg Jensen, John Jackson, Janet Ross, Craig Juleen, and Linda Chesney. Ross and Jensen were

Chilkoot Trail rangers; the other four were Skagway interpreters. The dog was named Rolfo. (John Jackson

Collection)
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(top) Richard Sims was the park's second superintendent; he served from 1979 through 1985. He is shown here, at

left, at the July 1984 visitor center dedication with NPS Director Russell Dickenson (center) and WP&YR official

Marvin Taylor. (bottom) Clay Alderson is the park's current superintendent. This photo was taken in September
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1986, shortly after his arrival in Skagway. (Skagway News, July 4, 1984, 1 (top) and September 17, 1986, 3

(bottom) )

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adhi/chap5.htm

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

PART II: MANAGEMENT OF THE ALASKA UNITS

Chapter 6:

The Building Rehabilitation Program

When Congress passed Public Law 94-323 on June 30, 1976, the bill which authorized Klondike

Gold Rush National Historical Park, the park was an idea and little else. As noted in Chapter 5,

more than six months elapsed before the first staff member, Gary Higgins, began working in

Skagway. Regional officials recognized that the highest priority for the new park was the

preservation and restoration of various Broadway gold rush-era structures. That work, however,

had to await funding, land acquisition, planning considerations, and the creation of a park work

force.

Gary Higgins, a historical architect, began work in January 1977; three months later, he was

joined by Superintendent Richard Hoffman. During their first months on the job, the two men

were largely absorbed by the mechanical technicalities of hiring a summer interpretive and trail

staff, moving into the upstairs office in the Broadway Building, and planning for the June 4

dedication ceremony.

Park staff were also preoccupied with obtaining the materials necessary for an interpretive

program. Several difficulties presented themselves. Neither the superintendent nor the architect

were trained in interpretive matters. The staff, moreover, knew little about the resources they

were assigned to protect and interpret aside from the master plan, the historic resource study,

and such other documents as has had been prepared prior to congressional authorization.

Despite those obstacles, officials scrambled to assemble a basic interpretive program. In the

northwestern corner of the old depot building, NPS caretaker Robert Vaughan cobbled together

the space for an ad hoc visitor center by cleaning the windows, floors and walls, replacing

several broken windows, and repairing one of the entrance doors. By early June, the center was

open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Summer seasonals, based in the old waiting room, passed out a

newly-prepared park brochure that James A. "Rocky" Richardson, the region's interpretive

specialist, had prepared a year earlier, and they also distributed the state-sponsored Chilkoot

Trail booklet and various fliers for city attractions. Decorating the visitor center's walls were

various large-format historical photographs. A few gold rush artifacts were also on display. [1]

The staff also assembled a small audio-visual program. Chairs, including several of the

railroad's reversible-back benches, were arranged in a makeshift room demarcated by a hanging

black tarp, and visitors could watch any of three gold rush films: an hour-long version of

William Bronson's Days of Adventure, Dreams of Gold; Pierre Berton's City of Gold; and Lyle

Bebensee's Chilkoot Trail. Patrons were also given the opportunity to sit in specially-designed

"audio chairs" (egg-shaped chairs that played gold rush music) that had originally been part of

an NPS-sponsored, award-winning exhibit at the 1976 Calgary Stampede.
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Complementing the movies and music was a ten-minute slide show, entitled "The Klondike

Gold Rush," that was shown once an hour. Accompanying the lapse-dissolve slide production

was a score written by Skagway resident Steve Hites. During the mid-1970s, Hites had written a

number of songs with a historical theme. NPS personnel were sufficiently impressed by his

music that they invited him to the agency's Harpers Ferry Center. Here he composed a medley

of three of his songs--"Gay '90s," "Diggin'," and "Ballad of the Yukon"--that served as the slide

show's sound track. The show remained a staple of the interpretive program through the summer

of 1987. [2]

This initial "visitor center," which was blocked off from the remainder of the empty, unsafe

depot by a hanging black tarp, was rude, dusty, and inadequate. Lacking any other alternative,

however, it served the public for the 1977 and 1978 summer seasons. [3]

Initial Construction Plans

Once the summer season had passed, NPS officials began to map out restoration plans. In late

summer, a Seattle firm appraised most of the properties in the historical district. That fall,

Denver Service Center (DSC) architect Tom Busch spent six weeks in Skagway photographing

and recording structures, and by the end of 1977 regional lands officials had completed the

purchase of six private buildings: the Pantheon Saloon, Lynch and Kennedy Haberdashery,

Peniel Mission, Boas Tailer and Furrier, the Moore Cabin, and the Moore House. (These were

in addition to the railroad depot and the Mascot Saloon, which had been in NPS ownership

since the fall of 1976.) [4]

By early 1978, park officials had decided that the first major tasks to be undertaken were the

restoration of the depot buildings and the Mascot Saloon Group. In mid-January, Higgins

submitted the initial paperwork for a historic structures report (HSR) for the two groups of

structures. He envisioned that the rehabilitation of both buildings would involve a combination

of restoration and adaptive reuse, noting that:

The depot embodies a high level of integrity on the interior and for the most part

new functions should be fit into existing spaces. If we get into interior period

restoration in the Mascot Group it will probably be limited to the spaces that front

on Broadway. [5]

The other major step taken by Higgins and the other park officials was the commencement of a

stabilization program for the park buildings. By March 1978, regional officials had made it

known that the buildings were "in need of immediate stabilization." They proposed to begin the

program that summer, using park labor crews under Higgins's and Bathurst's supervision. As

part of their work, the park would repair roofs and make minor foundation repairs. It also

promised that an archeologist would be used to locate, inspect, identify, label, and store any

artifacts encountered during the stabilization work. [6]

A third idea, briefly considered, was the expedited restoration of one of Skagway's private

buildings. The idea arose in early 1978, in response to the demands of Regional Director Russell

Dickenson, who hoped to sponsor a project demonstrating visible progress at the new park. [7]

In late January, Superintendent Hoffman told Area Director G. Bryan Harry that for public

relations purposes, "The Regional Director wants, and we have promised to produce, a building

on Broadway to be sufficiently restored on the exterior to provide an item of 'show'." Park

officials concluded that the Martin Itjen house--which had not yet been purchased--"would be

the easiest [project] to undertake in the time allotted." As late as March, both the park and

region were still "anxious to get some visible, successful action underway..." Pressure to

expedite the Itjen restoration eased thereafter, however, and the idea of a "show" project was
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abandoned. [8]

By the summer of 1978, the park had nearly completed its Skagway land purchasing program--

purchases early that year included Verbauwhede's Confectionery, the cribs behind it, and the

Itjen House--and the park labor crew was ready to commence its stabilization program. By

August, it was reported that both Bathurst and Higgins were busy:

Pete Bathurst, preservation specialist, directs three crews, stabilizing buildings,

moving them to less endangered sites, and conducting routine maintenance on park

buildings. Gary Higgins, historical architect, draws the plans and proposals for

restoration as well as serves as a watchdog over new construction in the historic

district. [9]

Much of the restoration work done that summer took place in and around the Mascot Saloon

Group. The buildings that summer were raised and placed on wooden cribbing. To accompany

that work, DSC archeologist Dan Martin and his assistant, Mary Van Wyhe, conducted surface

collecting at the site. Martin and Van Wyhe also made a test excavation beneath the Lynch and

Kennedy building, and conducted more test excavations around the original locations of the

Boss Bakery and Goldberg Cigar Store. [10]

Park crews also moved three buildings, two in 1978 and another in 1979. The Itjen building,

which had been purchased in June 1978, was moved in July by local resident Paul Cyr, who

worked for contractor Steve Hansen. The house was skidded from the south side of Sixth

Avenue, just west of Main Street, to the west side of Broadway, between the Longshoreman's

Union Hall and the WP&YR tracks. The newly-moved building was situated at an angle to the

street and placed on cribbing. The Goldberg Cigar Store, purchased in 1977, was moved in

August 1978 from its original location (on the south side of Fifth Avenue and west of the

Seattle Hotel) to the vacant, NPS-owned lot at the northwest corner of Fifth Avenue and

Broadway. Fourteen months later, on October 10, 1979, it was moved again to the east side of

Broadway, just south of the alley between Fifth and Sixth avenues. That same day the Boss

Bakery, which had operated as the Spirit of '98 gift shop in 1976-1977 and had been located on

the east side of Broadway just north of Moe's Frontier Bar, was moved a block to the north. Its

new resting place was between Kirmse's Curio Shop and the recently-moved Goldberg Cigar

Store. [11]

Several of the buildings that were not being moved or worked on were used as ad hoc

residences for permanent and seasonal staff. The Peniel Mission, purchased in the fall of 1977,

became the residence of Pete Bathurst, the permanent preservation specialist. (David Snow, the

historical architect who replaced Gary Higgins, later lived in the Peniel before it was taken over

by seasonal employees in 1982.) Seasonal employees lived, at first, in Verbauwhede's

Confectionery; they also lived in an NPS single-wide Buddy 1968-vintage trailer which was

located on Fourth Avenue, just west of the Pantheon Saloon. [12]

By the fall of 1978, the number of NPS employees had expanded to the point that more quarters

were needed. Planners at the Denver Service Center began to consider "temporary" housing for

seasonal workers on the top floor of the Mascot Saloon. They recognized that construction at

the site was still in full swing, and they also recognized that seasonal residence use conflicted

with the buildings' purpose as originally outlined. (The 1973 master plan called for the Mascot

to become a "city life" interpretive display area.) The City of Skagway, perhaps recognizing the

agency's violation of its early plans, suggested transforming the old building into a teen center.

The city soon abandoned its plan but the NPS did not, and during the summer of 1979 the

second floor of the Mascot was converted into seasonal employee quarters. It served in that

capacity from the 1980 through the 1982 season. [13]
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During the winter of 1978-79, personnel at the agency's Denver Service Center continued work

on the historic structure reports (HSRs) for the park's two main building complexes. Task

directives were prepared that winter. On June 7, 1979, Regional Director Russell Dickenson

approved task directives for historical and architectural data sections of the Mascot Saloon HSR;

a day later, he approved another task directive, for architectural and archeological data sections

of the White Pass depot and administration building HSR. That summer, DSC professionals

visited Skagway and made detailed studies of both building complexes. Plans at that time called

"for renovating the former public places for exhibits. The upper floors may be used for offices

and storage." [14] By the fall, officials were predicting that rough drafts of both HSRs would be

complete before the next construction season began. [15]

The HSR for the depot complex did not include a historical data section. Some building

information had already been collected by Robert L. Spude. In order to gain a broader historical

scope, architect Robert Carper of the Denver Service Center called on Gordon Chappell, who

was the Regional Historian at the agency's Western Regional Office and an accomplished

railroad historian. Chappell accepted the job and visited Skagway in June 1979. Afterwards, he

began writing a National Register of Historic Places nomination for the complex. He and Spude

completed the draft nomination in February 1980. [16]

Another depot preservation project commenced in 1979 dealt with interior paint and wall

coverings. In September, a Denver Service Center official wrote the regional director of the

need for "an accurate investigative survey" of the problem. The depot complex was found to be

the only NPS building in Skagway that had an intact historical interior; as a result, the agency

hoped that a "selective interior restoration" would provide a compatible visitor staging area in

the depot's waiting room. The project was funded, and in November, John Robbins of DSC

visited Skagway to inspect the interior finishes. Robbins completed his work and passed his

recommendations on to architect Dave Snow, who noted that "a sensitive remodeling of the

interior involving reversible interior finishes and circa 1908-1921 exterior restoration has been

found to be the most appropriate design course." [17]

During the winter of 1978-79, it became obvious that the depot complex, untouched as yet by

restoration crews, needed immediate structural attention. Peter Tomka, a Denver-based

structural engineer, visited Skagway in February 1979 and noted that "The Railroad Depot and

Administration Building at the present time are slowly sinking into the ground." In order to

remedy the situation, the two buildings began to be lifted that spring. [18] A construction crew,

using a large number of screw jacks, lifted the massive building off the ground. At season's end

the depot remained raised on its jacks.

Work that year also took place on the Lynch and Kennedy building. In February, the building

was in the process of being raised and leveled from the second floor joists by screw jacks.

Shortly afterward, the agency, citing the deteriorated condition of the building's south elevation,

proposed that the building's exterior be restored. By the following February, as a result, the old

store had acquired a new foundation, roof and siding. [19]

The park was less than successful at implementing the various stabilization plans it had begun in

1978. At the beginning of the 1979 season it had proposed to lay foundations for the Mascot

complex and Boss Bakery; in addition, it hoped to carry on exterior restorations on both the

depot and Mascot groups. [20] By October 1979, park crews under the direction of Pete

Bathurst had completed both a foundation and roof on the Mascot Saloon. The Boss Bakery,

however, still rested on cribbing, and exterior work on the depot and Mascot had not yet begun.

[21]

Accompanying the various construction efforts that year was the work of archeologist Cathy

Blee, who visited Skagway that spring. Blee, assisted by Suzanne Bradley, Julie Guda and Steve
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Phillips, excavated six test trenches under and around the two-structure depot complex. The

crew also conducted test excavations around the Mascot Saloon complex, between Boas Tailor

and Furrier and Verbauwhede's Confectionery, and at the new locations of Boss Bakery and the

Itjen house. Frozen ground prevented the quartet from completing their depot work. Work on

the seventh (and last) trench, therefore, had to wait until the summer of 1980. [22]

The construction activity at the depot in 1979 necessitated a change in venue for the two-yearold visitor center. Agency personnel realized in September 1978 that the center would need to

be moved. They soon cast eyes upon the picturesque, city-owned Arctic Brotherhood Hall, and

in order to obtain its use as a visitor center they offered to give some money to the city for its

refurbishment as part of the proposed city-NPS cooperative agreement. Given that enticement,

the city signed the cooperative agreement at a September 21 city council meeting, and the AB

Hall became the Park Service's visitor center beginning in the spring of 1979. It was destined to

retain that role through the 1983 visitor season. [23]

The NPS Reassesses Its Building Program

By the fall of 1979, the park had been in existence for more than three years, and restoration

activities had been carried on for two construction seasons. The staff, moreover, was undergoing

rapid change. Richard Sims had recently replaced Richard Hoffman as superintendent, Gary

Higgins had left that spring, both Robert Spude and Pete Bathurst were on the verge of leaving,

and a new interpretive specialist, David Cohen, was being hired. [24]

At the same time, Alaska Area Office historian Bill Brown began to worry about the direction

that Skagway's restoration efforts had thus far taken. He conveyed that sense of concern to Area

Director John Cook. Cook, agreeing with Brown, wrote that:

Because of the ad hoc approaches that we have been forced to take at this complex

area, things are getting a bit out of joint, particularly as regards possible

discrepancies between preservation and visitor use/services goals.

To remedy the situation, he asked the managers of the Denver Service Center and the Harpers

Ferry Center to convene a special planning group in Skagway. While there, they were

to take a new conceptual look at where we are and where we should go at this area.

We need to provide a conceptual umbrella that can later be detailed in individual

action plans, but which, in the meantime, will serve as a basic guide to synchronize

park development. Our objective will be to analyze and then synthesize ... the key

issues that cannot await the normal process needed to update planning and action

documents. [25]

Cook decided to hold two separate planning sessions. Resource professionals were to meet for

three days beginning February 25, 1980. A week later, beginning March 3, planners and

interpreters would convene. [26]

The resource group consisted of Hugh Miller of the Washington office, Dr. Wilfred Logan and

Dave Snow of Denver Service Center, Gordon Chappell of the Western Regional Office, Bill

Brown and Ken Schoenberg of the Alaska Area Office, Bob Spude of the Heritage Conservation

and Recreation Service, and park officials Richard Sims and Jay Cable. As reported in the local

press, the "delegation came to...offer their views as to what direction the park should take with

the limited federal funds for historic preservation." The group's primary goal was to set up a

priority list of projects. Inasmuch as the depot, during the last several months, had begun to slip

off the jacking system that had been installed the previous summer, highest on the list became
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the provision of cribbing or a foundation. Also important was the restoration of the complex's

deteriorating south wall. Brown announced to the local news media that work on both the

depot's foundation and the south wall would be completed during the summer of 1980. [27]

Decisions were also made regarding other NPS buildings. The crew outlined rehabilitation

projects for the Itjen House, the Lynch and Kennedy Store, the Moore Cabin, and the Mascot

Saloon Complex, and also decided to install foundations for the Goldberg Cigar Store and Boss

Bakery (see Table 1). The other buildings--the Pantheon Saloon, Moore House, Peniel Mission,

Boas Tailor and Furrier, and Verbauwhede's Confectionery--were to be mothballed, at least for

the time being. [28]

Exterior painting was a major part of the proposed rehabilitation effort. The local townspeople

were well aware that the Park Service was actively restoring the buildings. Cribbing, jacking,

and foundation work, however, did not improve the structures' appearance, and many local

citizens wondered why so much money was being spent on largely invisible projects. To

improve community visibility, therefore, the resource group recommended that paint be applied

to the depot complex, the Mascot Saloon Group, the Lynch and Kennedy building, Boss

Bakery, and the Goldberg Cigar Store. [29]

On Monday, March 3, 1980, a second group met to consider interpretive, visitor service, and

operations issues. The group included Terry Carlstrom, Douglas Cornell, and Leslie Starr Hart,

all from Denver Service Center; Doug Warnock, Howard Wagner, and Bill Brown from the

Alaska Area Office; Marc Sagan, from the Harpers Ferry Center; and Jay Cable and Dave

Cohen of the park staff. [30] Highest among the interpretive priorities was the creation of a new

interpretive plan. (Brown scoffed that the previous prospectus, written by William Ingersoll in

1976-77, was a "one man quickie" that was "entirely inadequate" because it covered only the

Mascot and depot buildings.) [31] The group also concluded that the park buildings needed to

be more identifiable to both tourists and local residents. They decided to attach an identifying

sign to each NPS building; to install captioned photographic exhibits in the window displays of

the Mascot Saloon, Boas Tailor and Furrier, the Pantheon Saloon, and Verbauwhede's

Confectionery; and to mount additional displays on the exterior of both the railroad depot and

the Lynch and Kennedy store. These displays were to be designed by Harpers Ferry Center staff

and installed during the summer of 1980. [32]

Table 1. Construction Priority List for Skagway NPS Buildings

Numbers below indicate rank order of proposed rehabilitation projects.

Building

Mar.

1978

Apr.

1980

Sept.

1980

Oct.

1981

Apr.

1985

Nov.

1985

Nov.

1986

1989-

1996

RR Depot/Admin. Building x x 1 1

Verbauwhede's Confectionery (m) 5 -- 2

Boas Tailor and Furrier (m) 4 2 3t

Boss Bakery f 9t -- 3t

Moore Cabin x 6t 4 3t

Mascot Saloon x x 3 3 -- 8 6

Itjen House x x 2 -- -- 9 7 7*

Lynch & Kennedy Store x 11 -- -- 6 8 9

Peniel Mission (m) 8 -- -- -- 11 10

Moore House (m) 6t 5 -- 7 9 11uc
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Pantheon Saloon (m) 12 -- -- -- 10 12p

Goldberg Cigar Store f 9t -- -- -- 12 13p

Symbols: x=high priority project, f=foundations only, (m)=mothball status, t=tie (same status

as another building), uc=project currently under construction, p=proposed project. *=work on

maintenance building (project number 8) began after Itjen work completed.

The group also decided that new brochures were necessary to explain both the gold rush history

and the Park Service's role in protecting and interpreting the legacy of that history. The group

recognized that two brochures would be needed: a walking tour booklet for the historic district,

and a separate park folder for the Alaska park units. [33]

Having been given a clear "road map" for upcoming projects, the park staff proceeded to

implement the suggested recommendations. Regarding the depot, work proceeded slower than

expected. In mid-August 1980, the depot was raised another 6 to 8 inches to a "safe level," 11

inches above the street. Later that year, wood cribbing was brought in and the structures were

levelled. A concrete foundation, however, would not be built until the summer of 1981. In

addition, extensive structural repairs, as promised, were made to the administration building's

south side, and siding repairs were made to the building as well. [34]

Other buildings were also improved. At the Lynch and Kennedy store, the roof was reshingled,

new exterior siding was applied, and a new foundation was laid under all but the north side. [35]

Extensive siding repairs were also made on the Mascot and Itjen buildings, and new roofs were

applied on several buildings as well. Interior structural work was carried on at the Mascot and at

Boas Tailor and Furrier. Dozens of broken windows were replaced throughout the historic

district. And, as promised, many of the old buildings were painted for the first time in decades.

Eight buildings--including the Lynch and Kennedy store, but not the depot complex--were

painted by year's end.

Archeological work accompanied the construction activity. On June 26, 1980, Denver Service

Center archeologist Catherine Blee and assistant Ross Becker visited Skagway and completed

the depot project that Blee and her crew had begun in 1979. Excavations were also conducted

near the Moore Cabin, the Moore House, and the new site of the Martin Itjen House. [36]

On the interpretive side, the promise of completing a new interpretive prospectus remained

unfulfilled. The buildings, however, received brown-and-white identification signs, and the

promised historical photographs were also installed. Progress also took place on the production

of two new brochures. Interpretive Specialist Dave Cohen modified Robert Spude's summaries

of the various NPS buildings, added several Dave Snow drawings, and completed production on

"Skagway, Some Steps on the Gold Rush Trail," a walking tour of Skagway's historical district.

Work also began on a separate folder for the Alaska units of the park. Cohen worked with the

staff at the Harpers Ferry Center on the project, which was completed and available for

distribution in 1981. [37]

During the winter of 1980-81, historic structure reports on both the depot complex and Mascot

group were advanced. The architectural portion of the depot/administration building HSR,

written by architect Paul C. Cloyd, was printed in draft form in April 1981. The report was

uncontroversial and proved valuable during the depot rehabilitation, but a final report was never

issued. [38] The historical data section of the depot HSR was written by Gordon Chappell, who

based his report on the information he had previously gathered while writing the National

Register nomination for the building complex. Chappell expanded his previous work through

additional research, and by September 1981, he had completed a partial draft of the historical

data section and submitted it to the Alaska Regional Office. But funding problems, and

philosophical differences regarding the proper scope of the HSR, prevented the publication of
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the final report. The National Register nomination was likewise never completed. [39]

During the same period, the Mascot Saloon HSR was moving from its draft to its final stages.

During that process a minor if spirited fight broke out over the historical authenticity of one

portion of the building. Back in the fall of 1976, the historical architect in the agency's Pacific

Northwest Region, Laurin Huffman, had proposed the removal of a badly deteriorated shed-roof

addition to the Mascot Saloon. Huffman, who had been visiting Skagway for four years by this

time, determined that the addition had been built "after the gold rush period," and probably

"subsequent to the 1930's." Because the addition did not contribute to the "historical quality" of

the Skagway Historic District, he was willing to approve its demolition in order to allow

Westours, the adjacent property owner, to do some foundation work near the common property

line. [40] The addition was removed by park staff soon afterward. Robert Spude and Dave

Snow, however, discovered during their research that the demolished portion of the Mascot had

been constructed between 1901 and 1905. They proposed its reconstruction. Huffman, upon

hearing of this, noted that the post-gold rush construction date was the result of "a careful fabric

investigation and was confirmed by several Skagway sources." He noted, moreover, that the

shed was "a hazard to the public and encroached on the neighboring property." Snow, however,

was unmoved, noting that he "totally disagrees with the findings of the Regional Historical

Architect..." Those comments were forwarded to the Denver Service Center, and the final HSR,

issued in September 1981, recommended that the addition be reconstructed. [41]

The Skagway Historic District Plan

Another significant event that took place the winter of 1980-81 was a series of confrontational

meetings between the NPS staff and city officials. As is explained more fully in Chapter 8, the

meetings were primarily brought on by local residents' disagreements over NPS policies in

Dyea. Historic district policies, however, were mentioned during the meetings as well.

Relations between the city and the NPS had been rocky for some time when, on February 27,

1981, newly-appointed city manager Willard "Skip" Elliott sent an "ultimatum" to NPS Director

Russell Dickenson. Elliott, backed by the city council, felt that the NPS had broken its

promises; specifically, he complained that the historic buildings were being "turned into modern,

government-subsidized housing for NPS personnel," instead of being restored and leased back

to the business community. [42]

The complaints of Elliott and the council were well founded. Three of the historic buildings--

Verbauwhede's Confectionery, the Mascot Saloon, and the Peniel Mission--were then being

used for permanent or seasonal housing, and the trailer west of the Pantheon Saloon was being

similarly used. And because the agency had been putting its construction funds into roofs,

foundations, siding, and other emergency measures, no historic building leases ("leasebacks")

were available and none were in the offing.

What Elliott and the council did not know was that the NPS was sensitive to the city's concerns

and also wanted to push the reconstruction effort. No one from the NPS, however, had told city

officials about the agency's plans. A year earlier, during the resource group meetings in

Skagway, NPS officials concluded that a Skagway Historic District Plan was "badly" needed.

The purpose of the plan, which was to be a public document, was to set construction priorities

and to state how the buildings would be used. Immediately following its publication, the agency

was to develop a set of standards for those buildings that were to be leased back for commercial

purposes. Agency planners, at the time, were well aware of local pressures to lease NPS

buildings; Bill Brown, the area historian, hoped that Boas Tailor and Furrier might be ready for

a 1981 lease. [43]
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The job of writing the plan fell to Dave Snow, who was hired as historical architect shortly after

the meetings were concluded. [44] Snow was too busy with construction projects to work on the

plan that summer. He recognized, however, that the agency needed to know the financial

ramifications of historic leasing activities, so he created a series of cost estimates for likely

building leases. He ascertained that the least expensive lease would be for the Mascot Saloon

(first floor only), at $200,000. Following that, in ascending order of costs, would be Boss

Bakery and the Goldberg Cigar Store ($250,000), the Lynch and Kennedy Store ($300,000),

Boas Tailor and Furrier ($500,000), Verbauwhede's Confectionery ($600,000), and the Pantheon

Saloon ($700,000). [45]

In September 1980, David Snow created--but did not make public--a first-ever list deciding the

order of the various restoration projects. He stated, not surprisingly, that the railroad depot and

administration building was the park's top construction priority (see Table 1). The priority of the

remaining buildings was listed as follows: 2) Itjen House, 3) Mascot Saloon Group, 4) Boas

Tailor and Furrier, 5) Verbauwhede's Confectionery, 6) Moore House and Cabin, 7) Peniel

Mission, 8) Boss Bakery/Goldberg Cigar Store, 9) Lynch and Kennedy Store, and 10) Pantheon

Saloon. The new priority list was substantially different from that derived by the resource group

just six months earlier. The new list, for example, gave a relatively high priority to Boas Tailor

and Furrier store and to Verbauwhede's Confectionery, two buildings which had been

tentatively mothballed. The Moore Cabin and the Lynch and Kennedy store, on the other hand,

moved from positions of relative prominence to obscurity. (Lynch and Kennedy appears to have

been relegated to a low priority because of difficulties with the owners of the Pack Train

building, which adjoined the store to the north.) [46]

Snow also made initial decisions regarding the eventual use of many agency buildings (see

Table 2). That spring, the assembled professionals had decided that the depot and administration

building would serve as the park's visitor center and headquarters. No decisions, however, had

yet been made on the remaining NPS structures. The following uses were proposed:

Itjen House - park interpretation

Mascot Saloon/first floor - park interpretation, or temporary headquarters (if

necessary); second floor - employee quarters

Boas Tailor and Furrier - employee quarters or leaseback

Verbauwhede's - seasonal employee quarters

Moore House and Cabin - year-round housing or interpretation

Peniel Mission - year-round housing

Boss Bakery and Goldberg Cigar Store - leaseback

Lynch and Kennedy - leaseback or youth hostel

Pantheon Saloon - permanent work shop and storage [47]

In December 1980, Snow and Cable shared the above priority list with historian Bill Brown of

the newly-created Alaska Regional Office. At the same time, they made a plea to ARO

management "to set...a course that can be shared with the public, thus defusing great public

discontent and uncertainty in Skagway." Snow and Cable hoped to obtain "a public forecast of

NPS actions, policies, and structure treatments," and a determination by the regional office of a

long-term strategy of management, preservation, and use of Skagway Historic District." These

were the very same concerns which NPS personnel had voiced in their February 1980 meetings.

The pair went so far as to recommend that they, along with Brown, Dave Cohen, and Robert

Spude, meet in March or April 1981 and prepare "an increment" of the General Management

Plan (i.e., a supplement to the 1976 master plan). [48]

Thus, it can be seen that by the time City Manager Skip Elliott wrote his letter to NPS Director

Dickenson, both park and regional staff were well aware of the need for a historic district plan.

Many of the decisions that were to be included in such a plan, moreover, had already been
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made.

Table 2. Potential Uses for Skagway NPS Buildings

Building

Master

Plan

Spr.

1980

Sept.

1980

Apr.

1981

May

1981

Oct.

1981

May

1982

July

1983

Mar.

1987

1991-

1996

RR Depot/Admin. i vc-ew = = = =-lb vc-ew

Verbauwhede's lb eq lb = = = lb

Boas Tailor i lb eq/lb lb = = = = lb

Boss Bakery ? lb = = = = lb

Moore Cabin i = = = = i

Mascot Saloon I eq/i/ew ew/lb i lb i i-lb

Itjen House ? i = = vc vc/lb ew

Lynch & Kennedy lb lb/h = = lb/p lb lb

Peniel Mission (no) eq = = = eq

Moore House (no) i/eq i = = i

Pantheon Saloon (no) ew lb? = i/lb/ew lb lb

Goldberg Cigar St. ? lb lb i i? i

Symbols: eq=employee quarters; ew=employee work areas; h=hostel; i=interpretation;

lb=leased building; p=public use (unspecified); vc=visitor center

(no)=not included as a potential NPS property; ?=unknown use

dash (-) indicates multiple uses planned or implemented; slash (/) indicates suggested options;

equal sign (=) indicates same usage as for previous date; bold type indicates usage on a

completed project.

The NPS responded to Elliott's February 27 letter by accepting an invitation to a public meeting,

to be held in the Skagway City Hall on April 9. Elliott advertised that the purpose of the meeting

was "to discuss the possible number and types of NPS buildings that will be available for leaseback in the next 10 years." NPS attendees included Bill Brown, Bob Spude, Dave Cohen and

Dave Snow. Elliott and seven other Skagway residents also attended.

The meeting provided a forum on the historic leasing process, and residents were divided on the

topic. Ole Slettevold, the owner of a recently-constructed Broadway commercial building, took

a protective stance, arguing that leasing threatened local business people and property owners.

But Jerry McNamara, who operated a Broadway business on property he did not own, stated an

opposite viewpoint, noting that leases were needed to provide space for new business ventures.

[49] NPS officials announced that they were proposing to lease five buildings: Verbauwhede's

Confectionery, Boas Tailor and Furrier, the Lynch and Kennedy store, Boss Bakery, and the

Goldberg Cigar Store. (Since the previous September, Verbauwhede's had been added to the

list; though still being used as an employee quarters, it was no longer proposed as one.) The

Mascot would "probably serve as a temporary visitor facility, but may be leased back to the

private sector." The Pantheon Saloon was another possible lease; that use would wait, however,

until restoration efforts were complete on the remaining NPS buildings. The Itjen House, the

Moore Cabin, and the Moore House would be reserved for interpretive purposes.

The officials also laid out a rough timetable for the upcoming projects. Due to "austere times,"
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officials estimated that the first building would not be ready for leasing for another five years.

Other priorities, they frankly admitted, came first. Of highest priority was emergency

stabilization and holding-action repair on the historic buildings; next in importance was work on

the depot complex. The regional director promised that these two tasks would be completed in

two years and five years, respectively, and that the agency would "complete comprehensive

preservation work [in Skagway] within ten years." To the relief of local residents, they

announced that the agency was almost finished writing a draft of a historic district plan that

detailed these and similar statements; the plan, in fact, would be ready for review by the city and

residents in another week. [50]

After the meetings were concluded, the historic district plan was considered further by regional

office staff. They modified the plan to some extent; for instance, they stated that the Mascot

Saloon would "probably" be used for interpretation and that the Goldberg Cigar Store would

similarly be devoted to interpretation. On April 24, Regional Director John Cook wrote the park,

noting that he approved the draft plan's "basic form and content." [51] Park officials then

showed the draft plan to city officials, who were satisfied by what the NPS had proposed. As

Elliott noted in a letter to Regional Director John Cook,

I feel that the public here now has a better grasp of the NPS restorative process and

possibilities of lease-back. It is too bad that the restorative time frame is so slow

but there appears to be little that can be done to speed things up.... Basically, the

draft plan is uncontroversial. [52]

Elliott noted that it was unnecessary for NPS officials to discuss the plan further. Based on the

city's cooperative attitude, the issue was forgotten for the next few months. [53]

In late October, the plan surfaced again at another public meeting. John Cook, the Alaska

Regional Office director, and Regional Historical Architect Dave Snow met with a crowd of

approximately 40 local residents and outlined the latest version of the draft management plan

for the park-owned buildings in the historic district. Snow, telling the crowd that "we've got to

decide what these buildings will be used for," indicated that the park's initial restoration project

would be the depot complex. Later projects would be Boas Tailor and Furrier, the Mascot

Saloon Group, the Moore Cabin, and the Moore House, in that order. Boas Tailor and Furrier,

he noted, would become available for historic property leasing; in addition, he departed from

earlier recommendations and announced that "some space" in the depot complex--presumably

the Wells Fargo office in the administration building--"will be available for private enterprise."

Cook, perhaps recognizing that priorities had already changed several times, was quick to note

that "Our plan is not carved in stone." [54]

The historic district plan, as it turned out, quietly slid into oblivion after that public meeting.

Local residents, by now, were well aware of the NPS's role in the historic district and the

reconstruction process, and those topics had been a central part of the plan. No final copy of the

historic district plan was ever prepared.

One historic district issue that never reached the public discussion stage was a proposal to

change the Skagway Historic District's boundaries. The boundaries of the historic district, which

were coterminous with those of the Skagway unit of the park, had been forged in October 1972,

when the Skagway City Council had passed its historic district ordinance. The 1973 master plan,

and the congressional act which authorized the park, used the same boundary line. That

boundary line, however, assumed that the NPS would later purchase several parking lots for the

use of park visitors; in addition, it assumed that the boundary circumscribed most of the

historically-significant business buildings. During the spring of 1978, however, the city council

(as noted in Chapter 7) nixed the parking-lot idea, and by the fall of 1979, Robert Spude's

research confirmed that several of the town's most significant historical buildings lay outside of
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the historic district. Based on the new findings, Spude recommended to Chief Historian Ed

Bearss that the boundary be realigned to include the additional structures. Anchorage historian

Bill Brown echoed Spude's sentiments. Area Director John Cook, however, stalled on the issue.

Finally, in April 1981, he recommended that discussion of a boundary change be deferred. [55]

Since that time (see Chapter 7), the Historic District Commission has made several minor

alterations to the historic district boundary.

Completing Emergency Stabilization Work

As Snow and others prepared for the 1981 construction season, they recognized that the main

tasks to be undertaken would be similar to those that had been worked on during the three

previous construction seasons: that is, the emergency stabilization of historic structures. At the

depot complex, it was discovered that the perimeter was settling. Snow, clearly alarmed at the

turn of events, wanted to install a foundation "as soon as possible"--by April or May at the

latest. A new roof was to be applied at the same site; the existing roof was "in very poor

condition and leak[s] profusely." Eight structures--the Itjen House, Lynch and Kennedy, the

Mascot Saloon, Boas Tailor and Furrier, Verbauwhede's, Peniel Mission, the Moore House, and

the Pantheon Saloon--were to receive exterior paint, roofing, and siding work "to help preserve

them until more comprehensive preservation and restoration efforts begin." Finally, plans were

made to rewire all fifteen structures. [56]

Documentary work was also needed. In January 1981, it was decided to perform much of the

work that was later published in the so-called "Ten Structures Report." Paul Cloyd (of DSC)

and Dave Snow were to complete drawings in the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS)

format, make photos and descriptions of the exterior and interior, and write alternatives for

preservation and use for the following buildings: the Itjen House, Boas Tailor and Furrier, Boss

Bakery, Goldberg Cigar Store, the Moore House, the Moore Cabin, Lynch and Kennedy, the

Pantheon Saloon, and the Peniel Mission. By April 10, when the task directive for the project

was signed, it had been decided to add a tenth building--Verbauwhede's Confectionery--to the

list. [57]

By July, Cloyd had made tentative recommendations regarding the architectural appearance of

the above buildings. Some were controversial. He suggested, for instance, that even though the

Itjen House had historically been located beside the White Pass wharf, no efforts would be made

to include the reconstruction of a wharf to simulate its earlier use. Regarding the Peniel

Mission, he recommended that it be maintained in its present (post-1937) appearance rather than

in its gold rush appearance. His most radical suggestion was that the Goldberg Cigar Store "be

removed from the site, dismantled and disposed of." Dave Snow, the regional historical

architect, agreed with each of Cloyd's suggestions. Regional Director Cook also concurred on

the proposed treatments for the Itjen House and the Peniel Mission. But "the recommendation

on the Cigar Store," he wrote, was "controversial and cannot be considered solely on technical

grounds. For the time being ... I want you to adopt an interim policy of protective stabilization

of this structure." [58] Each of Cook's recommendations were reflected in the language of both

the May 1982 draft report and the January 1984 final report.

Cloyd's draft and final reports recommended somewhat different building uses than had

previously been offered. Boas Tailor and Furrier, Verbauwhede's Confectionery, and Boss

Bakery were recommended for leasing purposes, as they had since 1981; the Moore House and

Moore Cabin were still recommended for interpretive purposes; and the Peniel Mission was still

recommended as an employee quarters. Goldberg Cigar Store, however, was to be "possibly"

interpreted as a gold rush-era business. The Itjen House was to be used as a visitor contact

station. The Lynch and Kennedy store would either be leased (as before) or "for potential public

use." Finally, the Pantheon Saloon would become either a gold rush saloon (for interpretive
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purposes), a leased property, or a park support building. [59]

During the summer of 1981, the buildings in the historic district received additional stabilization

work, and by the season's end much of the most critical work had been completed. New or

improved roofs had been applied to the depot building, the Itjen House, Verbauwhede's, Mascot,

and the Pantheon Saloon. New foundations had been installed at the depot complex, Boas, and

the Mascot. New siding had been applied at the depot complex, the Mascot, and Lynch and

Kennedy. Finally, the depot complex, Itjen, Verbauwhede's, Boas, Mascot, Lynch and Kennedy,

and the Pantheon Saloon had all been painted. [60]

Another major 1981 accomplishment was the completion of a new interpretive prospectus,

which was approved by regional official Douglas G. Warnock on December 11, 1981. The

document was, to some extent, a refinement of William Ingersoll's interim 1977 plan that had

discussed only the depot and Mascot Saloon buildings. The document, which was the combined

effort of staff at the park, the regional office, and Harpers Ferry Center, was largely concerned

with how the depot would be interpreted when it opened. The existing program, however, was

also described. It noted that "A few exhibits and a slide program are offered at the AB Hall, and

guided tours of the historic district originate there. Self-guided tour pamphlets, gold rush films,

and evening programs round out the interpretive offerings." The walking tours and evening

lectures were new aspects of the program; they had been instituted by interpretive specialist

Dave Cohen. Another addition to the program was the addition of a restored canvas boat (which

had been removed from near the top of Chilkoot Pass in 1977) along with an accompanying

interpretive display. The films and slide show, however, were identical to those offered in 1979,

as noted above. The storefront exhibits, which had been installed in 1980, were also unchanged

and were already suffering from deterioration. In order to bolster the latter two areas, the

interpretive prospectus proposed that the length of one of the park's major films, Days of

Adventure, Dreams of Gold, be reduced from 60 to 30 minutes; it also proposed new exhibits

for most of the park's buildings. [61]

During the winter of 1981-82, NPS officials announced their intention to continue the

stabilization program. The depot would be the top priority. In addition, the Itjen House, the

Pantheon Saloon, and the Moore Cabin would receive new roofs, paint and weatherproofing.

[62] What took place that summer differed slightly from what had been planned. During the

spring of 1982, a local contractor laid the long-overdue foundation to the depot complex (see

Table 3). That July, an Anchorage contractor applied a new tar roof to the railroad building. The

other three buildings noted above were, for the most part, ignored. A building that did receive

attention, however, was the Peniel Mission. The building, which began housing seasonal

employees that year, suffered a roof fire (causing $4,500 damage) on June 3; as a result, the

building received a new shingle roof in August. The building also received a new furnace. By

the end of the summer, the Skagway News reported that the NPS buildings had been "restored

and painted." [63]

Table 3. Chronology of Construction Activity, Skagway NPS Buildings

Building

Initial

Funding

Approval

Date

Rehabilitation

Began*

Building

Completion

Date

Usage

Date

RR Depot/Admin. Building ? 2/82 1/84 2/84

Verbauwhede's Confectionery ? 4/85 11/86 9/86

Boas Tailor and Furrier 5/85 8/85 12/86 3/87

Verbauwhede's Cribs ? 4/85 3/87e 5/87
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Boss Bakery 5/85 8/85 12/86 5/87

Moore Cabin 5/85 10/85 12/86 3/87e

Mascot Saloon

 (Clipper/Hern)

4/86

4/86

7/86

7/86

3/91

2/89

6/91

5/89

Itjen House 4/86 7/86, 7/89 4/91 12/91

Lynch & Kennedy Store 2/91 3/91 2/93 5/93

Maintenance Building 9/88 10/93 11/94 3/95

Peniel Mission 2/91 5/93 6/95 5/95

Moore House 9/94 6/95 9/97e 5/98e

Pantheon Saloon -- 5/97e 6/99e --

Goldberg Cigar Store -- 4/99e 8/99e --

* - Rehabilitation does not include emergency stabilization work, which took place between

1978 and 1981.

e - estimated date

In 1983, park restoration work centered almost exclusively on the depot complex so that the

administrative offices might be able to move from the AB Hall to the new quarters as soon as

possible. In June, the park received $56,500 from the President's jobs bill which allowed the

park to hire five additional carpenters and a painter, and for the remainder of the year park

crews constructed doors and windows, applied wainscoting and trim, varnished, laid

subflooring, applied sheet rock, and performed similar functions. They also reconstructed four

chimneys. That October, an Anchorage contractor completed the installation of the complex's

mechanical system, which consisted of electrical wiring, heating system, and a fire sprinkler

system. By early November, the local press was announcing that the offices were "getting the

finishing touches, and moving day is fast approaching." Park staff made plans to move in early

1984. [64]

A Leasing Plan is Developed

Meanwhile, a plan was developed to lease some of the agency's Skagway buildings. Paul Cloyd,

as noted above, had tentatively concluded (in the May 1982 draft to the so-called "Ten

Structures Report") that three buildings--Boas Tailor and Furrier, Verbauwhede's Confectionery,

and Boss Bakery--would be leased. Three others--the Lynch and Kennedy store, the Pantheon

Saloon, and the Wells Fargo office in the railroad administration building--were being

considered for the same purpose. Back in April 1981, NPS officials had announced that the first

historic building lease would not be ready for another five years. But in 1982, the agency

established a leasing program based on a 1980 amendment (Section 111) to the National

Historic Preservation Act of 1966; perhaps based on the new program, the agency changed

course and hatched a plan designed to speed up the leasing process. The plan differed from

earlier proposals in that it called for the agency to complete work on only the building's exterior.

The winning lessee would be obligated to refurbish the interior; the lessee, while doing that

work, would need to follow NPS construction drawings and specifications. In exchange for that

work, however, the lessee could expect a relatively low lease payment, and would obtain federal

tax credits on all expended funds. [65]

The plan was announced on July 27, 1983, at a public meeting in the Arctic Brotherhood Hall.

Attending the meeting were 40 local residents; presenting the details of the plan were

Superintendent Richard Sims, along with Regional Director Roger Contor, Floyd Sharrock from

the Regional Office, and Randy Biallas from the agency's Washington office. The NPS officials
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said that two park buildings--Boas Tailor and Furrier and the Mascot Saloon--were being

readied for lease and could be leased "as early as next spring." (The Mascot Saloon was new to

the list, it never having been considered previously as a leasing candidate.) Another four

buildings--Verbauwhede's Confectionery, Boss Bakery, Lynch and Kennedy, and the Pantheon

Saloon--were also being considered as leases. Based on the presentations made, several

individuals expressed an interest in leasing park buildings. [66]

Despite the agency's promise that it would be able to prepare leases in time for the 1984 season,

work dragged. In December 1983, plans still called for leasing proposals for Boas Tailor and

Furrier, Verbauwhede's Confectionery, the Mascot Saloon, and Boss Bakery, in that order. But

plans stalled, and by March the proposal--still in the planning stage--had eliminated

Verbauwhede's Confectionery and the Mascot Saloon from the list of potential lease candidates.

Sims, perhaps noting a reluctance in having lessees take on unrenovated buildings, noted that "it

might be more feasible to have the park put a couple more years of work in the buildings before

leasing them." [67]

Later that year, the agency finally released a request for proposal (RFP) for leasing historic

buildings along Broadway. The deadline, which passed on November 6, 1984, yielded

discouraging results. Only one party responded to the RFP. The proposer, local resident Dean

Ray, hoped to convert the Mascot Saloon into a delicatessen. After some discussion with Park

Service officials, Ray withdrew the proffered bid. Sims, reflecting on the results of the bidding

process, concluded that "Apparently the private sector was not interested in rehabilitating

historic buildings to NPS specifications in Skagway," and agreed that "the price was probably

prohibitive for most individuals in town." [68]

Completion of the Headquarters and Visitor Center

On February 1, 1984, the depot-complex construction project was sufficiently complete that

NPS personnel moved the park headquarters from the cramped confines of their office above

the old Broadway Market to their spacious, newly-refurbished quarters. Most of the employees'

new offices were on the second floor of the former White Pass and Yukon Route administration

building; the office of the interpretive specialist, however, was located on the second floor of

the old WP&YR depot. The NPS vacated the offices in which they had worked for the past

seven years, and turned the AB Hall visitor center back to the city of Skagway. [69]

The NPS employees were justifiably proud of their new surroundings, and on the afternoon of

March 30 hosted an open house to show the building off to local residents. Dave Snow showed

them a slide program of the restoration. He and other park employees took small groups of

visitors through the facility, and refreshments were served.

Guests soon discovered that the building's restoration was only partially complete. The

completion of the employee offices was just the first phase of a scheduled four-phase, $1.5

million project. The opening of the public area downstairs, the completion of the depot's upstairs

area, and the completion of storage areas had not yet taken place. [70]

In order to complete the next project phase, the park's labor crew laid sub-flooring, installed

sheet rock, taped the ceiling and walls, installed bathroom fixtures, constructed a stage and a

projection room, installed auditorium seats and lights, constructed new doors, rebuilt the

windows, and applied wainscoting, trim, paint and wallpaper. A contracting company laid

linoleum and carpet.

On May 18. the new visitor center opened for business. It was equipped with a 99-seat

auditorium, a visitor-services counter constructed by local carpenter Marcus Brooker, and a film
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"tree" that played the park's primary film, Days of Adventure, Dreams of Gold, at the touch of a

switch. A permanent set of exhibits had not yet been procured; therefore, a series of temporary

exhibits were installed in the old baggage room. The "temporary" exhibits, as it turned out,

would serve visitors for the next seven years. [71]

Shortly after the visitor center opened, Superintendent Sims wrote to city officials and requested

a loading zone along the Broadway side of the depot. (An existing ordinance restricted parking

along the depot's Second Avenue side.) Sims made the request in order to improve traffic flow

and to allow photographers the opportunity to photograph the building. On June 7, the proposed

ordinance was passed to a second reading, and two weeks later, the city council approved the

agency's request with a 4-1 vote. [72]

On Sunday, July 1, the depot was formally dedicated in a ribbon-cutting ceremony held along

the building's south elevation. The 45-minute program's featured speaker was NPS Director

Russell E. Dickenson. Other officials included Marvin Taylor, Rail Manager for the White Pass

& Yukon Route; Robert Arnold, Deputy Commissioner for the Alaska Department of Natural

Resources; Neil Johannsen, Director of Alaska State Parks; Ms. Gen Dickey, a Juneau-based

staff assistant for the Alaska Congressional Delegation; Reverend Ken Newell, of the Skagway

Presbyterian Church; NPS Regional Director Roger Contor; and park superintendent Richard

Sims. [73]

The park construction crew spent most of the summer work season completing the nine

remaining second floor rooms of the depot. The completion of the work allowed the park to

establish the park library, artifact storage room, conference room, rest rooms and storage rooms.

The last phase of the depot construction project was the completion of the two rooms in the first

floor of the administration building. (The room on the eastern half of the first floor had served

as the Wells Fargo Company office during the second decade of the twentieth century.) Most of

this project was completed in 1984; the laying of linoleum on the western half of the

administration's first floor, however, did not take place until early 1985. On the depot side, most

of the work was also completed in 1984; carpeting for one of the upstairs rooms, however, was

not laid until the spring of 1985. [74]

The establishment of a library room and a curatorial storage area was the realization of a longsought park goal. The park had begun compiling a collection of historic photographs in early

1978. The primary job of establishing a library, however, fell to historian Robert Spude, who

assembled books, photocopied materials, photographs and archival material during his 18-month

tenure at the park. Dave Cohen, the first park interpreter, catalogued the park's library holdings

during his first year on the job. The library was kept in the interpreter's office in the park's

Broadway Building headquarters. [75]

During the same period, the park established a permanent location for its museum collection.

The collection had begun in August 1977, when local resident Larry Pagnac donated several

gold rush-era items. For the next several years, the small but growing collection remained

uncatalogued; items were placed either in the Mascot, the park office, or in the two-story safe

located in the WP&YR administration building. Then, in July 1980, seasonal ranger Rebecca

Harriett, working under the tutelage of Dave Cohen, began cataloguing the collection; she also

moved the entire collection to the WP&YR safe. By year's end one-third of the park's museum

collection had been accessioned, catalogued, and stored in a secure and stable environment. By

early 1982, the collection numbered approximately 400 items. [76] That total was augmented

considerably during the summers of 1982 and 1983, when park technicians catalogued more

than 600 objects in situ along the Chilkoot Trail (see Chapter 9). By the close of the 1983

season, more than half of the park's catalogued artifacts lay in remote locations. Those located

in Skagway, however, remained in the increasingly cramped depot safe; prior to the completion

of the depot complex, the accession folders and catalog cards were kept in the interpretive
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specialist's office. [77]

Despite the lack of proper storage facilities, park staff in 1982 began planning methods to

preserve and improve the museum collection. Mary Pat Wyatt, a Juneau-based museum

specialist, was awarded a contract that year to conduct research on various preservation

treatments that might be utilized on the artifacts. Dave Cohen began preparing the park's first

Scope of Collections statement; it was signed by John Cook, the regional director, on December

3. [78] Finally, two Washington-based curators, Diana Pardue and Donald Cumberland, came to

the park in August 1982 and performed a Curatorial Operations Evaluation. As a result of that

evaluation, they wrote the park's first Collection Preservation Guide, which was completed in

June 1983. [79]

Since the completion of the depot rehabilitation in 1985, other construction projects have taken

place at the depot complex. In the summer of 1987, the depot exterior was repainted. A few

residents had complained that the building's red color was unlike any that the railroad had ever

used on its freight cars. To find its true historic color, old paint was removed down to the bare

wood surface, after which primary and finish coats were applied. The following year, the park

administration building was painted. As part of the project, workers discovered that the east

parapet wall was more severely deteriorated than expected, and many of the boards had to be

replaced. [80] The painting job was completed in 1989. The work involved tedious removal of

layers of peeling paint, replacement of unsound wood trim, repair and replacing of metal

flashings and ornamental metal moldings, new roofing, and repair of chimney flashings. Two

years later, the maintenance staff prepared for the installation of the exhibit package by

enlarging the door between the two first-floor exhibit rooms in the railroad building. They also

installed new carpet in both rooms. [81]

Moore House Activities

The Moore House property was the other major focus of activity during 1984. Ever since the

gold rush period, the property's southern boundary line had protruded onto the northern side of

Fifth Avenue. Previous owners of the Moore House had had little difficulty with the property

because Fifth Avenue had little traffic. But with the growth of tour-bus traffic, city officials

cited safety concerns and asked the NPS to donate or sell a corner of their lot in order to widen

the street. The NPS, however, would not budge. The lot, officials noted, needed to retain its

historical configuration. That same year, the agency replaced an old, dilapidating metal fence

with a wooden picket fence, similar to one that had graced the property during the post-gold

rush period. [82]

Archeological activities also took place in the Moore House vicinity. Historical evidence

collected by Robert Spude showed that the historic White Pass Trail passed diagonally (from

southeast to northwest) through the NPS-owned vacant lots that lay between Kirmse's Curio

Shop and the Moore House. In order to determine the extent and significance of archeological

deposits in that area, Cathy Blee and Marianne Musitelli, both from the agency's Denver Service

Center, excavated a pit and conducted several shovel tests in an area to the northwest of the

Moore Cabin. They remained on the job during most of July. [83]

A third activity pertaining to the Moore House was the preparation of a historic furnishings

report. Paul Cloyd's final "Ten Structures Report," published in January 1984, had called for

most of the Moore House interior "to be restored for interpretation as an example of an early

gold rush era residence and specifically the home of J. Bernard Moore." Regarding the adjacent

Moore Cabin, Cloyd's report proposed that its interior be preserved and likewise used for

interpretive purposes. In order to carry out those recommendations, a planning directive was

prepared that month and approved in early March. It authorized the preparation of a historic
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furnishings report for the two buildings. The Moore House interior would be preserved as it had

appeared during the 1897-1906 period, and the Moore Cabin during the 1897-1899 period. [84]

Sarah Olson, from the agency's Harpers Ferry Center, was given the task of writing the report,

and a year later the draft was complete. Many were asked to review it; the comments received

were uniformly positive. Robert J. Shelley of the Denver Service Center noted that "we believe

this report accurately and concisely provides the information that was intended. Much of the

data...will be of great use in our design work." [85] Olson's final report was approved by the

Alaska Regional Office on June 28, 1985 and was published by the Denver Service Center two

months later.

Initial Building Leases

Construction work on the depot complex, as noted above, was essentially complete by the end

of 1984. The park construction crews, directed by personnel from the Denver Service Center,

were free to commence their efforts on other buildings in the historic district. It was decided to

work first on Verbauwhede's Confectionery and the cribs located behind it (the so-called "alley

structure"), and construction activity began on both buildings in April 1985. That same month,

the agency solicited bids from contractors for work on Boas Tailor and Furrier, Boss Bakery,

and the Moore Cabin. Superintendent Sims was hopeful that the four leases (all but the Moore

Cabin) would be completed by the end of the summer and would soon after be ready for

occupancy. Sims further noted that once the first five buildings had been completed, the next

four to be considered for rehabilitation would be the Lynch and Kennedy store, the Moore

House, the Mascot Saloon, and the Itjen House. He envisioned that "if the money continues to

come in," work on all of the historic district's construction projects would be completed in three

or four years. [86]

SMICO Construction Company of Haines bid $500,000 and thus won the Boas Tailor, Boss

Bakery, and Moore Cabin contract. A series of unexpected delays, however, ensued soon

afterward. During the summer of 1985, for example, contractors discovered that the Boss

Bakery site was underlain by a high water table; as a result, the building's utilities had to be

relocated from a proposed basement to a rear utility room. It was also determined that the wood

comprising the Boss building was so deteriorated that all but the false front needed to be

replaced. And at the Moore Cabin, NPS personnel demanded a more expensive foundation than

the bid had specified.

As a result of these delays, none of the four buildings intended for lease (Verbauwhede's, the

alley structure, Boas, and Boss) was completed by the end of summer, as Sims had predicted.

[87] On January 3, 1986, the NPS informed SMICO that 85 percent of the bid's funds had been

spent without having completed a proportional share of the contract work. Agency officials,

however, took pains to say that the cost overrun was not the fault of the contractor. They

therefore allowed the contractor to expend the remaining 15 percent of its contract; after that

point, they had the park's day labor crew finish work on the Boas and Boss buildings. In

January, officials were still expressing hope that the four lease buildings would be completed

before the summer season, but two months later, they gave an early summer completion date.

[88]

As the buildings neared completion, NPS officials readied a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the

four park buildings that were proposed as historic building leases. [89] The RFP, which was

issued on February 1, 1986, was unlike the document that had been offered to potential lessees

in the fall of 1984 because the new RFP called for a full renovation by the NPS for the

building's interior as well as its exterior. As specified in the RFP, potential lessees could use the

four buildings for any purpose, except that "arcade uses and any entertainment inappropriate for
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a family audience" would be prohibited. The public sale of alcoholic beverages would also be

prohibited; it would be permitted, however, when served with a meal to be consumed on the

premises. The proposed building use could not conflict with the public use of the park. The

contract was to be for a fifteen-year period. The minimum annual lease payment for

Verbauwhede's Confectionery was to be $5,476; for the alley structure, $4,599; for Boas Tailor

and Furrier, $10,229; and for Boss Bakery, $4,910. Potential lessees were given until April 1,

1986 to submit their bid. The RFP stated that all four buildings would be completed by May 1. It

noted, however, that "proposers should not rely on these estimated completion dates as the NPS

may have to extend them." By mid-February, acting superintendent Jay Cable was already

backing off from the May 1 deadline; he told the local press that only two properties--

Verbauwhede's Confectionery and the adjacent cribs--would be available for occupancy that

summer. Rehabilitation work on the other two properties would not be completed until some

time that summer; occupancy would need to wait until the summer of 1987. [90]

The NPS hoped to use its building lease program as a vehicle for historical interpretation, and

to that end the RFP encouraged potential lessees to include historical items and educational

materials in the display windows of their businesses. In order to assist that effort, NPS personnel

had recently been active in preparing materials for displays in the windows of potential leases.

In March 1984, Sarah Olson (of the agency's Harpers Ferry Center) began compiling a report on

the subject. The report, which followed a recommendation made in the 1981 interpretive

prospectus, was intended to offer suggestions on window displays for Boas Tailor and Furrier,

Verbauwhede's Confectionery, Boss Bakery, Goldberg Cigar Store, the Lynch and Kennedy

store, the Pantheon Saloon, and the Mascot Saloon. [91] Completed in draft form in September

1985, Olson's report revealed that sufficient historical evidence existed to warrant a re-creation

of historical window displays at the Lynch and Kennedy store and at the Mascot Saloon; there

was graphic display potential at Boas Tailor, Boss Bakery, Goldberg Cigar Store and the

Pantheon Saloon; and that there was insufficient information at Verbauwhede's Confectionery to

warrant a historical interpretive display. The report, after undergoing editorial review, was

finalized in early 1986. [92]

The NPS received only two lease proposals by the April 1 deadline. Both proposals were judged

to be qualified; both proposals, moreover, were for the same building, Verbauwhede's

Confectionery. After some negotiation with the potential lessees, NPS officials decided to award

the Verbauwhede's lease to Casey McBride, a local goldsmith who had operated Taiya River

Jewelry in the Pack Train building for the past several years. Jeff Brady, the editor of the

Skagway News, had bid on Verbauwhede's as well, but inasmuch as he had specified Boas

Tailor and Furrier as an alternate choice, he was awarded the lease for that building. McBride

and Brady offered to make annual payments of $8,000 and $10,230, respectively. [93]

The NPS followed the lease awards with a June 14 open house and a ceremony that featured

Regional Director Boyd Evison, acting superintendent Jay Cable, and the two lessees. McBride's

building was by now complete, but because of the summer rush he decided to wait until

September to move into his site. Some work remained on Boas Tailor and Furrier, and as a

result Brady stated that he would not move into the building and commence his planned

Skaguay News Depot until March 1987. [94]

The rehabilitation of the first two lease buildings, and their successful occupancy by local

businessmen soon afterwards, put the park firmly in the leasing business. By the time of the

awards ceremony, the NPS was already well established with its historic leasing program. The

program had begun during the 1985 fiscal year, when ten structures--eight of them in the

agency's Southeast Region--had been leased. Ten more structures were leased in fiscal year

1986, two of which were located in Skagway. Although Klondike, by this measure, was not a

pioneer park in regards to property leasing, it was perhaps the only park in the system in which

historic leasing would play such an important part in a community's economic affairs. [95]
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As the summer of 1986 came to a close, Clay Alderson took over the superintendency from Jay

Cable, who had been serving in an acting capacity for the previous nine months. Alderson was

determined to lease the Verbauwhede's cribs and the Boss Bakery, which had received no

qualified bids that April, and a new RFP was prepared. But inequities in the buildings' appraisal,

and delays in the construction effort, delayed the issuance of the RFP until early 1987. [96] The

NPS received just two offers in response, one for each property. In March 1987, Alderson

announced that Bryan and Debi Ritter, representing Principal Barbers, had won the bid for the

Boss Bakery building. Glenda Choate, head of Alaska Archives and Records Management, won

the bid for Verbauwhede's cribs. The Ritters, who intended to operate a beauty and barber shop,

agreed to an annual payment of $6,600. Choate, who intended to operate "Miss Kitty's," a retail

merchandise store, agreed to a $4,200 annual leasing fee. Both leases were for a fifteen year

period. Both businesses opened in the summer of 1987. [97]

The Moore Cabin, the fifth NPS building to be rehabilitated, was worked on during the same

general period that the Verbauwhede's Confectionery buildings, Boas Tailor and Furrier, and

Boss Bakery were being worked on. As noted above, SMICO Construction Company of Haines

won the contract to rebuild the cabin. The cabin exterior, to a large degree, was to be

reconstructed. Superintendent Sims noted that the old logs would be taken down and replaced,

and the building would be placed on concrete piers. "It was built so long ago, there's no other

way to save it," he observed. [98]

During the summer of 1985, archeologists prepared for the coming restoration by investigating

the cabin's attic. That fall, a large, metal shed was erected over the cabin. Given the relative

security and freedom from weather offered by the shed, project work proceeded. By November

1985 the cabin had been disassembled, and all the old logs taken out. Plans called for the

installation of a concrete foundation, the replacement of most of the exterior logs (all but the

truncated logs under the eaves) with new logs and the addition of strengthening members. Greg

Podsiki and Tom Faverty, cabin specialists from Haines, were assigned primary reconstruction

responsibilities. [99]

By the end of 1986, cabin work had been completed and a paraffin, wax and varnish

preservative had been applied. Soon afterward, the metal shell was removed to reveal the

newly-reconstituted structure. By April, park staff were planning a cabin dedication; the event,

to be held on July 5, was doubly important because 1987 was the centennial anniversary of

Captain William Moore's arrival in Skagway Valley. [100] The dedication was held as

scheduled. Speeches were made by park superintendent Clay Alderson, newspaperman Jeff

Brady, Native leader Silas Dennis, Sr., and Regional Director Boyd Evison; special guests

included Neva Egan, widow of Alaska's first governor, and former Moore Cabin owner Jack

Kirmse. An estimated 150 to 200 people attended the event, which included the opportunity to

walk through the newly-restored cabin. [101]

Mascot Saloon Rehabilitation

During the spring of 1986, Congress provided the park a supplemental sum for construction

purposes. As a result, the park day labor crew which had been working on the Verbauwhede's

Confectionery buildings was able, beginning in July, to commence work on the rehabilitation of

both the Mascot Saloon Complex and the Martin Itjen House. (Archeological crews, that spring,

had performed compliance excavations at both sites.) The agency's selection of the Mascot

Saloon and the Itjen House signalled a reordering of priorities; the previous November,

outgoing Superintendent Sims had stated that the Lynch and Kennedy store and the Moore

House would be the next two projects to be undertaken. [102] Clay Alderson, who came on

board in September, vowed to see both the Mascot and the Itjen buildings through to

completion. A short time later, however, construction work at the Itjen House site was halted in
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order to concentrate on the Mascot Saloon. [103]

Although funding levels for construction projects through the government's Lump Sum

Construction Program began to tighten up during the winter of 1986-87, work nevertheless

continued on the Mascot Saloon rehabilitation project. Park planners, up to this point, had

assumed that the building upon completion would be used for commercial leasing purposes. As

noted in the following section, however, a meeting of NPS personnel which was held at the

park in mid-March 1987 decided otherwise. At that meeting, officials decided to offer as a lease

only the Pacific Clipper Line and Hern Liquor Store portion of the building (that is, the central

and southern units of the three-part Mascot Saloon complex). In the northernmost unit, the old

Mascot Saloon, it was decided to create an interpretive facility on the first floor. The rear of the

building would include public rest rooms, for which a strong need had long been evident in the

historic district. The second floor would be devoted to a curatorial storage area, while the garage

would be converted into an archeological laboratory. [104]

During the remainder of 1987 work continued, and by year's end approximately 90 percent of

the exterior had been completed. Interior work, however, was halted until architects redesigned

the area to incorporate changes made at the mid-March meeting. By this time, design work on

the building was 95 percent complete, and extra time was needed to design the rest rooms, the

heavy timbers needed to support the curatorial collection, and the historic wood floors. In

addition, work could not proceed until a contract could be let for installation of electrical wiring

and a fire protection system. [105]

The lack of funds halted work on both the interior and exterior for more than two months in

early 1988. Once work resumed, officials concentrated on finishing the building's exterior; on

the interior, they decided to focus on the rehabilitation of the Pacific Clipper Line and Hern's

Liquor portions of the building. The agency intended to complete the work by the fall of 1988

and have it available for lease for the 1989 summer season. [106]

The agency was fortunate to receive a Congressional funding supplement for the Mascot

construction project, and by the end of 1988 the exterior of the building complex had been

completely restored, with large display windows on the Broadway side of the building. [107]

Work on the interior was somewhat slower. As promised, contractors installed the sprinkler

system. The Hern-Clipper interior, however, was not ready for occupancy until the end of

February 1989. In order to lease the building for the 1989 season, the agency issued an Request

for Proposal with a January 4 deadline. It received five proposals, and on January 31 it selected

the bid of Jeweler's Bench, a company that already had a jewelry shop in Sitka. The lease was to

be for 15 years; the winning bidder offered to pay $14,500 annually. The company began

operating its Skagway jewelry and curio shop in May 1989; a year later, it subleased the second

floor to Barbara Suvia Turner, who opened the Cabbage Rose gift shop. [108]

In September 1988, Congress approved $657,000 in additional funds for Mascot construction

work, enough to finish the building's interior. Given the financial wherewithal, work continued

there for more than a year. During 1989, the Mascot was the park's major restoration project;

that summer, officials predicted that the building and its accompanying exhibits would be open

to the public for the 1990 summer season. [109] The amount of work, however, was such that

rehabilitation of the interior was not completed until March 1991. Soon afterward, the $1.2

million project was finished and the building was made available for occupancy. The bar and

other exhibits were installed that spring. The rest rooms were open to the public in mid-June

and on June 30, NPS officials dedicated the saloon and held an open house to celebrate the

completion of the rehabilitation project, the 75th anniversary of the National Park Service, and

the 15th anniversary of the park. NPS historian Frank Norris spoke at the event and provided a

brief historical synopsis. [110]
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To park staff, one of the most satisfying byproducts of the completion of work was the opening

of the Mascot Archeological Laboratory and Storage Facility on the building's second floor. As

noted above, the completion of the depot complex, seven years earlier, had provided the park

with its first curatorial space outside of the two-story White Pass vault. During the mid-1980s,

the curatorial area easily handled the objects assigned to it. The park, however, amassed

thousands of new objects each year, primarily from archeological excavations, and by 1991 the

park's curatorial collection numbered over 200,000 items. That summer, the archeological

portion of the collection was moved from the cramped storage area in the depot complex to the

new facility; the depot space was kept for the curation of artifacts that came from nonarcheological sources. [111]

Museum cataloguing operations, which had been established in the depot during the mid-1980s,

are still based at that location. Seasonal museum technicians, at first, entered new objects onto

catalog cards. In 1987, however, the park obtained a computer for its museum work and began

using the Automated National Catalog System format. Other recent highlights of the park's

curatorial operation have included a rewriting of the Scope of Collections Statement, both in

April 1988 and August 1992, and the hiring of Debra Sanders in October 1991 as the park's first

Museum Specialist. [112]

The Park Exhibit Package Takes Shape

As shown in the 1981 interpretive prospectus, NPS planners during the early 1980s intended that

the White Pass and Yukon Route depot would be the only NPS interpretive facility in Skagway.

(The only other interpretation in the Skagway historic district would be various storefront

displays, and a wayside exhibit at the Moore Cabin.) The theme of the depot exhibits, not

surprisingly, was to be "the quest for gold." Given that direction, Bruce Geyman and Saul

Shiffman of the agency's Harpers Ferry Center began design work in 1983 for a visitor center

exhibit package. Their work was completed in January 1984 and sent to the region for review.

Regional staff responded with comments, but activity on the project then lapsed. [113]

Meanwhile, the impending opening of the depot to visitors demanded the creation of a

temporary exhibit package, which consisted of the rebuilt canvas boat that had been displayed in

the AB Hall, explanatory text to accompany it, and several large historic photos. Two years

later, Harpers Ferry installed an additional series of temporary exhibits at the depot; these

consisted of several free-standing, three-sided interpretive panels which, like the previous

materials, were installed in the room located between the waiting room and the auditorium.

[114]

In 1985, Lige B. (Ben) Miller of the Harpers Ferry Center staff became an exhibit planner for

the depot project, and the following year, the project was reactivated. The center contracted with

a Los Angeles landscape architecture firm, Rogow and Bernstein, which began creating exhibit

models. [115] Then, on August 8, 1986, representatives from the contracting firm, Harpers Ferry

Center, the regional office, and the park met in Skagway to discuss design concepts for

permanent exhibits at the park. They predicted at the time that the exhibits would be produced

during the 1988 fiscal year. Despite that prediction, however, there was a growing awareness

among the meeting participants that the material to be interpreted was too massive to fit inside

the depot buildings. It was also felt that some exhibits, such as a tavern scene, would be

inappropriate in a former depot. [116]

By late November, agency officials had come to the realization that the Mascot Saloon as well

as the depot would be needed to display all of the planned exhibits. In early March, Acting

Regional Director Richard J. Stenmark concurred with the proposed changes. [117] In order to

effectuate the proposed exhibit expansion, Ben Miller and Mitchell Zetlin of Harpers Ferry

Center met in Skagway on March 15, 1987 with Regional Curator Jean Swearingen, Regional
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Historian Robert Spude, and Regional Chief of Interpretation Glenn Clark. Clay Alderson, Jay

Cable, and Betsy Duncan-Clark of the park staff also participated. During the next five days,

displays were planned for each of several rooms in the depot complex. For the Mascot Saloon,

exhibits were proposed "that will depict a saloon setting of 1898-1900 [and] that will offer the

visitor an insight into the city life of Skagway during this period." The Mascot layout was to

include bar equipment and a general merchandise display. The group also discussed planned

exhibits at the Moore House and the various lease buildings. In order to finance the exhibit

redesign, $49,000 of Moore House exhibit funds was redirected to the Mascot project. [118]

Funding limitations during the next year prevented the development of exhibits beyond the

sketch phase for either the depot or Mascot. [119] But in August 1988, Congress approved a

$537,000 budget item to create the entire exhibit package, and Bill Brown of the Harpers Ferry

staff came to Skagway to plan the exhibits for the Mascot Saloon. [120] Park officials were

aware that the new exhibits would probably not be ready for the public until the summer of

1991. In the meantime, therefore, park staff installed an ad hoc exhibit in the newlyreconstructed display windows. The Harpers Ferry staff produced several poster-sized photo

murals, with appropriate captions describing the uses of the building from its construction in

1898 to the present day. Superintendent Alderson noted that "the exhibit attracted many curious

visitors who were surprised at how recently the building was near ruin." [121]

Key to the Mascot exhibit would be the acquisition of an authentic bar and back bar. Research

into gold rush-era Skagway newspapers revealed that the Mascot Saloon, in 1901, had

purchased these two items from the Brunswick-Balke-Collender Company of Chicago. The park

contacted a company representative, who mentioned that a restorer of such materials, Joe

Newell, owned a twin of what had once adorned the Mascot. (Newell hailed from Clay Center,

Kansas; the bar and back bar had come from a tavern in his home state.) Soon afterward the

agency purchased the furnishings, and in July 1989, Newell and his family brought it to

Skagway. [122]

Harpers Ferry Center staff, along with officials at the regional and park level, worked on the

depot and Mascot exhibit package during 1989. By March 1990, Harpers Ferry staff had

completed their design work. In order to review their plans with regional and park staff, they

arranged to meet in Skagway the following month. [123] The three-day meeting took place, as

scheduled, beginning on April 10. Lisa A. Wolfe, who had become the project manager, led the

meetings which, in turn, led to project design finalization soon afterward. By now, the time

period for interpreting the Mascot Saloon had been changed from the 1898-1900 period to the

1905-1916 period. [124]

By year's end, the exhibits for the depot and the Mascot Saloon were in the final stages of

production, and in Skagway, the park's day labor crew had installed the Mascot's bar, back bar

and some of the other interior features. [125] In March 1991, Harpers Ferry let a contract to

construct and install the completed exhibits. That contract was awarded, in May, to a Ramsey,

New Jersey firm, Cornerstone Spatial Design and Production; Cornerstone, in turn, relied on

subcontractors to complete the relief map, the mannequins, and the photo work. Some of the

Mascot Saloon exhibits, including the mannequins, bar furniture, glassware, and the other

furnishings in the barroom scene, were installed during the first week of June, several weeks

prior to the dedication ceremony and open house. In mid-September the remaining exhibits

arrived at the Mascot, and the new permanent exhibits were installed at the depot complex. To

mark the arrival of the depot exhibits, more than seven years after the visitor center began

operations, an open house for local residents was held on September 27, 1991. [126]

The arrival of the park exhibit package was a boon to the park's interpretive staff, who had been

working with makeshift and temporary materials for the previous 15 tourist seasons. Since the

visitor center's opening in 1984, the interpretive program--which had consisted of the half-hour
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version of the film Days of Adventure, Dreams of Gold, a walking tour, Steve Hites's musical

slide program, an afternoon movie, a narrated evening program, and rangers roving up and

down Broadway answering questions--had changed relatively little. The primary change during

the past seven years had been the elimination of the slide show, after the 1987 season, and the

addition of text to Days of Adventure, Dreams of Gold to aid the hearing impaired. An

additional challenge emerged in 1986, when the interpretive specialist had to cope with a

reduction in staff. That reduction forced the park to shorten the hours of the visitor center and to

shift the evening program to the afternoon hours. [127] The depot and Mascot exhibit packages

gave visitors many new opportunities to become familiar with Klondike gold rush history. The

new demands placed upon park resources, moreover, demanded the hiring of two new seasonal

interpreters. [128]

Itjen House Rehabilitation

As noted above, the Itjen House was moved in 1978 from Sixth Avenue to its present location,

across Broadway from the railroad depot. It remained there, on cribbing, for the next several

years. When park officials began considering potential uses for the building, they first felt that

its optimal use would be as an interpretive site. In 1982, however, Paul Cloyd recommended

that it become a visitor contact station for the City of Skagway. The building lay unused until

the spring of 1986, when Congress provided startup rehabilitation funding for both the Mascot

and Itjen buildings. That summer, the construction crew turned the building slightly so that it

parallelled Broadway. Further work, however, was stalled for the time being, in part because an

archeological survey that summer revealed what promised to be a rich gold rush-era artifact

assemblage. NPS officials responded to the discovery by ordering another summer of

archeological work, in 1987. [129]

In the late July 1989, the park day labor crew began working on the building again. The city, at

the time, was expressing an active interest in leasing the house in order to use it as the Skagway

Convention and Visitors Bureau's office and visitor information center. The agency, in response,

obtained $262,000 from Congress for the project in the fiscal year 1990 budget. Officials hoped

that the rehabilitation would be completed in late 1990 or early 1991. [130]

Inasmuch as work crews concentrated on the Mascot Saloon in 1989, the only substantial

progress related to the Itjen building that year was the pouring of a foundation. In order to allow

work to proceed, the construction crew moved the Itjen House a hundred feet to the south, to a

site just south of the WP&YR tracks; later that summer, when the foundation was complete, the

building was returned to its former site. Most of the remaining restoration work took place in

1990, and by year's end all that remained to be completed was the installation of the fire

suppression system, interior wall and trim finish, and the completion of the historic wood floor.

By February 1991, work crews were reported to be finishing up the house; the final touches

were added in late April. [131] As the building neared completion, park officials prepared a

Request For Proposals to lease the building at $15,500 per year. The Skagway City Council

considered bidding on it, but instead it informed the park that it would use the Arctic

Brotherhood Hall as its visitor center. The RFP was issued in March 1991 to 13 prospective

bidders. When the bids were considered after the May 28 deadline, however, only one of the

interested parties submitted a bid (for a 1908-era general store), and the NPS rejected that bid as

unqualified. [132]

Superintendent Alderson, undaunted, still hoped that the house had leasing potential, and he

vowed that he would commence a new bidding process. In November 1991, he expressed his

hopes of issuing a new Request for Proposals in early 1992. By the end of the year, however, he

had a change of heart. He noted that because of the continuing need for office space to

accommodate project supervisor Mike Colyer, he requested permission to retain the building for
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park administrative use until suitable office space was available in the new maintenance

building. [133] The building soon afterward became the park's construction office. The

Congressional funding package that approved the maintenance facility, unfortunately, trimmed

the proposed office that was to be part of that building. As a result, the Itjen House is still used

by the park's construction supervisor. [134]

A Maintenance Facility is Constructed

In 1978, when the NPS began its construction work in the Skagway Historic District,

Preservation Specialist Pete Bathurst set up an ad hoc workshop and tool storage area in the

Peniel Mission garage. Two years later, architect Dave Snow chose the Pantheon Saloon as its

construction and maintenance headquarters. [135] Because of that role, the Pantheon had been

chosen as one of the last buildings to be rehabilitated. Park Service officials recognized,

however, that the agency would eventually need to relocate its construction and maintenance

functions to a non-historic building.

In early September 1986, Clay Alderson became the park's third superintendent. Within days

after he arrived, the former laborer and trail crew foreman was interviewed by Jeff Brady of the

Skagway News. The local scribe wrote that "after being in the park for one week, Alderson said

it is obvious that the park needs to establish a central maintenance facility." He conducted a

cursory search of available properties, and by the end of the year he had forwarded

recommendations for several possible locations to the regional office. [136]

During 1987, Alderson decided that the best location for the facility would be the block between

First and Second avenues and between Main and Alaska streets. The western (Alaska Street)

half of the block was vacant land; half of those parcels were owned by Alascom, the other half

by the Pacific and Arctic Railway and Navigation Company (the corporate name, in Alaska, for

the White Pass & Yukon Route). Superintendent Alderson hoped to obtain the land by means of

a land trade; he contacted the city regarding their purchase of the various vacant lots, hoping

that the city would then swap them for the three NPS lots along Broadway, which were judged

as "unneeded" and "surplus" by the agency. By the end of 1987, appraisals had been made of

the various lots involved, and park officials were told that the exchange could be made "at very

little cost to the government." In order to obtain construction funds, Alderson asked for the

assistance of the Alaska Congressional delegation. He hoped that the maintenance facility could

be built as soon as the Mascot Saloon rehabilitation work had been completed. [137]

In early 1988, however, cultural resources personnel let it be known that any exchange of

Broadway lots would first require an archeological survey. The time and expense of such a

survey convinced park officials to abandon the exchange idea. Based on that premise, funding

for the maintenance facility received initial approval that summer. The U.S. Senate earmarked

$917,000 for both land acquisition and building construction; the House, however, deleted all

but the $110,000 needed for land acquisition. The startup funds gave the park a year to plan the

facility and conduct archeological surveys. Plans, predicated on the approval of construction

funds in the FY 1990 budget, called for the facility to be built beginning in October 1989. [138]

Newly-discovered concentrations of lead, however, delayed the land acquisition process. Since

the 1960s, Skagway's waterfront ore terminal had been the site where huge volumes of leadzinc ore were transferred from truck trailers or railroad cars to maritime carriers. During the

summer of 1988, however, Skagway residents learned that certain portions of town contained

potentially harmful concentrations of lead sulfide dust. A $6 million cleanup resulted in 1989-

1990. The proposed maintenance site, located relatively close to the ore terminal, was one of the

areas that was likely to require some mitigative action in order to meet National Environmental

Policy Act acquisition requirements. Extensive soil tests, therefore, would be needed. [139]
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In order to gain more information on possible lead contamination, the NPS in 1989 contracted

with the U.S. Bureau of Mines for a soil survey of all property owned or proposed for

ownership by the federal government. That report took several months to prepare. During the

interim, Congress provided $863,000 to the park for facility construction. That funding,

however, was temporarily jeopardized because of the delays brought about by the lead problem.

The park, recognizing the delay, decided in the meantime to work on the Itjen House once

Mascot Saloon construction was complete. The hoped-for maintenance facility groundbreaking

was pushed back to 1991. [140]

The Bureau of Mines survey of the maintenance facility site revealed elevated lead levels. In its

proposed mitigation plan, the agency determined that a so-called level II hazardous materials

survey would be required. The NPS decided to fund the survey from the facility construction

account; the survey was conducted by an environmental consulting firm, operating under the

direction of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The surveying, which took place in November

1990, revealed that there were no serious contaminants in the soils and there would be no need

for additional clean-up. The only corrective action needed was the removal of a small amount of

asbestos from a garage furnace. (The garage was located on the property of local resident

Phyllis Brown, who had purchased the block's Alascom properties in early 1990.) Based on the

favorable report, NPS officials looked forward to acquiring six lots in early 1991. [141]

Most of 1991 was spent in purchase negotiations with the two landowners. The WP&YR signed

an agreement to sell its three lots on August 6, and Phyllis Brown signed a similar agreement on

January 20, 1992. The NPS, however, did not actually acquire the WP&YR lots until March 5,

1992; Phyllis Brown's lots were not acquired until April 13, 1993. [142]

The maintenance shop was designed beginning in the fall of 1992, and during mid-1993 the

construction of the facility was put out for bid. In August the Holden Construction Company of

Soldotna, Alaska, won the contract with a $1,023,133 bid. [143] The contractor broke ground

for the building in October, and it was completed in late November 1994. In June 1995, NPS

personnel finally moved equipment from the "temporary" Pantheon Saloon workshop--that had

been used for 15 years--to the new facility. [144]

Recent Rehabilitation Projects

After the completion of the Mascot Saloon project in the summer of 1991, the National Park

Service had rehabilitated eight buildings in the Skagway historic district. Of those eight, four

had been leased back to the private sector; one was being used for interpretation; one was being

used as the park headquarters and visitor center; and one was being used for park support

purposes. A final rehabilitated building, the Mascot Saloon Complex, had three different uses: it

was being used for interpretive purposes, it served park support purposes, and it was being

leased to the private sector. Five buildings remained to be completed. Of those five, none had

been improved since emergency stabilization efforts had been completed in the early 1980s.

NPS officials chose the Lynch and Kennedy store as the agency's next rehabilitation project.

Archeological clearance on the two-story building was complete; test excavations had been

performed by Dan Martin in 1978 and by Lee Stilson in 1986. Then, in early 1991, park officials

were informed that Congress granted the agency $533,000 for phase I of the project. That fall,

Congress approved another $676,000 for phase II, enough to complete the restoration work.

[145] Given funds with which to operate, work began in March 1991. By the end of the year,

the superintendent noted that the building was "about 50 percent complete;" finished projects

included the fire suppression and detection system, the furnace, and all of the major structural

rehabilitation. Work continued on the building throughout 1992, and that fall it was announced

that the $1.3 million rehabilitation project would be completed in February 1993. [146]
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NPS officials had long proposed that the Lynch and Kennedy store be leased back to the private

sector, and in early 1993 the agency issued a Request for Proposals from potential bidders. The

RFP, which had a deadline of March 8, demanded a far higher minimum bid than the previous

Skagway leases; the higher bid was due both to the building's large size and to rising values of

Skagway commercial properties. Despite the high minimum, the RFP attracted three proposals.

NPS officials accepted the bid of Karl and Rosemary Klupar, who offered $45,000 per year for

a ten-year contract. The Klupars began operating a gift shop in the old store during the summer

of 1993. [147]

Work on the Peniel Mission began in the spring of 1993, as soon as restoration of the Lynch and

Kennedy building was complete. During the summers of 1983, 1985, 1987, and again in 1988,

archeologists carried out excavations of test pits in the yard surrounding the Peniel. Several test

units were also placed underneath the building. [148] The Peniel, which NPS officials planned

to use as quarters for seasonal employees, received $100,000 in planning funds from Congress

in early 1991. In the fall of 1992, $923,000 in restoration funds were added to the NPS budget.

That sum was sufficient to complete the rehabilitation project. [149]

NPS architects treated the Peniel Mission slightly differently than the other historic district

structures. As noted in the "Ten Structures Report," former resident Clayton Polley had

significantly modified the building in 1937. That modification, combined with its off-Broadway

location and its intended use as employee quarters, had convinced architects to restore the

building's exterior to its 1937 configuration. But by the early 1990s, architects had decided to

change course, and they instead opted to modify the exterior to resemble its gold rush

appearance. Officials also decided to move the building, which lay on the lot's eastern edge, five

feet to the west. They did so in order to ease building maintenance and to head off potential

conflicts with the adjacent property owner. [150]

The Peniel Mission construction project began during the spring of 1993. Work on the employee

residence was the park labor crew's major project for the next two years. Seasonal employees

during 1993 lived in rooms rented from the Westmark Hotel; the following year, they resided in

a house rented from local resident Phyllis Brown. Construction, meanwhile, proceeded

according to schedule. In the fall of 1993, the local press announced that the project was "about

halfway done." [151] A year later, park officials confidently announced that the project work

would be completed early the following spring. The crew completed its work (except for a few

finishing touches) in April 1995, and seasonal employees occupied the building shortly

afterward. The structure was dedicated at a May 21 ceremony. [152]

The Moore House, just south of the Peniel Mission, had served as an employee residence in

1980-81, and during the early 1980s the house had been proposed as one of the park's first

rehabilitation projects. On the basis of that position on the priority list, Harpers Ferry Center

staff had prepared a Historic Furnishings report for the house during 1984-85. In November

1985, Superintendent Sims announced that the Moore House would be one of the next two

rehabilitation projects. Later managers, however, shuffled the building to a lower priority. In

1988, the house received additional consideration when Congress allotted $49,000 in exhibit

funds; that money, however, was later diverted to the Mascot Saloon exhibit package.

The Moore House rehabilitation project was revived in 1993, and the Interior Department's fiscal

year 1994 funding package, passed by the Senate in September 1993, included $1.015 million

for Moore House work. The House of Representatives, however, deleted those funds, and the

conference committee went along with the House's recommendation. By the time the project

was resubmitted to Congress the following year, planning on the house was largely complete, so

park officials were ready to act when, in the early fall of 1994, Congress approved $1.143

million for Moore House rehabilitation. [153] Restoration work on the Moore House began in

early June 1995, with a scheduled completion date of mid-1997. Plans call for the house, once
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completed, to be furnished with exhibits from the gold rush era, using photographs from the

period when the Bernard Moore family lived there.

The only other two NPS structures in the historic district that have not yet been rehabilitated are

the Pantheon Saloon complex and the Goldberg Cigar Store. Officials submitted the two

buildings as a single rehabilitation project; much of the funding for that project has already been

approved. Archeological clearance, however, has not yet been completed at the Pantheon

complex. A test excavation was performed there by Ray DePuydt in the summer of 1987, and

further work took place during the summer of 1995. [154]

Officials plan to rehabilitate the Pantheon complex before work begins on the cigar store. The

agency, as evidenced by the "Ten Structures Report," has long suspected that the southern half

of the complex did not date from the gold rush period. When architects investigated the

complex during the summer of 1994, however, those suspicions were confirmed. Staff now

theorize that Fasel's Pioneer Paint and Wallpaper store, which occupied the site during the gold

rush, was apparently razed during the 1930s, and an entirely new building was constructed

during World War II. Given its lack of historical value, agency officials were left with the

option of either retaining the building in its present form, demolishing it, or reconstructing the

gold rush-era paint store based on documentary and photographic evidence.

They have tentatively chosen the third alternative. They plan to begin the combined

rehabilitation and reconstruction in May 1997 and complete it in mid-1999. The first floor of the

entire complex will be offered as a single leased property; whether the lessee will use all of the

allotted space or sublease half to another party will be a decision left to the lessee. The top floor

of the two buildings will be used for curatorial storage space. [155]

The Goldberg Cigar Store, constructed in 1897, has been a particular challenge to park officials.

The rude, unpainted wooden building has been considered, over the years, as either a potential

lease or as an interpretive vehicle. The building, however, is of poor quality; its shiplap siding

inexplicably attracts rather than sheds rainwater, and portions of the siding have deteriorated to

the point that the casual visitor can view the interior. These liabilities have limited the store's

usefulness, and as noted earlier, two NPS historical architects have recommended its demolition.

The building was saved only because John Cook, Alaska's Regional Director in 1981, overrode

the architects' recommendations.

Robert Spude, the contract historian at the park during the late 1970s and the regional historian

during the mid-1980s, was a strong advocate of the building's preservation. He recognized that

the cigar store was the park's only example of an early gold rush building, and he fought to keep

it as an interpretive vehicle for that period. Due largely at his insistence, a post-1897 rear

addition of the building was removed in 1986. That same year, in order to make way for the

crews rehabilitating the Boss Bakery, the building was taken from its location on the east side of

Broadway and moved 100 feet to the southeast. In its new position, it was situated on the

southwest side of the right-of-way of the old White Pass Trail. It has remained there, on blocks,

ever since. For awhile, it was anticipated that the old store, along with one or more wall tents,

would comprise a White Pass Trail wayside exhibit area. In the early 1990s, however, those

plans were abandoned. Plans call for the building to be moved, either in 1996 or 1997, to the

north side of Fifth Avenue just east of the Kirmse's curio store annex. The building will then be

placed on pressure-treated wood footing; those timbers will lie on a gravel pad, raised to the

height of the boardwalk. A plastic window will be placed in the door, allowing visitors to peek

inside. The building's interior, however, will remain unfurnished and unadorned. [156]
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(top) When the park was established, many of the gold rush-era buildings along Broadway were deteriorating. By

1980, several park buildings had received new foundations and roofs, but they were unpainted and otherwise

unrestored. This photo shows, from left to right, the Mascot Saloon Complex, Boas Tailor and Furrier, and

Verbauwhede's Confectionery. (bottom) Deterioration set in at the Pullen House even before its 1959 closure. By

the late 1970s, when NPS architects examined the building, rehabilitation was a practical impossibility. This photo

was taken in 1983. The decaying hotel was razed in 1990. (KLGO SC #1121 (top); photo by author, KLGO SC

#1493 (bottom) )
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(top) The Arctic Brotherhood Hall served as the park's visitor center from 1979 through 1983. This photo, looking

north, shows Skagway Garden Club member Marcia Healy watering the flower boxes along the boardwalk.

(bottom) The NPS construction crew began to rehabilitate the Boss Bakery building in the summer of 1985. It

completed its work in 1986, and the building was leased in 1987. (Jeff Brady Collection (both photos) )
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(top) NPS archeologists began working in the Skagway Historic District in 1978. Cathy Blee (right), shown here

with Marianne Musitelli, worked in Skagway for six seasons. (bottom) The 1987 archeological crew, consisting of

(l-r) Ray DePuydt, Ann Mitelich-Warder, and Alfred Cammisa, worked on an excavation near the Peniel Mission.

(Skagway News, July 18, 1984, 3 (top); Kathleen McKay photo, KLGO SC #1892 (bottom) )
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The construction and maintenance crew, responsible for rehabilitating the depot complex and maintaining the

other park buildings, gathered in 1984 on the east side of the railroad administration building. Standing (l-r) are

Walter (Buddy) Honan, Mike Colyer, John Warder, Gene Ervine, Si Dennis, Jr., Andy Beierly, Roy Nelson, and

Don Corwin; those seated include Marcus Brooker, Tom Hixon, Mike Wild, Andy Robertson, Dave Snow, and

Dave Hunz. (John Warder Collection)
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(top) The National Park Foundation purchased the White Pass and Yukon Route's railroad depot and

administration building in May 1972. In 1977, when this photo was taken, restoration had not yet begun. Work

was completed in 1984; since then, the two buildings have served as the park's headquarters and visitor center.

(bottom) The White Pass and Yukon Route depot and administration building, shown after the completion of its

restoration. (Tom Busch photo, AKSO NHL SC (top); KLGO SC #2014 (bottom) )
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(top) In June 1986, Jeff and Diane Brady signed a property lease for the Skaguay News Depot (Boas Tailor and

Furrier building). Attending the ceremony are NPS Regional Director Boyd Evison (left) and Acting

Superintendent Jay Cable (standing). (bottom) On July 5, 1987, the NPS held a dedication ceremony for the

refurbished Moore Cabin. The ceremony was attended by a large crowd, including Jack and Georgette Kirmse

(center), who had owned the house for decades prior to its acquisition by the Park Service. Supt. Clay Alderson

stands at the right. (Skagway News, June 25, 1986, 2 (top); Alice Cyr photo, KLGO SC #1914 (bottom) )
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(top) The Peniel Mission, built in 1900, was purchased by the NPS in 1977. It has long been used as a residence

for the park's seasonal interpreters. It was rehabilitated beginning in 1993 and was dedicated in a May 1995

ceremony. (bottom) The visitor center exhibits were completed and installed in 1991. They were photographed

soon afterward. (Photo by author, KLGO SC #1452 (top); Jeff Brady Collection (bottom) )

Since 1982, a centerpiece of the park's interpretive program has been the Broadway walking tour. In this photo,

taken during the mid-1980s, longtime interpreter Alice Cyr leads a crowd over to the Arctic Brotherhood Hall.

(Jeff Brady Collection)
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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

PART II: MANAGEMENT OF THE ALASKA UNITS

Chapter 7:

Community Relations

The major ongoing program that the National Park Service has undertaken in Skagway has been

the stabilization and rehabilitation of properties in the historic district. The agency, however, has

played many additional roles in Skagway. It has, for example, considered (but later rejected) the

purchase of several additional buildings and historical objects.

It has assisted the City of Skagway, and numerous private property owners, in the rehabilitation

of historical properties. Finally, it has played a role in stimulating visitation to the area. In these

and similar roles, the NPS has worked with city officials and local residents. The agency, in the

fulfillment of its Congressional directives, has often enjoyed the support of local townspeople;

at other times, however, city-park relations have been strained, contentious, and antagonistic.

This chapter will attempt to describe the major park issues that have had impacts on Skagway

and its residents.

Map 7. Two maps of Skagway, Alaska. Sources: NPS, Draft General Management Plan and

Environmental Impact Statement, Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, June/July

1996, 2.5 (left); Catherine Blee, Archeological Investigations in Skagway Alaska, Volume 2:
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The Moore Cabin and House, 1988, 4 (right). (click on image for an enlargement in a new

window)

Master Plan Implementation Issues

Gary Higgins, the historical architect from the Denver Service Center, arrived in Skagway as the

first NPS employee in January 1977. Almost immediately after he arrived, he was embroiled in

a community issue. The White Pass & Yukon Railroad, a longtime steam railroad, adopted its

first diesel-electric locomotives in 1954, and by 1964 the railroad had almost completely

abandoned steam power. [1] Company officials had little use for the steam locomotives which

remained, and soon after the park was authorized, they decided to sell off most of the

locomotives.

The National Park Service had more than a passing interest in the railroad's actions. The park's

master plan, approved in 1973, had called for a railroad line to

be reconstructed on Broadway, and rolling stock placed upon the rails to heighten

the visitors' interest and create an authentic picture of historic Skagway. Class 50

and 70 engines could be placed on the rails, with several cars of the period attached.

[2]

Steve Hites and Rand Snure, two "young, ambitious railroaders," told Higgins that five

locomotives, with their accompanying tenders, were at the south end of the White Pass dock

and were on the verge of being sold off. Two of the five locomotives were of the 70-class; there

were also two 80-class locomotives and a rotary. Because of the verbiage in the master plan,

railroad officials were willing to sell one or more locomotives to the NPS; if they did not act in

a hurry, however, they would be shipped south. Higgins relayed Hites and Snure's concerns to

the agency's regional office in Seattle. But James B. Thompson, the Associate Regional Director

of Management and Operations, refused to fund a locomotive purchase. The White Pass, as a

result, shipped the various locomotives to railroads in the Lower 48. [3]

Another idea that was originally formulated in the park's master plan dealt with visitor parking.

The master plan had recommended that

during peak visitor hours, street parking would not be allowed on Broadway. To

compensate for the loss of street parking and to accommodate an increasing number

of visitor cars, the National Park Service would build at least four off-street parking

lots, to which visitors would be directed.... As commercial business expands on

State Street, it may become necessary for the city and merchants to provide

additional off-street parking.

The location of the four areas proposed for parking included 1) between Second and Third

Avenues, west of Spring Street, 2) between Third and Fourth avenues, midway between

Broadway and State streets, 3) between Fourth and Fifth avenues, midway between Broadway

and State streets, and 4) between Sixth and Seventh avenues, midway between Broadway and

State streets. [4]

The NPS had no control over whether on-street parking could be allowed. With its land

purchasing power, however, the agency was willing to purchase land for the four planned

parking lots. In January 1978, city officials encouraged the NPS to proceed with its parking lot

purchase program. [5] The agency responded by developing a plan, and that spring it presented

the plan at a city council work session. At a subsequent public hearing, the consensus of the

council and the citizens present was that the problem of giving tourists places to park was "not
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an emergency." The city, it appeared, was in no mood to give up its tax base in order to support

a tourist infrastructure that had yet to manifest itself. The NPS could have ignored local opinion

and purchased the lots. It decided, however, to abandon the idea, and the proposal has not been

seriously considered since that time. [6]

Preservation Outreach Activities

As has been noted in Chapter 4, the NPS had begun to play an advisory role in the rehabilitation

of Skagway's privately-owned historic structures during the early 1970s. Laurin Huffman, the

historical architect at the NPS's Pacific Northwest Regional Office in Seattle, made periodic

visits to Skagway starting in 1972. As part of those visits, he gave technical advice to local

residents and provided counsel to the newly-created Historic District Commission. Huffman

continued to fulfill those roles until the park was authorized in June 1976. Shortly afterwards,

however, the City of Skagway eliminated the Historic District Commission and subsumed its

functions within the Planning, Zoning, and Historic Commission. Historical Architect Gary

Higgins, the first park staffer, took over the role that Huffman had previously filled.

On November 15, 1977, Higgins and Superintendent Richard Hoffman gave a presentation to

the Skagway City Council and Library Board, outlining the Park Service's plans for the

Skagway Historic District. Mayor Robert F. Messegee, who attended the meeting, knew that

visitors cared little about who owned the various buildings, and he wanted city property owners

to share in the NPS's technical expertise. Messegee therefore responded by telling Hoffman that

"it would be mutually beneficial that a symposium be scheduled with representation from other

agencies--federal, state, and private--which work in the field of historic preservation." He urged

Hoffman to arrange such a symposium. [7]

Hoffman recognized that the NPS was the logical entity "to play a lead role in the over-all

preservation of all historic resources," and assigned Higgins the job of organizing the

conference. Higgins responded by organizing two meetings: a small, evening workshop

conducted by park staff, and a larger conference in which outside speakers would be invited.

Higgins and Hoffman held the first preservation workshop in late February before a packed

audience at the Skagway City Hall. [8]

Meanwhile, Higgins organized a second conference, to be held a month later. To accomplish

that goal, he contacted the State Historic Preservation Officer, William Hanable, and other

representatives of Alaska DNR's Division of Parks. He also wrote to Mike Miller, Jim Duncan,

and Steve Cowper, each of whom served in the Alaska House of Representatives; Robertson

Collins and John L. Frisbee, from the National Trust for Historic Preservation; Ron Neeley,

from Colorado's Georgetown Society; Steve Peterson, from the Bureau of Land Management;

John Kinney, the State Archivist; Bob Frederick, the Director of the Alaska Historical

Commission; Alan Munro, Chief Curator of the Alaska State Museum; and Stell Newman, an

anthropologist from the NPS's Alaska Area Office in Anchorage. All agreed to attend the

symposium or send a delegate in their stead. [9]

The symposium was scheduled for the end of March. Its timing was fortunate, because Miller

and Duncan were co-sponsors of the Historic Loan Act of 1977, which provided for

preservation loans to historic properties. In addition, the state's Division of Parks was

administering a Historic Preservation Grants-in-Aid Program which had recently provided a

grant to Skagway's Pack Train Inn. That grant, combined with letters from Hanable to the other

historic property owners, stimulated a high level of conference interest from local residents.

[10]

The two-day symposium was held in the American Legion Hall and began on Friday morning,
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March 31. Its theme was "Historic Preservation Assistance to the Private Sector," and the

program included speakers describing the National Register of Historic Places, the Alaska State

Historic Preservation Office (and its grants program), the proposed Historic District Loan Act,

and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Additional sessions were held on how

preservation was being effected in Fort Egbert and Eagle, Alaska; Jacksonville, Oregon; and

Georgetown, Colorado. Finally, museum curators and archivists presented a combined session

on artifact preservation. The meeting, by all accounts, was successful and well-received by those

who attended. [11]

Many local residents, perhaps in response to the information received at the two conferences,

rehabilitated their properties during the next few years. In 1978, for example, John O'Daniel

modernized the Skagway Inn, and Gordon Reno began work on the Mulvihill House. In 1979,

Barbara Kalen and Betsy Albecker began to rehabilitate Keller's Curio Shop, and Nova Warner

submitted plans to stabilize the White House at Eighth Avenue and Main Street. In 1980, Janice

C. Wrentmore began an extensive rehabilitation project at the Red Onion Saloon; in addition,

restoration work commenced that year at First Presbyterian Church, at City Hall, and at the

National Bank of Alaska (NBA). [12] A year later, the Brena family, after some delay, restored

the Pack Train Inn; other rehabilitation projects begun that year included the Trail Bench curio

shop, the Fraternal Order of Eagles Hall, and the Elizabeth Selmer residence at 12th and Main.

Finally, in 1982, local businesswoman Barbara Kalen rehabilitated, and added a second story to,

Dedman's Photo Shop. Most of these projects were completed by the end of the 1982 summer

season; work on the Eagles Hall, however, continued until 1984. [13]

Federal assistance was a key aspect to the town's rehabilitation efforts. Funds for each of the

above projects, except for the NBA, Trail Bench, and Dedman's Photo Shop work, was obtained

through the state's grant-in-aid program; that program, which called for a 50-50 match between

public and private monies, was financed with National Historic Preservation Act funds, funneled

through the Interior Department's Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service (later the

National Park Service) and managed by the State Historic Preservation Office. In addition, the

NPS gave technical assistance. David Snow, the resident architect, provided restoration advice

to the city on its City Hall work, to Kalen on the Dedman's Photo Shop expansion, and to the

Fraternal Order of Eagles for the restoration of its hall. [14] This aid has continued, on an asneeded basis, to the present day.

Creation of a City-NPS Cooperative Agreement

An issue that proved to be longstanding and contentious was the city's financial relationship

with the National Park Service. NPS properties, like those of other federal agencies, could not

be taxed by local authorities. NPS officials recognized, however, that the city would need to

receive some form of alternative compensation in order to replace its lost tax base.

Skagway city officials were concerned about the potential tax losses before the park was ever

authorized. John Bowers, Skagway's first city manager, alerted agency officials about the

problem back in 1974. In return, Deputy Regional Director Edward J. Kurtz told him,

we share the concerns of private business owners and that of the city regarding an

inequity which might develop if federal properties in the historic district were

leased back to private individuals and they paid no tax to the city. Accordingly,

some form of a lessee tax or business occupancy tax could be established by the

city. The amount charged could be similar to that paid by a private business owner

within the business district. [15]

Two years later, shortly after the park was authorized, Congress passed H.R. 9719, a bill which
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dealt with payments in lieu of taxes. That bill, which became Public Law 94-465, prescribed

specific payment levels to local governments in order to compensate for federal land purchases.

The NPS, during the months which followed, continued to work closely with the city to develop

an equitable federal financial assistance formula. [16]

By the fall of 1977, the NPS land purchasing program was well underway, and tensions

between the city and federal governments began to increase. Mavis Henricksen, a member of

the city council, complained that the agency was "taking a lot of our tax base out of here." Gary

Higgins countered that the agency was authorized to make "grants in lieu of taxes" to replace

lost revenues. But city officials said that the payments would not come close to matching future

tax contributions, and their well-publicized pronouncements cast a palpable strain between the

NPS and the city. Higgins assured city council members that any loss of property taxes would

be more than offset by the additional receipts brought in by an increased tourist volume. City

officials, however, were unconvinced. As Superintendent Hoffman noted, council members at a

December work session "put it to us hot and heavy" on the tax loss issue. [17]

Despite assurances to the contrary from the NPS, the city council continued to feel vulnerable

on the tax-base issue, and it sought help from the Alaska congressional delegation in hopes that

the agency might increase its proposed payment level. In response, Sen. Mike Gravel (D-AK)

introduced a bill on February 22, S. 2558, which sought to preserve the town's tax base. The

measure would have allowed the federal government to make payments in lieu of taxes for a

five-year period. The measure, however, never got past the Senate Energy and Natural

Resources Committee. [18]

Given the failure of Gravel's bill, negotiations between the NPS and the city continued, and by

late summer the NPS had hammered out a proposed cooperative agreement. The agreement,

which was presented to the city at a September 7 council meeting, called for the NPS to pay the

city more than $58,000 during fiscal year 1979. That money, which needed no local match, was

to be expended as follows:

$15,000 for boardwalk repairs,

$10,200 for city archives and museum management,

$ 9,000 for water, sewer, and garbage services,

$ 8,000 for Gold Rush Cemetery maintenance,

$ 6,000 for Arctic Brotherhood Hall repairs,

$ 5,400 for police and fire protection, and

$ 5,000 for streets (grading, drainage, and dust control).

NPS personnel, in their letter of presentation, noted that the proposed cooperative agreement

was not a "payment in lieu of taxes." (The assessed taxes on the newly-acquired NPS buildings

totalled less than $7,000.) Instead, the agency proposed a quantum meriut agreement--one that

paid for specific city-sponsored services that supported park objectives. Park staff assured the

council that the agency intended to continue making annual payments for years to come. They

noted, however, that the payments for boardwalk repairs would continue only for another three

years. They further noted that they were interested in using the Arctic Brotherhood Hall as a

temporary visitor center and that the repair funds would be contingent upon the city's acceptance

of the NPS's visitor-center proposal. The payments for the Gold Rush cemetery were used to

fulfill a cooperative agreement which the NPS and the city had made previously; as a result of

that agreement, NPS personnel had picked up garbage at the cemetery during the 1978 summer

season, and were proposing to install handrails and restore headstones, gates, and fences. [19]

The city had little time in which to contemplate the agency's offer. The NPS asked city officials

to either accept the entire cooperative agreement before the end of the fiscal year, or forego the

proffered funds. The city council had only one remaining meeting that month. On September 21,
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therefore, the city council met again and voted to accept the cooperative agreement. [20]

The city council vote, however, did not complete the agreement process. NPS staff spent the

months which followed developing its specific details and ironing out its legalities. The

following June, the local press announced that the NPS had "finalized and approved" the

cooperative agreement that the city had accepted the previous September. By this time, the level

of NPS payments had been reduced to $45,000. Each of the outlined services was still to be

funded at the same level as before. The new figure, however, did not include an $8,000 payment

for Gold Rush Cemetery maintenance, because the NPS agreed to fund that activity out of its

regular park budget. In addition, it omitted the $6,000 for Arctic Brotherhood Hall repairs. The

NPS, in response to the city's agreement to turn the AB Hall into an agency visitor center,

decided to undertake those repairs itself. [21]

Although the agreement was said to be "finalized and approved" in June, in reality it was not. In

August, almost a year after the city voted to accept it, Superintendent Hoffman disclosed that the

agreement was still in the regional NPS solicitor's office in Seattle. Because of the holdup, the

NPS had not yet paid the city. Local officials, as a result, became incensed at the agency's

apparent delaying tactics. On August 30, the local Lynn Canal News reported that "council

members have become impatient lately, and have even threatened to cut off services to park

buildings if the money is not forthcoming." Marvin Taylor, one of the councilmen, declared that

"if a petition were passed around Skagway today, 80 percent of the citizens would be in favor of

seeing the park service leave Skagway and abandon the [park]. I, for one, am completely

disillusioned with them." Taylor, obviously exasperated, noted that by not coming up with the

money, the NPS was erasing the "good faith cooperation" that the city had extended to the park.

[22]

In the midst of this negative atmosphere, the NPS asked the city council to approve a renewal of

the cooperative agreement it had signed a year earlier. The agency, once again, was slow in

delivering the proposed agreement; it gave the council less than a month to approve the

document before the end of the fiscal year. On September 6, the city council considered the

matter. Richard Hoffman, who represented the NPS at the meeting even though Richard Sims

had already been appointed to succeed him, apologized for the agency's delay; he said that

changes in the administration in the Anchorage area office, and the unique nature of the

cooperative agreement, had slowed down the approval process. Hoffman, sensing the council's

hostile mood, noted that the body did not have to approve an update of the entire agreement that

night. In order to receive (eventual) payment from the agency, it needed only to approve the

signing of various contracts which the NPS was offering for specific services. The council, in

response, voted 3 to 1 in favor of signing those contracts. Four votes, however, were needed for

passage, and the agenda item was tabled. Two weeks later, the motion was reconsidered and

passed, and Skagway Mayor Robert Messegee signed the agency's various service contracts.

[23]

Four months later, the proposed cooperative agreement finally completed its circuitous pathway

through the NPS hierarchy and was presented to the city council. [24] The agreement, signed by

the NPS on January 30, gave responsibilities to both the park service and the city. The city, with

the funding given it by the NPS, agreed to "plan and initiate a system for the adequate storage,

protection, exhibition, microfilming and preservation of museum and archival materials and to

make these materials available to the NPS for research and interpretive programs..." Second, it

agreed to "maintain the historic atmosphere on Broadway and adjacent streets within the

Historic District and provide for surface drainage improvements and dust control." Third, it

agreed to provide services to NPS properties for water and sewage and solid waste disposal.

Fourth, the city was to provide police and fire protection and similar measures. Finally, the city

would "construct, restore and maintain boardwalks in the Historic District according to agreedupon design and specifications."
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The NPS also had numerous responsibilities under the agreement. The federal agency agreed to

provide technical assistance to the city in support of the museum and to help preserve the local

historic atmosphere. The NPS was also to provide the city with unspecified infrastructure

support, with assistance to the city for police, fire, and boardwalk design, and similar services.

Finally, it would provide for the "operation, maintenance, and historic preservation" of the

Arctic Brotherhood Hall; it would provide the chamber of commerce an "adequate space" there,

and make the hall available for compatible community activities. (The NPS, abandoning a task it

had undertaken in 1978, made no mention of Gold Rush Cemetery maintenance in the

agreement.) If signed by the city, the agreement would be in force beginning March 1, 1980. It

would remain for five years unless revoked by either party. [25]

The city, by this time, had been paid by the NPS, and local officials evidently found the terms

of the cooperative agreement both agreeable and uncontroversial. On February 21, the council

voted to accept it, and City Manager Gil Acker signed the agreement the next day. The forging

of an agreement, which had begun in earnest during the fall of 1977, was at long last complete.

[26]

During the years since the first signing, the city and the NPS have maintained their cooperative

agreement. The original pact was renewed on May 26, 1983, again on May 26, 1988, and a third

time on September 20, 1993. Each of those agreements have been for a five year period. The

service areas covered in the agreement have remained relatively constant. The former area

allotted to street maintenance was changed to "maintenance of the historic atmosphere," and in

1988, the agency agreed to allot funds to the community education program. The NPS ceased its

financial support to the police and fire departments in 1988.

The amount of the agency's annual payment has been renegotiated by the two parties each year.

From October 1, 1980 through September 30, 1984, the NPS paid $35,080 annually. At that

point, Superintendent Sims recognized that the Broadway paving project (see below) would

require reduced street maintenance expenses; City Manager Skip Elliott, however, countered

that inflation and other factors had increased overall costs. The two agreed on an annual

payment of $32,000. That rate remained constant until fiscal year 1987. When the cooperative

agreement was renegotiated in early 1988, the annual payment was reduced to $28,000 and

remained at that rate through 1991. Since then, the NPS has paid the city $30,000 per year. [27]

Skagway Area Campground Assistance

As noted in chapters 3 and 4, the number of automobile tourists that visited the Skagway area

prior to the 1970s was relatively small. In June 1973, however, Canadian officials announced

that they would cooperate with their American counterparts in the construction of a road

between Carcross, Yukon Territory, and Skagway.

That decision, combined with the rising number of tourists that arrived in Skagway on the

Alaska Marine Highway and the increased number that would be attracted by a national park

unit, made local officials aware that the Skagway area was sadly lacking in campground

facilities for visitors who arrived by car. In the Final Environmental Statement (FES) that was

written in 1974, NPS officials recognized that the new park might dramatically increase tourism.

They therefore offered to "provide cooperatively planned campsites...for recreational use by

park visitors since the park units are not of sufficient size to...meet all demand for facilities."

The only new campgrounds planned within park boundaries, however, were of the walk-in

variety. They believed that the construction of drive-in campground units was a new economic

opportunity for the private sector. [28]

In 1976, NPS officials attempted to implement the ideas brought forth in the FES. That January,
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City Council member Mavis I. Henricksen requested that the NPS begin planning for

campground facilities. Various agency officials, in fact, discussed the matter in the weeks that

followed, and in April Glacier Bay National Monument superintendent J. Thomas Ritter

requested that "a complete study of potential campground facilities in the Dyea area be

conducted soon after establishment of the park." By August 1976, Ritter had made a brief

reconnaissance. He observed that the small, 7-space state campground at Liarsville (located

along the Klondike Highway at the base of the hill to Black Lake) was "often full," and

recommended to his superior that "planning and coordination with the State of Alaska to provide

adequate campground space begin immediately." [29]

In 1977, the City of Skagway helped ease the campground problem when it doubled the size of

Hanousek Park (Prospector Park) at the north end of Broadway. That same year, the Alaska

Division of Parks awarded a planning grant for a new Skagway-area campground to Warren E.

Wild, a retired highway department official now working as a Juneau consultant. Dick Hoffman,

the new superintendent, offered to assist Wild with his study. [30]

Wild's study was completed in January 1978. It offered six possible sites for a campground in

the Skagway area: four along the Klondike Highway (the Liarsville site and three others, all

north of the Skagway River bridge), one at Yakutania Point, and one in Dyea, near West Creek.

The City Council, after considering the study, recommended that the proposed campground be

located at the site of the World War II-era sanitarium (north of the Liarsville campground). But

the NPS urged the state to select closer to town, near the intersection of the Klondike Highway

and Dyea Road. [31]

Mike Miller, an Alaska House member who represented Skagway, responded to the study by

promising to introduce legislation that would authorize and fund a campground. Jim Duncan, his

Juneau-based colleague, introduced such a bill (HB 764) on February 8; the same day, Bill Ray,

who also served the Skagway area, introduced an identical bill (SB 473) in the State Senate.

[32]

Governor Hammond, however, was opposed to the passage of either bill. During his review of

the State Parks' Capital Improvement Program request, he decided to drop the campground idea

from the list of proposals submitted to him. [33] Instead, he initiated efforts to secure federal

funding for the project. On February 14, he wrote a long letter to Senator Stevens "requesting

[his] assistance in furthering state and federal cooperative efforts at Skagway." Noting that "it is

all too evident that existing camping facilities in the Skagway area will be overwhelmed by

recreational travelers once the Carcross Road is opened to public use," he concluded that "the

state has determined that this responsibility [for providing campground facilities] rests mostly

with the NPS." He recognized that immediate action was needed, but noted that Alaska's state

park funds had been allocated through 1981. Noting that a campground would probably cost

between $800,000 and $1 million and that the NPS was ill-equipped to fund a campground with

existing funds, Hammond urged Stevens to secure additional NPS funding for the project. [34]

When Stevens received Hammond's letter, he contacted Terry McWilliams, the Alaska State

Parks director. Stevens was sympathetic to Hammond's request, so to help solve the problem, he

asked McWilliams to fund $98,000 of the cost for the proposed campground. The requested

amount was sufficient to purchase any of the six sites that Wild had outlined in his study, and as

Stevens had discovered, the state needed to bear that expense because the NPS was legally

unable to assist in the acquisition of land outside designated park boundaries. The NPS did,

however, have the authority to fund construction of campground facilities outside the park.

Meanwhile, Stevens requested the Interior Department to provide the remaining funds necessary

for campground construction. He hoped to use the project as a trade-off item during d-2

negotiations that would be taking place later that year. [35]
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After his meeting with Stevens, McWilliams forwarded the proposed plan to Ray and Duncan.

Ray's bill, the more active of the two, had by now been passed by the Senate State Affairs

Committee, and the plan was submitted to the Senate Finance Committee in the form of a fiscal

note. On March 7, the committee passed the bill, which now called for $98,000 to be expended

on site planning, design, engineering, or acquisition; three days later, SB 473 passed the full

Senate on a 15-0 vote and was forwarded to the House. The bill was then moved through the

Resources Committee where it languished until May 8. The House Finance Committee amended

the bill before passing it that day. It passed the full House, 31-5, on May 15. It then was sent

back to the Senate where the amended bill passed, 15-0. The bill was then sent to Governor

Hammond, who signed the bill on May 31. [36]

The state, as a result of the legislature's action, had lived up to its end of the agreement reached

by Stevens and McWilliams. The Interior Department, however, was unable to supply Federal

funds in response to Stevens' request, perhaps because of the failure to arrive at a consensus on

Alaska Lands Act legislation. The state, in response, decided to recommend a new campground

site north of the White Pass rail yards and west of the Gold Rush Cemetery. It made no move,

however, to develop the site. [37]

The NPS, as noted in Chapter 8, partially solved the campground problem in April 1978 when it

signed a cooperative agreement with the Alaska Department of Natural Resources. The primary

purpose of that agreement was to arrange for NPS management of the Chilkoot Trail corridor.

One provision of the agreement, however, noted that "The Service has the capability of

providing facility maintenance, site and visitor protection, and other related management

activities in the Skagway area." Based on that provision, the NPS began maintaining the state's

Liarsville wayside that summer. A year later, it constructed a 22-space campground in Dyea,

one-half mile south of the Taiya River bridge. The NPS continued to maintain Liarsville until

1980, when it refused to provide further work there; thereafter, the site was abandoned by the

state. The Service still maintains Dyea Campground. [38]

Officials still recognized, however, that the Skagway Valley still needed more camping spaces.

Based on that need, the legislature during the spring of 1980 allocated $250,000 to construct a

campground. Alaska State Parks director Chip Dennerlein, in response, selected a site a mile

northeast of the WP&YR shops; more specifically, the proposed site was north of Reid Falls,

east of the Skagway River and west of the WP&YR tracks. Dennerlein hoped to extend the

existing road 700 feet to the new campground site. In addition, the state planned to erect a well

and latrine. [39] Later that year, however, Dennerlein changed his mind. After visiting the site

in September, he concluded that the campground would cost more than the allotted $250,000;

besides, he noted, it was too far away for campers who wanted to walk to town. He averred that

it would have been better had the city purchased more land for camping adjacent to Hanousek

Park, the existing city park, and he hinted that state assistance might be available for either

obtaining or improving that property. No state action followed, however, and it was not until

1984 that new campground space was opened in the downtown area. The city, that year,

improved land along the waterfront near the White Pass dock and opened Pullen Creek Park, a

recreational vehicle camper park. [40]

Proposed Railroad Equipment Purchases

As noted earlier in the chapter, one of the agency's first management challenges took place in

early 1977 in conjunction with the proposed purchase of White Pass & Yukon Route equipment.

The NPS, at that time, chose not to go ahead with any purchases, and the equipment was sold to

private parties and shipped south.

In 1979, the issue of purchasing railroad equipment was revived, largely at the behest of
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Western Regional Office historian Gordon Chappell. In January of that year, apparently in hopes

of fulfilling the mandates of the master plan, he submitted a proposal to Area Historian Bill

Brown to obtain a historically authentic locomotive. Having heard that a model nearly identical

to one used on the WP&YR had recently sold at auction for $62,500, Chappell urged that the

area office consider the exhumation of one or more historic locomotives that had been buried by

the railroad in 1949 and used as trackside riprap. Said Chappell, "It shouldn't cost $62,500 to

pull two or three of them out and give them a cosmetic restoration!" [41]

Six months later, Chappell visited Skagway as part of the effort that resulted in the National

Register nomination and Historic Structure Report for the depot complex. By the time he

arrived, he had learned that the railroad had decided to offer one of its cars--#216, a

combination baggage car and coach--to the NPS. In a letter to Superintendent Hoffman,

Chappell urged that the park acquire the railroad car. By doing so, he reasoned, the equipment

would remain in Skagway, and local attitudes toward the NPS, then at an ebb, would be bound

to rise. The park, however, did not act on the matter, and the railroad withdrew its offer. [42]

During the fall of 1979, Brown discovered that the railroad, as part of a modernization drive,

intended in the coming months to rid itself of all of its outdated freight equipment. During the

past few months, it had already hauled several cars down to Vancouver and was planning to

auction them off. WP&YR president Tom King, however, told the NPS that the railroad would

be willing to donate a tool car (#708) to the agency; in addition, he promised to work with the

NPS to create a static display in Skagway. [43]

Brown, clearly alarmed by the turn of events, relayed his concerns to Area Director John Cook.

Cook, in turn, asked Robert Spude to prepare a briefing package on the matter that would be

forwarded to NPS Director William J. Whalen. (The director's help was needed because neither

the park nor the area office had the necessary funds for railroad equipment.) Spude, at the time,

was on the verge of leaving the agency, so Gordon Chappell was asked to write the report. [44]

By mid-January 1980, Chappell had forwarded an extensive memo to Area Director Cook. In

his memo to Whalen, Cook noted that because of the railroad's disposal program, "key pieces

may be irretrievably lost...unless we move rapidly." He urged that the agency preserve "at least

a symbolic display of rolling stock." The railroad, at this time, was willing to donate the buried

locomotives to the park; the freight equipment, however, would need to be purchased. [45]

For the next several months, the Washington office gave little response as to how it would react.

During that time, Chappell called on the NPS to obtain Engine #52, a gold rush-era locomotive

that, as noted in Chapter 3, had been hauled from the Atlin area to Skagway in 1964. He also

recommended the acquisition of one or more of the buried locomotives, passenger car #216, the

tool car, one or two low-side gondolas, one or two wooden flat cars, and an oil tank car. [46]

The WP&YR, during this period, was still willing to negotiate with the Park Service. Months

passed by, however, and no word was heard from Washington. By August, WP&YR official

Marvin Taylor expressed his restlessness on the matter to NPS officials. Area office historian

Bill Brown replied that the change in NPS directors--from William Whalen to Russell

Dickenson--was most likely causing the delay. [47]

By late October the directorate had still not tipped its hand, and Brown inquired once again on

its status. Brown, who recognized the lack of funds for cultural resource projects in the state,

noted to his superior that "our marginal preservation maintenance approach and resource base in

Alaska...argues against a large commitment to rolling stock. We can't handle what we now own;

why exacerbate our inadequacy?" Russell Dickenson, the new director, agreed. Due a

combination of budget limitations and a change in management objectives, the agency would

not purchase any railroad equipment; instead, the WP&YR would be interpreted through
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exhibits in the White Pass depot. [48]

Since 1980, there have been no serious attempts by the NPS to purchase WP&YR equipment.

As a result, the WP&YR has sold some of its equipment but kept others. As late as 1986, for

example, the Skagway yards still retained two historic locomotives, 21 historic passenger

coaches, and 26 historic freight cars. [49] Some of that rolling stock has since been donated to

the city's Trail of '98 Museum.

The government's policy toward the purchase of rolling stock has softened in recent years. In

1982, the park's Scope of Collections Statement noted that "no railroad rolling stock or large

scale objects are proposed for collection due to their extreme cost for preservation, storage and

acquisition." Six years later, however, the revised collections statement indicated that "The

preservation and restoration of some historic railroad rolling stock or other large scale objects

associated with the WP&YR should be undertaken pending availability and funding. However,

consideration must also be given for the object's storage and maintenance cost." [50]

Proposed Skagway Building Purchases

As noted in Chapter 5, the NPS agents who negotiated with property owners in the Skagway

Historic District from 1977 through 1979 let it be known that they would be willing to purchase

any historic properties offered by willing sellers at fair market value. They were unable to come

to terms, however, with the owners of two major historical properties, the Pack Train Inn and

the Pullen House.

The Pack Train Inn, erected in 1908 by Skagway's mayor, was one of Skagway's most visible

and best-known properties. Since 1950, the tavern had been operated by the Brena family. But

Camillo "McGee" Brena, the tavern's operator and "a living legend in his own time," according

to the local press, had died in 1968. Five years later, when the park's master plan was being

prepared, owner Sheila Brena (McGee's widow) had indicated an interest in selling the property

to the National Park Service. [51] During the mid-1970s, Brena and her son, Robin, considered

a number of options for the property: selling it at an auction, restoring the building with historic

preservation grant funds, or selling it to the National Park Service. [52] They exercised none of

those options, and in the meantime, they closed their tavern. By the time the park was

authorized and NPS agents were capable of purchasing the structure, David Brena had decided

to restore the building with Historic Preservation Grants-in-Aid Program funds, and not sell it to

the NPS. That Grant-in-Aid Program, administered by the state's Division of Parks, provided

funds on a 50-50 matching basis in January 1978. Work was to begin that May. [53]

The project, however, turned out to be more complicated than previously thought, and the

owners needed to make three fund requests for planning and stabilization work. [54] In April

1981, the $240,000 rehabilitation finally got underway, with Long Bay Construction Company

as contractor. The NPS played a role in the project. Architect Dave Snow helped Robin Brena

with the restoration plans, and the agency lent Brena its jacks and conveyor. The project was

completed that summer. [55]

Another property that the NPS did not obtain was the Pullen House, located at the east end of

Sixth Avenue in Skagway. The Pullen House, operated by Harriet "Ma" Pullen, had been one of

Alaska's best-known lodging houses during the first half of the twenti-eth century; the presence

of, and the legends surrounding, Ms. Pullen made the parcel one of the territory's most

historically significant properties. In 1959, however, the hotel closed, and for the next six years,

Pullen's heirs were unable to pay taxes on it. In 1966, McGee and Sheila Brena purchased the

property, with hopes of restoring the old structure. [56]
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By the late 1960s, the hotel and its annex buildings had been closed for a decade, and the

Brenas belatedly recognized that they did not have sufficient funds to restore the property. Park

planners who investigated the property during this period had no illusions regarding the

buildings' restoration possibilities. The Skagway Alternatives Study, written in 1969, noted that

"the big proud old hotel is beyond redemption and lies warped and sunken on its crumbling

foundations. The neighboring structures on the estate are almost equal in their disrepair." Two

years later, NPS planner Douglas Cornell made an equally pessimistic assessment of the

structure, noting that

the building appears beyond restoration--at least for any value received.... I would

recommend that the buildings be removed--possibly retaining foundations (if there

are any, which is doubtful) and the area be developed as a pleasant park with

interpretation of the role of the Pullen House and Moore Homestead.... A "Period"

Hotel could also be developed on this property in harmony with the Historic

District. [57]

Later voices were slightly more optimistic. The 1973 master plan called for the structures to be

restored by parties other than the NPS, although the 1976 plan revision called for the agency to

"stabilize the ... ruins, restore the grounds, and provide means of interpreting the site and its

remaining structures." [58]

In July 1978, appraisers who visited Skagway on the agency's behalf noted that the Pullen

buildings were "in extremely poor condition" and in a "current state of utter disrepair;" as a

result, the parcel was considered "effectively vacant," and the improvements were of no value to

the property, whose highest and best use was considered to be multiple residential use. [59]

Despite that glum report, the NPS land agents still hoped to purchase the property. They offered

the Brenas fair market value, but were refused. Still interested, the NPS agents in July 1978

sweetened the pot, and offered a reported $166,900 for the property. But the Brenas, who had

recently been awarded historic preservation funds for the Pack Train, refused again, apparently

hoping that they could rehabilitate the Pullen House using state funds. After their second rebuff,

the NPS abandoned its attempt to purchase the property. The Brenas continued to request

restoration funds from the state, but gave up their efforts in 1981, when Reagan administration

officials reduced funds for federally-subsidized restoration projects. [60] According to Robin

Brena, the NPS withdrew from negotiations either because it was uncertain if it would have

money for restoration, or because the Reagan administration sliced funds for land acquisition.

Brena later told an NPS official that "we were very close to agreement when Reagan was

elected. At the time, the NPS was unsure if funds for restoration would be available under the

new Reagan administration. In large part due to the uncertainty in funding, the negotiations

ceased." [61]

A decade later, in August 1989, another attempt was made to sell the Pullen House to the NPS.

By that time, the house was on the verge of collapse; the condition of the Fifth Avenue Hotel

portion was particularly critical. Robin Brena, who worked as an attorney, contacted

Superintendent Clay Alderson about the property. In a subsequent letter, Brena concluded that

"this is the last opportunity to save" the house, and appealed to the NPS "to do everything it can

to ensure that such a valuable historic resource is not lost to Skagway and the State of Alaska."

Brena would not donate the property. He would, however, either 1) donate the structure and

lease the land for $1 per year, 2) donate the structure and sell the land for fair market value, or

3) "negotiate any reasonable transaction with the NPS to preserve the Pullen House." [62]

Alderson was fully cognizant of the property's condition. Even so, he hoped that the agency

could purchase and stabilize it, citing its "high historic value." [63] He surveyed the property

and contacted regional lands and cultural resource officials. Charles Gilbert, regional lands

division chief, noted that the park would have to determine if the purchase was in the public
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interest. Regional Historian Kate Lidfors, meanwhile, stated that a feasibility study would be

necessary before a purchase took place. [64]

Based on the purchase possibilities, an NPS team consisting of Clay Alderson, Kate Lidfors,

and Historical Architect Steve Peterson surveyed the property in early September. After

considering a stabilization option and the building of a replica, the team rejected both

possibilities. They concluded that the best option was to remove the building, restore the

grounds, and create an interpretive park. Based on that visit, the NPS offered to the Brenas an

estimated $150,000-$200,000 for the property. But as Alderson later noted, "We just were never

able to offer a price that was attractive enough to the seller." [65]

After that point, the deterioration of the Pullen House accelerated. By October 1990, the Historic

District Commission had approved, and the Skagway City Council had issued, a demolition

order which called for the removal of the northern (Fifth Avenue Hotel) portion. Both bodies

suggested, however, that the main house be saved. The demolition of the northern wing was

delayed until December 11. When the H&H Construction crew arrived to do the job, they

apparently failed to separate the two hotel sections; they likewise failed to stabilize any portion

of the older (southern) portion of the hotel. As a result, when the crew's backhoe began to

demolish the northern end, more and more of the original main building was exposed and began

to cave in. Owner Sheila Brena, who observed the proceedings, told the crew to finish what they

had begun. The next day, therefore, they knocked down and carted away the rest of the

building. [66]

The building's demolition did not signal the end of the NPS's interest in the property. Brena was

still hopeful that the land could be sold for an interpretive center that would display hotel

photographs. The agency, since then, has continued to show an interest. In February 1993, the

Alaska Regional Director approved a task directive for a cultural resource assessment of an area

which includes the so-called "Pullen House Sites." That assessment was completed in

September 1995. [67] The year 1993 also witnessed a brief flurry of correspondence between

the Brenas, the NPS, and Senator Stevens about the property, with inconsequential results. Since

then, the agency has taken no further action toward the purchase of the Pullen House property.

[68]

In addition to considering the purchase of large buildings such as the Pack Train and the Pullen

House, the NPS has shown an interest in small structures, too. One such structure, a gold rushera prostitute's crib located on Alaska Street near Fourth Avenue, became known to park staff in

early 1980. A local resident offered the building to park officials, but only if the transaction

could be completed by March 30, 1980. The resident hoped that the donation would be part of a

land trade. The trade, however, was never completed, and the NPS did not acquire it. [69]

The NPS Acquires an Administrative Site

The framers of the park act recognized the necessity for an administrative site located away

from the Broadway historic district. As a result, the park's master plan stated that the agency

"will require housing and maintenance facilities in or near Skagway, outside the park

boundaries. Up to 15 acres of land outside the park could eventually be required for

maintenance, housing, and administrative facilities." In response to that need, Public Law 94-

323 authorized the Secretary of the Interior "to acquire outside the boundaries of the park...not

to exceed fifteen acres of land or interests therein located in, or in the vicinity of, the city of

Skagway, Alaska, for an administrative site..." [70]

During the first several years of the park's existence, little was done to obtain such a site. [71]

In February 1980, however, the idea arose as part of the planning effort for the agency's
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buildings in the historic district. Wilfred Logan, from the Denver Service Center, thought that it

would be better to have the park administered from an off-site location than to use the agency's

buildings in the historic district for administrative purposes. Bill Brown, another meeting

participant, urged the purchase of an administrative site, but for a different purpose. Brown

wanted to see the site used as a much-needed utility and maintenance area; in addition, artifact

storage would take place there.

During the next few months, most of the needs outlined for the administrative site were

addressed in other park locations. Dave Snow, the new historical architect, directed that the

White Pass depot complex would serve as the park headquarters. He likewise decided that the

Pantheon Saloon, also in the historic district, would serve as the park's utility and maintenance

area. That same year, Interpretive Specialist Dave Cohen decided that the two-story depot safe

would serve as the artifact storage area. [72]

The administrative site idea, however, had taken hold and would not disappear. Community

relations, to a large part, were responsible for its creation. As has been noted previously, the

NPS had placed a single-wide mobile home behind the Pantheon Saloon shortly after the park

had been authorized, and several NPS employees had resided there since then. When Richard

Sims assumed the superintendency in September 1979, he and his wife Phyllis occupied the

trailer. Local residents were offended that the superintendent, a highly-paid employee, should be

living in a government-subsidized facility within clear view of the town's busiest street. More

important, the existence of the trailer in the historic district violated the provisions of the

recently-passed ordinance that demanded the removal of all mobile homes south of 15th

Avenue. The eruption of a minor issue, concerning the vacant lot west of the Pantheon, caused

civic attention to be focused on the superintendent's trailer. [73]

Shortly afterward the NPS began to seek out an administrative site, primarily as a residential

site for Superintendent Sims and his wife. In mid-December 1980, the agency purchased 0.34

acres of improved land at 14th Avenue and Main Street. (A double-wide trailer was already

located on the property; it had been moved there in 1975.) The sellers were Lawrence and Mary

Pagnac; the purchase price was $80,000. Largely in response to pressure from Deputy Regional

Director Douglas Warnock, the Simses moved to the administrative site shortly afterward, and

the single-wide trailer was moved from Skagway to Denali National Park. [74]

Local residents, whose ire toward the superintendent had been aroused the previous summer,

were angry that the newly-purchased administrative site was being used for non-administrative

purposes. "Skip" Elliott, the newly-appointed city manager, wrote a long list of grievances to

the agency's director in February 1981. Among those grievances was the superintendent's

residence "in an illegal travel trailer within the historic district for two years. The park," he

continued, "has recently purchased non-historic property as an administrative site even though

the intent is to use it as housing." [75] Sims, however, weathered the storm, and he continued to

live at the administrative site until he retired and left Skagway in November 1985.

As noted below, the city election of 1982 featured a proposal to swap the Arctic Brotherhood

Hall, which was owned by the city, for the three vacant NPS lots along Broadway. Two of the

city council members that year, Rand Snure and John McDermott, hoped to include a portion of

the administrative site in the trading package. The reason for the suggested swap was related to

the adjacent softball diamond. Both the left field and center field fences at the diamond were

250 feet from home plate. But because of the administrative site, the right field fence was just

205 feet down the line. The superintendent was well aware that the administrative site impinged

into the playing area; softballs flew into his yard with some frequency, and occasional home-run

balls shattered his living room window. He was unwilling, however, to cooperate with the city

by giving up a portion of the administrative site, and the ballot question (which was ultimately

defeated) did not include the administrative site in the proposed land trade. [76]
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In order to increase the amount of working area available to park staff, the NPS in March 1986

asked the city to donate the 10,000 square foot gymnasium of the old school to use as a

woodworking shop and storage facility. (The school, located between 11th and 13th avenues

and between State and Main streets, had opened during the 1930s and closed in the spring of

1985.) Because the gymnasium (and the rest of the school) had lain vacant for the past year, and

there were no plans in the offing for alternative uses, the city in September agreed to donate the

gym to the NPS for a five year period. The agency utilized the facility until 1991, then moved

its materials to the administrative site (see below). It made no attempt to renew its pact with the

city. [77]

The park's demand for working room continued to increase, and before the close of 1986 the

NPS had approached the city council for more space. It requested, and was granted, a five year

zoning variance so that it could construct a metal storage shed at the administrative site. Early

the following year, the NPS completed its eighteen-month renovation of the Moore Cabin.

Maintenance personnel then disassembled the storage building which had been protecting the

cabin and moved it to the administrative site. [78]

Another issue pertaining to the administrative site during this period dealt with the Skagway

Airport. The NPS site, located on the west side of Main Street, was 150 feet east of Alaska

Street, and the airport was west of Alaska Street. Federal Aviation Administration officials,

however, declared that the present airport was unsafe because, among other reasons, it had no

taxiway. In order to increase airport safety, the FAA suggested several modifications; one

proposal called for placing either a parking lot or an airport administration building on the

park's administrative site. In order to prepare for that eventuality, the park's Cultural Resource

Specialist conducted an archeological clearance for the property. During the summer of 1988,

he and two assistants--Heidi Hill and Bill Jurgelski--made several test excavations at the

administrative site. [79]

In October 1994, the park announced that the Pagnac's double-wide trailer, now almost twenty

years old and in a deteriorated condition, would be replaced. In its stead, the NPS planned to

construct a duplex on the property. [80] A total of $425,000 was allotted to the duplex, and in

the summer of 1995 the trailer was moved offsite. That September, the locally-owned Jewell

Construction Company began construction work. The project was completed in the spring of

1996. NPS officials also recognized the need for extra storage room, so in early 1995 they

decided to install four 40-foot "sea vans" (cargo containers) at the park maintenance site. Those

units were moved onto the property in April 1995, and are currently located along Second

Avenue, on the property's northern edge. [81]

NPS Activities at the Arctic Brotherhood Hall

The Arctic Brotherhood Hall, located on Broadway between Second and Third avenues, is a

striking, attractive, gold rush-era building, and it may be the most photographed structure in the

state. The building is currently owned by the City of Skagway and has never been owned by the

National Park Service. The federal agency, however, has played a significant role in its use and

restoration during the past two decades.

The Hall was constructed during the spring of 1899 as Camp Skagway Number 1 of the Arctic

Brotherhood. A year later, one of the club members--either J. A. Cleveland or Charley Walker--

collected 20,000 driftwood sticks from Skagway Bay and, for reasons unknown, attached them

to the front wall. [82] The organization continued to use the building until 1923, when President

Warren Harding visited Skagway. As part of that visit, Harding joined the Brotherhood.

Harding, it turned out, was the last person to join the organization. The Skagway camp (and the

organization as a whole) disbanded shortly thereafter, and the City of Skagway assumed
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ownership of the building. It has retained that ownership ever since.

For the next half century the hall was used only occasionally and for a diversity of uses. Town

meetings were held there; flower shows took place in late summer; and from time to time it was

used as a city-sponsored visitor center, staffed by volunteers. By the time the NPS began to

show an interest in the Skagway area, tourism levels had risen to the point that the hall was

being used most summers as an informal visitor center. The city used the building as an

information center as late as the summer of 1978. [83]

Although the 1973 master plan called for the AB Hall to be retained by the city, federal

bureaucrats became interested in the building soon after the park was authorized. A federal

agency (probably the Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service) offered the city a grant to

restore the building; in March 1978, however, the city turned it down. [84] Six months later, the

NPS approached the city council and asked to use the hall as a visitor center until it had

completed its restoration activities on a permanent visitor center. In response, the NPS promised

to invest several thousand dollars each year in restoration and maintenance as part of its

cooperative agreement with the city. The city council agreed to the Park Service's proposal at its

September 21, 1978 meeting, and in May 1979, the agency began using the AB Hall as a

temporary visitor center. [85]

As noted above, the NPS did not immediately respond after the city council signed the

cooperative agreement. The agency, in fact, dragged its heels for more than sixteen months, and

a mutually-agreeable pact was not finalized until February 22, 1980. Perhaps as a result of those

delays, city officials during the early months of 1980 let it be known that the city might renege

on its promise to make the AB Hall available to the Park Service. The city's threat caused

agency planners to scramble for an alternate visitor center site. That site, it was decided, would

be the Mascot Saloon. By the late spring, however, feelings between the city and the NPS had

mellowed, and the city had ceased its sabre-rattling. [86]

In December 1981, the NPS became involved in a new issue related to the AB Hall. The agency,

by now, had stabilized and repainted most of its properties in the historic district. Perhaps based

on those positive accomplishments, and its recognition that it could not afford to maintain the

historic buildings it owned, the city contacted the NPS regarding the possible sale of both the

Arctic Brotherhood Hall and the City Library. (The latter building had been erected in 1898 as

the Board of Trade Gambling Saloon. It had served as the city library from 1928 to 1979, when

the library moved to a newly-constructed building at Eighth Avenue and State Street. The old

library building had been unused since that time.) The city recognized that selling the buildings

to the Park Service would guarantee their preservation; it would also provide the city a sizable

financial boost. [87]

Regional Director John Cook, who responded to the city's letter, noted that the agency was

interested in obtaining the two historic buildings. He noted, however, that Section 1309 of the

recently-passed Alaska Lands Act prevented the NPS from purchasing land from the city. The

only acquisition options open were either donation or exchange. He invited the City Council to

suggest ideas consistent with existing legal avenues. [88] City officials responded by suggesting

that the city trade the AB Hall in exchange for the three vacant NPS lots along Broadway--the

lot between the Sweet Tooth and Dedman's Photo, the so-called "Rainier Hotel" lots south of

the Pantheon Saloon, and the lot south of Corrington's Curios--plus a portion of the

administrative site (as noted above) to be used as an extension to the local softball diamond.

[89] NPS officials rejected the idea of giving up any of the administrative site, but were hopeful

that the remainder of the trade could be consummated.

The idea of the exchange having been approved by both parties, the question was put to a ballot

of Skagway's voters. On October 5, 1982, voters were asked the question, "Shall the City of
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Skagway trade the Arctic Brotherhood to the National Park Service in exchange for an equal

value of vacant real properties and services?" In addition, voters were asked, "Shall the City of

Skagway sell these properties that will be conveyed by the National Park Service at not less than

appraised value under such terms, conditions, and at such time as the City Council deems

appropriate?" Voters rejected the first question, 218 to 199, but they approved the (by now

irrelevant) second question, 211 to 180. [90]

Skip Elliott, who backed the measure, was unconvinced that the voters were fully informed

about the proposed land trade. In a letter to editor Jeff Brady, he chastised the press for not

publicizing the issue, and noted that "very few people, for instance, realized that the proposed

AB Hall trade...was suggested by the city, not the NPS." Outgoing mayor Bob Messegee agreed

with Elliott, saying he thought that voters did not understand the question, and at the October 8

council meeting convinced the city council to put both of the above measures on the October 19

ballot. In addition, city officials sent out a mailer to each voter explaining the issue. The voters,

however, apparently understood the issue all along. When the questions appeared on the ballot a

second time, the land-trade proposal was rejected 169 to 94. The accompanying proposal also

failed, on a 136 to 115 vote. [91]

Despite the vote results, the city had no intention of abandoning the AB Hall. Since the NPS had

begun using the AB Hall, city officials had had little luck in establishing a city-run visitor

center in another location. [92] During the summer of 1982, therefore, local Convention and

Visitors Bureau staff began working at the facility in conjunction with the seasonal NPS

interpreters. Two years later, city personnel improved the hall's restroom facilities, and the

building served as a municipal visitor center, staffed by high school representatives of the statesponsored HOST (Helping Our State's Students) program. HOST personnel continued to staff

the hall, on an exclusive basis, during the summer of 1985. The following year, however, tour

operator Steve Hites rented the hall for his Skagway Streetcar Company. CVB personnel shared

the facility with Hites's operation that year; meanwhile, city officials showed occasional

indications of interest in leasing the NPS-restored Martin Itjen house, west of the depot

complex (see Chapter 6). [93]

In September 1986, Hites expressed his intention to lease the hall for a second summer. His

request provoked a wide variety of public comment regarding the hall's optimal use. Residents

were aware that the council had usually made its leasing decisions in late spring or early

summer, and many felt that a long term plan was necessary. Some, such as Jeff Brady of the

Skagway News, wanted to sell it to the National Park Service. Others wanted it to become a

museum or cultural center, or an annex to the existing City Hall museum. Still others wanted

the city to continue leasing it. No plan emerged from those discussions, and the city offered a

new lease to the Skagway Streetcar Company. [94]

In 1987, the city council decided to take steps to protect the building. That June, it drew up a

resolution that would save the structure and "restore it to its former glory." It contacted the NPS

for advice, and in November, cultural resources chief Leslie Starr Hart announced that the

following spring, the agency would contract with an architectural and engineering firm to assess

the hall's structural needs. [95] Soon afterward, Regional Historian Robert Spude agreed to do a

historic building survey for the hall. That survey, had it been completed, would have determined

the building's immediate needs and provided a restoration plan that the city could take to

potential funding sources. Spude, however, left his Alaskan post soon afterward. Despite that

setback the NPS pledged, as part of the servicewide Building Condition Assessment Program, to

provide an AB Hall survey. [96] Russ Sackett performed the survey in 1988. On the basis of

that survey, the City of Skagway, in late 1989, contracted with local personnel to jack up the

hall and give it a new foundation. That same year, the driftwood facade was treated "so it would

last another 90 years." [97]
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Throughout this period, Steve Hites continued to lease the AB Hall from the city on a year-toyear basis; each year, as they had since 1982, the hall also served as the municipal visitor center.

From time to time, residents continued, as they had before, to suggest that the building become

a visitor center or a museum, and not a privately-operated tour company facility. (Some

suggested that it become an annex to the existing museum; others suggested that it become the

sole site for the city museum. One individual suggested that the hall become an independentlyoperated wildlife museum.) [98] At one point, in the spring of 1990, the city council went so far

as to rescind Hites' lease. Soon afterward, however, he was granted the lease once again. In

August 1992, as he neared the end of his seventh year of operation in the AB Hall, Hites

received a three-year lease. That lease remained valid through October 1995. Shortly after the

lease expired, the hall became the temporary site of the Trail of '98 Museum while the McCabe

Building was undergoing restoration activities. In May 1996 the relocated museum opened, as

scheduled, in the AB Hall. Hites, meanwhile, constructed a new theater complex on 2nd Avenue

east of Broadway. In May 1996 it, too, was completed and opened its doors to visitors. [99]

Trail of '98 Museum Assistance

The city's Trail of '98 Museum was established in the spring of 1961. It was located on the

second floor of City Hall (McCabe College); its first curator was Paul Sincic, a White Pass

railroad worker, who continued his curatorship until he left town in 1966. [100] The museum

drew thousands of visitors each summer, and by the early 1970s an excellent, diversified

museum collection had been assembled.

NPS officials recognized that the authorization of a park unit in Skagway would impact the

museum. More visitors would drop by; the park's interpreters would recommend the site;

historians and other professionals, both NPS employees and outside researchers, would use the

city's historical photograph collection and textual records.

Officials from the NPS and the state who studied the museum recognized that much needed to

be done. Qualified personnel were needed to organize, catalog, and microfilm the city's

archives. [101]

The city had no funds to address those concerns. Therefore, the NPS officials who drew up the

first NPS-city cooperative agreement included museum funds as a prominent part of the total

allotment. [102] Of the $45,000 promised by the NPS, $10,200 was to be directed to museum

and archival management. Skagway's city council members first learned about the specifics of

the cooperative agreement when the NPS presented the plan to them in September 1978. As

noted above, however, the agreement was not finalized until February 1980.

Shortly after the accord was signed, Interpretive Specialist David Cohen offered to work with

the city's museum board on various museum assistance projects. With funds in hand, Cohen

visited the state archives and the Western Washington University archives management

program, and with the city's blessing set about hiring someone to inventory the city's historical

records. Glenda Choate, an archivist from Bellingham, Washington, was hired as an intern and

arrived in Skagway in mid-June. She spent the summer working in the museum and arranging

for the shipment of materials to Juneau for microfilming. By October, the work was complete

and an index had been compiled of the various record groups comprising the city's archives.

[103]

Choate remained in town, working as the city librarian when her archival chores were

completed. [104] In the meantime, new events were taking place at the museum. Judge Thomas

Stewart, the presiding judge of Alaska's First Judicial District, was so taken by the authentic

historical atmosphere in the old courtroom that he had revived its use as a court, after a 27-year
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lapse, during the fall of 1978. A year later, he petitioned the city council to use the museum as a

court on an ongoing basis. His request, if followed completely, would have resulted in the

second floor being partially cleared and a number of museum pieces being moved downstairs.

Council members, trying to be compromising, chose to meet the judge halfway. They agreed to

let the judge hold court upstairs, but only during the wintertime (between October 1 and May

15) and only if a museum board member was present. Large museum pieces would not be

moved downstairs; the city council chambers, they reasoned, were already too crowded. Under

that plan, the court moved upstairs on an occasional basis. It has retained that role into the

1990s. [105]

In 1981, the museum was further improved, thanks to $15,000 in state grant money and $5,000

in local funds. A year later, Choate was called back to complete an addendum to the organizing

and cataloguing she had accomplished in 1980. The city, during the interim, had located several

additional caches of historical documentation. In order to give the new records the same level of

documentation accorded the original collection, four agencies--the City of Skagway, National

Park Service, Alaska State Museum, and Alaska State Archives--pooled their resources. Choate

began her work in March 1982 and completed it in July. [106]

As noted in the above section, local citizens in 1986 began to consider moving part or all of the

city museum to the AB Hall. Discussion continued, without definite results, for several years. In

May 1994, the city council made tentative plans to move the city offices from the McCabe

Building to the old school; Superintendent Alderson, in response, offered NPS assistance in

renovating the existing city hall so that the Trail of '98 Museum would occupy both floors. The

plan, which called for the improvement of both the school and the McCabe Building, was

approved by city officials and presented to the voters as two bond propositions. On October 4,

Skagway's voters defeated both measures. Proposition 1, which called for improvements to the

old school, failed 203 to 161, while Proposition 2, which would have improved the McCabe

Building, was rejected by a 217 to 143 margin. [107] Despite the failure of that vote, the

museum was moved--on a temporary basis--to the Arctic Brotherhood Hall (see section above),

where it will remain until restoration work in the McCabe building is completed.

Management of Vacant Lots Along Broadway

When NPS officials began planning Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, they

recognized that some of the gold rush-era buildings would need to be moved to new locations in

order to save them. To that end, the 1973 master plan called for the purchase of several vacant

lots, and the movement of historic buildings onto two of them. One moved building was to be

located just south of Verbauwhede's Confectionery; the other would be just south of

Corrington's Curios. [108]

By the time NPS lands officials began purchasing Skagway properties, the parcel south of

Verbauwhede's had been filled by an extension to Richter's Curios. The agency, therefore,

purchased the vacant lot south of Corrington's, called the Kalem-Kaufman lot. In addition, it

bought a lot across Broadway from the depot complex. Three other lots were unintentionally

acquired as part of purchases that included historic buildings. These lots were 1) the so-called

Kirmse tent site, between the Sweet Tooth Saloon and Dedman's Photo Shop, 2) the Rainier

Hotel lot, between Dedman's Photo and the Pantheon Saloon, and 3) several lots, previously

owned by the Kirmse family, located between the Moore Cabin and Broadway Street. As

planners had envisioned, the agency did purchase three buildings that needed to be moved: the

Itjen House, Boss Bakery, and Goldberg Cigar Store. By the close of 1979, however, all of the

buildings had been moved onto NPS lots. By the time the acquisition and moving processes had

run their course, park officials recognized that the Kirmse tent site, the Rainier Hotel lot and the

Kalem-Kaufman tract would likely remain vacant. The lots between the Moore Cabin and
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Broadway would probably also remain unimproved for the foreseeable future.

In December 1980, as noted in Chapter 6, NPS officials were in the midst of preparing the socalled Skagway Historic District plan. Bill Brown, one of the principal architects of the plan,

recognized that residents wanted to know the agency's intentions regarding the various vacant

lots it owned. Were further building moves contemplated? If so, when would action take place?

And if not, would local residents be able to either lease or purchase the vacant lots? [109]

At a public meeting, held in Skagway on April 9, 1981, NPS officials went to great lengths to

explain why the lots had been purchased in the first place, and what the agency planned to do

with them. The various lots, they explained, were acquired either for the relocation of buildings

or for parking lots. Neither of those uses was currently valid. [110] As a result, they mentioned

that the agency would consider selling the Kirmse tent site, the Rainier Hotel lot and the KalemKaufman tract to the city, so long as the city promised to retain historical land uses on them.

(Later that month, the agency declared the lots to be surplus, and formally recommended their

disposal.) Based on that position, two Skagway business people that evening indicated their

interest in acquiring a parcel should it become available. The vacant lots west of the Moore

cabin, however, would not be sold; instead, they would be retained for structures restoration, a

memorial to the White Pass Trail, or other park interpretive uses. [111]

Community pressure, up to this point, clearly favored the park's divestment of its surplus

properties. In June 1981, however, city manager Skip Elliott backed off from his previously

hostile attitude. In a letter to John Cook, he said,

most people feel that the Kirmse and Rainier Hotel lots should remain as tourist

relaxation areas. Likewise, the Moore lots should be retained for historical

interpretation. However, it is felt that the Kaufman lot should be made available for

transient vendors and that such "rag-tag" use would not be incompatible with the

nature of the early gold-rush era. [112]

As noted in the section above (pertaining to the AB Hall), the idea of a city-NPS land swap

surfaced in late 1981, and in October 1982, the city ballot asked voters to validate the proposed

swap of the Kirmse tent site, the Rainier Hotel lot, and the Kalem-Kaufman tract in exchange

for the AB Hall. Voters decided the issue on October 5, then again on October 19. In both cases,

they rejected the proposed land trade.

For the next five years, the park had no plans for the lots and made no attempt to dispose of

them. In 1987, however, Superintendent Alderson began to eye them. As noted in Chapter 6, he

showed an early interest in building a park maintenance facility, and he felt that one of the

easiest ways to obtain the necessary land (near Alaska Street and Second Avenue) would be to

trade it for the three surplus lots along Broadway. [113] Cultural resources personnel, however,

warned Alderson that he would not be able to dispose of the lots without first excavating them.

The thought of having to fund such an extensive, costly undertaking caused Alderson to

abandon the land trade idea. In order to prepare for a possible future disposal action, however,

he ordered that an archeological excavation be conducted at the Kalem-Kaufman tract during

the summer of 1988. [114]

Since 1988, the agency has made no further attempts to dispose of its Broadway lots. It has,

however, tried to improve their appearance. In 1993, the NPS hired Charles Bettisworth and

Company of Fairbanks to develop a conceptual master plan for landscaping in the town's

historic district; Bettisworth, in turn, hired Jones and Jones, a Seattle architectural firm, to assist

in the project. (Although the NPS sponsored the project, the city participated as well. As a result

of that plan, the city erected improvements in Mollie Walsh Park and proposed a park at

Broadway and First Avenue.) [115]
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Tom Atkins and Kurt Warber were Jones and Jones' representatives on the project. As part of

that plan, Atkins and Warber envisioned three scenarios for the Broadway lots. The lots could

be infilled with moved or reconstructed buildings, they could be left undeveloped, or they could

be improved with outdoor interpretive exhibits. Public meetings held that November revealed

that residents preferred that the park either build structures on the lots and lease them back to the

retail sector, or leave them undeveloped. [116]

The report recommended that new uses be adopted for each of the vacant lots. At the Kirmse

Tent Site, it proposed an expanded deck area, covered public telephones adjacent to the Sweet

Tooth's north wall, and a grassy area to the rear. At the Kalem-Kaufman Tract, the plan

envisioned a historic Skagway garden design, with alternative planting beds and lawn.

Regarding the so-called Pantheon (Rainier Hotel) Site, local residents generally approved of an

extended boardwalk and picnic area, but another alternative for the lot, a false-front entryway,

was described as "looking out of place, phony and false." After considering public comment, the

report's authors noted that because of the Park Service's impending restoration of the Pantheon

saloon building, more information was needed prior to developing recommendations for the

adjacent lot. [117] The report was completed in June 1994, but the NPS has not yet acted on the

report's recommendations.

The Revived Historic District Commission

As noted in Chapter 4, the city's Historic District Commission (HDC) was first created in

October 1972. NPS officials had recommended that the Skagway City Council establish a

historic district along Broadway, and the ordinance that passed that month called for the

establishment of a historic district advisory board. [118] The council, however, did not appoint

the charter members of the Skagway Historic District Commission until the fall of 1973, and the

commission did not begin meeting until October 1974. The body was relatively inactive, and in

1976-77, the council eliminated it. Its functions were taken over by the Planning and Zoning

Commission.

In April 1977, the Skagway City Council established a series of regulations for the historic

district. The new rules were intended to safeguard the heritage of the city, stabilize and improve

property values, foster civic beauty, strengthen the local economy, and promote the use the

district for the education, pleasure and welfare of the city's citizens and visitors. The regulations

stated that "no structure shall be constructed, altered, repaired, moved or demolished" in the

district unless it complied with the new requirements. [119]

The regulations, however, did little good. Superintendent Richard Hoffman, in May 1979, made

this tart assessment of them:

The City is a long way from having a viable Planning and Zoning Commission (I

know, I'm on it). Thus, the present ordinances, bad as they are, are beyond the

functional scope of the Planning and Zoning Commission to enforce. In addition,

the City Council over-rides the P&Z and keeps it impotent. And there is no way

around that without Citizen support, and it just ain't there. [120]

As if to underscore Hoffman's comments, the city council in February 1980 dissolved the

Planning and Zoning Commission, citing a lack of commitment by commission members. [121]

Just a few weeks after the city council's action, the NPS organized two weeks of meetings in

Skagway to plan the future of the park. The agency's Skagway Historic District buildings

comprised a major focus of the various discussions. Hugh Miller, of the agency's Washington

office, declared that a city historic preservation commission or landmarks commission was
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necessary to relieve jurisdictional and ownership problems and to enhance cooperative planning.

Wil Logan, a fellow NPS attendee, agreed with Miller; he noted that historic preservation would

be "the community's economic salvation" and that a commission was necessary in order to

manage city preservation activities. Logan, in addition, urged the creation of a series of

preservation guidelines and design standards for the non-NPS buildings in the historic district.

[122]

During the year which followed, Historical Architect Dave Snow began work in Skagway, and

before long he had joined Logan in advocating the creation of a set of architectural guidelines

for historic district buildings. [123] But nothing was done about the idea until April 9, 1981,

when it was resurrected at a public meeting which NPS officials held at the Skagway City Hall.

Staff members who attended the meeting recognized that if they wished to retain historical land

uses on the vacant lots they were considering for disposal, they would need to prepare technical

guidelines to assist the city and prospective lot purchasers. Area Office historian Bill Brown, in

response, proposed that Regional Historical Architect David Snow and Randall Copeland of the

Denver Service Center collaborate in the preparing of a Compatible New Construction Guide.

Snow and Copeland would develop their own data, and add to it the building history

information that had been generated by historian Robert Spude. [124] Copeland began work on

the project soon afterward, and by year's end he had produced a set of design guidelines for the

Skagway Historic District. [125]

Another writing project that provided historical and architectural information to city residents

was Robert Spude's Skagway, District of Alaska, 1884-1912. This volume, begun during the late

1970s, was a compilation of data on the buildings and sites in the downtown historic district; in

addition, it described those resources and their predominant architectural patterns as a reflection

of the period in which they were constructed. The study was intended to serve as a guide to

preservation research and planning, both in Skagway and other Alaskan communities, and to

satisfy community concerns about Skagway area resources. The study was published by the NPS

and by the University of Alaska's Cooperative Park Studies Unit and distributed in January

1984. [126]

By the time the design guidelines had been completed, the long-dormant Skagway Historic

District Commission had come back to life. On August 20, 1981, the city council created a fivemember commission, of which one member would be the NPS's historical architect. [127] The

commission met regularly after that point, and by the summer of 1982, the Skagway News

editorialized its accomplishments, noting that:

Since its inception last year, the Historic District Commission has played a

significant role in the molding of the district into a valuable tourist attraction.

Skagway's buildings have always looked "old" but they are just now beginning to

display a lot more character. Local businesses are following the National Park

Service's good example by painting their buildings, putting them on more stable

foundations, and sprucing up their property. The HDC has served as the proper

bridge between the community and the national park. Their work thus far deserves

applause and praise from local residents. [128]

The new commission's political will was tested in late July, when Westours officials presented

the commission with its plans for a 64-room addition to the Klondike Hotel. This addition was

to have fronted on both Broadway and Third Avenue. Commission members, however,

variously described the new false-fronted, horizontal-sided design as "insensitive" and "ugly,"

and the proposed hotel as "a behemoth" and "a monster." Westours representatives tried to be

responsive to the commission's impressions, and NPS architect Dave Snow spent two days with

the designers in an attempt to improve the addition's exterior appearance. After that

collaboration, Westours presented the revised designs to the commission, which quickly
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approved them. [129]

The Historic District Commission weathered that storm, and several others that have erupted

since that time, and despite occasional calls for its elimination, it remains active. Its composition

changed in 1985, when the city council increased its membership from five to six, and business

owners replaced council members on the commission. But both before and after that

realignment, a local park employee has always been a commission member. Dave Snow served

until his departure until 1984; he was replaced by maintenance chief John Warder and, more

recently, by cultural resource specialist Karl Gurcke. [130]

The commission has tended to be most visible when it has decided the fate of proposed building

plans. In 1984, it denied several proposed modifications that Steve Jaklitsch had tried to make

on his Fifth Avenue Bunkhouse; soon afterward, the city council overturned most of the

commission's recommendations. Nine years later, the commission turned down a request for a

proposed log cabin on the Eagles Hall property, but they later approved the moving of an old

garage to the property so long as the petitioners erected a false front on it facing Broadway.

[131] Then, in July 1993, the Mason Garage, which was on the verge of collapsing, was

demolished without HDC approval. Robert Spude, in Skagway, District of Alaska, had noted

that the garage had been a gold rush-era stable, which may have been moved onto the property.

The commission, at its July 19 meeting, therefore protested the demolition. It was later revealed,

however, that the structure had actually been built as a garage in 1936. Many buildings have

been constructed or modified in the historic district in recent years with little or no difficulty

from the HDC. Examples include renovations at the Skagway Hardware Company and Eagles

Hall, and new construction of the Skagway Air Service and Klondike Picture Emporium

buildings. [132]

The commission has also drawn up new regulations from time to time. In July 1986, it

formulated guidelines for itinerant and transient merchants. In September 1987, the city council-

-bypassing the HDC--proposed a revised sign ordinance; later, however, the council voted it

down and decided to write a new, more simplified ordinance. [133] During the early 1990s the

city, with the support of the HDC, instituted a matching grant program to provide sprinkler

systems in historic district buildings. [134]

During the late 1980s and early 1990s, the commission made several adjustments to the

boundaries of the historic district. As noted in Chapter 6, the original (1972) boundaries of the

district were soon recognized as being irrelevant, primarily because historical research identified

that important historical buildings were located outside of the designated boundaries. To correct

that oversight, historian Bob Spude had attempted, in 1979, to expand the boundaries. That

attempt was unsuccessful, but several years later, the HDC moved the boundary west to include

the Moore Building at Fifth and State. The body also moved the boundary east in a nonhistorical area on the north side of Sixth Avenue west of Broadway. The current boundaries,

though more inclusive than they were in 1972, still do not include several of Skagway's most

important gold rush-era commercial buildings. [135]

In the spring of 1993, the commission began to draw up revisions to the guidelines that Randall

Copeland of the NPS had compiled in 1981. Glenda Choate, the consultant chosen to write the

report, met with Casey McBride, Karl Gurcke, and other commission members throughout the

year. Hearings on the guidelines were held in August 1993 and January 1994, and final design

guidelines were published that spring. [136]

In 1989, the NPS became involved in a project that resulted in research intended to assist

property owners throughout the historic district. The Alaska Regional Office, as part of a

program involving units throughout the NPS system, let a contract for an Archeological

Overview and Assessment of the park's Skagway Unit. It was awarded to Drs. William
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Hampton Adams and David R. Brauner. The pair, who hailed from Corvallis, Oregon, visited

both the park and the regional office in search of applicable data. They turned in a draft in

September 1990. Paul Gleeson of the NPS responded that the report, though thorough, required

more research before it could be finalized. Adams and Brauner, however, had expended the

project's funds and ceased work on it. Their findings were published privately in 1991. Two

years later, NPS officials in Anchorage reactivated the idea of publishing the volume. The

writers have expressed a similar interest, but work on the project is presently on hold. [137]

City and Park Visitation

Before the park was authorized in 1976, both NPS and city officials were well aware that the

existence of the park, plus the impending completion of the Klondike Highway from Skagway

to Carcross, would significantly increase Skagway tourism. It was difficult, however, to

accurately assess visitor numbers. The Alaska Marine Highway and the White Pass and Yukon

Route railroad could offer Skagway arrival and departure figures, and cruise ship companies

could provide total passenger counts. (Later, beginning in 1978, the customs and immigration

authorities could offer figures on the number of highway passengers who crossed the border

heading southbound.) Based on those figures, however, there was no way to accurately judge the

number of people who remained in town. Many cruise ship passengers, for instance, did not

disembark, and many of those who arrived by the state ferry merely drove through town on

State Street and headed for the Canadian border. Equally important, the statistics did not (and

could not) separate tourists from residents.

NPS officials had an even more difficult time assessing visitor numbers. The park's Skagway

unit, for example, was composed of several buildings in the historic district, and there was no

accurate way to estimate who, among Skagway's visitors, was interacting with, or benefiting

from, park facilities. As noted in chapters 5 and 6, the park opened its first visitor center (in the

old depot building) in 1977. NPS officials, however, made no attempt to tally park visitors for

the next several years, except along the Chilkoot Trail.

Skagway visitation increased significantly during the 1970s, and by the end of the decade, city

officials began to recognize the need for a separate organization devoted to visitor service

management. In October 1980, the city council proposed the creation of the Skagway

Convention and Visitors Bureau. A month later, the idea was approved, and the bureau had its

first regular meeting on March 24, 1981. [138] It was originally anticipated that the staff person

heading the bureau would serve as the museum curator as well as the tourism director. In April

1981, however, the CVB decided to separate the two positions, and in June, Bob Wheeler was

hired as the city's first CVB director. [139] In early 1982, Wheeler was succeeded by Bob Ward,

who remained as CVB head for five years. The Convention and Visitors Bureau remains active

in the community. Its primary purpose is to attract tourists to town. Although most local event

planning is now orchestrated by the chamber of commerce, the Skagway Centennial Committee,

and by volunteers, the CVB organizes such off-season events as Windfest (during early spring)

and Yuletide (just before Christmas). [140]

In 1982, the NPS finally began to tabulate visitor figures. Using a hand counter in the Arctic

Brotherhood hall, seasonal interpreters tabulated total recreational visits; to account for offseason visitation, the agency relied on signatures entered by visitors at the park headquarters.

Recreational visitation was 49,686; total visitation was 50,642. (See Appendix A.) The park's

interpretive specialist that year also began to collect and report figures for guided walks,

evening programs, roving assignments, and park films. These forms of recording have

continued to the present day. [141]

Visitation to both Skagway and the park's visitor center increased annually thereafter, and in
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1988, more than 105,500 recreational visitors came to the park. The decreased number of cruise

ships the following year, due in part to the bankruptcy of Exploration Cruise Lines and the

subsequent elimination of its ship dockings, reduced visitation 18 percent. Thereafter, visitation

resumed its annual climb, and in 1991 more than 110,500 people were recorded. [142] The

city's CVB, however, reported more than 282,000 visitors that year.

Superintendent Alderson, upon comparing the two figures, recognized that the park's visitation

figures needed to be revised upward. He wrote that

These figures are derived from the actual numbers of people who came into the

visitor center or who hiked the Chilkoot Trail. This in no way reflects the actual

number of people who make use of the facilities of the park. It would be more

realistic to use figures compiled by the Skagway Convention and Visitors Bureau ...

virtually every person who comes to town makes use of the park in some way.

In order to ensure a more realistic visitor count, he invited Ted Grant, of the Statistical Division

of the Denver Service Center, to visit the park in August 1991. Grant promised that new

statistical criteria would be derived beginning in 1992. [143] As a result of Grant's

investigations, visitation rose more than 34 percent from 1991 to 1992. A year later, the visitor

count rose even more dramatically; it climbed more than 177 percent, from 148,019 to 402,966.

The early 1990s also featured a Visitor Survey Program. In February 1991, Margaret Littlejohn

of the University of Idaho and Tessy Shirakawa of the agency's Alaska Regional Office met

with park staff to map out the upcoming survey. They hoped to do the survey that summer, but

delays at the Office of Management and Budget prevented work on the project until 1992.

Littlejohn and an assistant distributed 491 questionnaires that summer. A remarkably high

proportion of the surveys--411, or 84 percent--were returned. By March 1993 the data had been

collected. The tabulation showed, among its many conclusions, that the average Skagway visitor

spent $105 per day. [144]

Broadway Traffic Questions

As the number of tourists to Skagway grew and the summer congestion along Broadway

worsened, an increasing number of complaints were registered that pertained to parked cars.

Pressure was felt from those in the tourist sector, therefore, to limit or eliminate parking along

Broadway. The NPS, in its master plan, had recommended that parking on the street be

prohibited; in its accompanying Final Environmental Statement, moreover, it had recommended

the closure of Broadway to all vehicles. [145] The agency, however, had no power to implement

those recommendations.

The city first considered Broadway traffic restrictions in the election of October 3, 1978. [146]

Voters that day rejected Proposition 4, which would have closed Broadway to traffic between

Second and Sixth avenues and between Memorial Day and Labor Day. The vote was 187 to

129. At the instigation of council member Mavis Henricksen, voters were given a questionnaire

that explored a number of traffic and parking issues. On the basis of that questionnaire, the

Planning and Zoning Commission again raised the issue in early 1979. [147] They did not act on

it, but the following September, the city council felt sufficiently concerned about parking to

place it as an advisory issue on the October 7 ballot. At issue was whether parking would be

allowed on Broadway between Memorial Day and Labor Day and between noon and 6 p.m.

Skagway's voters passed Proposition 2, the parking question, on a 157-142 vote. [148]

The parking-limitation proposition having passed, Skagway residents waited for its

implementation the following May. Mayor Robert Messegee, however, felt that because the vote
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was advisory, the margin of victory was insufficient to force the council to pass an

accompanying ordinance. In December, he asked for another vote on the issue. The council,

when asked to decide, tabled the proposed ordinance. In February 1981 the council proposed

another no parking ordinance; that ordinance, however, was struck down after its first reading.

Parking remained unrestricted. [149]

In the spring of 1982, the issue surfaced anew. Council members John McDermott and Rand

Snure introduced a no parking ordinance at a late March council meeting. Their motion,

however, "prompted an outrage from some local business owners," and McDermott later

announced he would vote against his own motion. The issue did not reemerge that year. [150]

The issue appeared yet again in the spring of 1983. Local resident Dorothy Richards

spearheaded a petition drive that collected 109 signatures requesting a public vote on the no

parking issue. The council responded to the petition by placing Advisory Vote No. 1 on the May

10 ballot, "Shall the City of Skagway create a no parking zone on Broadway between 1st

Avenue and 6th Avenue, except for loading areas established by the City Council, for the period

from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day?" Skagway's voters were tied on the question,

152 votes for, 152 votes against. Mayor Rand Snure broke the tie at a subsequent council

meeting by deciding to experiment with the idea. Due to the split vote, however, no parking on

Broadway was enforced during August 1983 only. [151]

The no parking experiment took place as expected, giving local voters the opportunity to judge

its benefits and drawbacks. Visitors, it was reported, appreciated the benefits of the parking ban.

[152] Soon after the August experiment had ended, the question reappeared on the ballot; this

time, the vote would be binding, not advisory. On October 4, the voters evidently felt that the

inconvenience of not being able to park near a business they wished to patronize outweighed the

benefits of a parking ban; they rejected the ban, 231 to 168. [153]

Hot on the heels of the parking controversy was a closely related issue. Since the gold rush era,

the streets of Skagway had been surfaced with gravel or dirt. During the summer of 1964,

however, State Street had been paved. Broadway had been bypassed in order to retain an

authentic historical atmosphere, and when the NPS and the city forged their initial cooperative

agreement, the federal agency was willing to pay $5,000 annually for such maintenance

activities as grading, drainage, and dust control. That aspect of the cooperative agreement

remained in force until 1983, when city officials contracted with Associated Sand and Gravel to

pave Broadway from First through Seventh avenues. The project was awarded in September.

[154]

Soon afterward, hotel owner Dave Whitehead protested the project, saying that the paving would

ruin Skagway's tourist industry and hurt his business. He hired an attorney, Mark Choate of

Fairbanks, who filed a temporary restraining order on October 11, one day after construction

work began. On October 20, however, Anchorage Judge James Von der Heydt denied Choate's

motion, noting that Whitehead had not been able to "clearly establish irreparable harm" from the

project. [155]

With legal barriers out of the way, construction proceeded, and by the end of October, crews

had lowered the street surface several feet in anticipation of the laying of storm drains. Work

continued intermittently that winter, and on May 18, the first asphalt was laid. In order to be

compatible with the historic district, the contractors used a relatively rough-textured asphalt

called porous friction coat. The job was completed in early June. [156]

The Broadway paving job was only one of several street improvement projects that took place

during the mid-1980s. During the summer of 1983, Main Street was leveled and paved; the

same year, the Klondike Highway was paved from the Skagway River bridge to Liarsville.
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Spring Street was paved as part of the Broadway project in 1983-84, and in 1986, Alaska Street

south of Tenth Avenue was paved. Each project called for the paving of the adjacent side

avenues, and by the fall of 1986, many of Skagway's streets had been paved except for the

northern end of Alaska and Broadway streets. [157]

During the summer of 1986, the issue of parking on Broadway resurfaced when several

businesses requested loading zones in front of their shops. City council members, in response,

directed the city manager to draw up a no parking ordinance for the next council meeting. That

ordinance would have banned parking on Broadway from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. from June 1 through

September 15. After considering the matter, however, the city council unanimously opposed the

measure. Three years later, in September 1989, the council again considered traffic restrictions;

they discussed the merits of turning Broadway into a one-way street. That idea never got

beyond the discussion stage, but by the end of 1990 the city council had passed an ordinance

calling for one-hour parking and size restrictions along Broadway. Five years later, additional

council action resulted in the placement of several new loading zones along Broadway. [158]

Updating the National Historic Landmark Nomination

As noted in Chapter 3, all of the Skagway Valley--from Skagway Bay to the top of White Pass,

and from mountain crest to mountain crest--became nominated as a National Historic Landmark

as a result of Charles Snell's work with the National Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings.

Snell had made a brief visit to Skagway in July 1961; a year later, on June 13, 1962, Interior

Secretary Stewart Udall declared the Skagway Historic District and White Pass to be eligible for

National Historic Landmark designation.

Four years later, on October 15, 1966, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed the National Historic

Preservation Act. The NHPA provided for expanding the National Register of Historic Places

and contained measures to protect and assist National Register properties, including National

Historic Landmarks. As a result, NHLs would now have to have specific, historically justifiable

boundaries, and contributing and noncontributing features within their boundaries would have to

be specified.

Years elapsed before work was begun to update the Skagway and White Pass NHL

documentation to meet these requirements. In 1974, the head of the newly-established Skagway

Historic District Commission noted the problem and, in a letter to Regional Director John

Rutter, recommended that the NPS "complete the necessary surveys of the area required to

establish a boundary for [the area] and to locate and identify the historic and archeological

properties contained therein." Further pressure from Skagway residents caused A. R. Mortenson,

the director of the Office of Archeology and Historic Preservation, to respond that his

organization had created a special task force to delineate boundaries for the Skagway-White

Pass area and for the other early landmarks. He promised that the project would be completed in

the "reasonably near future." [159] That study, however, was not completed, and in April 1977 a

Washington office official admitted that no National Register forms had been submitted, and no

boundary had been drawn for the Skagway-White Pass nomination. Gary Higgins, based in

Skagway, was promised that the work would be completed later that year. Again, however, it

remained uncompleted. [160]

With the exception of the draft nomination that Gordon Chappell provided on the White Pass

depot complex in 1980 (see Chapter 6), National Register work at the park lapsed until the mid1980s. In August 1983, the NPS hired a seasonal architect, David Broderson, to photograph

Skagway buildings--both historical and contemporary--that were located outside of the historic

district. [161] Broderson's efforts were followed by those of David Snow, who provided brief

architectural descriptions of each Skagway building. Then, in the summer of 1986, Robert
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Spude assigned Frank Norris and Terrence Cole to update the old Skagway-White Pass

nomination form. Norris wrote the descriptive text using Broderson and Snow's data, augmented

by data collected from interviews with various longtime Skagway residents, while Cole

completed a significance statement. Norris completed work on the nomination in November

1986; he then forwarded it to the regional office. That form moved through the nomination

process for the next several years. Then, in 1992, Washington-based NPS officials queried city

officials about the nomination. Councilman Jay Frey, in response, requested that Skagway Bay

be eliminated from the nomination, a suggestion that was acceptable to NPS representatives.

[162] The revised nomination, completed in rough draft form in 1986, has not yet--almost a

decade later--been finalized.

A related project that was approved more expeditiously was a National Register documentation

for the park as a whole. The park, when authorized in June 1976, had been immediately listed

on the National Register because this action was the norm for all historically-based park units.

In order to provide the documentation to back up the listing, NPS historian Robert Spude

contracted in September 1986 with Glenda Choate of Skagway-based Alaska Archives and

Records Management; Choate, in turn, assigned the writing task to Frank Norris, who began

work on the project that November. Norris modified information that had been previously

gathered for the Skagway-White Pass NHL and the Dyea-Chilkoot Trail NHL (for the latter, see

Chapter 8); inasmuch as the entire park was included in the boundaries of the two NHLs, no

additional research was necessary. The form was completed on July 9, 1987 and forwarded to

Washington. After agency review, it was amended by Bonnie Houston and resubmitted in June

1990, and it was accepted by the Keeper of the National Register on February 26, 1991. [163]

Proposals for Acquiring the Rapuzzi Collection

George Rapuzzi, who was born in Skagway in 1899, worked as a master mechanic for the

White Pass and Yukon Route. A longtime friend of Martin Itjen, the early Skagway tourism

promoter, Rapuzzi began working in the tourism business, on a part-time basis, at an early age.

In addition, he began to collect gold rush-era artifacts during his teenage years. During the

1940s, Itjen and his wife died, leaving Rapuzzi with the Soapy Smith Parlor, the "Skagway

Street-Car," and a large volume of historical memorabilia.

In 1963, as noted in Chapter 3, Rapuzzi had the old saloon moved from the south side of Sixth

Avenue to its present location on the south side of Second Avenue. Rapuzzi then enlarged the

building, and three years later he opened the Soapy Smith Museum to tourists. Rapuzzi

continued to operate the museum until the mid-1970s. [164]

In 1978 Rapuzzi, by now in his late seventies, began to plan for the disposition of his

possessions. He approached Gary Higgins of the NPS for advice on the matter. Rapuzzi knew

that out-of-town collectors were interested in acquiring his saloon, his "street car," and many

other possessions, but he resisted those efforts. Perhaps in response to the regrets he and others

felt about the Pullen collection, he insisted to Higgins that a solution be found that would allow

his belongings to remain in Skagway.

Higgins suggested that Rapuzzi consider the establishment of a legal foundation or non-profit

corporation. Higgins told him that the NPS could offer technical assistance in the creation of

such an organization. The NPS, he noted, had no interest in acquiring such a collection; its

primary interest, he assured Rapuzzi, was the long-term conservation of the many objects he

had collected over the years. (Higgins may or may not have known it at the time, but Rapuzzi

was not about to sell anything to the NPS; an agency official had previously borrowed an object

of his, and the fact that he had not returned it had made him hostile toward the Service.) [165]
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No action was taken on Higgins's proposal. Then, three years later, the issue surfaced again at a

public meeting in Skagway. The NPS, at that time, again mentioned that it had offered

cooperative assistance in preserving the Soapy Smith Parlor and the Rapuzzi collection of

memorabilia. In addition, Regional Director John Cook "left open the possibility of acquisition

of the (Soapy Smith) building, a very significant historic structure." [166]

That year, Holland-America Westours showed an interest in Rapuzzi's collection and offered to

construct the George and Edna Rapuzzi Museum. The structure was to have been a large

building with metal supports and wood siding, large enough to contain the old saloon, the

"street car," a cabin, and "the entire collection of artifacts." A site for the museum was selected

along Second Avenue between State and Main streets. But Westours and Ed Meyer, the

landowner, disagreed on the land's value, and Westours, at the last minute, may have reneged on

its promise to keep the collection in Skagway. For either or both of those reasons, negotiations

bogged down. [167]

George Rapuzzi died in Juneau on November 15, 1986, leaving the estate to his wife Edna.

[168] Because Ms. Rapuzzi was in declining health, family member Phyllis Brown moved to

Skagway soon afterward to act on behalf of Ms. Rapuzzi and to serve as caretaker for the

collection. Brown expressed an interest in negotiating with the National Park Service, and in

April 1988 the agency, showing a similar interest in purchasing the Rapuzzi collection,

apparently offered more than $390,000 for the 100,000-odd objects comprised within it. Three

months later, agency officials were again reported to be negotiating with Brown, this time for

the acquisition of Soapy Smith's Parlor, Meyer's Meat Market, and the old Young Men's

Christian Association (YMCA) building as well as the memorabilia collection. (The two latter

buildings were located adjacent to one another at the corner of Fifth Avenue and State Street.)

[169]

The two parties were nearing an agreement on a purchase price when suddenly, on July 31,

1988, Edna Rapuzzi died. [170] Her passing made the consummation of an agreement far more

complicated and expensive, and since that time, the agency's ability to purchase the collection

has been constrained. In July and August 1990, the agency made another attempt to purchase the

saloon, the meat market, and the YMCA. That attempt failed. A year later, the agency's acting

regional director told Phyllis Brown that he wished:

to express our continued interest in the Rapuzzi property and the gold rush artifact

collection that you now own... We're not in a position to commit funding except for

the maintenance building. We will, however, be pursuing funding sources that

would allow us to purchase the properties known as Jeff Smith's Parlor and the

Fifth Avenue Warehouse. We are also interested in the portions of the Rapuzzi gold

rush collection that are of significance to the themes of Klondike Gold Rush park....

The collection that you now own is one of the most remarkable that I have ever

seen. [171]

When Janet McCabe became the park's acting superintendent in the summer of 1993, she made

a renewed effort to purchase Soapy Smith's Parlor. Phyllis Brown was willing to sell the

building (but without the land), as well as the meat market and the YMCA. McCabe asked Karl

Gurcke to write a justification for such a purchase. In late September, Gurcke completed the

report, which included a historical background certifying the building's authenticity. Momentum

toward purchasing the building, however, ceased when Clay Alderson resumed the

superintendency. Alderson rejected Brown's offer because it required that the building be

moved, and considering its "very poor condition ... moving it could present structural problems

that could render the existing structure unusable." [172]

In early 1994, Phyllis Brown contacted the NPS with another proposal. She offered the agency
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Soapy Smith's Parlor; the items inside, however, were not for sale, and the agency would be

required to move the structure away from its existing site. NPS officials were not averse to the

proposal, but they were sufficiently skeptical about the building's structural condition and its

historical integrity that they asked for time to write a historic structure report on the building.

Brown, however, wanted to conclude the deal and have the building moved by September 1,

and the NPS was unable to respond to that time schedule. The deal fell through. [173] Since

then, the NPS has remained interested in purchasing either Rapuzzi's historic buildings or his

gold rush artifact collection, but no serious proposals have recently surfaced.

Gold Rush Centennial Activities

A recurrent theme in Skagway in recent years, important to both NPS officials and other

Skagway residents, has been the organization of a program that would commemorate the one

hundredth anniversary of the Klondike Gold Rush. Residents of Skagway and other northern

cities have long been aware that the gold rush centennial would bring dramatically increased

publicity--and higher tourism levels--to Alaska and the Yukon. Only by organizing, however,

would northern residents be able to take advantage of the opportunities that the centennial period

would likely bring.

Skagway residents began to plan for the centennial in 1983. That January, the city council

passed a resolution that proclaimed the 13-year period from 1987 (a hundred years after Captain

Moore founded his homestead) through 2000 (the anniversary of the completion of the WP&YR

railroad) as centennial years. Four years later, Skagway citizens formed a centennial committee

as part of the preparations for the Moore Cabin dedication that July. [174]

By year's end, the NPS was also involved. In December, Superintendent Alderson announced

that the NPS and Parks Canada would participate in a joint marketing plan to mark the gold

rush's 100th anniversary. He hoped, at the time, that NPS Director William Penn Mott would be

able to visit Skagway in 1988 in order to plan events for the 1996-1998 period. [175] Mott

visited the park as scheduled, but Alderson's planning effort did not come to fruition. Then, in

November 1989, Alderson and other Alaska park superintendents discussed the centennial. They

noted that the Yukon Anniversaries Commission was already active and that several Alaska

communities had already appointed gold rush centennial committees. They urged the NPS to

begin to formulating plans as well. [176]

In order to organize gold rush activities on a statewide level, representative Jerry Mackie (DCraig) and senators Arliss Sturgulewski and Virginia Collins (both R-Anchorage) introduced

bills in the Alaska legislature in February 1991 that called for the establishment of a sevenmember Alaska-Klondike Gold Rush Commission. No action took place on Senate Bill 106. But

Mackie's bill, HB 95, was passed by the State Affairs Committee and was forwarded to the

Finance Committee. The following year, Mackie made a renewed attempt to move his bill

through the legislature. Governor Walter Hickel, however, announced that he intended to veto

the bill, should it reach his desk, because of his opposition to the creation of new boards and

commissions. [177]

Hickel's action effectively prevented legislative activity related to centennial affairs. Advocates

of a state-sponsored centennial effort, however, responded by organizing discussions on the

topic at the October meetings of the Alaska Visitors Association and the Alaska Historical

Society. Shortly thereafter, the Deputy Director of the state's Division of Tourism, Wendy Wolf,

teamed up with State Historic Preservation Officer Judith Bittner to organize the Alaska Gold

Rush Centennial Task Force. By April 1993, when its first teleconference was held, the task

force had grown into a wide-ranging organization composed of five working committees and

more than 100 interested individuals. The task force, supported by operating funds from the
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Division of Tourism and the Office of Historic Preservation, has remained active in recent

years. It has received several capital-budget allotments from the legislature so that the task force

can provide grants that further centennial objectives. [178]

Skagway residents, both NPS staffers and other members of the local centennial committee,

have been actively involved with the statewide task force. They have also been involved at the

local level. One local event took place in October 1993, when the Skagway Centennial

Committee and the Convention and Visitors Bureau teamed up with representatives from

Dawson City, Yukon and proclaimed the two towns to be sister cities. Activities scheduled in

coming years include the Ton of Gold Centennial Re-enactment (1997), the Skagway Statue

Dedication in Centennial Park (1997), and the Dyea-to-Dawson Centennial Race (1998). [179]

Community Attitudes Toward the National Park Service

Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park is a relatively rare park in that its boundaries

circumscribe the business district of an active, viable community. As such, there has always

been a high potential for conflict between the National Park Service and community residents

and officials. Because the park boundary is congruent with that of the Broadway historic district,

park officials have long been careful to explain that NPS jurisdiction does not extend beyond

the borders of the federally-owned lots. They have also attempted, to the best extent possible, to

work with community members in the pursuit of mutual aims. Park officials and community

representatives, however, have often had competing, antagonistic aims, and at other times the

poor decisions of park officials have aroused community animosity.

As noted in chapters 4 through 10, the NPS over the years has dealt with a host of issues

affecting the community. Many, perhaps most, of those issues were tacitly accepted by local

residents. Those that have swayed public opinion, however, have been described in some detail.

During the years that preceded the authorization of the park, the NPS was represented by

various officials who arrived in town to collect data or to attend public meetings. Many of those

officials visited for only a brief period. Two, however, returned with some regularity. Robert E.

Howe, the Glacier Bay National Monument superintendent, appeared in town every month or

two for several years, and played a valuable role in providing information, clarifying rumors,

and explaining policy issues to local townspeople. Another important presence was Laurin

Huffman, the Seattle-based historical architect, who provided technical advice to NPS

contractors, members of the newly-formed Historic District Commission, and other local

residents. Other NPS representatives included Scott Home, Doug Sanvik, and the various other

Chilkoot Trail rangers, who began their work in the summer of 1973. Because of the efforts of

those individuals, most residents had an initially favorable attitude toward the park, and when

park hearings were held in both Skagway and Washington, D.C., support for the park was

virtually unanimous.

Community feeling remained positive after Congressional passage of the park bill; it was

particularly good after the park was dedicated in June 1977, and may have stayed high until the

spring of 1978. Thereafter, however, attitudes toward the park appear to have slipped. A

controversy over payments in lieu of taxes, the agency's foot-dragging on the cooperative

agreement, the hiring of an out-of-town permanent staff, changes in the makeup of the city

council, the lack of immediate restoration activity, a generalized reticence toward the federal

government, and general anti-NPS animosity related to the Alaska lands controversy may all

have played a role in tarnishing the NPS's image in Skagway. [180]

The arrival of Richard Sims in September 1979 as a replacement for Superintendent Richard

Hoffman did little to improve community attitudes toward the park. Sims interacted little with
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local residents outside of his professional capacities, and his residence in a subsidized, historicdistrict trailer raised hackles among many in the community. [181]

In 1980, city-park relations took a dramatic turn for the worse when the park issued its land

protection plan (see Chapter 8). The provisions of that plan as they pertained to Dyea residents,

coupled with the numerous patrols which seasonal rangers took through the Dyea homestead

area, brought a storm of controversy upon the Park Service. The conflict reached a head in early

1981 when Skip Elliott, a Dyea resident, became city manager. Elliott skillfully organized

community opinion against the agency and, in a confrontational fashion, demanded a series of

public meetings to deal with residents' frustrations. (Those frustrations dealt not only with the

Dyea land situation, but with Sims' occupancy of a trailer at the administrative site, the shoddy

appearance of the NPS-owned buildings, the agency's ownership of several Broadway lots, and

the agency's lack of communication with local residents regarding its aims and goals.) John

Cook, the Anchorage-based Regional Director, proved to be skilled in responding to the public

antipathy, and by June 1981 the situation had been largely defused.

Relations gradually improved during the early 1980s. The NPS backed off of its Dyea land plan,

it offered to trade its Broadway lots to the city in exchange for the AB Hall, and it painted most

of its buildings along Broadway buildings. Dave Snow, the historical architect, played a positive

role by helping to implement a set of design guidelines for historic district buildings; equally

important, he hired local carpenters and laborers for his year-round construction crew after the

WP&YR shut down in 1982. [182] The park service, however, continued to be scorned by most

local residents because tourism, although growing in importance, was a secondary activity in a

railroad-dominated town. In the eyes of many residents, park service activities resulted in

increased tourism; and tourism, at that scale, was an annoying hindrance. [183]

The local attitude toward the NPS improved considerably during the mid-1980s. The shutdown

of the railroad, on October 8, 1982, was a crippling blow to the town's economic base. The

effects of the shutdown were slow to take hold. Many hoped that the railroad would soon

reopen and that normalcy would return. But as the fruitless wrangling over the railroad's future

turned from months into years, community leaders were forced to reassess the park's role--and

tourism's role--in Skagway. The park, as a result of that reassessment, was seen in an

increasingly positive light; particular factors contributing to that attitude were the increasing

number of local residents on the park's payroll, and the completion of work on the historic

White Pass depot complex. In April 1985, the Skagway City Council unanimously passed a

resolution supporting the presence of the NPS in Skagway. The resolution, suggested by

Councilman Boyd Worley, was considered because Congress was threatening budget cuts to the

park's building rehabilitation program. Even so, passage of such a vote would have been

unheard of just a few years before. By late November of that year, the local newspaper editor

noted that "At least from my observation, the park seems to be fitting into Skagway better as it

becomes older." [184]

Community support continued for the remainder of the decade. In March 1986 the Convention

and Visitors Bureau supported the park's request for budgetary assistance, and in September the

City of Skagway passed another resolution requesting federal funds to allow the NPS to restore

park buildings. In 1987, both the council and the chamber of commerce wrote supporting

letters. The park, during this period, was allotted capital-improvement money for projects as

diverse as White Pass Trail construction and Dyea Campground improvements, but civic

officials, in their supporting letters, consistently urged that these funds be redirected to

Broadway building restoration projects. [185]

The arrival of Clay Alderson as superintendent was another factor that promoted positive

relations with the city. His open-door, can-do attitude was a welcome change. Alderson did his

utmost to foster communication by meeting regularly with the city manager, the tourism
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director, and the chamber of commerce president to discuss issues of mutual concern. He also

served on several civic committees, and asked that his staff become similarly involved in

community affairs. By the end of 1987, Alderson was able to report that "We presently enjoy an

excellent relationship with community leaders." [186]

Park officials have sought every possible opportunity to inform the community about their work

and involve local residents, and occasional celebratory events have proven popular. In 1984, for

example, the NPS held an open house to celebrate the opening of the White Pass depot, and

since that time, park employees have sponsored a holiday open house in December at either the

depot or the Mascot Saloon. In 1986, the park celebrated the completion of the first leaseback

buildings; a year later, the Moore Cabin was dedicated in a large public ceremony. In 1991, the

Mascot Saloon was dedicated; in 1994, members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police were

given a centennial plaque; and in 1995 a ceremony was held to mark the completion of the

Peniel project. [187]

During the 1990s, city-park relations have been mixed. They were fairly placid in the early

years of the decade. As noted in Chapter 8, however, the removal of the Yukon Radio Control

Modelers Club from its campsite on Dyea flats in May 1994 ignited the park's most heated

controversy since Skip Elliott's showdown with the agency in 1981. The controversy faded to

some degree since that time. The animosity lingering from that event, however, resurfaced

during the issue over the city's land selections in Dyea and the Taiya River valley. That

controversy is still, as of this writing, continuing.
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(top) One of the first decisions faced by park officials dealt with the fate of five locomotives that the WP&YR

wanted to sell. Two of the five were 70-class locos, such as the Baldwin 2-8-2 in this photo. The NPS decided to

forego purchasing them, and all were sold to rail lines in the Lower 48. (bottom) During the late 1970s and early

1980s, several privately-owned Skagway businesses took advantage of rehabilitation funds that were offered

through the State Historic Preservation Office. Among the businesses that benefited from the program were the

Red Onion Saloon (left) and the Trail Bench Gift Shop. (KLGO SC #347 (top); David Cohen photo, KLGO SC

#1286 (bottom) )
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(top) Several of those shown in this 1982 photo have played significant roles, over the years, in the Skagway

tourism scene. They include (l-r) Steve Hites, Janet Steinbach, John Wilson, Jan Wrentmore, Bob Ward, and Jeff

Brady. (bottom) The NPS has had a longstanding relationship with the town's Trail of '98 Museum. Shown here,

during museum renovations, are former museum director Glenda Choate (right) and current director Judy Munns.

(Skagway News, October 20, 1982, 3 (top) and April 25, 1995, 8 (bottom) )
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(top) In the fall of 1983, Broadway was excavated; the following spring, the street was paved with a special,

rough-aggregate asphalt. (bottom) George Rapuzzi, who lived in Skagway from 1899 to 1986, was the owner of

Martin Itjen's "Skaguay Street-Car" (shown here, with Jan Wrentmore), "Soapy" Smith's old saloon, and a large

collection of other historical materials. The NPS has made several attempts to purchase the collection, thus far

without success. (Skagway News, October 26, 1983, 1 (top), and October 10, 1984, 1 (bottom) )
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(left) John McDermott, shown here in 1980, was the first head of the Skagway

Historical Commission. (right) Some local residents, concerned about

overcrowding along Broadway, evidently felt that the NPS was to blame. (Lynn

Canal News, October 2, 1980, 8 (left); Michelle Kennedy in the Skagway News,

August 3, 1983, 2 (right) )

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adhi/chap7.htm

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

PART II: MANAGEMENT OF THE ALASKA UNITS

Chapter 8:

Administering the Dyea Area

When Congress passed the act authorizing Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, the

Chilkoot Trail Unit was one of the four newly-created, discontinuous park units. That unit,

which is approximately 17 miles long and one mile wide, encompasses most of the Taiya River

valley. At the southern end of the unit, south of West Creek and west of the Taiya River, is

located the townsite of Dyea. For a short time during the winter of 1897-98, as noted in Chapter

1, Dyea boasted a population of several thousand. After the gold rush, however, it became a

ghost town. Then, after World War II, the completion of Dyea Road and the desire for homesites

opened the area to Skagway-area residents. The Dyea area, particularly that portion just south of

West Creek and west of Dyea Road, has retained its residential character ever since.

East of the Taiya River and north of West Creek, however, the land has remained generally

unsettled. As noted in Chapter 2, the lower Taiya River valley supported a timber cutting

operation during the 1940s and 1950s. Otherwise, however, the only people to venture into the

unit have been trappers, hunters, and Chilkoot Trail hikers.

Because the management problems of Dyea and the Chilkoot Trail corridor have been largely

dissimilar, the author has decided to create separate chapters dealing with these two subjects. It

is recognized, however, that some topics are equally applicable to both the Dyea area and the

Chilkoot Trail corridor. For example, the various state-federal cooperative agreements and

memoranda of understanding apply to the entire Chilkoot Trail Unit. In addition, several

national register nominations and cultural resource surveys have pertained to both areas. In these

and similar cases, the topics have been described initially in this chapter, and all material

pertaining to the Dyea area has likewise been included. In Chapter 9, material has been added

that specifically pertains to the Chilkoot Trail corridor.

The 1978 Cooperative Agreement

When the park bill became law in June 1976, the Chilkoot Trail Unit (which included Dyea)

was controlled by a host of public and private interests. As noted in Chapter 2, most of the Dyea

area was owned by private parties, and most of the land in Dyea was still composed of the same

parcels that had been homesteaded prior to 1930. (The remainder, as noted above, was owned

by Skagway- and Dyea-area residents, who used their land as either a primary residence or as a

second home site.) Outside of Dyea, most of the land in the Chilkoot Trail Unit was owned by

the U.S. Bureau of Land Management. But as Chapter 3 has shown, the State of Alaska had

selected most of the unit's public land in 1961. Having effective management control over the

trail corridor, the state's Department of Natural Resources and Department of Health and
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Welfare constructed the recreational Chilkoot Trail in 1961-1963. During that period,

corrections personnel constructed two cabins, near Canyon City and Sheep Camp.

Before 1976, the National Park Service was already playing a small but important role in

managing the Chilkoot Trail Unit. As noted in Chapter 4, the NPS, the BLM, and the state's

Department of Natural Resources had signed a cooperative agreement on August 11, 1972. That

agreement had stated that the NPS "shall undertake to provide management and protection and

do what may be necessary to administer, protect, improve, and maintain the lands and

associated resources" in the Chilkoot Trail corridor. As a result of that agreement, Glacier Bay

Superintendent Robert Howe hired two young men, Scott Sappington and Chuck Nelson, to

serve as trail rangers beginning in 1973. Those men had no impact on the Dyea area; their only

cabin was a shelter near Sheep Camp.

The NPS continued to employ trail rangers in succeeding years. They have, in fact, remained a

summertime staple on the Chilkoot to the present day. In other ways, however, the passage of

the park bill changed the management of the unit. As noted in Chapter 5, the park's

authorization allowed the agency to begin purchasing land. In July 1977 the NPS bought much

of the Patterson homestead, at the north end of the historic Dyea townsite. Then, eleven months

later, it purchased the former Pullen and Matthews homesteads; that property, which totalled

more than 335 acres, included most of the remainder of old Dyea. [1]

Regarding the remainder of the Chilkoot Trail Unit, the NPS made it known that it hoped to

acquire as much of it as possible. The BLM, which owned a small parcel near the top of

Chilkoot Pass, had already transferred the parcel to its sister agency. [2] The state, however,

had been told in June 1974 that the BLM had approved the state's 1961 land selections, and it

showed no immediate interest in divesting its interest in the trail corridor. (Given the language

in the park authorization act, donation was the only transfer method possible.) Both the state and

the NPS recognized that the 1972 cooperative agreement was scheduled to terminate "at such

time as legislation is enacted to establish the proposed Klondike Gold Rush National Historical

Park or at such time as the parties hereto may hereafter agree." [3]

Given the state's continuing control over the trail corridor, both parties got ready to renew their

agreement. The process that resulted in that agreement began in 1977 with Superintendent

Richard Hoffman. By mid-February 1978 it had been signed by G. Bryan Harry, the Director of

the NPS's Alaska Area Office, and on April 6 it became effective when signed by Robert E.

LeResche, the Commissioner of Alaska's Department of Natural Resources. [4]

The new agreement was more comprehensive than the 1972 pact had been. While the initial

agreement had been limited to Chilkoot Trail operations, the 1978 version gave the NPS

management authority over the newly-authorized Dyea and White Pass areas as well. The

agreement called on the Service "to do what may be necessary to administer, protect, improve

and maintain the lands and associated resources" within the park. It demanded the permission of

both parties to erect any new facilities or signs; to undertake any cultural excavations or object

collecting; to provide law enforcement; to move the Dyea Cemetery (see section below); to

transfer land parcels; and to prepare recreational or historical management plans. The agreement

was valid for a three-year period. Consistent with the purposes of the park authorization act, the

agreement decreed that lands could be transferred from the state to the federal government only

by donation, and that any such transfer was subject to state legislative review. [5]

The scope of the cooperative agreement was soon broadened to cover a great deal of acreage

outside of the park boundary. As noted in Chapter 4, the long-anticipated Haines-Skagway Area

Land Use Plan was completed in June 1979. After the April 1978 signing of the cooperative

agreement, state officials made it increasingly clear that such state-owned areas as the West

Creek drainage, Nahku Bay, and the Nourse River Valley would be jointly managed by the state
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and the NPS. State officials apparently recognized that the federal government was better able to

manage these areas than the state; as a result, they allowed the NPS to manage areas outside

park boundaries so long as they first consulted with the Alaska authorities. [6]

Map 8. Dyea as it probably appeared in 1898. Note boundaries of the three early

homesteads. Source: Frank Norris, Dyea-Chilkoot Trail Historic Structures

Report (draft), unpub. mss. c. 1986. (click on image for an enlargement in a new

window)
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Map 9. Dyea in the 1990s. Source: NPS, Draft General Management Plan and

Environmental Impact Statement, Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park,

June/July 1996. 2.6. (click on image for an enlargement in a new window)

The Dyea Cemetery Relocation

The first NPS management action undertaken after the signing of the cooperative agreement was

the removal, in April 1978, of several graves from the edge of the Taiya River to less threatened

ground.

The problem, which was a full-blown crisis in 1978, had been slowly incubating for years.

During the gold rush, Dyea had had two major cemeteries. The Dyea cemetery, also called the

town, old, or Native cemetery, had been established on a city block (between Sixth and Seventh

avenues and between Broadway and West streets) when the town was laid out in October 1897.

Both Natives and non-Natives were buried there. Then, in April 1898, an avalanche killed more

than 60 stampeders between Sheep Camp and the Scales, and more than half of the deceased

were buried in the so-called Slide Cemetery. (The bodies of the remaining victims were shipped
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Outside.) [7]

After the gold rush, the two cemeteries were largely forgotten. Maintenance activities at the sites

were limited to a 1940 cleanup by a Civilian Conservation Corps crew, a 1950s cleanup by

Skagway residents, and 1962 cleanup by a crew from the Youth and Adult Authority. (See

chapters 2 and 3.) In addition, local resident William C. Matthews maintained the Dyea

Cemetery. Matthews, the son of Dyea homesteader William E. Matthews, had lived in Dyea

from the gold rush until the 1920s. He then moved to Skagway, where he lived until 1973. But

he returned intermittently to Dyea and occasionally cleaned up the cemetery, in part because

several relatives were buried there. [8]

Despite the cleanup activities, the cemeteries deteriorated. Headboards disintegrated or became

illegible, grave fences were broken, and tree growth invaded. At the Dyea Cemetery, Matthews

had erected a rude log fence that kept horses out, but at the Slide Cemetery, grazing and

trampling took place. By the 1970s, relatively few headboards had been lost at the Slide

Cemetery, but at the Dyea Cemetery, the deterioration was far worse. Only nine of the estimated

50 to 75 burials could still be identified. [9]

A worse threat was the Taiya River. During the gold rush, the river's western bank had been

several hundred feet (and three city blocks) east of the Dyea Cemetery. But the Dyea townsite

was laid on a relatively soft, sandy surface, and in the 1920s or 1930s a major meander

developed, which resulted in the river eroding ever closer to the old burial ground. The

construction of the "steel bridge" across the Taiya River, in 1947 or 1948, and the associated

rip-rap installed to protect its piers permanently directed the river in a southwestern direction

and toward the townsite. Major floods took place in the late 1940s, in 1953, and in 1967; each

eroded portions of old Dyea. In just a few years in the 1970s, the west bank of the Taiya

migrated even farther to the west, and in early 1977 it moved a full twenty feet, leaving one of

the cemetery's nine remaining marked graves only eleven feet from the riverbank. The cemetery

was clearly in jeopardy. [10]

Local residents had long been worried about the migrating river. In 1953, Bill Matthews had

warned Governor Frank Heintzleman that the river was threatening the cemetery, three

homesteads, and the newly-erected Taiya River bridge. [11] In March 1974, the problem

resurfaced, and the river was reportedly "cutting dangerously close" to the city cemetery. NPS

official John Rutter recognized that "the necessary rip-rapping of the river ... would involve

little time and money." Until the park was authorized, however, his agency could do nothing.

[12] He therefore contacted the Department of Highways, which had grading equipment, but

that agency could not help because the erosion was not affecting state roads. The NPS then

pressed the matter and convinced Natural Resources Commissioner Charles Herbert to talk to

Highways Commissioner Bruce Campbell about the matter. In July, Campbell informed the

NPS that he was requesting his department "to clean the river channel if the equipment,

manpower, and funds are available later this year." Department personnel, however, were

unable to respond to the commissioner's request. [13]

In 1975 Bomhoff and Associates, an Anchorage engineering and surveying firm, conducted a

river engineering study for the Army Corps of Engineers. That study, completed in April,

offered several alternatives for preventing further erosion damage. One called for 1,750 feet of

riprap dike; the second, 900 feet of riprap plus two groins (i.e., embankments extending out into

the stream); and the third, six groins. The various alternatives would cost $348,400, $375,000,

and $416,000, respectively. The projected costs and the potential damage to the river's fishery

resources posed by construction plans, however, prevented the state from adopting any of the

study's alternatives. [14] The following year, several residents again expressed their concern

about the eroding riverbank; in response, Alaska State Parks director Russ Cahill met with NPS

officials and suggested that the endangered graves be moved. [15] Still, nothing was done.
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A flood in 1977 further endangered the site, and that October, Senator Ted Stevens requested

NPS Director William Whalen to investigate the situation. The Washington office contacted

Alaskan authorities, who acted immediately. Melody Grauman, of the University of Alaska's

Cooperative Park Studies Unit, was tasked to write a cemetery history. In addition, officials

wrote a brief relocation plan. On January 4, 1978, Superintendent Richard Hoffman met with

Terry McWilliams, the new state parks director, to discuss the situation. The two informally

agreed that the best course of action would be to move the Dyea Cemetery graves to a location

near the Slide Cemetery. [16]

By February 1978, the Area Office had agreed to fund the relocation project as an emergency

undertaking, even though the project, being on state land, should have been the state's

responsibility. (As noted above, the federal-state cooperative agreement had not yet been

signed.) No decision on project specifics, however, would be made until the public had the

opportunity to comment on it. [17] The public meeting took place in Skagway on April 10, four

days after the signing of the cooperative agreement.

At that meeting, attended by 35 participants, the NPS proposed the removal of all of Dyea

Cemetery's graves to an area just east of the Slide Cemetery. Of those that attended the meeting

or submitted later comments, Steve Hites and David Hunz suggested that a far cheaper way to

save the cemetery than moving the graves would be to dredge a new channel away from the

cemetery; to further protect the site, they suggested that trees be cabled to the riverbank. NPS

officials rejected that $6,000 idea, maintaining that it would provide only temporary relief, that it

would require annual maintenance expenditures, and that it would eventually fail. All of the

other meeting attendees agreed to the Park Service's proposal action except local resident Larry

Jacquot. Jacquot, whose family had lived in the area for generations, claimed that a relative of

his was buried in an unmarked grave; on the basis of that claim, he protested the removal of that

grave from its existing site. [18]

In order to allay Jacquot's concerns, NPS officials decided to remove only the marked graves in

Dyea Cemetery. Craig Davis, an archeologist in the Alaska Area Office, examined the site on

April 22 and drew a rough sketch map. Davis returned to the area on May 19. He first staked out

the site, near the Slide Cemetery, where the Dyea Cemetery graves would be relocated. On May

25, a backhoe dug out the new grave- sites. Meanwhile, he and a crew of local residents

exhumed the remains of eight of the nine identified graves and moved to the newly-dug

gravesites. (The ninth grave, of M. F. Henderson, lay under three fully-grown trees; Davis,

therefore, decided to leave the grave in its place.) The project, which was completed on May 27,

cost about $30,000. [19]

The grave removal project was intended as an emergency action, inasmuch as predictions had

called for the river to cut 30 feet into the cemetery that year and for the entire cemetery to be

washed away within three years. NPS officials, clearly alarmed at the river's impact on the

historic townsite, measured the erosion rate from 1979 until 1981. Since then, erosion has been

slower than expected. Even so, several graves (including the M. F. Henderson grave) washed

away during the 1980s. Erosion measuring began again in 1989. In the fall of 1990, floods

eroded to within ten feet of some of the major archeological features; as a result, the park's

cultural resource specialist excavated a wood-lined privy the following summer. Floods in 1992

and 1994 caused additional problems, and by the fall of 1994 it was feared that the Taiya River

would soon claim the gold rush-era McDermott Cabin, near the old Kinney Bridge site. [20] As

of this writing, however, the cabin is still standing; a mile to the south, at the Dyea Cemetery,

several unmarked graves probably still remain.

Chilkoot Trail and Dyea Landmark Nomination
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As noted in Chapter 3, the Chilkoot Trail Unit was first considered for National Historical

Landmark status in July 1961, when Charles Snell evaluated the area as part of the National

Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings. As part of his visit to upper Lynn Canal, he toured Dyea

and then climbed the Chilkoot Trail to the top of the pass. In his trip report, he listed the

"Chilkoot Trail and Dyea" site as having "exceptional value;" it was thus worthy to be

nominated as a NHL. That determination, however, was left up to the Consulting Committee for

the National Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings. The committee, in turn, gave its

recommendations to the Advisory Board on National Parks, Historic Sites, Buildings, and

Monuments. The advisory board, which met in April 1962, did not recommend Chilkoot Trail

and Dyea as a potential NHL.

A decade later, and shortly before the first Congressional bill authorizing a national park unit

was introduced, the state nominated the Chilkoot Trail (but not Dyea) to the National Register

of Historic Places. The district nomination was submitted by Charles M. Brown, a staffer at the

Alaska Division of Parks, on March 15, 1973. Brown's nomination was approved at the national

level of significance by the National Register staff in Washington, and on April 14, 1975 it was

entered onto the National Register. [21]

The National Historic Landmark designation followed shortly afterward. On December 30, 1975

and on January 3, 1976, Joan M. Antonson of the Alaska Division of Parks completed National

Register forms for Dyea Site and the Chilkoot Trail, respectively. In a 1976 theme study, both

the Dyea site nomination and the Chilkoot Trail district nomination were recommended as

separate NHLs. The National Parks Advisory Board then combined the two nominations into

one, and on June 16, 1978, the Secretary of the Interior designated "Chilkoot Trail and Dyea" as

a National Historic Landmark. [22] Thereafter, officials with Alaska State Parks and the federal

Heritage Conservation and Recreation Service worked to provide a site plaque. On January 25,

Janet McCabe of HCRS's Anchorage office presented the NHL plaque to Rand Snure of the

Skagway-Dyea Historical Society in a City Hall ceremony. Soon afterward, the NPS installed

the plaque at the beginning of the Chilkoot Trail, where it remains to the present day. [23]

Preserving Long Bay

Long Bay (also known as Nahku Bay or Fortune Bay) is the only major embayment between

Skagway and Dyea. The bay lies outside of the park boundary, but because of the cultural

resources that lay in its waters and the scope of the recently signed federal-state cooperative

agreement, NPS personnel played a prominent role in managing the cultural resources it

contained.

The bay played a relatively minor role during the early months of the gold rush. On February

15, 1898, however, the bark Canada ran aground on the rocks near Dyea Point. As a result, the

ship foundered and sank. During the years which followed, tides moved its hull to the bay's

head, and in the 1970s it lay just below the low tide line.

Little interest was shown in either developing or protecting the bay until 1977, when Westours

proposed a day boat service between Yankee Cove, north of Juneau, and Skagway. The large

tour company first requested approval to moor its day boat, the Fairweather, in Smuggler's

Cove, a small inlet located just north of Yakutania Point. The cove, however, was a designated

city park. The city council, therefore, refused Westours' request and instead gave the company

permission to dock at the small boat harbor, near the White Pass dock. It used that moorage the

following summer.

Then, in November 1978, Westours announced its interest in mooring its day boat in Long Bay.

Creating the moorage would require dredging by the Army Corps of Engineers; the company
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promised, however, that its facilities would not damage the bark Canada. Many in the city were

in favor of the company's request, recognizing that Westours was responsible for funneling large

numbers of tourists into Skagway. The city council, however, was opposed to the idea. [24]

National Park Service historian Robert Spude, who was also opposed to Westours' plans, wrote

an in-depth history of the Canada. Perhaps acting on the city's recommendations, Spude

nominated the ship to the National Register of Historic Places. The city council met to discuss

the matter on February 15, 1979, and despite the protestations of Westours personnel, who

claimed that the dock and the boat hull were mutually compatible, council members supported

the National Register nomination. [25] Westours thereafter gave up on Long Bay and instead

made a second attempt to obtain a moorage permit at Smugglers Cove. The city's Planning and

Zoning Commission held a hearing on the proposed action on April 2. Following the meeting,

the council decided to submit the question to a public vote. On May 15, the Skagway electorate

rejected Westours' request on a lopsided 161-69 vote. [26] Since that time, Westours has

continued to moor the Fairweather at the small boat harbor.

Initial Planning Efforts

By the fall of 1978, the NPS had acquired the old Pullen Homestead and much of the former

Patterson homestead, and it had signed a cooperative agreement with the state over management

of its lands in Dyea and other areas. Given that degree of authority, Superintendent Hoffman set

out to draft a Dyea area public management plan.

To Hoffman, the major problems in the Dyea area dealt with what economic and recreational

activities would be allowed on the public lands. At that time, a host of activities took place

there: hunting, camping, horse grazing, and the riding of such vehicles as motorcycles, four

wheel drives, air boats, and snow machines.

The park's master plan gave the superintendent almost no direction on how to proceed, because

it dealt only with the protection and interpretation of historic resources. The plan called for the

agency to survey the historic street pattern, and remove brush from the original street

alignments; to preserve, protect, and interpret the two historic cemeteries, the wharf, and the

townsite; and to provide for the protection of the waterfront and tidelands, in cooperation with

the state. [27]

Hoffman recognized that the Dyea flats, and the other public lands in the area, were some of the

few open recreational areas available to Skagway residents. He therefore proposed to create a

management plan that would allow the continuance of most existing activities. On November 26

and 27, 1978, he held public meetings in Dyea and Skagway, respectively; at those meetings, he

noted that although most current land-use activities were forbidden under normal national park

regulations, he hoped that local residents would be able to help determine what activities would

be permitted. [28]

Following those meetings, NPS planners arrived in Skagway and began to draft a Dyea area

management plan. By the following April, a draft plan had been prepared which proposed a

number of land-use limitations on Dyea's public lands. The plan, laid out to twenty local

residents at an April 6, 1979 public meeting, noted that the use of snowmachines would be

allowed, as would in-season waterfowl hunting. In addition, the locally-organized "Dyea

Country Club" would have access to the picnic area on the flats for their annual concerts. But

airboats, for example, would be prohibited because of their noise, and general shooting would

be eliminated as being too dangerous. Fires and camping would be restricted to designated

areas, tree cutting would be limited to dead and down trees, and all park roads and vehicle trails

would be open to vehicles unless closed for "pertinent reasons." [29]
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Meeting participants accepted most of those restrictions. They decried, however, a proposal to

restrict horse grazing. Hoffman noted that it was illegal to graze animals on the Dyea Flats;

besides, he noted that the flats were severely overgrazed. In order to attract waterfowl back to

the area and to "get a good stand of grass" again, he recommended that all animals in the valley

be either staked or fenced on private land. Livestock owners protested the proposed plan, and

suggested the implementation of a system of controlled grazing in specific areas. Hoffman,

however, rebuffed their suggestions. He declared that the ban against grazing would go into

effect soon. That ban, however, would not pertain to supervised grazing or to horseback riding.

[30]

Despite Hoffman's prediction of the impending grazing prohibition, residents heard nothing

more about that or other aspects of the management plan. As a result, residents were free to

continue their traditional Dyea activities. The plan was dropped by Alaska Area officials, either

because of more pressing business or because the agency, in the wake of Carter's massive

December 1978 monument declarations, was in no mood to issue a plan that further restricted

Alaskans' access to NPS lands. The only concrete action that followed from the plan was the

construction of the Dyea Campground, noted below. By the following February, when NPS

planning teams met in Skagway to plan the future of the park, officials were once again

decrying the need for planning. Historian Bill Brown felt that what was needed was a Dyea

townsite plan, while Wil Logan, aware that Dyea had been bare of trees during the gold rush,

proposed clearcutting the Dyea site in order to obtain a full-scale inventory of local historical

resources. [31]

Dyea NPS Improvements

Before Congress authorized the park unit, NPS officials recognized that improvements would be

necessary in the Dyea area. The 1973 master plan noted that

Dyea needs only a small interpretive structure and a few onsite interpretive devices,

to be used during the visitor season. This interpretive building should be manned,

for it would also function as a trailhead ranger station for the Chilkoot Trail.

The plan also called for the establishment of two small walk-in campgrounds. [32]

Just before Congress authorized the park, city council members requested NPS officials to plan

for, and fund, Dyea campground facilities. Glacier Bay Superintendent (and Klondike keyman)

Tom Ritter responded by requesting that "a complete study of potential campground facilities in

the Dyea area be conducted soon after the establishment of the park." [33] As noted in Chapter

7, Ritter inspected several facilities himself during an August 1976 reconnaissance. He urged,

however, that the NPS go no further without consulting with the state. The state, for its part, was

more interested in building a campground in Skagway than Dyea. (In its January 1978

campground study, one of the six proposed area campgrounds was located near the Dyea

homestead area; its author, however, played down the site because of its remoteness.) The

Alaska legislature that year allotted a token amount for campground improvements, but Senator

Stevens failed to gain federal support for a campground as part of Alaska Lands Act legislation.

By the end of 1978, the outlook for a Skagway-area campground appeared bleak.

Local NPS officials responded to the rising need for campground space by creating the Dyea

Campground complex during the summer of 1979. Chief Ranger Jay Cable and seasonal ranger

David Hites-Clabaugh laid out the 22-space campground; adjacent to it, the park constructed

small tent frames for the ranger station, two ranger cabins, a shower facility, and two outhouses.

The entire campground complex was constructed on state land; its western end was within the

park's boundaries but the entrance area, parking lot, picnic area, and ranger station buildings
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were not. Although the campground was situated on state-owned land, its construction was

condoned by state officials because it was consistent with the intent of the recently signed

federal-state cooperative agreement. [34]

The NPS made few improvements to the Dyea area during the 1980s. For one reason, Skagway

Historic District rehabilitation was a higher priority than improvements in Dyea; this was

because relatively few tourists visited Dyea and because local interests lobbied to keep funds at

work in the historic district. In addition, Dyea's cultural resources were not completely known

pending a thorough survey of the area, and NPS officials were unwilling to expend funds in

Dyea without having a management plan in place. And regarding Dyea campground, NPS

officials were less than enthusiastic about expending funds to improve an area that was on stateowned land and, in part, outside of the park. [35]

Despite those factors, the agency gradually improved the Dyea area. In 1980, rangers installed

bulletin boards at Dyea campground and the Chilkoot Trail head. In 1981, the park improved

the 1.5-mile road between the state-maintained Dyea Road and the Slide Cemetery, and in 1985

it made trail, fence, and restroom improvements at the cemetery. [36]

The 1979 Archeological Survey

Although Skagway residents had long considered Dyea as a popular site for bottle hunting and

other informal excavations, the first formal archeological survey took place on May 29, 1975,

when contractors for the Sealaska Corporation surveyed Native cemeteries and burial sites as

part of a so-called 14(h)1 survey. Archeologists that day made a short visit to the Dyea

Cemetery and vainly searched for nearby evidence of a Native settlement. [37]

Shortly after that survey was completed, Robert C. Dunnell, chairman of the University of

Washington Anthropology Department, and Jerry V. Jermann, of the UW Office of Public

Archaeology, prepared a scope of work to NPS officials for a parkwide archeological survey

and inventory. (As noted in Chapter 4, the university had participated in several other studies

during the mid-1970s.) That proposal, submitted on October 21, 1975, was accepted but put on

hold pending the passage of the park bill. [38]

The UW proposal was discarded for the time being. But by the fall of 1977 the idea of an

archeological survey had been revived, and park personnel hoped to sponsor a survey the

following summer that would cover Dyea, Canyon City, and possibly Sheep Camp. [39] No

survey, however, was made in 1978, and it was not until March 1979 that the NPS contracted

with the UW Office of Public Archaeology for a survey. Jermann and Dunnell served as coPrincipal Investigators, while Regional Archeologist Charles Bohannon represented the National

Park Service.

The survey, headed by Caroline Carley, took place during the summer of 1979. Carley and her

assistants, Robert Weaver and Robert King, surveyed Dyea and the major settlement sites along

the Chilkoot Trail, and they made a cursory evaluation of major trailside features between

Pleasant Camp and the top of Chilkoot Pass. In addition, the archeological team made a brief

survey of the White Pass Unit and inventoried items at Porcupine Hill, along the Brackett

Wagon Road, and in old White Pass City. [40]

During their season's work, which featured almost continuous rain, the three-person team

inventoried and recorded an astonishing number of archeological features. In the Chilkoot Trail

Unit, they located more than 40 collapsed or scattered structures, 27 foundations, 93 pits and 19

artifact concentrations, along with many associated artifacts. Some of those resources were

located in Dyea, including 10 general features, 13 structures, two foundations, 79 pits, and two
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artifact concentrations. Scores of additional resources were found in the White Pass Unit. [41]

The team concentrated first on those sites that were most vulnerable to visitor impacts, and

made no attempt to complete a thorough inventory. The survey was completed in midSeptember; a final report was completed in 1981. [42]

The same summer that Carley was at work, contract historian Robert Spude was gathering

information on the Chilkoot Trail Unit's historical resources. Combining notes gathered from

field work as well as from secondary source materials, he compiled historical diary and

newspaper entries with an array of graphic materials to give a broad background of historical

data about Dyea, Canyon City, Sheep Camp, and other sites along the U. S. side of the Chilkoot

Trail. The results of his research, which included suggestions on how to preserve the trail's

historical resources, were published in a 213-page volume entitled Chilkoot Trail; from Dyea to

Summit with the '98 Stampeders, published in late 1980 by the University of Alaska's

Cooperative Park Studies Unit. [43]

During the period which followed Carley's survey, the city of Skagway moved to annex the

Dyea area and a vast area which surrounded it. Until February 1978, Skagway's city boundaries

had been limited to a one square mile rectangle at the lower end of Skagway Valley, and for the

next two years the city encompassed just 11 square miles, still within the Skagway Valley

watershed. But beginning in mid-1978, officials recognized that if the city expanded its

boundaries to encompass all of the area between Haines Borough and the Canadian border, it

would be able to select state lands for its own purposes in the Taiya River valley. (It would also

be able to fend off any annexation attempts by Haines Borough.) A vote to annex the area was

defeated in the 1978 municipal election, but in July 1979 the city submitted a second annexation

petition to the Alaska Local Boundary Commission. That petition, which was opposed by

several Dyea residents, resulted in the annexation question being placed, once again, on the

local ballot. More than 60 percent of Skagway's voters in the October election approved the

measure, and on November 17, the commission held an annexation hearing in Skagway and

accepted the city's annexation petition. [44]

The only remaining roadblock to the creation of an expanded boundary was the Alaska

legislature, which had 45 days to reject the commission's action. The legislature convened in

January 1980, and on February 29, the Senate Community and Regional Affairs committee held

a hearing in Juneau to field public opinion on the subject. No one at that hearing, however,

moved to deny Skagway's annexation petition, and soon afterward the annexation became law.

Thereafter, the City of Skagway encompassed 431 square miles, and extended from the Haines

Borough boundary to the Canadian border. [45]

The Dyea Land Acquisition Plan

By the beginning of 1980, as noted in Chapter 5, agency officials had completed the purchase of

most of the private parcels that they had hoped to buy in both the Skagway Historic District and

in the Dyea area. Then, in April 1980, Klondike Superintendent Richard Sims issued the park's

first land acquisition plan. The plan, which was required for all parks that contained non-federal

lands, stated that

In order to effectively prevent damage or adverse impacts to the Park's historical

resources, and to properly develop and interpret the park for the public, the NPS

must acquire the majority of the lands in the White Pass and Chilkoot Trail units....

Leases, zoning restrictions, cooperative agreements, scenic easements, purchase of

development rights, and any other protective controls of less than clear, fee-simple

ownership ... provide less than the best possible protection for the nationally

significant park resources. Therefore, fee-simple title to all lands and waters except
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the privately owned property in the Chilkoot Trail unit of the park will be acquired.

[46]

The document, which dealt with lands throughout the park, focused on lands in the Chilkoot

Trail Unit. It made arrangements for a potential land exchange in order to obtain the large stateselected holdings, and it requested the transfer of BLM and Forest Service lands to the NPS.

Regarding privately-held lands in the Dyea area, the document stated that

Private lands in the Chilkoot Trail unit of the Park will be acquired only on a

willing seller/willing buyer basis. Normally, any private lands acquired will be

purchased in fee simple. Scenic easements, development rights or other less than fee

simple interests will be considered only in unusual or special circumstances....

There will be no priority system for acquiring private lands since such lands will be

acquired only in instances where landowners express a desire to sell their properties

to the National Park Service. [47]

The plan noted that "At least one private residence within the park appears to be located on

public lands," and procedures were outlined on how such cases would be adjudicated. The plan

also contained a section that outlined compatible and incompatible land uses for private

landowners in the park. That section prevented "construction or development of any kind" on

undeveloped land; it also prohibited "replacement of a major structure with one that is

substantially different in size, location or purpose from its predecessor" on developed land. [48]

The plan was issued on April 11, and it immediately ran into a barrage of criticism, primarily in

response to the "incompatible use" statement. On April 16, Dyea landowners Robert and Julie

Burton wrote a lengthy protest letter to the mayor, the city council, Governor Hammond and the

Congressional delegation, calling the restrictions laid out in the plan "unreasonable and

unworkable." The basis for their protest was the plan's prohibition against new home

construction, an activity the couple had hoped to begin in the near future. The Burtons noted

that "subdividing, building homes, additions to homes and out buildings, and clearing of land

for agricultural, fuel supply and safety purposes" were "rights that came to us with the deed of

ownership." Each of those activities, however, were either restricted or banned in the draft plan.

They further noted that since the Dyea homestead area was seldom visited by tourists and was

separated by some distance from the historical townsite, "we view the regulations for inholders

as set forth in the Plan as an invasion of privacy." [49]

The Burtons' cause was soon joined by Willard F. "Skip" Elliott, who had been active in the

Dyea area since 1975 and was the co-owner of the Burtons' property. [50] At the April 17 city

council meeting, Elliott asked the city (which by now included Dyea within its boundaries) to

support the cause of the Dyea residents. The council agreed, and on April 24 Mayor Robert

Messegee wrote Sims, asking for a public hearing on the subject. Jeff Brady, an editor of the

local Lynn Canal News and normally a backer of NPS concerns, also railed against the plan's

unfairness and called for a public hearing. Sims, who because of a bureaucratic snafu had had

little time to prepare the plan, demurred on the idea of a public hearing; he claiming that there

was insufficient public interest in the matter, and also noted, "What's more public than [written]

comments?" Local residents, unsatisfied by his response, appealed to the Congressional

delegation for help, and in early May, Acting Deputy Director Daniel Tobin was prevailed upon

to schedule a public meeting. Sims dutifully repeated to a meeting of the Skagway city council

that a meeting would be held soon, and as late as February 1981 he noted that the agency "fully

plans to hold hearings" on the land acquisition plan. [51]

The superintendent, however, never set a date for a hearing despite repeated prodding from

Elliott, and the draft plan was quietly shelved. It was not until March 1981 that an NPS official

told local residents why the meeting was never held. According to Deputy Director Douglas
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Warnock, the delay was caused by pressing business related to the Alaska Lands Act, which

cleared Congress in November 1980 and was signed by President Carter a month later. By that

time Ronald Reagan had been elected president, and Reagan's appointees let it be known that a

land acquisition plan was no longer required for each park. NPS officials, for their part, were

glad to avoid having to finalize the plan; they certainly had no desire to face a hostile crowd at a

public hearing. [52]

Meanwhile, and for several months to follow, Dyea landowners and the Park Service remained

at odds on the subject. At least one Dyea resident hurried the construction of her house before

any plan could go into effect. Worsening the situation was a series of policing actions by NPS

officials. In April, for example, rangers conducted a series of contacts with Dyea residents

concerning the legality of their land claims. [53] That summer, rangers made daily trips to the

cabin of Al and Janeen Huntley, which the NPS claimed was on public land; in other cases,

rangers allegedly drove onto private property and remained without asking permission. Chief

Ranger Jay Cable photographed a free-ranging dairy cow belonging to John and Lorna

McDermott. Finally, rangers ordered Dyea residents Lucinda Hites and Sue Hosford to stop

work on a 10' x 50' community garden which was located on park land; soon afterward, the

rangers took down the fence around the garden enclosure. The combined effect of those actions,

trivial as they may have seemed to the NPS, caused local attitudes toward the agency to fester

and sour. [54]

In the midst of this dispute, the city moved to obtain land in the Taiya River valley. The recent

annexation had allowed the city to select 215 acres of land; that land was to be chosen from four

parcels in the Dyea area that had recently been conveyed to the state. Once the city obtained the

land, it hoped to sell it back to private owners. On August 5, city leaders met with

Superintendent Sims and state officials on the matter, and two days later, the city council voted

unanimously to select land from two of the four noted parcels. Area #1 was a 90-acre parcel on

the north side of West Creek, while Area #2, which bordered Area #1 on the south, was a 138-

acre parcel between West Creek and the mouth of the Taiya River. Area #1 was outside of the

park, but Area #2 straddled the park boundary, 133 acres of it being inside the park. Mayor

Messegee recognized the potential for conflict, and noted that "we're going to have a hell of a

fight with the park service." [55]

The park service, as expected, protested the city's selections within the park boundary in a

September 4 letter. It did so because it hoped, some day, to relocate the Chilkoot Trail in the

Dyea area to its historic location on the west side of the Taiya River, and the city's selection was

in the planned trail relocation area. Three weeks later, the state's division of lands acceded to the

agency's request; it decided to convey only those lands in the two parcels that were outside of

the park. The state sided with the NPS because the recently-completed Haines-Skagway Area

Land Use Plan cited parklands as being reserved areas; it also supported the NPS because it had

supported park legislation. (It may also have sided with the NPS because of the state-federal

cooperative agreement, which had been in force since 1978. The agreement specifically stated

that it would "in no way be deemed to be a transfer of title to any lands ... nor constitute in any

way ... a relinquishment of any [title] by any of the parties." The state had no interest at that

time in violating the agreement.) The city, angry at the state's decision, decided to appeal it; it

also applied for an additional 153 acres farther up West Creek. [56]

As noted in chapters 6 and 7, affairs in Dyea had not been the only source of tension during

1980 between Skagway-area residents and the park service. Residents, for example, were

becoming increasingly unhappy that the agency's downtown buildings were remaining

unimproved, that the agency was not forthcoming about the pace of rehabilitation, and that

buildings were not being leased back to private interests. Problems with the Arctic Brotherhood

Hall and the administrative site exacerbated the situation. By the end of the year, the

accumulated effect of problems in Skagway and Dyea had brought relations between the NPS
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and local residents to an all-time low.

In January 1981, Dyea resident Skip Elliott was appointed as the Skagway City Manager. Soon

afterward, Dyea residents invited Charles Cushman, the president of the National Inholders

Association, to share his views and expertise with them. Cushman, an inholder at Yosemite, had

formed the association just three years earlier; he was invited to Mike and Sue Hosford's Dyea

residence on February 15. The thirty or so inholders in the audience told Cushman, in short, that

they did not like the way that the NPS had been treating them, and they cited as evidence the

fiasco over the land acquisition plan, and the actions of the "gestapo" NPS rangers the previous

summer. Others were upset that Richard Sims, the current superintendent, had discarded the

promises that Richard Hoffman had made two years earlier during the formulation of the Dyea

management plan. Cushman was able to offer a number of suggestions on how to deal with the

NPS. In addition, the very fact that the meeting took place crystallized the inholders' need to

react strongly to the agency's failings. [57]

Four days after Cushman's visit, Skagway city councilman Marvin Taylor reacted to the

deteriorating situation by suggesting that the city write NPS Director Russell Dickenson,

outlining the extent of residents' complaints and the basis for them. That same week, city

manager Skip Elliott went to Juneau and testified to the Senate Resources Committee on SB 36,

a National Inholders Association-supported bill that would have set up an Alaskan Citizens'

Advisory Commission on Federal Areas to deal with state land management issues. Elliott used

the occasion to describe the Cushman meeting and to complain of the NPS's management

excesses in the Dyea area, noting that there was "not a single person in Skagway" who

supported the way the agency was managing the park. The NPS, for its part, was nonplussed by

all the activity. When a reporter asked Sims about his assessment of the Dyea land situation, he

replied that he was unaware of any problems that existed, declaring that "I haven't had a single

person in the last several months complaining about anything. I can't see that the park service

has done anything detrimental." [58]

On February 27, as noted in Chapter 7, Elliott wrote Dickenson a lengthy letter detailing the

concerns of local residents. He noted that "the tension that has been developing in the past

several years between the city of Skagway and the National Park Service has become quite

intense in the past few weeks." He noted that cooperation between the two entities still existed,

but that "broken promises, inconsistencies in park policy, and poor public relations has made

cooperation difficult, at best." He asked Dickenson to attend a public meeting in Skagway and

establish for the record the expected and intended level of NPS involvement in our

community both politically and economically... Moreover, we would like to

establish, in a legally binding manner, guarantees of specific traditional uses,

guarantees that condemnation will not be used in this park, and guarantees that the

Park Service will recognize the authority of the City of Skagway to plan and zone

private properties within its municipal boundaries.

Elliott then proceeded to list problems that had taken place with the land acquisition plan, the

use of NPS buildings along Broadway, the Dyea community garden, and the illegal placement

of an NPS mobile home in the Skagway Historic District. In a dour closing note, he concluded

that "These are the major issues.... Compare the mistrust and anger that exists in Skagway today

to the open-armed friendliness that once existed between Skagway and the NPS. The

honeymoon is over and it is time to negotiate in writing the terms of the marriage contract."

[59]

While Dickenson and other NPS officials were mulling over Elliott's tome, local residents were

prevailing upon their representatives in Juneau. They, in turn, prepared resolutions dealing with

the Klondike situation. On March 4, 1981, the House Resources Committee introduced House
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Joint Resolution 26; the same day, the Senate Resources Committee introduced an identical

measure, Senate Joint Resolution 25. The two resolutions listed a long litany of grievances,

most of which had been expressed in Elliott's letter to Dickenson. The resolutions asked the

Secretary of the Interior to "investigate promptly the charges made against the actions and

policies of the NPS at the ... Park," and that the Secretary "direct the NPS to adhere to the

commitments made by Congress to the people of Skagway in establishing [the] Park." Copies of

the resolutions were forwarded to Interior Secretary James Watt, NPS Director Russell

Dickenson, and the three members of the Alaska Congressional delegation. Neither resolution

fared well; both died in committee. Their very introduction, however, alerted federal officials of

the state's concerns over park management. [60]

The same day that the two resolutions were introduced, Deputy Regional Director Douglas G.

Warnock flew to Skagway to resolve the issues that Elliott had addressed a week earlier.

Warnock conferred for more than five hours with Skip Elliott, Robert Messegee and John

McDermott in a meeting Warnock described as "extremely cordial." Warnock quickly learned

that the agency's attitude toward condemnation was the trio's primary concern, and he was

pleased to tell them that the NPS had no interest in acquiring land in that way. He did hope that

there might be a visual buffer or screen between historic Dyea and the homestead area; given

current developments, however, there was no danger of that buffer being threatened.

Warnock reiterated the city's legal right to zone private lands in the Dyea area. His agency had

no plans to close off access to the beach or to close any other roads in the Dyea area; he noted,

however, that hunting and trapping would henceforth be prohibited and that Superintendent

Sims was correct in closing down the community garden. He hoped to lease the first downtownarea park buildings in the spring of 1982, and justified the park's use of the buildings because of

the lack of seasonal housing. He admitted that the NPS violated the trailer ordinance when

Superintendent Sims occupied the trailer in the historic district, and he promised that Sims

would move "in the near future." He defended the ranger "snooping" in Dyea the previous

summer, because the agency needed to be certain that the unoccupied cabins stayed that way.

Regarding the horse grazing situation on the Dyea flats, the city officials requested that grazing

be allowed to continue under a permit system, perhaps with a reduced number of animals for the

1981 summer season. As a final note, Warnock proposed that Regional Director John Cook

attend a public meeting in the near future. Warnock felt that his meeting was "very worthwhile;"

he received like expressions from both Elliott and McDermott as the meeting concluded. [61]

As noted in Chapter 6, Cook flew to Skagway on March 26 and appeared before a public

meeting in Skagway's city hall. A crowd of 45 heard Cook expostulate the agency's positions on

a variety of topics, and meeting participants listed many of the same complaints that city

officials had provided two weeks earlier. The regional director, to a large extent, backed up the

statements that Warnock had made, and because of his position as regional director, many of the

statements he made became the NPS's ad hoc policy as soon as they were uttered. Cook, for

instance, allowed the city to manage the Dyea community garden, and he sympathized with

those who wanted to remove dead and down timber from park lands for firewood. But he, like

Warnock, continued to insist that subsistence hunting and trapping were illegal. Those in the

audience liked Cook's open, offhand style; many openly admitted that they were pro-park, but

disappointed in the way things were being handled, especially in Dyea. Cook was applauded at

the end of the meeting. A reporter there noted that "It was the first time a federal official had

received applause in Skagway since the park was dedicated in 1977." [62]

As a result of the hubbub that began with the April 1980 issuance of the draft land acquisition

plan, the NPS learned--painfully--that it was unwise to demand land-use controls from Dyea

residents, particularly from those whose property did not impinge on the historic townsite area.

The agency learned a great deal about what activities were important to those residents. It tried
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to accommodate some of those activities, but agency rules prevented the acceptance of others.

The visits, in March 1981, of Douglas Warnock and John Cook did a great deal to bridge the

communications gap that had separated the NPS from local residents during the previous year.

Thereafter, the antagonistic feelings between the NPS and Dyea residents began to dissipate.

The West Creek Hydroelectric Project

No sooner had the NPS extricated itself from the brouhaha surrounding the land acquisition plan

than the agency became involved in another Dyea land use issue. To be decided was whether a

hydroelectric dam and its associated powerhouse would be built along West Creek, at the

western edge of the park's Chilkoot Trail Unit.

Portions of the West Creek drainage had been logged during the mid-1960s, and since that time

the area had been popular for hunting, hiking, gathering firewood, cutting house logs, and berry

picking. The Haines-Skagway Area Land Use Plan, finalized in 1979, urged a continuation of

those activities. That same year, however, the Alaska legislature allotted $50,000 to the Alaska

Power Administration for a study of potential hydroelectric sites in the Haines area. The CH2M

Hill consulting company conducted the survey and revealed several promising sites in the

vicinity of Haines and Skagway. Following that study was a more intensive feasibility study, by

R. W. Beck Associates of Seattle. The Beck study, which was released in draft form in late

1980, noted that most area sites showed little economic promise. A dam and power plant on

West Creek, however, would be able to provide power at 28 cents per kilowatt hour, a rate that

compared favorably with that which Haines and Skagway residents paid for their diesel power.

Skagway, at the time, was able to rely on relatively cheap hydroelectric power during the

summertime, when copious quantities of water were available. (Skagway's water source was the

reservoir adjacent to Lower Dewey Lake.) But Skagway required more expensive diesel

generation during the winter months, and Haines depended on diesel for power on a year-round

basis. A project along West Creek promised sufficient power to satisfy the needs of both Haines

and Skagway all year long. [63]

The project that Beck (and its predecessors) proposed was to be located at the north end of the

Dyea townsite. The dam, which was planned to be 107 feet high, would itself be of little

concern to NPS officials; the spillway would be located three miles west of the creek's

confluence with the Taiya River (and two miles west of the park boundary), and the

accompanying reservoir would flood 500 acres west of the dam. Other aspects of the project,

however, were more worrisome to the agency. The powerhouse below the dam was projected to

be inside the park boundary, at the northwestern end of the Dyea homestead area and just south

of West Creek. The proposed powerplant would be located within park boundaries, in or near a

two-acre parcel owned by Skagway resident Duncan Hukill. In addition, such ancillary facilities

as transmission lines, a penstock and tailrace would be located within the park. [64]

The issue flared into the open in December 1980, when Alaska Power and Telephone (a utility

company which served Skagway) responded to the draft report by filing for water rights on West

Creek. AP&T made its filing in hopes that it might build a relatively small-scale "run of the

river" power project. But others had larger ideas and protested accordingly. Haines Light and

Power, the Haines and Skagway city councils, and the Alaska Power Administration (APA) all

protested the filing because they hoped to see a large project built. The draft study had

concluded that cheap power could only be realized if both utilities worked together, and AP&T

openly declared its refusal to work with HL&P on project development. [65]

For the next several months, officials and local residents could do little but await the completion

of the Beck feasibility study. Soon after it was completed, its findings were presented in public

meetings that were held in Haines on April 28 and in Skagway the following day. At those
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meetings, Beck representatives noted that there were actually three feasible projects in upper

Lynn Canal: West Creek, Goat Lake (in the Skagway River Valley), and upper Chilkoot Lake

(north of Haines). Each of the projects, if built, would serve both communities; Haines and

Skagway would be connected by a submarine cable. Of the three, however, the $31.6 million

West Creek project was the top choice. [66]

Representatives from R. W. Beck and the Alaska Power Administration concluded that they

would next seek funding to conduct a more detailed West Creek feasibility study. The Skagway

City Council agreed; at its May 7 meeting, it voted in favor of APA's feasibility study, and

vowed that it would try to block AP&T's "run of the river" project on West Creek. Meanwhile,

the bill that would authorize the $1 million study, SB 26, wound its way through the legislature.

[67]

The passage of SB 26 that year, and the purported economic feasibility of the project,

heightened the expectations of local officials. Those officials recognized that for the project to

succeed, however, the powerplant would not be able to be located on NPS land. As Douglas

Warnock had warned in March, "such a project or crossing of park land by any portion of a

power development requires approval of Congress." [68]

The topography of the area did not allow the powerplant or the transmission lines to avoid

crossing the park. In order to avoid the problem, therefore, local officials proposed eliminating

the Dyea area from the park. Marvin Taylor, a pro-development member of the city council,

proposed that the Chilkoot Trail Unit of the park be reduced to a 100-foot strip that stretched

from the Dyea trailhead to the top of Chilkoot Pass. He based his resolution on the litany of

inholder problems that had recently surfaced; he was also emboldened because his suggestion

that the Chilkoot Trail unit be reduced, at the March 26 John Cook meeting, won the

"unanimous approval of those in attendance." At its September 3, 1981 meeting, the Skagway

City Council passed a resolution calling on Congress to reduce the Chilkoot Trail Unit to a 100-

foot strip. The resolution also called for the elimination of the park's White Pass Unit. [69]

Following the vote, city officials forwarded the resolution to the Congressional delegation.

Senator Frank Murkowski responded by asking the NPS's congressional liaison, Ira Whitlock, to

prepare a draft bill that would carry out the council's wishes. The NPS prepared the bill, which

would have transferred Chilkoot Trail Unit land to the BLM and White Pass Unit land to the

BLM and the Forest Service. Neither Murkowski nor others in the delegation, however,

introduced it. For the moment, the proposal to delete the majority of the Chilkoot Trail Unit was

dead. [70]

The passage of SB 26, as noted above, authorized the Alaska Power Administration to spend $1

million on a detailed West Creek dam feasibility study. Soon after the bill's August 4

implementation date, a contract was awarded to R. W. Beck Associates, and by September,

drillers and geologists were working in the Dyea area and attempting to determine whether the

geological substrate could support the proposed 107-foot dam. The contract called for a

completion date of March 1982. APA officials at the time predicted that dam construction could

begin as early as 1984, with the dam complete and operating in 1986. [71]

Midway through the feasibility study, on January 14, 1982, an APA representative met with

Skagway residents on the project. Brent Petrie reiterated that West Creek was "financially,

geologically, and environmentally superior" to either Goat Lake or Upper Chilkoot Lake as a

hydroelectric site. Petrie noted that after further studies, the project would cost $55 million. The

size of the proposed West Creek dam would be anywhere from 50 to 105 feet high and between

300 and 1500 feet long. The consulting company, by this time, had found two alternative

powerhouse locations; the NPS site, however, was financially and geologically superior to the

other two sites. [72]
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Upon completion of the Beck study, representatives of APA and the consulting company

returned to Haines and Skagway, where meetings were held on April 20 and 21, respectively.

The project's cost, by now, had risen to $63.5 million--high enough "to scare people," noted a

local newspaper story, but still cheaper than either existing systems or other energy alternatives.

Officials, by this time, were predicting that construction would begin in 1986. [73]

The APA next got ready to make a formal project application to the Federal Energy Regulatory

Commission. Before it could do so, however, the agency sought to determine the extent of the

cultural resources that would be impacted by project development. In the summer of 1981, Beck

had contracted with Environaid, Inc. of Juneau, which had provided them with baseline data;

the following May, CSPU archeologist Harvey M. Shields spent a day in Dyea performing

compliance work and located "nothing of any significance." Additional data were necessary,

however, so in August 1982, Beck retained Ertec Northwest, Inc. of Seattle to conduct a more

extensive investigation. By mid-August, a team of Ertec archeologists had travelled to Dyea and

begun their work. [74]

Action was also taken that summer to clear the legal roadblocks posed by the existence of the

park. As noted above, there was no technical alternative to siting the powerplant, the tailrace,

and portions of the transmission line within the park boundaries, and to avoid restrictions placed

by the park, the city council had tried to eliminate the Dyea area from the park. Until the spring

of 1982, APA officials had also pressed for a Congressionally-approved redrawing of the park

boundaries; they also hoped to exchange NPS land in the homestead area for state land located

elsewhere in Alaska. That April, however, the APA met with Superintendent Sims and

discovered that the state agency might be able to obtain a permit for the powerhouse and an

easement for the construction of a transmission line through the park. Sims promised them that

the permitting process might be completed within a year. [75]

During the next few months, the land difficulties surrounding the proposed dam reached the

office of James G. Watt, Reagan's Interior Secretary. Watt learned that similar problems existed

in other Alaska parks, so on September 1, he announced a plan to exchange NPS land for state

land in four Alaska parks. A total of 26,000 acres in Denali and Glacier Bay national parks, as

well as 22 acres at Klondike, were to be transferred to the state in exchange for 14,000 acres

near McCarthy within Wrangell-St. Elias National Preserve. Watt noted that "none of the lands

being traded to the state were essential to the parks involved," and state officials frankly

admitted that "we will definitely be getting more value as well as more acres." Conservationists,

however, attacked the plan, noting that it was weighted in favor of economic development and

that it set a bad precedent. [76]

Several weeks after Watt's announcement, state Natural Resources officials announced that a

public hearing on the proposed land trade would be held in late November. But on October 8, an

event took place that placed the entire project in jeopardy and made moot all discussion of the

proposed land swap. The White Pass and Yukon Route railroad ceased operating that day, and

soon afterward, the White Pass announced that it might not operate passenger trains in the

summer of 1983. Because the White Pass was Skagway's largest single power user, its

discontinuance of service caused APA officials to withdraw $350,000 that had originally been

earmarked for the West Creek project. [77]

Support for the project, and the land swap, deteriorated after that point. Due to the election of a

new governor, state Natural Resources personnel did not hold a public hearing on the land swap.

APA and Beck officials, however, met with local citizens in early December to amend their

study. At that time, the APA's Brent Petrie pessimistically noted that "In absence of the railroad

(power) load, it does not look like (West Creek) is feasible." [78]

The West Creek project was effectively abandoned at that point. Studies generated by the
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project, however, were completed long afterward. In March 1983, Ertec Northwest completed

its cultural resources survey of the project. That report revealed a host of significant

archeological and historical sites in Dyea and on the ridge between the Taiya River and Long

Bay. [79]

One of the major sites discovered during the Environaid and Ertec surveys was a marine shell

midden located adjacent to Dyea Road, south of Dyea Campground. Investigators considered it

sufficiently important to recommend it potentially eligible to the National Register of Historic

Places. They filled out no form at that time. Late in 1984, however, the state's Department of

Transportation and Public Facilities contemplated a series of widening projects along Dyea

Road. Because such actions had the potential to impact the marine shell deposit, the agency

contracted with Alaska Archives and Records Management, headed by Glenda Choate. Choate

and Nan Fawthrop completed a National Register nomination for the "Dyea Shell Midden" in

January 1985. [80]

Interpretive and Ranger Activities

As noted above, the 1973 master plan had called for relatively little park interpretation in the

Dyea area. The interpretive centerpiece was to be a combination ranger station and interpretive

center; in addition, the agency would interpret the two historic cemeteries, the wharf, and the

old townsite. [81]

The plan was implemented slowly and spasmodically. The ranger station was built during the

summer of 1979. The following year, rangers installed bulletin boards at Dyea campground and

the Chilkoot Trailhead. In 1981, the park's Interpretive Prospectus proposed that a coordinated

series of wayside exhibits be placed in Dyea and along the Chilkoot Trail. That plan, if

implemented, would have resulted in the installation of historical markers along Dyea Road, at

the Slide Cemetery, beside the Long Wharf pilings, and at the false front (the A. M. Gregg real

estate office). The plan, however, was revised in 1983 because of cultural resource concerns,

and for the time being, signs were installed at only the first two sites. To augment area signage,

seasonal ranger Rosemary Libert, in 1984, created ad hoc interpretive markers at the Vining and

Wilkes warehouse and the Pullen Barn, both of which had collapsed and were in danger of

being looted for firewood. In the late 1980s, as noted in Chapter 9, the wayside exhibit package

was completed and new signs were installed. [82]

The Dyea ranger station was an "interpretive center" in only a narrow sense. It offered few

mounted photographs or display materials. It did, however, contain various brochures and

booklets about the Chilkoot Trail, and its primary purpose was to inform hikers and potential

hikers about the conditions that awaited them on the trip north.

In order to provide a broader scope of informational materials, park staff moved to establish a

branch of the Alaska Natural History Association. The idea of establishing an independent

cooperating association based in Skagway had been around for years, but pressure from local

businesses had prevented its creation. It was not until 1981 that an ANHA branch was founded

at the park. The branch, which operated only out of the Dyea Ranger Station, was overseen by

the park's interpretive specialist. It sold books--both historical volumes and nature guides--and

topographic maps. Sales totals were never large. Total revenues in 1981 were $270. Revenues

rose to $285 in 1982 and to $353 in 1983. In 1984, only $119 in sales was recorded. Even that

amount of sales, however, caused friction with local business owners, so at the request of the

park's interpretive specialist, ANHA closed its Klondike branch. It did not reopen again until the

spring of 1996, when an outlet opened in the visitor center. The branch sold books, maps, and

the Chilkoot Trail hikers' guide. [83]
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Because of the closure of the White Pass and Yukon Route railroad in October 1982, tour

companies were eager to find tour destinations to replace the popular rail trips to Fraser and

Bennett, B.C. In their search for an alternative tour destination, they found Dyea attractive, both

for its scenic and historical resources. Beginning in 1983, therefore, Dyea began to attract a

significant number of bus tours. Alaska Sightseeing Company patrons rode out Dyea Road to

the Chilkoot Trail head, walked a few yards up the trail, and received a hiker's certificate for

their efforts. They then rode to and ambled around the Slide Cemetery before heading south to

the wharf pilings and the collapsed warehouse. Typically, the bus tours stopped here for a

snack. NPS rangers often met the buses and gave a ten minute historical talk to the assembled

patrons. Tours such as this remained popular through 1984. [84]

In 1985, the Dyea area hosted a new set of tour possibilities. Skagway business persons Duff

and Carla Ray organized the Chilkoot Trail Float Tours, which offered float trips along the

Taiya River from the West Creek confluence to the Dyea flats. That tour lasted for only one

season. Alaska Sightseeing's new tour, however, proved more permanent. The company shifted

its operations from the Dyea townsite to a makeshift tent camp adjacent to the McDermott

cabin, where visitors were given the opportunity to pan for gold. Bus tours to the gold camp

continued until the late summer of 1987. The following year, the restoration of train service

truncated interest in the Dyea area, and organized tour groups did not return to the Dyea

townsite until the mid-1990s. [85]

As the above paragraphs have suggested, rangers during this period pursued a variety of

activities while stationed at Dyea. As a rule of thumb, rangers spent several days of their job

rotation living at Sheep Camp and working along the Chilkoot Trail. Before or after their trail

stint, they lived in Dyea and worked on a variety of assignments. Typical jobs included

patrolling the park roads and the park boundary lines, answering inquiries, and responding to

search and rescue, accident, or other emergency situations. [86]

Revising the Cooperative Agreement

In April 1978, the NPS and the state's Department of Natural Resources had signed a

cooperative agreement that affected activities in Dyea, on the Chilkoot Trail, and in the White

Pass Unit. That agreement should have been renewed in April 1981. The two parties, however,

were unable to come to terms at that time, so they signed an interim agreement that terminated

"at such time as a more comprehensive agreement is consummated or April 6, 1982, whichever

comes first." That agreement was extended for another 45 days. Then, in May 1983, state and

federal officials signed another extension that continued the agreement until the end of the year.

[87]

It is not clear why the two parties could not agree on an updated cooperative agreement. The

state, for its part, replaced its state park directors several times during this period, making

progress difficult, and NPS management found it frustrating that conclusions reached in its

meetings with state parks personnel were rebuffed by higher-ups in DNR. The NPS, for its part,

was unhappy with having to manage the state's Chilkoot Trail Unit lands. It attempted,

therefore, to exert whatever leverage it could in order to acquire fee simple ownership.

NPS officials made no secret of their desire to acquire the state's lands in the park, and in order

to ease the process, they appealed to Congress for a new acquisition method. Section 1(b)(1) of

the 1976 park authorization act had specified that the NPS could acquire state lands in the

Chilkoot Trail Unit only by donation. But by December 1977, the Secretary of the Interior Cecil

Andrus had suggested to Governor Jay Hammond that exchange become an additional transfer

mechanism. The suggestion, which was apparently uncontroversial, was quickly forwarded to

the Congressional delegation, and by 1979 an identical provision had been included in the
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committee bills of both the House and Senate versions of the Alaska Lands Act. The provision

remained in the final bill passed by both houses, and it became Section 1309 in the Alaska

Lands Act signed by President Jimmy Carter in December 1980. [88]

Given the new regulation, NPS officials requested the state to select other federal lands which

would be acceptable for exchange purposes. DNR officials, however, were satisfied with the

existing situation in the Chilkoot Trail Unit. They liked the idea of having another agency

expend the funds to manage the state's lands; because of their ownership position, they liked

being able to influence NPS policy regarding trail-related matters. But they had no interest in

managing it again. As State Parks Director Neil Johannsen said, "The only way the state could

come back in here would be at tremendous state expense. Years ago we managed the trail and

we did not do as good a job as the NPS has done on the trail." [89] And they were equally

reluctant to transfer their land to the NPS, so they dragged their feet in the selection of

appropriate federal exchange lands. This conflicting state of affairs, as noted above, was

partially responsible for the numerous delays and interim agreements that took place during the

early 1980s.

In early 1983, as noted above, state and federal officials had signed an extension of the

cooperative agreement that kept it in force until the end of the calendar year. By the time that

agreement expired, officials were well on the way toward formulating a new, comprehensive

agreement, and on February 3, 1984, Natural Resources Commissioner Esther Wunnicke signed

a Memorandum of Understanding governing the management of state lands within the park.

NPS Regional Director Roger Contor signed the MOU eleven days later. The memorandum, to

a large extent, was a repeat of the 1978 cooperative agreement; like the earlier agreement, it

pertained to state lands in Dyea, along the Chilkoot Trail, and in the White Pass Unit. The most

substantive change, insisted upon by the NPS, was that park rangers would be commissioned as

state Natural Resources Officers and would be given the authority to enforce federal park

regulations (known as 36 CFR regulations) on state lands in the park. The MOU was scheduled

to be effective for five years. [90]

The new MOU was presented to Skagway residents at a public meeting in the NPS visitor center

on April 27. Chief Ranger Jay Cable led the meeting and laid out the differences between the

1978 and 1984 federal-state agreements. Under the new regulations included in Title 36 of the

Code of Federal Regulations, the following rules would pertain to state land in Dyea within the

park: no woodcutting, no hunting, and no camping outside of designated areas (either in Dyea or

on the trail), no firearms on the trail, and no commercial trips on the trail without a permit.

Cable also voiced objections to horse grazing and model-airplane activity on the flats. But

remembering the fiasco related to the 1980 land acquisition plan, he did not attempt to mandate

the removal of either activity. He was also careful to note that the agency, in its implementation

of these regulations, would not be stepping on any private property. [91]

Several days before the meeting began, the park staff learned from several local residents that

the MOU would not be well received. Perhaps for that reason, Sims was away from Skagway

that day, leaving Cable to be the designated meeting leader. As expected, the crowd of 75 lashed

out at the NPS because residents wanted to continue such activities as woodcutting, hunting,

snowmachining, model airplane flying, motorbike riding, fishing, grazing and even golfing. As

the local press noted, "Rarely have Skagway residents been so vocal and united in their

opposition to something." Most of their rancor, however, was vented not at the Park Service but

at Linda Krueger and Carol Wilson of the state Department of Natural Resources, who had

negotiated the agreement without a public hearing. Both were present, and "were in for an

earful" from those in attendance. They admitted their mistake, with Wilson telling the crowd that

"it was unfortunate that we did not know your concern." Most of those who commented said, in

effect, that they liked the NPS so long as its role was limited to the preservation of gold rush

history and the attraction of tourists. They railed, however, at any attempt the agency made to
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impinge upon the lifestyle of local residents. [92]

Peter Goll, who represented Skagway in the Alaska House of Representatives, had been warned

earlier, by several constituents, that the MOU had been signed without a public process. He

therefore attended the April 27 meeting, and afterwards he attempted to work out a compromise.

He first spoke to city officials about their concerns; he then spoke to a meeting of the Citizens

Advisory Commission on Federal Areas, the body that had been created in 1981 in the wake of

the Alaska Lands Act (see above). The commission forwarded its comments to state Department

of Natural Resources personnel, who attended a May 4 meeting with Skagway officials. Goll

also informed Governor William Sheffield, the Congressional delegation, and NPS officials in

Washington about the problem. [93]

By mid-May, action on resolving the problems in the cooperative agreement had shifted to

Anchorage, where meetings were held between personnel in the NPS's regional office and the

state DNR. [94] By late June a compromise had been reached; that compromise was presented

to Skagway residents at a lightly-attended July 6 public meeting, held at city hall.

Under the compromise, some land uses were allowed on state land while others were prohibited.

Regarding the discharge of firearms along the Chilkoot Trail, officials proposed that such use be

allowed only if more than one-quarter mile away from the trail corridor, and only between

November 1 and April 1. It would, however, be legal to carry a gun along the Chilkoot on a

year-round basis. Camping outside of designated campsites would be prohibited, but wood

cutting and gathering would be allowed, as would the use of model airplanes, motorbikes, and

snowmachines. [95] Despite a regulation which prohibited camping outside of the designated

campsites, NPS officials tacitly allowed a Whitehorse-based model airplane group to make an

annual camp on the Dyea flats. The group's presence was tolerated because it had been active

since 1980 and because the group's impacts on area resources had been slight. But as noted

below, the park's attempt to curb those activities a decade later would create a firestorm of

protest, both from the affected participants and from Skagway residents.

At the public meeting, local residents had few quibbles with the newly-revised plan. Hunters

Jay Frey and Jeff Graham, however, urged the negotiators to move the open season for hunting

along the Chilkoot from November 1 to September 1 so that ducks, grouse, rabbits and other

small game could be harvested during the fall season. They apparently also asked that the MOU

omit the White Pass Unit; the area offered excellent hunting possibilities, but the NPS had thus

far ignored the area. Two months later, the NPS and the state compromised on the measure;

they agreed to omit the White Pass Unit and allowed hunting in the Chilkoot Trail unit to begin

on October 1. Skip Harding, the Deputy Director of Alaska State Parks, announced a final

agreement in mid-September. Esther Wunnicke signed the amended MOU on October 23; Roger

Contor affixed his signature to the document on November 27. [96]

As has been seen, the NPS gained the titular right, as a result of the 1984 MOU process, to

enforce NPS regulations in the Chilkoot Trail Unit of the park. But the discussion that preceded

the revised MOU specified that many activities normally prohibited on NPS lands would be

allowed. Both the February MOU and its November revision specified that the activities allowed

on state-owned NPS lands would be determined in biannual joint meetings of state and federal

officials. In reality, however, those meetings were never held. NPS officials, who were anxious

to protect important resources but leery that local residents would overreact to any arbitrary

prohibitions, instead implemented regulations on a piecemeal, low-key basis. Campers, for

example, were allowed to camp on Dyea flats if they stayed away from the immediate vicinity

of historic ruins, and motorcyclists were allowed to use the flats if they remained out of the

historic townsite. Other recreational activities, such as airboats and snowmachines, were ignored

and never emerged as a management problem. [97]
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In 1983 and 1984, the NPS also moved to issue a land protection plan. The 1980 land

acquisition plan, upon which it was being modelled, had been the source of tremendous

controversy because it had attempted to control the extent of development and the level of

improvements on privately-owned property in the Dyea homestead area. [98] For that reason,

the plan was never completed and was not adopted.

The agency's previous experience, moreover, made it both wary and well-prepared as it got

ready to issue a new plan. Superintendent Sims, given the task of writing it, held a public

meeting on November 23, 1983 in which he told local residents what the plan would contain. He

gave the public ample opportunity to comment and announced that additional meetings

regarding the plan would be forthcoming. Then, in January 1984, he began to write it. [99]

On January 27, Sims held a second public hearing on the plan in the Arctic Brotherhood Hall. At

the meeting, he noted that a keystone of the plan was the delineation of a priority list for land

acquisition. But the agency, as before, would only purchase property on a willing seller, willing

buyer basis. Furthermore, because of a lack of acquisition funds, the park had no plans for any

further private land acquisition. [100] The plan, moreover, made no attempt to limit the

activities of private property owners. The plan, therefore, was uncontroversial and was tacitly

accepted by local residents. It was completed in July 1984.

The final plan noted that there were still sixteen tracts of privately owned land in the park, their

total acreage being 56.27 acres. It noted that "Most of the privately owned properties are now

being used in ways which do not interfere with the management of the National Historical Park,

such as residential and low levels of agricultural use." The two highest-priority parcels were the

State of Alaska's holdings in the Chilkoot Trail Unit and the White Pass Unit, respectively. The

third priority properties were the various Mahle Native claims (see Chapter 9). The Dyea

properties of John McDermott and Alf Kalvick were next on the priority list, followed by those

of several other Dyea landowners. [101]

The Grazing Issue is Resolved

One of the most contentious issues with which the NPS has had to deal has been grazing, both

on the Dyea flats and elsewhere in the Dyea area. During the 1960s and 1970s, an increasing

number of livestock grazed in the Dyea area, and by the late 1970s approximately 30 horses,

along with an occasional cow or mule, roamed the area each summer. Several local residents

owned the stock, and no one was particularly concerned about their impacts on the area's natural

and cultural resources until the NPS bought the old Pullen homestead in 1978 and began

management efforts.

As noted above, NPS officials let it be known soon afterward that grazing was an unacceptable

activity. When Superintendent Hoffman began to formulate a Dyea management plan, he told

local residents that the flats were severely overgrazed. In order to "get a good stand of grass"

again, he recommended that all animals in the valley be either staked or fenced on private land.

Livestock owners protested the proposed plan, and the plan was not implemented. Hoffman did,

however, arrange for a U.S. Forest Service research biologist to evaluate the Dyea wetlands. The

biologist noted that "I would classify the present horse use on the upper part of the Dyea

wetlands as severe.... The end product of such a high level of grazing intensity is, of course,

degradation and/or destruction of the marsh vegetation." [102]

During the winter of 1979-1980, reports arrived that horses at the Slide Cemetery had knocked

over a picket fence and knocked down grave markers. Later that winter, the Dyea area was

annexed into the City of Skagway. The city code prohibited animals from running at large
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within the city limits. City officials, however, winked at the ordinance as it pertained to Dyea.

[103]

Superintendent Sims, who took over from Hoffman in September 1979, moved in early 1980 to

curtail grazing within the park. He did so in response to pressure from Douglas Warnock, an

official in the Alaska Area Office. [104] In March, Sims contacted the city police, local stock

owners, and Alaska State Parks personnel. As a result of those contacts, he learned that because

the NPS owned only a portion of the Dyea area, the agency could do little beside fencing the

area--clearly an unacceptable option. The only other solution was to have the city enforce its

grazing ordinance, an alternative that had little community support. Lacking other options, Sims

ordered the erection of two small (5 foot square) fenced exclosures to monitor grazing impacts;

one was located on the west side of the flats, the other on the east side. He also asked each stock

owner to fill out a special use permit. That action, however, was less than successful. Some

refused to complete the permits, and others did not comply with the conditions of the permit.

Neither the city nor state, moreover, supported the NPS, and the permit system was criticized

because it may have put the agency in violation of state law and the city ordinance. [105]

The following spring, NPS officials attempted to improve upon the permit system. When city

officials met with Doug Warnock in March, they requested that grazing be allowed to continue

under a permit system, perhaps with a reduced number of animals for the 1981 summer season.

Two months later, the NPS requested that the Skagway City Council introduce a loose animals

ordinance that would have solved the problem. In June, however, both the permit system and

the ordinance were shot down at a public hearing. Most residents at the meeting complained that

grazing land and livestock feed in the Skagway area were too scarce to halt open grazing. NPS

officials, in response, opted to not offer grazing permits that summer. Agency activity was

limited to having seasonal rangers make a daily record of livestock and wildlife observations.

[106]

The NPS, thereafter, played a minimal role in attempting to regulate grazing activity. In a draft

resource management plan written in 1982, the agency opted to continue present management

activity, because "Without the support of other land owners in the area we do not have any other

realistic options." [107]

In early 1984, the grazing issue flared up again, shortly after the finalization of a federal-state

memorandum of understanding. A key provision in the new agreement was the NPS's ability to

be able to enforce its regulations on state lands. When NPS Chief Ranger Jay Cable told local

residents about the new MOU in an April public meeting, he remarked that grazing had to be

cut back or stopped, but just how and when that would occur had yet to be decided. "The

animals definitely are in trespass," he noted. "My advice to grazers is to look elsewhere." [108]

The outcry Cable received at the public meeting, as noted above, put the whole MOU issue in

doubt for awhile, and regarding the grazing issue, the NPS found that it had no more allies than

it had in 1980 and 1981. State Natural Resources staff noted that state law supported open

grazing and that it required the property owner to fence out unwanted animals. [109]

After that point, the NPS once again dropped the issue. But soon after, others joined the fray.

During the past several years, Dyea residents had become increasingly agitated by the presence

of free-ranging horses because they broke down fences and wrecked gardens. In some cases, the

animals caused several thousand dollars' worth of property damage. Dyea resident Nancy

Berland, whose garden was severely impacted, reacted by filing suit against the city. She lost an

initial magistrate's decision, but she appealed the verdict. In a later ruling by the Haines

magistrate, she won the right to prohibit open grazing in Dyea. [110]

The council, meanwhile, had two lively hearings on the matter in September and October 1984.
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Horse owners and their supporters generated 39 letters in support of open grazing, while those

who hoped to control grazing wrote a "briefcase full" of letters to bolster their cause. The recent

legal case, however, tipped the scales of justice against the grazing interests. After considering

several options, the council on October 11 passed an ordinance stating that any owner of an

animal found loose within the city limits would be guilty of a misdemeanor and subject to a

fine. That code revision went into effect on January 1, 1985. Local residents, begrudgingly at

first, complied with the new ordinance.

Since that time, open grazing has been prohibited in the Dyea area. The grasses along the Taiya

River and elsewhere in the Dyea area have rebounded to healthy levels. The exclosure on the

east side of Dyea flats was removed by park personnel in the early 1990s, but the exclosure on

the west side is still standing. [111]

The Dyea Development Concept Plan

In order to fulfill the objectives outlined in the park's 1973 master plan, and to solve land use

issues not covered in the plan, NPS officials recognized the necessity for writing a plan for

managing the Dyea area. As noted above, the 1978 cooperative agreement anticipated the

preparation of "recreational or historical management plans" for Dyea, and in response,

Superintendent Hoffman attempted to write such a plan in 1978 and 1979. He held public

meetings with local residents, obtained input from Alaska Area Office planners, and announced

a draft management plan. That plan, however, was neither finalized nor implemented. The

brouhaha that followed the issuance of the Land Acquisition Plan in April 1980, moreover, put

such a negative cast on planning issues that the National Park Service made no attempt for the

next several years to issue a planning document regarding the management, protection, or

interpretation of park resources in the Dyea area.

The need for a plan, however, remained. The 1982 draft Resource Management Plan noted that

"the most critical [park] resource management issue is the lack of a Cooperative Management

Plan for the Chilkoot Trail unit." Regional Historian Bill Brown, in 1983, reiterated the need for

a planning effort centered on Dyea management issues. [112]

In early 1984, the creation of a plan got underway when Robert Spude, Brown's successor,

suggested to Chief Ranger Jay Cable that the Chilkoot Trail Unit needed a philosophy guiding

its management. He envisioned that specific aspects of the plan would be interpretive plans for

Dyea and the trail, as well as a Historic Structures Report for the Unit. The beginnings of an

interpretive plan had been underway since 1981, when wayside exhibits for Dyea as well as the

Chilkoot Trail had been proposed as part of the park's Interpretive Prospectus. To complement

that data, Spude proposed the compilation of additional cultural resource data. To that end, he

had already orchestrated the compilation of additional research about the historic Dyea townsite.

[113] (See the following section.)

Spude's suggestions began to bear fruit that summer. By late June, Chief Ranger Cable was

noting that "a management plan for Dyea may be assembled in the not-too-distant future."

Shortly afterwards, Superintendent Sims formally requested the assistance of Spude and

planning chief Linda Nebel in the compilation of a Development Concept Plan for Dyea. [114]

Given the go-ahead to proceed, Spude and Nebel began working on the plan. Work that year

focused on a Dyea-area trail and walking tour. Plans called for a Dyea orientation panel to be

located at the entrance to Dyea Campground, and the interpretive trailhead and parking area

would be located adjacent to the old Pullen Barn. From there, the proposed trail would connect

four other sites in the historic townsite. Dyea's Native village and old Trail Street would be

discussed at the Matthews Cabin; the Palm Sunday avalanche would be described at the Slide
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Cemetery; Dyea's boom-town days would be interpreted at the "false front" (part of a rush-era

real estate office), and waterfront activity would be explained at the collapsed Vining and

Wilkes warehouse. The trail was to be completed by the summer of 1986. [115]

Preparation of the plan was delayed thereafter because regional office planners were

overwhelmed by business related to the preparation of park general management plans. (Draft

GMPs for nine of Alaska's fifteen park units were completed in 1985; final plans for those parks

were completed the following year.) By April 1985, however, Nebel had assigned planner Suzy

Stutzman to the Dyea project. Stutzman completed a task directive, and in late August she

visited Dyea. While there, she conferred with seasonal archeologist Karl Gurcke who was

investigating and mapping Dyea that summer. She lauded that effort, and in her trip report

recommended that any public involvement related to an interpretive trail wait until the

completion and analysis of Gurcke's field work. [116]

Stutzman intended to follow her work with the creation of a series of plan alternatives, followed

by public meetings in early 1986. The completion of a draft and final Development Concept

Plan would have followed. That scenario was still in the works as late as December 1985. That

month, however, Stutzman left her position, and given the press of duties related to GMP

preparation, the Dyea DCP was tabled. [117]

Clay Alderson, who became superintendent in September 1986, was initially content with the

existing state of affairs, noting that "people should not expect much more development in the

future" in the Dyea area. A year later, however, the DCP idea was revived. The agency now

sensed that the restoration of Dyea's historic buildings, the improvement of Dyea's campground,

and planning for the area surrounding the Chilkoot Trail head had become sufficiently important

issues that a team, headed by regional planner Sandy Rabinowitch, was assigned to write a DCP

that would guide Dyea-area development. Field work related to that effort was scheduled for the

summer of 1988, but it was derailed because planning department personnel were overwhelmed

by work related to a series of park wilderness-designation studies. [118] After that time, the

DCP idea remained tabled until revived during the early 1990s as part of the park's General

Management Planning process (see below).

Historical and Archeological Research, 1984-1988

As noted above, the first attempts to gather cultural resource information about the Dyea area

took place during the late 1970s. Contract historian Robert Spude travelled to libraries both

inside and outside of Alaska and compiled an impressive amount of data about Dyea and the

Chilkoot Trail. Archeologist Craig Davis led a crew that exhumed several graves in the old

Dyea Cemetery. During the summer of 1979, Caroline Carley headed a team of archeologists

that surveyed both Dyea and the trail. That same year, Spude began to compile a volume on the

trail's history and its extant resources. The only additional cultural resource data gained about

the Dyea area resulted from the two surveys performed in 1981 and 1983 as part of the proposed

West Creek hydroelectric dam. There was also a small amount of artifact inventorying, marking,

and monitoring in 1983 performed by Colleen Sinnott and Cathy Shank. Their work in Dyea

that year was a minor part of a two-year project that primarily dealt with Chilkoot Trail sites

(see Chapter 9).

In 1983, Spude became regional historian, and perhaps because of his longtime affiliation with

the park, he prepared to gather additional historical data. He learned that Skagway resident

Frank Norris, a former seasonal interpreter, was interested in Dyea's history, and in March 1984

he contracted with him to compile a business directory of the gold-rush town and to assemble a

map of how Dyea's street pattern must have appeared to the Klondike stampeders. (Dyea's street

pattern had been laid out in October 1897, but the town's plat map had been lost and no other
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maps were known to exist.) Norris completed his work a month later. [119]

Less than a month after Norris completed his project, University of Idaho archeologist Karl

Gurcke arrived in Skagway to begin a survey of the old townsite. Gurcke, assisted briefly by

Linda Medlock and regional office archeologist Harvey Shields, mapped a portion of the

downtown commercial section and dug ten one-meter-square test pits. In addition, he dug seven

randomly-placed augur holes that summer. Altogether, Gurcke's investigations resulted in the

recovery of approximately 4,000 artifacts, primarily fragments of bricks, ceramics, glass, and tin

cans. Research ecologist Gary Ahlstrand provided additional assistance that summer by visiting

Dyea and coring 36 of the largest-diameter trees in the historic townsite. Ahlstrand's research

revealed that just two trees, both located in the Native cemetery, predated the gold rush; four

others, in scattered locations, dated from 1899 to 1904. Most of his remaining sample dated

from the 1905-1914 period. [120]

Regional officials, evidently pleased by Gurcke's efforts, hired him back for the 1985 season.

Given a longer field season, he and assistants Nicole von Gaza and Linda Haws were able to

extend the existing mapping grid 1,100 meters to the north, and they also excavated an

additional ten test pits. As a result of their efforts, they inventoried and collected 1,600 artifacts,

plus another 1,440 pieces of charcoal. After the completion of the season's work, Superintendent

Sims announced his pleasure with the team's accomplishments, noting to a local reporter that

they had "uncovered large amounts of things you and I probably don't get excited about, a

bunch of broken glass and broken bricks, but to them it is significant." [121]

By the time Gurcke had begun his second season of work, regional cultural resource officials

were familiar with the proposed Dyea Development Concept Plan. They furthermore recognized

that the ongoing archeological work was a necessary aspect of that DCP. In order to expand

both the scope and diversity of the cultural resources portion of the DCP, officials proposed the

preparation of a Historic Structures Report for both Dyea and the Chilkoot Trail. The

archeological portion of the report was already underway; the Dyea portion of the report was to

be completed first, followed by additional work ascending the Chilkoot Trail corridor. In

addition, historical research would be needed to document structures and other resources in the

Chilkoot Trail Unit, and high-quality architectural drawings would be needed to record features

at a selected number of sites. [122]

In order to complete the proposed report, Robert Spude rehired seasonal interpreter Frank Norris

during the spring of 1985 and asked him to complete historical site reports on 16 area sites. All

but five of those sites were located in Dyea. Joining him that year was seasonal architect Carol

Taylor, who produced a series of maps, diagrams, and technical drawings. Some of the drawings

depicted Dyea and trailside structures, while others related to Chilkoot Trail tramway features.

The work of the two individuals was forwarded to the regional office, who produced a final

product in early December. [123]

During 1986, work continued on the Historic Structures Report. In January, Spude hired Norris

for a third time and asked him to write historic site reports on additional sites within the trail

corridor. By May he had completed an additional 16 site reports; sites were as large as Canyon

City or as small as the grave marker above Sheep Camp. In addition, he had compiled gold

rush-era maps and business directories for Canyon City, Sheep Camp, and the Scales. That

summer, Gurcke arrived for a third season's work. While his primary effort that year was a

survey of the Chilkoot between Dyea and Finnegan's Point, he also did some survey work at the

north end of the Dyea townsite. Gurcke that year was assisted by seasonal archeologist Scott

Zimmerman and seasonal historian Frank Norris.

Further work on the HSR took place in 1987. Norris was called on to compile seven brief

reports for structures in Dyea, Canyon City, and Sheep Camp. Gurcke, hired as the park's
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permanent Cultural Resource Specialist that March, supervised two seasonal archeologists (Scott

Zimmerman and Noreen Fritz) who spent the summer doing further mapping and surface

collecting in Dyea. Zimmerman and Fritz's work was continued in 1988, for a brief period, by

archeologists Bill Jurgelski and Heidi Hill, who surveyed, mapped, and recorded additional

features at the north end of the Dyea townsite. Carol Taylor, the seasonal architect hired in

1985, was posted in Anchorage in the fall of 1987. During her tenure there, she compiled

selected archeological reports, historical site reports, and architectural drawings and completed a

draft HSR. [124]

A major reason for the preparation of the Historic Structures Report was the preservation of the

remaining gold-rush structures along the trail, and to effectuate that preservation, NPS officials

decided to adopt the crystallization technique. This idea, which was developed by Buck R.

Nelson in a 1977 article and first championed in Alaska by Chief Ranger Jay Cable in 1982,

involved the stabilization of historic structures and ruins by minimal support, clearing of

vegetation, fencing, and the application of a chemical preservative. Cable recognized that the

park's master plan and environmental statement, written in 1973-1974, had called for the trail

structures to be stabilized, and he looked favorably on the crystallization idea because it had

proven successful in such western ghost towns as Bodie, California and Bannock, Montana.

Given the fact that there were more than 40 deteriorating structures along the trail, Cable noted

that "unless positive steps are taken to slow down this deterioration, all that will remain in a few

years will be a collection of scattered building materials." He therefore suggested that the

technique be adopted at the Dyea False Front, the Slide Cemetery, and three other structures

along the Chilkoot Trail corridor. [125]

Regional Historian Robert Spude adopted a similar viewpoint to Nelson and Cable. He

presented his philosophy of minimal intervention at a conference in October 1984. Noting that

"restoration work will attempt to retain the natural aged appearance of structures, not an

incongruous new looking reconstruction," he felt that the best way to preserve the remaining

trail structures would be to "replace select wood and metal members as needed, with matching

parts." In later remarks, he added that "time and nature do not permit 'as is' preservation" and

that "benign neglect has been just as effective as a bulldozer in demolishing [the gold rush]

structures." He therefore suggested that the agency's goal should be to "preserve the condition of

the ruin to the time of the establishment of the park; as boards crumble, they are to be replaced

with lumber or wood that will fade and weather like the original, thus preserving the visual

integrity, the historical feel of the landmark." [126]

Spude received support for his philosophy from Chief Historian Ed Bearss in Washington. But

other key players, including Regional Historical Architect Dave Snow and park maintenance

chief John Warder, rejected the idea as being unworkable. [127]

Spude continued to espouse crystallization until he left Alaska in December 1987. But his

successor, Kate Lidfors, did not share his enthusiasm. In a 1988 memo, she noted that the

concept was

difficult to apply to structures which are deteriorated beyond the point where

stabilization and historic preservation maintenance are practical. We do not have

the technology to, in effect, imbed mouldering log ruins in amber.... I am concerned

that the conceptual appeal of this approach leads to impracticable and

philosophically unsound treatments. [128]

Given Spude's departure, the lack of support for crystallization from other key officials, and

widespread criticism of Carol Taylor's portion of the draft HSR, both the crystallization concept

and the historic structures report were quietly tabled. Since that time, archeological work along

the trail has continued (see Chapter 9), but neither park nor regional personnel have made any
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attempt to either compile a new preservation plan or complete the HSR. Trail maintenance

crews, as a result, have made only a minimal attempt to preserve the trailside structures, and

they continued to deteriorate. In 1994, the structures received renewed attention when personnel

from the agency's Harpers Ferry Center hiked the trail and recommended preservation measures.

That report offered a number of sound recommendations, but it never got beyond the draft

stage. [129]

A beneficial byproduct of the research that went into the Historic Structures Report was an

updated, expanded National Historic Landmark nomination for the Chilkoot Trail Unit. As

noted above, separate National Register forms for Dyea Site and the Chilkoot Trail had been

completed in 1975 and 1976, respectively; those forms had been combined, and in June 1978

the Secretary of the Interior had designated the Chilkoot Trail and Dyea National Historic

Landmark. Those forms, however, gave only brief, vague descriptions of the resources

contained within them, and as a consequence, the landmark boundaries did not precisely

conform to the location of the major resources. [130]

In order to overcome those incongruities, the NPS hired Frank Norris during the summer of

1987 to complete a revised NHL nomination. Norris completed a draft nomination, which

suggested a narrowly-defined boundary, on August 1, 1987. The nomination was reviewed by

the park's Washington office and approved in the spring of 1988. The revised NHL nomination

was then given a public comment period, where it was delayed because of objections from Skip

Elliott, Skagway's mayor and a longtime Dyea landowner. Elliott's property had been included

within the original (1978) NHL boundaries, and the NHL revision process (despite Elliott's

objections) did not affect the status of his property as it pertained to the NHL boundary. Even

so, his objection put the nomination on hold for the next several years. Then, in 1991, the public

was given a second opportunity to comment. This time, no protests were filed. The nomination

was approved by the State Historic Preservation Officer in November 1991 and by the state's

Historic Sites Advisory Board in February 1992. Rep. Don Young, working with the NPS,

revised the NHL's boundaries; the newly-designed NHL, however, still protected all of the

historically-significant areas that Norris had identified in 1987. On November 4, 1992, the

revised boundary nomination was formally established by Jerry Rogers, the NPS's Associate

Director for Cultural Resources. [131]

Lands Issues and Campground Activities, 1988-1992

Scattered management actions characterized the Dyea area during the late 1980s, and most of

those that occurred took place either along West Creek or in the park's Dyea Campground.

Along West Creek, a considerable amount of private-sector planning had taken place during the

early 1980s toward the construction of a hydroelectric facility, and during the late 1980s

officials tried to revive the proposed federal-state land swap that would have facilitated the

dam's construction. Other activities revolved around the rehabilitation of the West Creek bridge,

law enforcement problems in Dyea Campground, and new visitor and staff facilities at the

campground.

As noted above, a federal-state land swap had been proposed in the spring of 1982 that would

have removed 22 acres from the park, at the northwest corner of the homestead area, so that

power authorities would be able to have a site for a powerhouse as part of the proposed West

Creek hydroelectric project. That September, the land trade had been promoted by Interior

Secretary James Watt. A month later, the closure of the White Pass and Yukon Route railroad

had dampened all enthusiasm for the trade. Despite the closure, some federal and state officials

recognized that the economics of power generation would someday improve. As a result, talks

to revive the trade resurfaced in 1986. At that time, the West Creek project was still on hold and

in the planning stages; it was a back-up energy source for southeastern Alaska.
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Skagway citizens were informed in August 1987 about the deal, proposed by the state's Division

of Land and Water Management in the Department of Natural Resources, that would have

deeded the 22-acre powerhouse site to the state in exchange for a 40-acre parcel surrounding

Canyon City and an 80-acre parcel surrounding Sheep Camp. (The NPS was interested in

obtaining the two parcels because the 1984 Land Protection Plan had identified the Chilkoot

Trail corridor as the highest acquisition priority; Canyon City and Sheep Camp were the two

largest ghost towns on the U.S. side of the trail.) The trade at that time was "in the process of

being completed." Larry Bullis of DNR announced that only public opposition, of which there

had been none thus far, could prevent the trade from taking place. [132]

The NPS, at first, went along with the proposal. But before they could agree to it the various

parcels were independently appraised. The appraisals revealed that the powerhouse site was

valued at approximately $11,000, while the cumulative worth of the trailside parcels exceeded

$60,000. The NPS had no funds to pay the difference and the state was unwilling to pursue an

unbalanced trade, so the trade was put on hold for the time being. [133]

In 1989, another plan arose that held the potential for the NPS to acquire parcels in the Chilkoot

Trail Unit. The City of Skagway, as noted above, had attempted to acquire state lands in the

Dyea area--both inside and outside of the park--in August 1980 as its Municipal Entitlement

Program allotment. That attempt had failed because of state opposition. In the fall of 1989, the

city made a second attempt to acquire state lands. That selection included more than 1,000 acres

within the park and included land on Dyea flats, at Canyon City and at Sheep Camp. The action

was encouraged by NPS Superintendent Clay Alderson. The superintendent, in an attempt to

help the city choose applicable parcels, broached the idea that the NPS would pay the costs of

surveying and clearing title to land within the park if the city would sell that land, at fair market

value, to the Park Service. Given those funds, the city would be able to survey other lands

outside of the park boundaries. The city was favorable to Alderson's proposal but the state,

engulfed by the Mental Health Trust controversy, placed the selections on hold. The proposed

land transfers did not take place, at least for the time being. [134]

Another activity that took place in 1989 was the renewal of the federal-state Memorandum of

Understanding regarding the management of the state's Dyea and Chilkoot Trail lands. Since

November 1984, when the last MOU had been signed, relations between the Alaska DNR and

the NPS had been relatively peaceful, and as renewal time approached, state officials expressed

no particular desire to modify the 1984 memorandum. NPS officials, however, let it be known

that they were uncomfortable managing thousands of acres that they did not own. The agency,

they noted, had already spent hundreds of thousands of dollars maintaining and patrolling the

trail, constructing permanent improvements, and identifying cultural resources. As a result, the

agency could not continue indefinitely to spend money on state lands without some assurance

that the lands would be transferred to federal ownership in the very near future. Given that

caveat, the state and NPS came to terms on a 15-year Memorandum of Understanding. Acting

DNR Commissioner Ron Swope signed the MOU on December 20, 1989, and NPS Regional

Director Boyd Evison finalized the agreement on January 16, 1990. [135]

In response to the NPS's pressure, the state began looking at other federal lands in Alaska that

could be used in negotiating an exchange for its Dyea and Chilkoot Trail parcels.

Superintendent Alderson met several times in 1990 with Neil Johannsen, director of the Alaska

Division of Parks. Following those meetings, the state determined that the only federal lands that

they wanted to acquire were NPS lands. The NPS refused to release any parcels that were

already included within park boundaries. [136] Alderson, however, would not accept that

standoff. He set up a meeting with Ron Swanson, director of the state's Division of Land

Management, and with Johannsen to discuss the issue. After that meeting, Swanson and

Johannsen offered to sell the state's land in the park to the federal government. They did so

because the state was trying to raise money to purchase land in Kachemak Bay State Park, near
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Homer. NPS officials were pleased by the offer, but due to restrictions in the 1976 act that

authorized the park, the agency was unable to purchase state lands. The state, therefore, offered

to support the NPS's request for funding and for authority to purchase the state land in a request

to Congress through the office of Senator Stevens. Congress, however, showed little interest in

modifying the park act to allow the land purchase. As a result the purchase option was not

pursued. [137]

Another issue pertaining to West Creek, in addition to the proposed land swap, developed in

1988 when state inspectors closed the West Creek bridge, declaring it unsafe. The bridge had

been built in 1964 to transport H&M (Hosford and Mahle) Logging Company timber from state

lands on the north side of West Creek into Skagway. (An earlier bridge, just downstream, had

been built by the Hanousek family in the late 1940s but had been torn down shortly after the

newer bridge was completed.) Users of the bridge had included Ed and Wanda Hanousek, who

owned a homestead just northwest of the bridge; Chilkoot Trail users, who during the 1960s

and early 1970s used the bridge prior to crossing the Taiya River by tram cable (see Chapter 3);

National Park Service rangers and maintenance crews, who avoided "Saintly Hill" by paddling

across the river from a landing north of the bridge; and recreational users in West Creek valley.

The state, and later the Hanousek family, had maintained the bridge over the years, but in midJune 1988 bridge inspectors deemed it so spindly that they barred all traffic from crossing it.

[138]

City officials, local residents, and other bridge users met soon after the shutdown to make

rehabilitation plans. No one was sure, at first, who owned the bridge. The state's Department of

Natural Resources, it turned out, owned the structure; because of a lack of funds, however,

bridge rehabilitation would be a shared responsibility. In August 1988, Mayor Skip Elliott met

with Hanousek and state Department of Transportation and Public Facilities officials about the

bridge, and after that meeting, the state agreed to partially fund the rebuilding project. (Local

residents, working for a minimum wage, supplied the labor.) By February 1990, the state had

provided those funds, and construction of a new bridge began a year later. In February 1992 the

bridge was completed and reopened to traffic. [139]

Another issue that arose during the late 1980s was law enforcement. As noted above, seasonal

NPS rangers had been working on the trail since 1973, and since 1979 they had been stationed

in Dyea. They were not, however, given law enforcement authority (only the chief ranger had

that authority), primarily because the NPS was wary about stirring up local resentment against

the agency. Rangers were further encumbered because many of Skagway's police officers did

not patrol in the Dyea area. (Prior to 1980, the area had been outside of the Skagway city limits,

and only the Alaska State Trooper, based in Haines, had jurisdiction there. After 1980 Skagway

police were authorized to enforce the law there; as a practical matter, however, police rarely

visited the area.) The lack of law enforcement in Dyea or on the trail was an obvious gap; the

problem, however, was minimal, because few situations arose in which police protection was

necessary. [140]

That situation changed during the weekend of May 21-23, 1988. Hundreds of Canadians

celebrated the Victoria Day weekend by coming to the Skagway area, as they had each year

since the Klondike Highway had opened. During previous years, the weekend had been

pleasantly uneventful; hotels and campgrounds (including NPS's Dyea Campground) had been

full, and cash registers at the town's bars, liquor stores, and other establishments were busy for

the first time in months. The only trouble that had arisen out of the annual festivities had been

scattered incidences of drunkenness and littering. But in 1988, the celebrations took an ominous

turn. More than 300 youths camped in and around Dyea campground, and for three days both

Dyea and Skagway endured scenes of drunkenness, fighting, noise, property damage, and

vandalism. [141] Park Service officials and Skagway police officers were clearly overwhelmed

by the lawlessness; they coped with the rowdy throng by frequent patrols, by ordering some of
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the miscreants out of the country, and by calling in the Alaska State Troopers for prisoner

transport. In order to prevent a repetition of the weekend's activities, NPS officials had a series

of meetings soon afterward with other local law enforcement officials. In concert with their

counterparts from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, these meetings continued, on an annual

basis, for years afterward. [142] As a result, the events of the 1988 Victoria Day weekend have

not been repeated.

As a consequence of the Victoria Day weekend activities, the NPS's cooperative relationship

with the Skagway police, and its greater standing in the community, the agency has exercised

some law enforcement capabilities during the 1990s. Relatively few arrests have been made, all

by permanently stationed rangers. Violations which have resulted in citations have included the

illegal taking of a bear, illegal parking, and tree cutting on NPS land; in addition, as noted in

Chapter 9, the leaders of both a Swiss and a German hiking group have been cited for failing to

obtain an NPS Commercial Use License. During most or all of these cases, the defendants have

entered guilty or "no contest" pleas and fines have been imposed. [143] At the present time,

permanent rangers are required to have law enforcement commissions. Seasonal rangers work

under no such requirement. In 1991, however, the park hired its first commissioned seasonal

ranger, Dave Stannich. Since that time at least one seasonal ranger has had a law enforcement

commission, and since 1994 two or more have been commissioned. [144]

Another problem in Dyea Campground, unrelated to law enforcement, was the poor condition of

the buildings in the ranger-station complex. The buildings, as noted above, had originally been

built as wall tents in 1979 and had gradually been improved over the years. They were,

however, substandard, and by the mid-1980s had begun to deteriorate. In response to the

problem, park maintenance crews in 1988 began a four-year effort to refurbish the Dyea ranger

station complex. During the first year, they installed a new water system: a well, storage tank,

water heater, plumbing and fixtures. The following year, they improved the quarters and moved

the pit toilets. In 1990, further improvements to the quarters and the water system took place,

and crews remodelled the ranger station; a year later, a new shower building was constructed.

[145]

The 1991 Land Protection Plan

As noted above, Superintendent Richard Sims had written a Land Protection Plan for the park in

July 1984. In accordance with agency procedures, Superintendent Alderson in 1989 set out to

update the plan. He wrote a draft that year, and by early 1990 it had been reviewed by regional

and Washington authorities. The park was then informed that an environmental assessment to

accompany the plan was required. That document was completed in September, and on

December 8, both plans were released to the public for a 60-day comment period. [146]

On January 8, 1991, a public meeting was held in Skagway on the plan. The lightly-attended

meeting was generally harmonious. At least one Dyea resident, however, objected to language

that prohibited the "construction of new or greatly expanded buildings or facilities." Similar

language had provoked considerable controversy when the draft land acquisition plan had been

released in 1980. Alderson assured the meeting participants that the phrase was meant only to

prohibit alterations "like a strip mine" that would be totally unacceptable to the appearance of

the park. Adding to a house or other minor land use modifications, he assured the assembled

participants, would be a fully acceptable activity. Alderson, at the meeting, reiterated that the

park's primary land-acquisition priority was the state's acreage in the Chilkoot Trail corridor,

and both he and Gary Gustafson, director of the state's Division of Land and Water

Management, told participants of their plans for a land exchange. The meeting resulted in

several revisions to the draft land protection plan, and on March 3 the final plan was completed

and forwarded to the regional office. Regional Director Boyd Evison signed it on April 3, 1991.
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[147]

During this period, the NPS acquired its first new land parcel since 1980. In 1985, Dyea resident

Alf Kalvick told the NPS that he would be interested in selling his improved two-acre parcel,

located on the east side of Dyea road near the old Kinney Bridge site. Superintendent Richard

Sims showed an immediate interest, inasmuch as the land protection plan had identified his

property as one of the highest-priority privately-owned parcels in the Dyea area. [148] No

money was available to purchase the property, however, until 1990, and during that period (the

fall of 1988) Kalvick died.

The NPS, anticipating its acquisition, decided in March 1990 to lease the parcel from Edna

Kalvick (Alf's widow) for employee housing, and an NPS employee occupied the house later

that month. The property was appraised in March 1991 for $82,500, and it was hoped that the

acquisition would be completed early that summer. In April the NPS sent an Agreement to Sell

to Mrs. Kalvick. The owner, however, did not respond, so Superintendent Alderson met with her

and learned that she would not sell for the appraised value. The NPS, in response, initially

announced that it would abandon its efforts to purchase the building and would also terminate

its lease. In February 1992, however, the NPS reconsidered its refusal and stated that it would

be willing to pay $90,000 for the property. Ms. Kalvick was amenable to the higher price; that

value, however, had to be approved by both the Interior Department and by Congress. The

revised offer was submitted to Congress in June, and in late September Congress approved it.

The purchase was finalized on December 10. [149]

The agency also moved to clear up disputes over the occupancy of a parcel that it already

owned. Back in June 1978, the NPS had paid Mark Noyd and Mary Joseph $646,000 for a feesimple interest on the 336-acre parcel in the Dyea townsite area that included the old Pullen and

Matthews homestead lands (see Chapter 5).

As part of that purchase, the sellers claimed that there were no encumbrances on the property.

After the purchase was finalized, however, NPS personnel learned that several local residents

were continuing to occupy or claim portions of the parcel. Those residents included Larry and

Kristin Jacquot, claimants to the Gary Gordon cabin; Dave Hunz, claimant to the "Dyea Country

Club" cabin; Art Nelson, claimant to a cabin later occupied by Al Huntley and Scott Home; and

Emil Hanousek, claimant to the Lee Gault cabin (actually a Quonset hut) that was later occupied

by Martin Kisel and Denise Caposey. Hanousek's Quonset hut was located along the main road

to the Dyea flats, midway between the Slide Cemetery and the old Pullen Barn, while the other

three structures were located in the northwestern corner of the parcel, north of the Slide

Cemetery. [150]

The NPS, hoping to resolve the issue, contacted the former owners in early 1986. Noyd and

Joseph, who lived in Atlanta, admitted that they did not know about the occupants' claims;

because of that ignorance, they had failed to tell the government about them before

consummating the sale. The former owners' attorney, working in conjunction with their

government counterparts, contacted each claimant. Art Nelson, who had left Alaska in 1974,

disclaimed any interest in his property. Emil Hanousek was living in a nursing home and was

unable to defend his claim, so Goldie Hukill, acting on Hanousek's behalf, relinquished all

claims to the parcel. Dave Hunz and the Jacquots were found to have had a more well-founded

claim. Noyd and Joseph, therefore, agreed to pay the two parties $9,000 and $9,500,

respectively. [151]

Kisel and Caposey, occupants of the Hanousek cabin, were told that they were trespassing and

were ordered to vacate their residences as quickly as possible. They moved out during the

summer of 1986. Scott Home, who lived in the Nelson cabin, was given a similar order in early

1987. In order to avoid demolition, Home had his cabin dragged north to one of the privately-
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owned homesteads. On May 1, 1988, the Skagway Fire Department burned the Hanousek's

Quonset hut.

Hunz and the Jacquots, given their more favorable legal position, were given permits in January

1987 that allowed them five more years for the recreational use of their cabins. Those permits

expired in January 1992. A year later, the NPS razed the Hunz cabin, and in 1994 the Jacquot

cabin met the same fate. [152]

General Management Plan Issues Pertaining to Dyea

As noted in Chapter 5, the park began the long process to write a General Management Plan in

1990. In May 1991, the agency held several public scoping sessions on the plan. After sifting

through the received comments, it returned for another series of public meetings in June 1992.

Relatively few of the comments made at those meetings, or in the written comments pertaining

to the plan, related to Dyea. Those that were made called for an increase in area interpretation

and an easing of access to the Dyea beach area. Both concerns were valid; interpretation in the

area had been ignored ever since the abandonment of the Dyea Development Concept Plan in

1985, and access to Dyea's beach had long been difficult because of high standing water levels

on the West Branch of the Taiya River, near the old Pullen Barn. [153]

Agency planners digested these and other public comments, and by July 1993 they had prepared

a series of three preliminary management alternatives. City officials, in response to a request

from Acting Superintendent Janet McCabe, held a July 21 hearing on the proposed alternatives.

Based on two hours of public comment that day, the Skagway City Council tentatively adopted

a "no change" resolution, which asked the NPS to keep additional facilities investments to a

minimum. The city, at McCabe's behest, was able to soften the council's position, and the

resolution that finally passed asked the NPS to take "a conservative approach" to development.

[154]

Despite the tone of that resolution, the council was willing to work with the NPS on the Dyea

beach access problem. The two entities learned that the Forest Service had recently begun

offering grants to overcome access problems through its "wooden bridge" program. The action

was deemed necessary because the Alaska Department of Fish and Game ruled that the existing

beach access road, which crossed through the West Branch of the Taiya River, disturbed an

anadromous fish habitat. The city, moreover, backed the plan because a council member hoped

to use such a bridge as part of a West Creek logging operation, and because the occupant of the

so-called Moran Cabin needed a bridge to safely reach his property. At the urging of Acting

Superintendent Janet McCabe, therefore, the city and the NPS applied for a grant that would

have paid for about 40 percent of a proposed $86,000 bridge to Dyea flats. The Forest Service

would fund the remainder of the construction costs. Later that year, the council also considered

constructing a bridge by either using old railroad flat cars or by installing a culvert in the

streambed and covering it with gravel. Neither solution was enacted. [155]

The following year the NPS and the city submitted a second application, and for awhile,

prospects appeared bright that the Forest Service would fund the project. [156] Before a

decision was made, however, an event took place in Dyea that temporarily tabled the beach

access problem.

On Tuesday, May 24, 1994, Dennis Walker of the Whitehorse-based Yukon Radio Control

Modelers Club (YRCMC) stopped at the NPS office in order to obtain a group camping permit.

[157] The club had been holding an annual fly-in each spring since 1980, and in previous years,

the agency had been consistently cooperative in providing the group a camping permit. But in

1993 (according to the NPS), Chief Ranger Bruce Reed had informed the group's representative
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that the YRCMC would not be able to return for a group campout on the Dyea flats in 1994

because of the environmental impacts caused by such an activity. (The club, Reed said, was

welcome to fly their planes on the flats, but camping would be limited to either Dyea

Campground or the Nelson Slough area.) The YRCMC representative, however, either did not

understand Reed's 1993 warning or failed to remember it, because he expected to be granted

another permit in 1994. Walker, angry about the denial, told local residents about the Park

Service's decision; he then wrote letters to the Skagway News, Governor Walter Hickel, and

various state legislators. He also changed the venue for the year's fly-in from the Dyea flats to

Atlin, British Columbia.

The NPS's denial of the camping permit was widely protested by Skagway residents. As has

been noted earlier in the chapter, the agency's purported control of the Dyea flats--one of the

few flat, open areas in the vicinity--had long been a sore point with local residents, and they

saw the agency's action as one more attempt to close the area to their legitimate,

nonconsumptive use of the area. As a result, local residents sympathized with the Canadians'

cause. Keith Knorr, a Skagway member of the club, suggested that Reed's action was illegal

because the NPS, during the late 1970s, had guaranteed the continuation of recreational

activities on the flats. [158] Mayor Stan Selmer felt that the NPS had communicated poorly to

the club, and noted that the agency "needed to be more realistic with (the) special use permit"

that had allowed the group to use the flats in previous years. Selmer declared that "If all those

traditional uses are going to damage the Dyea flats to where a certain portion of the gold rush

history is lost, then that's a certain price that must be paid for the people of today." [159]

In an attempt to find a solution amenable to both sides, Superintendent Clay Alderson met with

Mayor Selmer on June 10. Selmer, clearly angry at the existing state of affairs, hoped that the

NPS would be able to provide some flexibility on what land uses were allowed in Dyea, and he

vowed that if the talks were not productive, he would attempt to create a new state park from

the state-owned lands in the Dyea area, both inside and outside of the national historical park

boundaries. The city council backed Selmer in supporting the new state park. Harry Noah, the

state's natural resources commissioner, openly voiced support for the idea, and some DNR staff

members were likewise supportive. [160]

By early August, however, upper-level DNR managers had concluded that the state was in no

position to manage a Dyea area state park. They told the city, however, that the long-delayed

mental health trust issue was finally nearing a resolution, and that as a result, the city would

once again be free to select land for its own purposes. As noted above, the city had first shown

an interest in selecting Dyea land in early August 1980, and another spark of interest had arisen

in the fall of 1989. Both attempts, however, had been thwarted by difficulties related to the

Mental Health Trust lands dispute.

This issue became public, and was hotly debated, at the August 4, 1994 city council meeting.

Superintendent Alderson, who attended the meeting, repeated the offer he had made five years

earlier (see section above). He hoped that the NPS and the council might be able to work out an

agreement in which city land selections made inside the park would be surveyed by the NPS,

then purchased by the federal government for fair market value. But a hostile council, learning

that the mental health lands issue was on the verge of being resolved, proposed that the state

turn ownership of much of its Dyea lands to the city as soon as January 1995. City Manager Jim

Filip, steering a middle course, recommended that the NPS continue its management of the

Dyea area; local residents, however, demanded a greater say in determining what uses would be

allowed on the flats. [161]

During the midst of the controversy, a lawmaker proposed that the state revoke its longstanding

memorandum of understanding over state lands within the park. Fred Zharoff, the Kodiak-based

senator who represented Skagway in the state legislature, suggested the action as the result of
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pressure from local model airplane enthusiasts. He announced that if his proposal was enacted,

the state would be free to develop its land as it wished after a year, which was the grace period

described in the MOU. Alaska State Parks official Bill Garry responded to Zharoff's move by

offering MOU language that would have weakened the NPS's authority to enforce agency

regulations. Few others, however, backed Zharoff's plan, and after a few months, the issue was

quietly dropped. [162]

On August 24, at a meeting of the city's Parks and Recreation Committee, Superintendent

Alderson and city leaders continued the debate, commenced at the August 4 council meeting,

over how land in the Dyea area should be used. Alderson, hoping that the city would limit its

land selections to parcels outside of the park, noted that the area was presently being used for a

variety of recreational activities, and stressed the importance of the area's historical and wildlife

resources. But some city council members presented a contrasting viewpoint. Suzanne Hartson

noted that "I don't see the land as historic, but a nice place for recreation." She and John

Tronrud envisioned that the area, if selected by the city, might support more camping, use of

recreational vehicles, the construction of homesites, perhaps even a small golf course. [163]

Finally, in December, the city council met and made its final land selections. The city, given the

opportunity to choose a total of about 8,000 acres in state land, chose to select slightly more

than 1,600 acres. Among its selections were 1,015 acres in lower Taiya Valley (in the Dyea area

and between Dyea and the Sawmill), 427 acres in West Creek Valley, acreage on the hillside

east of Skagway, and approximately one square mile of land in and around Sheep Camp. More

than 80 percent of the lands the city selected were outside of the park. The acreage within the

park, however, was high in historic values, as Congress had determined in 1976 when it

established the park. The NPS, therefore, formally protested the city's action in early August

1995. [164] In mid-December, the state's Department of Natural Resources rejected the city's

land conveyance. The state gave the city six months to respond, and by January 1996 the city

council had decided to prepare a management plan to buttress its case. Two months later, the

city hired a Juneau consulting firm, Sheinberg Associates, to prepare the plan. The company

completed the plan and presented it to the city council on June 6. The city, in turn, forwarded

the plan on to DNR officials in hopes of overturning the state's rejection. But no final decision

has yet been made; as of this writing, none of the city's selections, either within the park

boundary or elsewhere in the Taiya Valley, have been transferred out of state ownership. [165]

By the time the city made its selections, the Dyea area was receiving some long-overdue

attention from NPS planners. As noted above, the city council had recommended in July 1993

that the NPS proceed with a "conservative approach" to development within the park. Given that

dictum and the comments included from other interested parties, regional planning official Jack

Mosby proceeded to compile a draft general management plan.

Early in the compilation process, Mosby recognized that the Dyea area would require an

expanded planning effort. In January 1994, the decision was made to compile a Dyea

Development Concept Plan, similar to the efforts that had been begun in 1984-85 and 1987-88.

Mosby assigned landscape architect Ken Pendleton to the task. Pendleton, using the cultural

resource data that had been compiled during the mid-1980s, laid out a series of alternative

development scenarios for the Dyea area, and by September 1995 the draft DCP had been

completed. The plan was then incorporated into the park's General Management Plan, the draft

of which was presented to the public in June 1996. [166]

During the midst of the DCP planning effort, interest in the Dyea area by commercial tour

operators reawakened after an extended lull. During the early 1990s, ranger Jeff Mow had

begun to offer visitors tours of the Dyea townsite; he called them "Bushwhacking Tours

Through Time." Those tours, which began and ended where the road crossed the West Branch

of the Taiya River, had first been offered only once or twice per week. Soon, however, their
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popularity increased to the point that they were offered on a daily basis. The increased interest

in the NPS-sponsored tour caught the attention of Skagway tour operators. In 1994, Klondike

Tours advertised a similar tour under a NPS commercial use license, but the firm offered few if

any tours. Gray Line of Alaska, working with local operator Sockeye Cycle, offered a bicycle

tour in 1994. Their three-hour trips from Skagway to Dyea proved highly successful. [167]

In 1995, the number of commercial tour possibilities available to Dyea area visitors increased

considerably. In addition to the townsite tours and the bicycle rides, Chilkoot Horseback

Adventures began operating horseback rides and wagon rides on the Dyea flats. Skagway Float

Tours revived a decade-old idea to operate raft trips along the Taiya River between West Creek

and the mouth of the Taiya, and Chilkat Guides, Ltd. also offered float trips. Finally, bus tours

in the Dyea area were offered by four different companies. A total of eight companies utilized

the Dyea portion of the park; all operated under NPS commercial use licenses. Park officials

welcomed the tour operators' renewed interest in the area. They recognized, however, that

continued visitor growth had the potential to negatively impact the area's historical and natural

resources. As a result, portions of the DCP (and the consequent GMP) have addressed the

agency's concerns in that area. [168]
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(left) Willard "Skip" Elliott was a Dyea landowner who served as a ringleader for

opposition to the Dyea Land Acquisition Plan. He later served as Skagway's city

manager and mayor. (right) During Victoria Day weekend, large numbers of

Whitehorse residents often descend on the Skagway area. Occasionally, they

cause damage and injuries; in 1988, several criminal incidents took place at the

Dyea campground. (Lynn Canal News, October 2, 1980, 8 (left); Whitehorse

Star cartoon, reprinted in the June 5, 1985 Skagway News (right))
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(top) The so-called Pullen Barn was one of the few structures in Dyea that remained standing when the NPS

began to administer the area in 1976. The structure, which dates from the gold rush period, was probably built by

Robert Wright, who had lived in Dyea since 1893. It collapsed during the winter of 1982-83 and is now a decaying

ruin. (bottom) Remote control flying enthusiasts met each year from 1980 to 1993. When, in 1994, they were

refused permission to camp on Dyea flats, they and many Skagway residents criticized the NPS's decision. (David

Cohen photo, KLGO SC #866 (top); Jeff Brady Collection (bottom))

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

PART II: MANAGEMENT OF THE ALASKA UNITS

Chapter 9:

Chilkoot Trail Management

The park's Chilkoot Trail Unit includes both the trail corridor and the Dyea area. During the

gold rush, stampeders travelled through the entire unit on their way between Taiya Inlet and the

summit of Chilkoot Pass. Since that time, however, visitors to Dyea have often had divergent

goals from those who have entered the Chilkoot Trail corridor. Those who have visited Dyea

have wanted to farm, graze horses, log timber, live at a homesite, plant a garden, ride a

motorcycle, take a recreational drive, or pursue a variety of other interests. Those who have

visited the Chilkoot Trail corridor have been limited to trappers, hunters, and trail hikers. Since

the early 1960s, the vast majority of visitors have been hikers, most of whom have wanted to

retrace the steps of the gold rush stampeders by traversing the length of the trail from Dyea to

Lindeman.

Because of the dichotomy of historical use patterns, Dyea and the Chilkoot Trail have been

discussed in separate chapters. It is recognized, however, that some topics are equally applicable

to both the Dyea area and the Chilkoot Trail corridor. For example, the various state-federal

cooperative agreements and memoranda of understanding apply to the entire Chilkoot Trail

Unit. In addition, several national register nominations and cultural resource surveys have

pertained to both areas. In these and similar cases, introductory and general information has

been included in Chapter 8, as has all material pertaining to the Dyea area. In this chapter,

material has been added that specifically pertains to the Chilkoot Trail corridor.

Ranger Activities

As has been explained in chapters 3 and 4, the Chilkoot Trail corridor was owned by the

General Land Office (later the Bureau of Land Management) during the post-gold rush era. [1]

In 1961, the state of Alaska selected most of the land along the trail; that same year the state's

Youth and Adult Authority (Y&AA), in conjunction with the state Division of Lands, began to

construct a recreational trail between Dyea and the summit of Chilkoot Pass. That effort, which

included the erection of shelters near the ghost towns of Canyon City and Sheep Camp, was

completed in the summer of 1963 (see Table 4). Y&AA crews returned to maintain the trail for

the next five years; then, from 1969 through 1972, they were replaced by personnel from the

Alaska Division of Parks, part of the state's Department of Natural Resources. The role of the

Y&AA and the Division of Parks was limited to construction and maintenance; neither

organization attempted to establish rangers along the Chilkoot.

Table 4. Chilkoot Trail Visitor and Support Facilities
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In the United States:

Facility Name Construction Date

Canyon City Shelter 1962

Sheep Camp Shelter 1963

Sheep Camp Ranger Station (2 bldgs.) 1973, 1975; D 1990*

Sheep Camp Ranger Supply Cache 1975; D 1990

Canyon City Trail Crew Camp 1980**

Sheep Camp Ranger Station (rebuilt) 1989-90

Finnegan's Point Public Use Shelter 1993

Pleasant Camp Public Use Shelter 1993

Sheep Camp Public Use Shelter (2 bldgs.) 1993 (both)

Canyon City Helicopter Platform 1993

Sheep Camp Helicopter Platform 1994

Dyea/Sheep Camp Tent Platforms (1 each) 1995

In Canada:

Facility Name Construction Date

Lindeman City - Upper Cabin 1968

Lindeman City - Lower Cabin 1970

Lindeman City - Warden Camp 1973**

Stone Crib Emergency Shelters (2) 1976, 1978; D 1991

Stone Crib Ranger Cache 1982; D 1989

Summit Patrol Cabin 1989; E 1991

Bare Loon Trail Crew Platform 1990; D 1994

Summit Day Use Shelter 1991

Happy Camp Shelter 1991

Bennett Interpretive Platform 1995

D - dismantled, E - expanded.

* - The two original Sheep Camp ranger buildings were moved in 1989 to a nearby location to

make way for a new ranger station that was erected on the same site.

** - The two camps were established in the year indicated. Gradual additions and

improvements to the camps were made in several subsequent years.

Sources: Chapters 3, 4, and 9; David Neufeld to author, facsimile, June 19, 1995; Candy

Norris, interview by author, June 19, 1995; Jay Cable interview, June 30, 1995.
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Map 10. The Chilkoot and White Pass trail corridors. Source: Caroline Carley,

Inventory of Cultural Resources in Klondike Gold Rush National Historical

Park, 1981, 7. (click on image for an enlargement in a new window)

During the summer of 1972, the National Park Service became active in managing the Chilkoot

Trail. The NPS, by this time, had been active for more than three years planning a potential park

unit in the Skagway area, and in 1971, the agency had issued a preliminary master plan formally

stating how they would manage the area if it became part of the national park system. The state,

which by now had gone on record as supporting the park, was evidently convinced that the park

would one day become a reality. Not wishing to expend state dollars on a future federal park

unit, the state joined with the Bureau of Land Management (which still owned the trail corridor)

and the NPS, and on August 11, 1972, the three parties signed a cooperative agreement on

Chilkoot Trail operations. That agreement stated that the NPS "shall undertake to provide

management and protection and do what may be necessary to administer, protect, improve, and

maintain the lands and associated resources" in the Chilkoot Trail corridor. [2]

As a result of that agreement, Glacier Bay Superintendent Robert Howe assigned two seasonal

employees, Scott Sappington and Chuck Nelson, to serve as trail rangers along the Chilkoot.

Monument personnel then constructed a prefabricated ranger cabin, which in early 1973 was
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installed one-quarter mile south of Sheep Camp, at a site between the recreational trail and the

Taiya River. The two rangers began working on the trail that May. In addition to Sappington

and Nelson, those who served as rangers during the period when the trail was managed out of

Glacier Bay included Art Mortvedt, Doug Sanvik, Roy Richey, and Phil Koehl.

In June 1974, the Bureau of Land Management at long last decided on the future ownership of

Chilkoot Trail corridor lands. The agency announced that the state had received a Tentative

Approval for the land selections it had made in 1961. The federal government, by that action,

gave the state effective title to most of the Chilkoot Trail corridor. (It will not receive a patent

to the parcel until the corridor is surveyed.) Given that decision, the state Department of Natural

Resources has played the predominant role ever since in most management decisions affecting

the Chilkoot Trail corridor.

The passage of the park bill, in June 1976, resulted in the transfer of 270 acres of land, just west

of Chilkoot Pass, from the BLM to the NPS. (This parcel had not been selected by the state of

Alaska.) Otherwise, Congress's action had a relatively small impact on Chilkoot Trail

operations, at least initially. Ranger activities along the trail continued to be directed from

Glacier Bay for the remainder of that summer. By the following summer a superintendent and

historical architect were stationed in Skagway. That summer, trail rangers included Janet Ross,

Meg Jensen, and Doug Sanvik. In addition, park officials asked each of the in-town interpreters

to spend a week of their summer assisting the regular rangers along the trail. That experiment

proved unsuccessful and has not been repeated. [3]

The agency hired three Chilkoot Trail rangers for the 1977 and 1978 seasons. In 1979 there

were six rangers, a number that was decreased to five in 1980. Beginning in 1981 the park

began hiring four rangers per season; they have continued with that number to the present day.

[4]

Regardless of the number of rangers hired, just one person at a time was assigned to the Sheep

Camp ranger station. The ranger's primary function was to check on hiker safety and resource

protection; he or she typically did so by hiking each day to the top of the pass, answering

questions and concerns en route, and communicating those concerns to the Chief Ranger in

Skagway and the warden patrolpersons north of the Canadian border. After returning from the

hike, the ranger typically walked through the Sheep Camp campground and provided advice,

regulations, and encouragement to hikers preparing to ascend the pass. He or she also, on

occasion, gave an informal interpretive presentation.

The park radio was the primary means of communication. As noted in Chapter 4, radio

communication for both NPS rangers and the Canadian wardens had been inconsistent during

the mid-1970s. In 1977, a new single side band radio system was installed. But that system,

based at the Glacier Bay National Monument headquarters in Bartlett Cove, worked only

intermittently. Various improvements--none very successful--were attempted for the remainder

of the decade. Then, in 1980 or 1981, a Park Service technician from Yellowstone, Bill

Huffman, installed a repeater and duplexer high on the slope west of Sheep Camp. The new

system proved highly successful. The following year, the relay equipment was moved from the

Sheep Camp area to a knoll west of Chilkoot Pass. The system continued to work flawlessly

and it remained, unchanged except for annual maintenance, for a decade. In 1991, the agency

attempted to replace the battery-powered system with a solar charging system, and

communications that year suffered as a result. By the following spring, however, the problem

had been corrected and the radio has proven relatively trouble-free ever since. [5]

As noted in Chapter 8, seasonal trail rangers hired during the 1970s and 1980s were asked not

to perform law enforcement functions. Given that restriction, they were able to do little to

prevent the occasional examples of wildlife killing, low-flying aircraft, firearms violations, and
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littering that they have observed. That policy changed in 1991 when the park hired its first

seasonal commissioned ranger, Dave Stannich. Since then at least one seasonal ranger each year

has had a law enforcement commission, and beginning in 1994, two or more commissioned

rangers have worked each season. [6]

Rangers throughout the park's history have been given the task of enforcing NPS regulations,

particularly as applied to the burning of historic wood and the removal of gold rush-era

artifacts. In addition, the agency has long regulated camping locations. Starting in 1978, the

NPS enforced a prohibition against camping between Sheep Camp and the Scales, and in 1980

the agency began to prohibit all camping except at the Sawmill, Finnegan's Point, Canyon City,

Pleasant Camp, and Sheep Camp. Another regulation begun in 1980 prohibited camping within

the shelters. The Sawmill, one of the five designated campgrounds, became off-limits to

campers beginning in 1983 due to complications arising from the Mahle Native claims. [7]

Rangers have performed numerous instances of first aid to injured hikers. On several occasions,

injuries have been so substantial that helicopter evacuations to Skagway or Juneau have been

necessary. No deaths have been recorded, either on the Canadian or U. S. side of the trail, since

recreational use of the Chilkoot began in the 1960s, nor have any deaths taken place as a direct

result of injuries sustained on a Chilkoot hike. [8]

Rangers have compiled an impressive amount of information about the natural resources of the

trail corridor. During the mid-1970s, Scott Sappington (a college-trained wildlife biologist) had

incorporated an impressive number of wildlife and wildflower observations into his annual trail

ranger reports, and in 1981, ranger and ornithologist Bruce Edmonston had compiled a list of

bird species observed along the trail. [9] In 1986, Scott Home (formerly known as Scott

Sappington) returned to the trail and compiled a brief overview of area wildlife. He distributed

copies to park staff and interested trail hikers. In addition, rangers typically recorded their

wildlife observations on daily patrol forms. The Chief Ranger was well aware that the park

needed to collect formal baseline data on the trail's natural resources; it similarly needed to

develop policies on backcountry management. Those projects, however, remained unfulfilled

until the mid-1990s, when the park's newly-hired biological technician and natural resource

specialist began to undertake them. [10]

Trail Use and Facility Development

During the decade that followed the passage of the park bill, the Klondike rangers contended

with an increasing number of Chilkoot hikers. Between 1973 and 1976, as noted in Chapter 4,

the annual number of hikers had climbed from 1,070 to 1,508 (see Appendix A). That number

continued to increase for the next five years; in 1978 more than 2,000 hiked the trail, and in

1981 the number of hikers topped 2,500. The surging number of trail hikers caused some in the

agency to recommend that measures to be taken to limit use, while others recommended that a

backcountry management plan be written that would include such topics as group size and a

permit system. [11] After 1982, however, the closing of the railroad resulted in a decrease in the

trail's popularity. In 1985 only 1,449 hikers were recorded--a 44 percent decrease in just four

years. As a result, NPS officials had few concerns during this period about the number of trail

hikers.

More than nine-tenths of those latter-day Argonauts typically hiked the pass in a northbound

direction. Almost everyone hiked the trail between early June and late September, and some

three-quarters of them hiked between July 15 and August 15. [12] Winter travel was relatively

light. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, scattered visitors reportedly hiked up the trail each

winter. Of those that did, many failed to complete their journey, and several suffered injuries

and had to be evacuated. The number of wintertime hikers dropped off dramatically following
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the railroad shutdown in October 1982. [13]

Most Chilkoot hikers during this period carried backpacks and took three to five days to

complete their trip. At least one party, however, carried a canoe over the pass, and in 1981 an

Englishman bicycled the route. In 1975, a group of modern-day stampeders built a raft at

Bennett Lake and floated down the Yukon River; after completing their two-year trip, the rafters

gained the sponsorship of the National Geographic Society; they returned to the area and

repeated their efforts for a PBS documentary called Yukon Passage. [14] Still others wanted to

hike the trail as quickly as possible. In 1974 a Juneau runner covered the 33 miles between Dyea

and Bennett in 10-1/2 hours. That record was broken three years later by another Juneauite who

ran the trail in 8-1/2 hours, and in 1979 by a four-man team, again from Juneau, who combined

to run the trail in 6 hours and 47 minutes. Since that time runners have tested the Chilkoot

almost every year. As a result, the single-person record has been lowered to 8 hours, but the

relay record set in 1979 still stands. The NPS rangers looked askance at such activities; one

called a record-breaking run a mark of "dubious distinction." [15]

Trail usage, low during the mid-1980s, soon began to bounce back to former levels, in part

because the WP&YR returned to service. In 1989, hiker volume exceeded 2,000 for the first

time since 1982. In 1992 a new record was set when 2,748 hikers were tabulated, and the

following year that record was broken when trail rangers counted almost 3,000 hikers. In 1994,

2,623 hikers were recorded, while 3,628 made the hike in 1995. [16]

The increasing number of hikers had two primary effects on the resources in the trail corridor.

One (perhaps coincidental) consequence was an increase in the degree of contact between

humans and bears. NPS rangers, even before the establishment of the park, had been well aware

that the Taiya River valley was prime black bear habitat, and to prepare hikers for possible bear

encounters, a seasonal ranger had prepared the park's first bear information booklet in 1979.

[17]

Visitors each year thereafter spotted bears along the trail from time to time, and incidents

involving damage to tents or backpacks occasionally took place. In 1980, 1983, and 1985, for

instance, no problem bears were recorded. In August 1981 and June 1982, however, rangers had

to use cracker shells on a Sheep Camp bear, and in August 1984, a bruin broke into the Sheep

Camp ranger station. [18] Then, in 1986, the number of incidents dramatically increased. Bears

were sighted 64 times that year; six of those incidents involved bears taking food from hikers.

Two incidents were particularly noteworthy. During the July 4 weekend, bears caused $2,000

damage to the Canyon City campground. The NPS, in response, closed the campground for 17

days. In mid-August, bears struck again; as a result, Dyea resident Bob Hackett killed a bear

after it had entered his house, and two days later, NPS ranger Scott Home killed a bear that had

become a persistent guest at Sheep Camp campground. [19] Two years later, a black bear

attacked the trail crew camp above Canyon City, and in 1989, a bear entered the Finnegan's

Point campground and rummaged through a backpack. No further bear problems were

encountered for the next several years, but in 1995, bears damaged a Sheep Camp facility and at

Canyon City, rangers had to use cracker shells and rubber bullets keep bears at bay. In the Dyea

townsite area that year, several "garbage bears" were spotted, and at least one was shot there

(see Chapter 8). [20]

A second consequence of the increasing number of hikers was the increasingly heavy toll

visitors made on trail resources. Those impacts were manifested to the greatest degree in and

around Sheep Camp, Canyon City, and the other campsites. Larger crowds resulted in more

woodcutting, more littering, more danger to the trail's cultural resources, a demand for more

camping space, and other environmental pressures.

In response to the increasing degradation, the park decided to improve its campgrounds and
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trailside facilities. Perhaps the most critical problem existed at the Sheep Camp campground. In

order to allay the natural and cultural deterioration caused by hiker use, park officials had

proposed for years that the camp be moved. Finally, during the summer of 1991, the trail crew

located a campground site; and soon afterward, archeologists completed compliance work and,

much to their surprise, found many evidences of cultural material in the area. [21]

Soon afterward, the Alaska Congressional Delegation proposed the construction of cabins at

several of the state's national park units; as part of that plan, it offered to fund the construction

of several new hikers' shelters along the Chilkoot Trail. As a result of the delegation's action,

the decision was made during the summer of 1992 to add four 12' x 14' public use cabins. Two

of the cabins were to be constructed at the new Sheep Camp location, while one each would be

built at Finnegan's Point and Pleasant Camp. Archeological clearances and an environmental

assessment for the cabin construction were completed that year, and all of the cabins plus the

new campground at Sheep Camp were completed during the summer of 1993. [22] Park staff

soon discovered that the new, 37-site Sheep Camp campground, despite the planning that had

preceded its opening, needed to be expanded. As a result, the park's maintenance crew

constructed a wooden platform, to be used as a tenting site, during the summer of 1995. Plans

call for several more to be built. [23] The former Sheep Camp warming shelter, built in 1963, is

still being used; in 1995, it began serving as the NPS's public-use ranger station.

Another way in which park staff dealt with resource degradation along the trail was by requiring

all hikers to obtain a backcountry permit. Park rangers announced the new policy during the

spring of 1993. The permits were free and available to all who requested them, but they were

necessary to inform hikers about trail regulations. The permit system was readily accepted;

during their first year of use, permits were obtained by 95 percent of all hikers. [24]

In addition to the public use cabins mentioned above, park staff also replaced the Sheep Camp

ranger station and built an equipment storage shed during this period. As noted above, a

prefabricated ranger station had been flown to the site in 1973, and in 1975 a second building

was erected adjacent to the first. Both structures, however, were merely plywood frames

overlain by a wall tent, and by the mid-1980s both buildings needed to be replaced. In 1987,

therefore, archeologists surveyed the site of a proposed new ranger residence, to be located just

a few feet south of the old ranger station. Construction began during the spring of 1989 and was

completed a year later. The new facility, constructed entirely of wood, boasted such amenities as

gas lights, a stove, and a refrigerator, none of which had been available previously. [25]

Maintenance Activities

As noted in chapters 3 and 4, Chilkoot Trail maintenance was the state's responsibility during

the 15-year period that preceded the Congressional passage of the Klondike park bill. From

1961 through 1968, the Division of Youth and Adult Authority maintained the trail, and from

1969 through 1972 personnel from the state's Division of Parks spent a short time each year

clearing the trail, replacing bridges, and performing similar maintenance duties. The first statefederal cooperative agreement, signed in August 1972, stated that "The Department [of Natural

Resources] provides early season maintenance of the trail but is unable to provide season-long

protection for hikers or historical resources." As a result of that agreement, the state continued

its maintenance activities through the summer of 1976; during the same period, NPS rangers

were responsible for the hiker safety and the protection of the area's natural and cultural

resources.

In 1977, the NPS began contracting for its own maintenance crews. These crews camped in

various spots along the trail and performed large-scale trail work, while park rangers were relied

upon for minor bridge repairs and other maintenance tasks. [26]
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In 1979 the NPS hired a three-person crew, and foreman William W. Edwards purchased "a full

complement" of maintenance equipment. The crew had its hands full that summer. It developed

"temporary" campsites at the Sawmill, at Finnegan's Point, and at Pleasant Camp. Then, in early

July, the bridges at both 6.5 mile and 11.0 mile [27] washed out. The crew was able to make

only temporary bridge repairs that season, because the equipment Edwards ordered did not

arrive until fall. [28]

By 1979 the modern trail had been in use for almost two decades, and the combination of aging,

limited facilities and a boom in trail visitation demanded an overhaul of the existing trail

infrastructure. Mike Shields, a trail foreman from North Cascades National Park, had made a

detailed survey of trail needs the previous summer, and in 1979 Edwards wrote an assessment

report that largely echoed Shields' recommendations. The two men recommended, among other

things, that a new campground be established at 1.5 mile and that the campgrounds surrounding

the Canyon City and Sheep Camp shelters be expanded. They also noted that the only pit toilets

were at Canyon City and Sheep Camp; therefore, they recommended the construction of five or

six new toilets. A total of 14 bridges along the trail needed replacing; they suggested that 12 be

replaced in situ, while the other two (at 6.5 mile and 11.0 mile, as noted above) be moved a few

feet away from their former locations. [29]

The two reports were forwarded to the Alaska Area Office. Citing resource conflicts, cultural

resources personnel protested that portion of the report recommending the expansion of the

Canyon City or Sheep Camp campgrounds. Area Director John Cook upheld that protest;

otherwise, however, he adopted Edwards' suggestions. The NPS then forwarded the reports to

William Hanable, the State Historic Preservation Officer, for his approval. [30]

In order to ascertain the impact of the proposed maintenance activities on cultural resources, and

to respond to Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP) concerns, historian Bill Brown

organized an interagency Chilkoot hike. The hike, which took place from June 2 to June 6,

1980, consisted of five others from the NPS (Klondike Superintendent Richard Sims, and

Howard Wagner, Robert Peterson, Douglas Warnock, and Ken Schoenberg, all from the Alaska

Area Office), Chip Dennerlein of the Alaska Division of Parks, Parks Canada officials, and

several other interested parties. Soon after the completion of the hike, an NPS official was able

to assure the ACHP that his agency had conducted an on-site archeological investigation at all

of the proposed maintenance activity sites. Alaska Area Historian Bill Brown also wrote a brief

preservation plan that identified the major trailside resources. [31]

The five-person maintenance crew, headed by Jerry Watson, installed pit toilets that year for the

"temporary" campgrounds at the Sawmill, Finnegan's Point, and Pleasant Camp. On a larger

scale, the crew established an ad hoc maintenance camp on a remote, high perch located onehalf mile north of the Canyon City shelter and east of the recreational trail. The crew lived in

tents during its first year at the new site; during later years, canvas was gradually replaced with

plywood in order to bearproof the maintenance equipment and the crews' personal belongings.

[32]

In 1981, rehabilitation of the trail infrastructure continued. In September 1981 the Taiya River

flooded; as part of that flood, the bridges at 1.5 mile and near 11 mile were destroyed, and

several smaller bridges were also washed away. Those, however, were soon replaced, and by

the end of season, NPS crews proudly noted that they had replaced 16 log bridges since 1979.

[33]

A major project, begun in 1981 and completed in 1982, was the replacement of two of the

largest bridges on the trail. These were the 6.5 and 11.0 mile bridges that had been washed away

in the July 1979 flood. [34] Rather than replace the 11.0 mile bridge with a log structure that

might last for only a short period, maintenance personnel decided (much to the dismay of
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cultural resources personnel, who saw it as a modern intrusion) to construct a suspension bridge

at the site. Later that year they installed a second suspension bridge over the Taiya River, to

connect the trail with the historical site of Canyon City. They also installed a 90-foot log bridge

in 1982 and three shorter log bridges. [35]

By the end of the 1982 season the maintenance crew had completed the most critical of its

upgrading projects. For the remainder of the decade, the crew kept busy replacing destroyed or

deteriorated bridges, maintaining the shelters, clearing the trail, and improving the tread. Major

projects during the period included draining a boggy, quarter-mile section of trail near

Finnegan's Point, in 1983, and relocating three pit toilets, in 1984. In 1987, the crew replaced

the 32-foot bridge at 13 mile using laminated beams flown into the site by helicopter. But an

avalanche north of Sheep Camp in early 1988 destroyed the bridge, requiring it to be rebuilt that

September. [36] The first major bridge to fail during the 1990s was the 90-foot bridge at 1.5

mile. The log bridge washed away in the fall of 1990 and was replaced with an upgraded, steel

bridge the following spring. Then, in the fall of 1993 and 1994, floods damaged or destroyed

several other bridges; the largest was the Canyon City suspension bridge, which was damaged in

1994. Both floods also damaged the newly-relocated Sheep Camp campground. [37]

A major job that the crew undertook in August 1991 was the removal of the wreckage of a Lake

Buccaneer amphibian on the mountainside south of the Scales. The wreckage dated from

October 17, 1975; killed in the crash were two Michigan men, Robert Douglas and Noel Turner,

one of whom owned the plane. The wreckage, strewn across the west-facing scree slope, was

highly visible in the rocky, unvegetated location, and many hikers over the years considered it

an eyesore. In order to clean up the area and to remove debris that did not contribute to the gold

rush-era setting, the NPS maintenance crew dismantled the plane and removed it by helicopter.

[38]

Throughout the 1980s and on into the mid-1990s, Jerry Watson has served as trail foreman (see

Appendix B). He still serves in that position. From 1980 through 1995, he was assisted by

Skagway resident Roy Nelson. Crew members that have served for more than one year during

that period have included Mike Beierly, Bruce Hill, James A. (Andy) Robertson, Pat Moore,

James Routzahn, Mike Catsi, and Bill Sell. The size of the crew ranged from three (in 1985) up

to nine (in 1982). [39]

In 1984, the agency considered replacing its maintenance crew with a crew hired by a private

company. The federal government that year, through the A-76 program, attempted to give

private enterprise a greater opportunity to manage governmental functions. NPS officials, trying

to do their part to implement the program, required all proposed projects to be maintenance

related: road and trail maintenance, garbage collection, and similar endeavors. In Alaska, pilot

projects were attempted at Denali National Park as well as at Klondike.

John Warder, Klondike's maintenance chief, felt that the most realistic A-76 implementation

measure was the privatization of the Chilkoot Trail maintenance program. By February 1984, he

had written a draft statement of work. That spring, he and other park officials travelled to

Anchorage, finalized the document, and let the project out for bid. Two bids were received.

Both were by Outside companies, and both bids at least four times as high as the NPS had been

paying for its existing crews. The two bids were rejected, and there have been no serious

attempts since that time to turn over Chilkoot Trail maintenance activities (or any other park

operating functions) to the private sector. [40]

Interpretive Measures

When the Chilkoot Trail became part of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, hikers
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were already being provided basic interpretive services. As Chapter 3 and 4 have noted, the

Alaska Department of Natural Resources printed a trail guide in 1968 (with revisions in 1972

and 1974), and the Klondike Gold Rush International Advisory Committee created a new, fullcolor guide in 1976. Additional interpretation became available in 1974, when NPS and Parks

Canada rangers installed approximately 20 aluminum signs along the trail interpreting gold rushera resources and events. The signs were adorned with historical photographs as well as both

English and French text.

Since the establishment of the park, interpretation along the trail has changed relatively little.

NPS officials, in the late 1970s, installed photocopied diaries of gold rush stampeders in the

Canyon City and Sheep Camp shelters. In addition, several trail rangers have offered

interpretive programs to Sheep Camp overnighters from time to time, and the Skagway visitor

center has shown films about the hike. Since 1993, the ticket office in the old WP&YR depot

has offered a slide-video which describes and interprets the trail for potential hikers. But the

agency's primary effort, as described below, has been the updating and improvement of

brochures and exhibits.

Brochures have been updated every few years since the park was authorized. In 1978, the

agency worked with Parks Canada on a reprinting of its 1976 brochure, "The Historic Chilkoot

Trail." In 1981, Interpretive Specialist David Cohen spearheaded the creation of an entirely new

guide, entitled "Chilkoot Trail." [41] Cohen's successor, Betsy Duncan-Clark, coordinated the

updating of the brochure in 1984, 1986, and 1988. The creation of each of these brochures was a

team effort; the verbiage contained in each one was a result of the collaboration of NPS and

Parks Canada staff, and the two agencies took turns in paying the printing costs. The Canadian

Parks Service, a short-lived successor to Parks Canada, sponsored the creation of a new

brochure, "A Hiker's Guide to the Chilkoot Trail," which was completed in March 1991. It was

revised in 1993. Beginning in May 1996, the brochure was offered for sale, for the first time, at

the park's new Alaska Natural History Association outlet in the visitor center. [42]

From time to time, park staff have recommended the creation of a Chilkoot Trail interpretive

booklet that would be sold through the park's cooperating association. Supporters hoped that the

guidebook would provide a more thorough trail history, and a more detailed description of trail

resources, than the hiker's guide offered. Backers of the booklet noted that the efforts of Spude,

Carley, and others had uncovered much new material about trail resources and that publication

of such a volume would enhance the value of, and respect for, those resources. As noted in

Chapter 8, however, Klondike's cooperating association lasted only a few years and was limited

in its scope. Perhaps for that reason, or because other concerns were more pressing, such a

volume was never published. [43]

In addition to the periodic updating of the trail guide, the primary interpretive activity has been

the updating and installation of a series of trailside historical markers. In 1981, when the

markers that had been designed by Parks Canada were just seven years old, the park's

Interpretive Prospectus suggested the installation of a new series of wayside exhibits. Four of

these markers, as noted in Chapter 8, would be located in Dyea--along Dyea Road, at the Slide

Cemetery, beside the Long Wharf Pilings, and at the old false front (the A. M. Gregg Real

Estate Office). Two others would be located at the trail head, six others along the U.S. side of

the trail, and seven others on the Canadian side. Three markers were proposed in the Skagway

historic district. [44]

The park's draft Resource Management Plan, issued in February 1982, strongly recommended

new wayside exhibits. Park staff argued that the existing markers were "not adequate for today's

trail and hikers." It was also noted that several of the new markers would be placed adjacent to

particularly important trailside resources; for that reason, therefore, the markers were needed for

resource protection purposes. [45]
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In 1983, the wayside exhibit proposal was forwarded to the agency's Harpers Ferry Center, and

Exhibit Planner Richard B. Hoffman was placed in charge. Hoffman and Interpretive Specialist

Betsy Duncan-Clark conferred about the plan while hiking the trail that summer. After the hike,

Hoffman offered a revised proposal that still called for three signs in Skagway and four in

Dyea; the subjects of those signs, however, were slightly different that those proposed in 1981.

The number of signs on the U.S. side of the trail, by now, had increased from eight to ten; the

number in Canada had increased from seven to ten. [46]

In early 1984, the NPS and Parks Canada signed a cooperative agreement on the project, thus

allowing the two agencies to work together. During the same period, NPS Regional Director

Roger Contor committed the agency to the project. [47] That summer, Hoffman began to

prepare a fully developed draft. The plan, which received input from both the NPS and Parks

Canada, was completed in September 1985 and circulated for comment. By November, outgoing

Superintendent Richard Sims predicted that the new interpretive signs would be installed in

1986. Research efforts related to the Chilkoot Trail Historic Structures Report, however, brought

out a need to make major revisions to the draft plan, and those revisions were not submitted

until April 1986. [48]

The plan was finalized and exhibit production began in 1987, and the following year, park staff

received the completed markers and installed them along the trail. The completed plan consisted

of 32 wayside exhibits. Of that number, three were located in Skagway, six in Dyea, ten on the

U.S. side of the trail, and nine on the trail's Canadian side. [49] The new markers, which are

supported by two posts, are more solidly constructed than the old ones, that had a single support

post. Even so, several markers have been destroyed by snow loads or avalanches. Museum

specialist Debra Sanders has provided maintenance assistance by periodically cleaning and

waxing the obverse of the U.S. markers. [50]

In 1989, NPS personnel suggested that the trail be seen in a new light--not as a discrete

assemblage of resources but as a unified, coherent cultural landscape. In order to implement the

concept, a party of four NPS personnel--Regional Historical Architect Steve Peterson, Regional

Historian Kate Lidfors, Cultural Resource Specialist Karl Gurcke, and Cultural Landscape

Specialist Cathy Gilbert from the Pacific Northwest Regional Office--hiked the trail that

September. Soon afterward, Gilbert wrote a draft cultural landscape report that emphasized the

philosophy of the trail experience and the means to preserve it. Those who accompanied her

were impressed by the report and offered positive comments. No final report was issued, but

many of the suggestions she propounded were later incorporated into the draft version of the

park's general management plan. [51]

Boundary and Ownership Proposals

When established in 1976, the park included a 9,087-acre Chilkoot Trail Unit, which was

approximately 17 miles long and one mile wide. More than four-fifths of that unit was owned

by the State of Alaska. Along the Chilkoot Trail corridor north of Dyea, the state controlled an

even higher percentage of land. The only other parties with an interest in the corridor were the

NPS, which owned just a small (270-acre) triangular slice of land near the top of Chilkoot Pass,

and the three Mahle brothers, who in 1971 had applied for Native allotments between the

trailhead and Finnegan's Point.

As noted in the section below, the Mahles eventually gained title to the acreage for which they

had applied. No other changes have been recorded since 1976, even though several parties

during the past two decades have attempted to modify either the size or the ownership pattern in

the trail corridor.
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The first proposal to change the existing order, as noted in Chapter 8, came in 1981. Relations

between the NPS and local residents had been poor ever since the agency had issued its draft

land acquisition plan in April 1980, and during the winter of 1980-81 relations had deteriorated

even further. In the midst of that situation, the State of Alaska began to push for the

development of a hydroelectric project on West Creek, and preliminary surveys showed that

both the powerplant and adjacent transmission lines would be located on park land. Marvin

Taylor, a pro-development member of the city council, reacted to the proposed West Creek

plans by suggesting, at the March 26 public meeting attended by NPS Regional Director John

Cook, that the Chilkoot Trail Unit be reduced to eliminate the Dyea area from the park. That

suggestion had won the "unanimous approval of those in attendance," so the city noted Taylor's

suggestion in a letter to the Alaska Congressional Delegation. Taylor noted that the city had

always wanted to preserve the Chilkoot Trail but not "have the whole Dyea valley turned into

and managed like a wilderness area." Local residents also supported the city's action because

they were afraid that the park service would oppose and stifle potential hydroelectric

development on West Creek if transmission lines crossed the park boundary. Cook, in response

to Taylor's suggestion, noted that he had heard him "loud and clear." He refused, however, to

take a position on the issue. [52]

Taylor's idea was then incorporated into a city council resolution, which was passed at the

council's September 3 meeting. The resolution called on Congress to reduce the Chilkoot Trail

Unit to a 100-foot strip that stretched along the trail from Dyea to the top of Chilkoot Pass. [53]

The resolution was forwarded to the Congressional delegation, and in response to Senator

Murkowski's wishes, NPS officials in Washington helped prepare a draft bill that would carry

out the council's suggestions. Neither Murkowski nor others in the delegation, however,

introduced such a bill, and the matter was dropped. In subsequent years, the idea of reducing or

eliminating the Chilkoot Trail Unit has not been reconsidered. [54]

The state, in the context of the West Creek project, has twice attempted to gain title to NPS land

in the Dyea area. As noted in Chapter 8, authorities had pursued an unsuccessful federal-state

land trade in 1982; that trade had not involved land in the trail corridor. Five years later, the

state's Division of Land and Water Management revived the trade idea. This time, the proposed

plan would have deeded the 22-acre powerhouse site to the state in exchange for a 40-acre

parcel surrounding Canyon City and an 80-acre parcel surrounding Sheep Camp. By August

1987, the trade was "in the process of being completed" and seemed on its way to being

consummated. [55] But an appraisal of the three properties revealed substantial differences in

land values, and the proposed swap was put on hold for the time being. [56]

In the fall of 1989, as noted in Chapter 8, another plan arose that held the potential for the NPS

to acquire parcels in the Chilkoot Trail Unit. The City of Skagway attempted for the second

time to select lands as part of its Municipal Entitlement Program allotment. (Their first attempt,

nine years earlier, had primarily involved land in the Dyea area.) The city's selection included

more than 1,000 acres within the park and included land on Dyea flats, at Canyon City and at

Sheep Camp. The NPS and the city discussed a proposed arrangement, but the state, engulfed by

the Mental Health Trust controversy, placed the selections on hold. The proposed land transfers

did not take place, at least for the time being. [57]

The NPS has consistently noted, in its discussions with state DNR officials, its interest in

acquiring state land in the trail corridor. In 1989, the issue re-emerged when the federal-state

Memorandum of Understanding came up for renewal. NPS officials, during discussions held

prior to the renewal, let it be known that the agency had spent hundreds of thousands of dollars

maintaining and patrolling the trail, constructing permanent improvements, and identifying

cultural resources. As a result, the agency could not continue indefinitely to spend money on

state lands without some assurance that the lands would be transferred to federal ownership in

the very near future. [58]
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Given that caveat, the state and NPS signed the revised MOU in December 1989 and January

1990, respectively. Soon afterward, the state began looking at other federal lands in Alaska that

could be used in negotiating an exchange for its Dyea and Chilkoot Trail parcels.

Superintendent Alderson met several times with Alaska State Parks director Neil Johannsen on

the matter. Following those meetings, the state determined that the only federal lands that they

wanted to acquire were NPS lands. The NPS, however, refused to release any parcels already

included within park boundaries. [59] Alderson, however, would not accept that standoff. He set

up a meeting on the issue with Johannsen and Ron Swanson, the latter the director of the state's

Division of Land Management. After that meeting, which took place in 1991, Swanson and

Johannsen offered to sell the state's land in the park to the federal government. Congress,

however, showed little interest in modifying the park act to allow the purchase of park lands,

and the matter was dropped. [60]

The Mahle Native Allotments

As noted in the section above, the only private claims for land in the Chilkoot Trail Unit north

of Dyea have been three Native claims. The claims are located on the east side of the Taiya

River; they extend for approximately two miles along the trail corridor. The claims begin just

south of the Hosford Sawmill and continue most of the way to Finnegan's Point.

On April 19, 1971, Skagway resident Andrew C. Mahle filed for a Native Allotment under the

provisions of the Act of May 17, 1906. Six months later, on October 7, his brothers Fred O.

Mahle and Harlan L. Mahle filed similar applications. Fred applied for an 80-acre parcel, which

included the sawmill, plus two other parcels outside of the park; Harlan applied for an 80-acre

parcel north of Fred's, plus one other outside parcel; and Andrew applied for a 160-acre parcel

just north of Harlan's.

The Mahle brothers, who were of Aleut ancestry, moved to Skagway when they were young.

Fred, who was born in 1931, claimed that he had built a cabin on his parcel in 1943 and claimed

continuous use and occupancy since then. Both Andrew, born in 1936, and Harlan, who was

older than Fred, claimed use of their parcels prior to 1948. With the exception of Fred, the three

brothers made no claims of having lived on the land or improved it. Instead, they based their

claim on having trapped and cut timber on their individual parcels to the exclusion of others.

They also claimed that they had fished and picked berries on the parcels in order to provide food

for the St. Pius X Mission residential school, where all were students. [61]

The Bureau of Land Management spent the next several years processing the Mahles'

applications. Field and mineral examinations were conducted, reports written, archeological

surveys completed, and the claims surveyed. Additional evidence was requested from the

applicants. The field reports and surveys clearly showed that the recreational Chilkoot Trail

passed through each of the allotments. The field reports recommended that a public easement 50

feet on each side of the trail's centerline be reserved in any conveyance to the Mahles.

On June 1, 1981, pursuant to Sec. 905(a)(5) of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation

Act (ANILCA), the State filed access protests on Andrew and Fred Mahle's claims. The State

also filed protests on all three claims based on Sec. 905(a)(4) of ANILCA, because the claims

conflicted with lands the State had filed applications on in June 1961. These latter protests were

declared invalid and dismissed by BLM.

During the summer of 1982, the Harlan Mahle family (Harlan had died in January 1977)

threatened to close the Chilkoot to recreational hikers. In response, NPS Regional Director John

Cook asked Jack Allen, Regional Solicitor for the Department of the Interior Solicitor's Office,

if the Mahles could legally close the trail prior to conveyance. Cook also asked three other
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questions regarding the land's legal status if the allotments were approved. First, could a public

easement be reserved? If so, what management authority would the NPS have over the trail

where it crossed the allotment? Finally, what rights did the applicants have to use motorized

vehicles? In his response, Allen stated that the Mahle had no right to close the trail if public use

predated their use; also based on prior public use, he noted that the trail could be excluded from

the allotment on the grounds that it was used communally by others. Allen further noted that the

NPS could "request the Department of Justice to initiate action to protect the public right to use

the trail." In order to do so, the NPS would need to compile a well-documented historical file

proving longtime public use and determining precise trail locations. [62]

In March 1984, historian Robert Spude completed a 16-page report that chronicled use of the

trail during the gold rush era, the period between 1910 and 1945, and during the postwar era. He

concluded that "The Chilkoot Trail has been in continuous use by the Chilkoot Tlingit as a

trading route, by gold rush era stampeders and by recreationists.... The historic route and present

trail pass through the three Native allotment applications." Spude's report was filed with the

BLM on May 3, 1984. [63]

By decision dated June 21, 1984, the BLM held for approval Andrew Mahle's claim. The

decision stated the Certificate of Allotment would be subject to the continued right of public

access across the Chilkoot Trail, not to exceed 25 feet in width. This was one-quarter the width

that had been recommended by the BLM field examiner in 1972.

On July 3, Andrew Mahle protested the decision, claiming that at the time he built bridges and a

road across the Taiya River in 1949-1950, the Chilkoot Trail had followed the west side of the

Taiya River and therefore the trail should not be reserved. On July 9,1984, the BLM vacated the

June 21 decision until further historical research and evaluation was completed. [64]

The NPS produced three additional reports, all written by Robert Spude, and gave them to the

BLM on July 3, 1985. The first detailed the historic (gold rush-era) location of the Chilkoot

Trail in the Sawmill area by providing photographs and maps which buttressed the conclusions

Spude had made in his March 1984 report. The second report described the use of the Sawmill

area between 1946 and 1961, the period when the Mahles claimed to be active in the allotment

area. The third report was an annotated bibliography of sources related to Spude's research. [65]

By the time the NPS had submitted its reports, the State of Alaska had filed its own objections

to the claims. The State, in letters signed May 17, 1985, stated that the claims were invalid

because none of the three brothers claimed use and occupancy prior to January 13, 1948, when

Public Land Order 436 closed the Taiya River valley to new claims. (See Chapter 2.) The State

furthermore claimed that any use that was made was not sufficient to satisfy the requirements of

the Native Allotment Act. Alaska Legal Services Corporation responded, by letter dated July 9,

1985, to several points raised in the state's letters. By December 1985, the state and the

applicants were willing to negotiate a settlement. But the NPS apparently remained firmly

opposed to any conveyance of the lands to the Mahles. [66]

In April 1985, the NPS contracted with Glenda Choate, a Skagway historian, to conduct oral

histories with individuals knowledgeable of Chilkoot Trail use between the 1930s and the

1950s. Choate interviewed twelve of the town's longtime residents and got their opinions of the

Mahles' activities in the Dyea area. By the end of August, Choate had completed her work and

submitted the interviews to Robert Spude. Choate concluded from her interviews that "I have no

doubt that the residents of Skagway used the Dyea Valley, that Ed Hosford built the sawmill and

cleared the road to it, and later the Mahle brothers worked for Hosford at the mill." The

information submitted by Choate was sent to BLM on February 12, 1986, shortly after the NPS

again requested the BLM to initiate contest proceedings. [67]
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Shortly after Choate had completed her interviews with local residents, she was again contracted

to interview several others who had been out in the Dyea and Sawmill areas in the early days.

During January and February 1986, Choate conducted another series of interviews; included in

those interviews were state workers who helped open the Chilkoot Trail as well as local

residents. Later that year, she obtained interviews or affidavits from several others familiar with

early-day activities in the Taiya River valley. On September 5, 1986, Ed Hosford's interview

was sent to the BLM. [68]

As part of its case, the NPS hoped to prove that several historical trails (hence public use

corridors) passed through the Sawmill area. No one, however, knew the specific location of the

historic wagon road in the Sawmill area. Spude, in 1985, had tried to obtain an archeological

survey of the Sawmill area. But the local NPS archeologist, Karl Gurcke, was able to spare only

a brief site visit. During the summer of 1986, however, a crew was able to make a full traverse

of the area (see section below). As a result of that survey, the NPS was able to discern that the

historic wagon road and the recreational trail were two separate routes. The wagon road's

specific alignment, however, had been largely obscured by time, periodic floods, and timber

cutting activities by the H&M Logging Company. [69]

On August 31, 1988, the BLM issued a decision approving Fred Mahle's application. This

decision was later vacated but the BLM again approved by application by decision dated

October 21, 1988. On December 1, 1988, the BLM made similar decisions in the cases of

Andrew and Harlan Mahle. (Andrew died in February 1985; Harlan, as noted above, had died in

January 1977.) The decisions noted that the brothers' "substantial use and ... occupancy was

seasonal, and according to local customs," but was substantially continuous. The decisions

found, however, that public use through the area was "at least as substantial" as the applicants'

use; the public use predated the applicants' use; and the public use was "essentially continuous."

Because the BLM did not know the exact location of the historic trail, and because the location

of the right-of-way had changed at least once since the gold rush period, the BLM decided that

the most reasonable location of a right-of-way through the corridor appeared to be along the

present-day hiking trail since it had become the public's only established access route through

the valley. The BLM stated in each decision, therefore, that the Certificate of Allotment would

be subject to the continued right of public access, not to exceed 25 feet in width, along the trail

as depicted on the U.S. surveys for each parcel. [70]

On November 17, 1988, the NPS appealed Fred Mahle's decision and on January 4, 1989, the

agency appealed the other Mahles' decisions. It based its appeals on three reasons. First, the

three applicants claimed occupancy of their parcels after PLO 436 (in January 1948) had

withdrawn the land for other purposes. Second, the three brothers were neither 21 years of old

nor heads of household prior to the withdrawal, and had no proof of emancipation. Third, there

was no analysis of the substantial evidence that NPS had presented regarding the brothers' use

of the land, and the brothers had not fulfilled the "substantial actual possession" of their parcels

required by the 1906 act. [71]

The State also appealed the BLM decisions. Then, on April 7, 1989, the Interior Department's

Acting Regional Solicitor notified the BLM and NPS that it would defend BLM's decision "in

connection with the issues arising under Section 906 of the Alaska National Interest Lands Act

and, if necessary, defense of the protection of the Chilkoot Trail." (Section 906 dealt with State

selections and conveyances.) The Acting Regional Solicitor noted that the State had indicated it

disagreed with BLM's findings of adequate use and occupancy and that the appeals of the state--

and not the NPS--would test the correctness of the BLM decisions. The Solicitor's office stated

that it was going to withdraw the NPS appeals, which it did on April 19, 1989. [72]

On April 25, 1989, the Solicitor's office informed the NPS that the State would settle with the

Mahles if they would agree to a buffer zone. [73] Over the next eighteen months, attorneys with
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the State and the applicants' heirs (the longest-living applicant, Fred Mahle, died in February

1989) attempted to negotiate a settlement. As part of those negotiations Superintendent Clay

Alderson and various Mahle family heirs hiked out to the allotments on June 15, 1990 and

informally agreed that a 50-foot conservation easement would provide a sufficient barrier to

protect hikers from visual encroachments. All hopes for a settlement broke down, however,

because the heirs insisted on compensation. The NPS indicated that it would pursue acquisition

of the claims, and the State withdrew its appeal on November 2, 1990. [74]

On February 11, 1991, the BLM conveyed the parcels to the heirs of the three brothers. Andrew

Mahle's heirs received 156.58 acres; Harlan Mahle's heirs received 80.00 acres, and Fred

Mahle's heirs received 79.97 acres.

As soon as the lands were conveyed, the NPS notified the attorneys representing the new

owners that it would be interested in purchasing the three parcels. The agency knew that the

claimants would be interested; the claimants, in fact, had long made it known that their primary

interest in obtaining the parcels was to sell them back to the Park Service. [75]

Little activity took place on the matter until early 1993, when John Brower, with Tlingit and

Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska, contacted NPS lands official Charles Gilbert about a possible

purchase of the three parcels. Superintendent Alderson backed the acquisition; he noted the

allotment's cultural resources (dating from the gold rush and post-gold rush eras) and potential

threats to the land if the purchase was not consummated. [76] On May 13, 1993, Regional

Director John M. Morehead requested emergency/hardship funding for the acquisitions.

Research into the parcels determined that a small portion of the Andrew Mahle property--

approximately 18.95 acres of the 156.58-acre parcel--lay outside of the park. However, because

the portion outside of the park was largely unmanageable and because the owners were not

interested in subdividing the parcel, the NPS concluded that the 18.95-acre portion of the parcel

was an uneconomic remnant and that the agency could acquire it. [77]

The appraisals that were completed for the parcels have not been approved. Because of this, the

funding for the acquisitions was pulled in fiscal year 1994 and the acquisitions are currently on

hold.

In 1995, Andrew Mahle's Native claim--the northernmost and largest of the three parcels--was

sold for $90,000 to Temsco Helicopters, a Juneau-based company that had been flying tourists

from Skagway to the Nourse glaciers for the past several years. Temsco has not yet made any

modifications to the 156.58-acre parcel.

Concessions Management Issues

Of the thousands of park visitors that have hiked over the Chilkoot Trail, relatively few have

been part of a commercially-guided group. As has been noted in Chapter 3, some commercial

trips predated the park. Wes Nelson, a Dyea resident, conducted horseback trips up the Chilkoot

from 1966 through 1973. Others took the trip with local resident Robert O. "Skip" Burns, whose

Klondike Safaris operated from 1970 through 1978. [78]

In 1972 a new guiding company, Alaska Discovery, began to offer guided trips over the trail.

The company, based in Gustavus, offered adventure tours in many areas of southeastern Alaska,

and one of its major destinations was Glacier Bay National Monument. According to company

personnel, the firm played a significant role in improving the trail during 1972 and 1973, and it

continued to offer trips over the pass until 1976, when it agreed to replace its trips with those of

Mountain Travel, an Albany, California-based tour operator. Mountain Travel offered annual
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trips over the Chilkoot until 1984. [79]

In 1979 another company, Wilderness Ventures from Jackson, Wyoming, began offering

Chilkoot trips. The company brought groups of high school students on trips to Alaska; as part

of their excursion, the company offered one or two Chilkoot hikes each year. [80]

Beginning in 1979, the Alaska Area Office established a system by which commercial operators

could use National Park system lands in the state. By 1981, a three-tiered system had emerged.

The most visible operators were concessioners, who were given the exclusive right to manage

facilities such as hotels and fishing camps located on park lands. Second, the NPS established

limited concessions permits (LCPs) for uses that the agency wished to limit. Third, the agency

established commercial use licenses (CULs) for casual day use on park lands.

Under this system, scores of LCPs and CULs were issued for use in the Alaska parks during the

early 1980s. Neither of these devices, however, were utilized at the various park units in and

around Skagway. The Chilkoot Trail, and other Klondike park units, remained unregulated

because the federal-state cooperative agreement, which had been signed in April 1978 and

remained in effect through the early 1980s, did not give the NPS the authority to regulate

concessions operations. The result of that situation, as one NPS employee noted, was that "in

essence, no commercial operations were allowed." NPS rangers--and doubtless the

superintendent as well--were certainly aware of the commercial trips, but they were in no

position to license or regulate their activities. [81]

In April 1983 Bonnie Kaden, a representative of Alaska Discovery, wrote to Superintendent

Sims and asked for a permit. To justify the granting of the permit, she outlined in some detail

the company's ten-year record of activity. Sims, however, denied her request, citing the

cooperative agreement and the "added pressure" that organized groups inflicted on the trail's

camping areas. Kaden, not to be dissuaded, wrote to Regional Director Roger Contor about the

situation and again requested a permit. [82]

So far as is known, Contor did not reply to the Alaska Discovery representative. Her request,

however, had not fallen on deaf ears. Later that year, NPS representatives met with their

counterparts at the State of Alaska to renew the cooperative agreement, and when it was signed

in February 1984, it included a provision that allowed the NPS to exercise jurisdiction and

enforce the provisions of 36 CFR on state-controlled lands within the park. (As noted in Chapter

8, local citizens went into an uproar over the new agreement, but the revised agreement, signed

in November 1984, retained the provisions outlined in the earlier document except as they

applied to hunting.) [83]

Given the new agreement, NPS officials were free to establish a regulatory system for

commercial operators using the Chilkoot Trail. They did not, however, have a basis on which to

establish that system. The Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, passed in

December 1980, had contained a provision (Section 1307(a)) that had allowed commercial

operators who had been active in January 1979 to continue their operations. That clause,

however, applied only to NPS units that had been "established ... or added to" by ANILCA.

Although Klondike had not been affected by the act, Regional Director Roger Contor asked the

NPS director to approve a policy for the park similar to that contained in Section 1307. "We

wish," wrote Contor, "to recognize and directly negotiate concessions authorizations with those

individuals and companies who can prove a substantial history of leading trips across the

Chilkoot Trail." In October 1984, Washington concurred with Contor's suggestion. [84]

Having received approval to regulate commercial operations, the only remaining question in the

minds of the NPS was who should be granted a permit. In late 1984, Mountain Travel (which

had been guiding trips over the Chilkoot since 1976) was the only company of which NPS
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officials were aware. Mountain Travel, however, recommended that Alaska Discovery (with

whom it had long been associated) be given the permit instead. As a result, Alaska Discovery--

based now in Juneau--was issued a limited concessions permit in February 1985. That permit,

which cost $100 per year, gave the company the exclusive right to operate commercial trips

over the trail. [85]

For the next three years, Alaska Discovery was the sole permittee along the Chilkoot Trail.

Under that arrangement, the company guided trips for such groups as Tamarack Camps, the City

of Juneau, and Wilderness Ventures. The NPS required that Alaska Discovery conduct no more

than two commercial trips per year. That limit was determined because the company had

traditionally offered two annual trips, and because the NPS wanted to limit the number of trips

to traditional use levels. [86]

Most of the groups were comfortable with the existing arrangement. Wilderness Ventures,

however, was not. As noted above, the company had been organizing trips over the Chilkoot

since 1979, but for some reason NPS officials were unaware of their record of activity. The

company was angry that they had to pay guiding fees to Alaska Discovery; they were also angry

at the NPS's restriction on the number of annual trips. Alaska Discovery officials, who were not

antagonistic to Wilderness Venture's complaints, lobbied the NPS for an additional two trips.

That request was approved for the 1987 season. That winter, Wilderness Ventures told NPS

officials that it, too, wanted to obtain a permit. On March 24, 1988 the agency relented, and

asked the company to summarize and document its experience on the Chilkoot. Wilderness

Ventures did so, and in 1988 and 1989, both Alaska Discovery and Wilderness Ventures held

limited concessions permits for the Chilkoot Trail. [87]

In early 1988, regional officials began to write a park concessions management plan. The plan,

which was intended to address the commercial uses of the Chilkoot Trail relative to guide

service and outfitting, was compiled with the help of staff from the park as well as the Canadian

Parks Service. During the writing phase, no action was taken to modify the existing concession

system. The plan was finally completed in rough draft in early 1990. It was never finalized. [88]

During the winter of 1989-1990, the NPS decided to further loosen its controls on the

commercial usage of the Chilkoot Trail, and it let it be known that any potential guides need

only obtain a $75 commercial use license. During the first summer under the new system,

Wilderness Ventures obtained a CUL. Alaska Discovery, however, did not; instead, one was

secured by Tamarack Camps, a company that had been operating under Alaska Discovery's LCP

since 1987 if not before. [89]

Since 1990, a total of seven operators have taken commercial groups over the Chilkoot Trail.

The number of operators has ranged from three (in 1990 and 1991) to six (in 1995). There has

been a recent trend toward foreign operators; none existed prior to 1992, but by 1993 more than

half of the operators hailed from outside of the United States. [90] A more recent trend has been

the inauguration of four-mile day hikes for small groups of cruise ship passengers. These trips

began to be offered in 1995 by two groups: Gray Line of Alaska and Chilkat Guides, Ltd. [91]

Most of the commercial trail users, foreign and domestic, have followed the agency's regulations

and obtained commercial use licenses. A smattering, however, have attempted to avoid the

bureaucratic procedures and the costs involved. In 1991, rangers warned a German company,

Wikinger Reisen (Viking Travel), that a CUL was required. Its leaders elected, however, to

make a second attempt in 1992 without registering beforehand. The group was caught and a

federal court fined its leaders $3,500. A Swiss operator, Intertreck, pleaded guilty to the same

violation. [92]

In 1992, in conjunction with the upcoming General Management Plan, NPS officials resurrected
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the draft Concessions Management Plan that had been written during the late 1980s. Regional

and park officials teamed up and updated the plan, and a revised draft was completed in May

1995. [93]

Resource Management Activities

Since the 1960s, there have been five significant steps taken to study and protect the Chilkoot

Trail's cultural resources. The first effort, taken during the 1960s and 1970s, involved the

removal of several knockdown boats from the top of Chilkoot Pass. Caroline Carley and Robert

Spude followed with an archeological survey and historical research. During the early 1980s,

the park conducted a two-year effort to inventory artifacts along the trail; these were followed,

from time to time, by various artifact monitoring projects. During the mid-1980s, a historian

and an historical architect compiled a draft historic structures report for the trail. Finally, teams

of archeologists have spent several years conducting detailed field surveys of the trail corridor.

In addition to cultural resource management work, some effort has been expended to manage

the trail's natural resources.

Cultural resource protection along the trail began even before the park was authorized. The

workers who constructed the recreational trail "rediscovered" more than 80 knockdown boats

near the top of Chilkoot Pass, and in 1967 state trail crews removed twelve of them and gave

them to various museums. None, however, were available for interpretive purposes, so in 1977,

NPS rangers removed two additional boats and hauled them down to Skagway. The boats, still

wrapped in canvas, were then shipped to the agency's technical center in Harpers Ferry, West

Virginia, and in 1980, the newly-restored boats (with original cross-bracing and replacement

canvas) were sent to Seattle and Skagway, where they became major interpretive displays. The

NPS has a third boat, still wrapped and unrestored, in its museum collection. [94]

Two years after the knockdown boats were removed, archeologist Caroline Carley and two

assistants spent the summer on a cultural resource survey of the Chilkoot Trail. As noted in

Chapter 8, the crew also surveyed resources in Dyea and the White Pass Unit; most of its

efforts, however, were concentrated along the Chilkoot Trail. The trio surveyed the major

occupation centers (Canyon City, Pleasant Camp, and Sheep Camp) and the three-mile corridor

between Sheep Camp and the summit of Chilkoot Pass. As a result of their labors, they located

more than 120 features, including at least 19 general features, 29 structures, 8 structural scatters,

26 foundations, 15 pits, 13 artifacts, and 15 artifact concentrations. The crew was able to record

only a small percentage of the cultural material contained along the trail; it did, however, take

slides and prints of many of the recorded features. Carley's work was published in 1981. [95]

The work of Carley and her crew was complementary to that of Robert Spude, the park's

contract historian. Spude that year gathered both documentary and field-based information on

the various gold camps, and in January 1981 the results of his research were published in

Chilkoot Trail, a product of the University of Alaska's Cooperative Park Studies Unit. [96]

Carley and Spude's field work uncovered several previously unknown sections of the original

Chilkoot Trail route, and soon afterward, a long-simmering debate was rekindled on whether

the recreational trail should be relocated to the historical right-of-way. As Chapter 4 has noted,

the 1973 master plan had suggested that the agency "relocate the present trail to its true historic

location, where feasible." Rangers, however, had found that if historical trail segments also

served the modern hiker, they were far less likely to retain their historical resources. As a result,

the idea of realigning the recreational trail was discarded.

In the summer of 1979, however, the idea was revived. The agency ordered large-scale aerial

photos for the trail corridor, the purpose of which would be "to attempt to locate the original
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trails and roads as well as to document present conditions." Meg Jensen, a seasonal ranger, told

Anchorage cultural resource officials that most hikers were in favor of returning the trail to its

historic route. [97] Based on that statement, the proper location of the recreational trail was

discussed at the NPS planning conference held in Skagway in February 1980. At that

conference, the planners tentatively decided to stay with the existing trail. They were open to

the idea, however, of relocating the trailhead to the west side of the Taiya River, as it had been

during the gold rush. It was because of this plan that the agency--to the chagrin of many local

residents--had expressed the desire to acquire the various Dyea area homesteads. The planners

also hoped to see the construction of short spurs from the recreational to the historic trail. A

year later, perhaps because of the public controversy that the NPS's actions in Dyea had

generated, regional official Douglas Warnock announced that the agency intended "to eventually

relocate the Chilkoot Trail ... though not necessarily in the near future." By 1982, the agency

was being even more cautious; in its draft Resource Management Plan, officials tentatively

decided to improve the present trail route rather than relocate any portion of it. [98]

During the late 1970s and early 1980s, when the possible relocation of the trail was being

discussed, neither the NPS nor local residents knew the specific location of the path, or paths,

that comprised the Chilkoot Trail during the Klondike gold rush. Part of that information void

was overcome by Robert Spude's research into the subject, much of which was manifested in

reports pertaining to the Mahle Native claim cases (see above). As part of his work pertaining to

the Chilkoot Trail Historic Structures Report, Frank Norris summed up existing knowledge on

the trail's historic location. Then, beginning in the summer of 1986, the park began to sponsor a

series of archeological surveys in the trail corridor, and each of those surveys has provided

information on the specific location of the historic trail. But since the early 1980s, the park has

never seriously considered moving the trail from the course laid out by the state of Alaska in the

early 1960s. The only portions that have been rerouted have been short segments in the vicinity

of recently-reconstructed bridges, and trail segments that have been washed away by periodic

flooding. [99]

The third effort to gain knowledge about the trail's cultural resources was a two-year inventory

of trail artifacts. The inventory took place in 1982 and 1983, but the idea for it went all the way

back to the 1973 master plan, which had urged the agency to "preserve the hundreds of artifacts

abandoned along the trail." A year later, the Final Environmental Statement for the proposed

park had suggested that the agency, because it lacked adequate security measures, should

"inventory and collect small artifacts along the trail. When sufficient protection exists, the

artifacts will be replaced in their exact location, fastening them by means of cement or bolts."

The FES also suggested that agency personnel fasten all removable parts of larger artifacts.

[100]

In 1979, as noted above, Carley's archeological survey had identified hundreds of features. The

survey, however, was by no means a complete artifact inventory. She and her crew had

identified more than twenty vaguely-defined "artifact concentrations," and she frankly admitted

that due to time constraints, the crew had been unable to identify or locate artifacts along much

of the historic trail. As a result of her efforts, a few small artifacts that had been judged highly

susceptible to theft or weathering had been removed from their location and placed in the park

collection. Other objects, however, remained on-site and were permitted to weather with the

elements. These actions were indicative of a new philosophy toward trail artifacts that had been

manifested since the writing of the 1974 FES. [101]

The idea for a more complete artifact inventory began in June 1980 when, as noted above, a

large contingent of staff from the NPS, Parks Canada, and other agencies walked over the

Chilkoot Trail. The primary purpose of the hike was the mapping out of a trail maintenance

program. But several cultural resource specialists were included on the walk, because cultural

resources had to be considered should it be necessary to move bridge locations or otherwise
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disturb any new areas along the trail corridor.

Shortly after the hike was completed, an official with the Advisory Council on Historic

Preservation expressed reservations with the NPS's proposed maintenance activities. The official

promised, however, that he would withdraw the ACHP's objections if the agency first promised

to record, in place, all of the cultural resources that were in danger of being impacted by the

proposed activities. In addition, the agency needed to develop a cultural resource management

plan. Key to the plan was "a complete, comprehensive identification of all cultural resources

along the Chilkoot Trail..." If the plan, however, could not prevent the continuation of

vandalism, pot hunting, and erosion that had proven deleterious to the corridor's cultural

resources, the official asked the NPS to undertake "a program of data recovery and cultural

resource protection mechanisms." [102]

The agency, as noted above, satisfied the ACHP's first objection by having an Alaska Area

Office archeologist visit the bridge-relocation sites. (The archeologist, Ken Schoenberg,

surveyed the sites in October 1979 and returned for the June 1980 hike.) But the NPS could not

hope to comply with the ACHP's second objection without undertaking a more extensive survey.

In order to overcome the ACHP's objections, park staff in early 1982 obtained some funds for

the in-place preservation of artifacts. In response, park staff hired two seasonal technicians,

Melissa McDonald and Colleen Davenport, to locate and identify Chilkoot Trail artifacts. The

two women that summer spent more than nine weeks along the trail. As a result of their labors,

they found 54 items in the old Canyon City townsite, 133 items in Sheep Camp, and 113 items

in the Scales and Chilkoot Summit areas. Each item, when located, was identified with a black

number on a white-painted background; it was then located geographically in relation to a wellknown, easily visible reference point. The items were photographed and given a park museum

collection identification number. McDonald and Davenport completed a report of their findings

in late August 1982. [103]

During the winter that followed the team's field work, NPS staff read their report and mulled

over their findings. Park officials recognized that a few of the located objects should be

removed to the park museum. In accordance with the cooperative agreement, however, the park

had to consult with state officials regarding such an activity. In order to inform state officials,

NPS staff invited them on a hike over the Chilkoot Trail. That hike began on June 18, 1983.

Historical Architect Paul W. Chattey, from the State Historic Preservation Office, represented

the State of Alaska, while the NPS was represented by Regional Historian Bill Brown, Acting

Regional Curator Frank Deckert, and Park Interpretive Specialist Betsy Duncan-Clark. Along

the way, the party assessed the condition of the trailside artifacts and structures, and identified

criteria for their preservation and treatment. They agreed on a philosophy of preservation--that

the remaining structures should be stabilized and preserved but not reconstructed or otherwise

improved. They also selected a few artifacts for removal to the park collection. Artifact removal,

however, was postponed until later. In late August, eight items were removed from Canyon City

and seven items from Sheep Camp; a month later twelve items were removed from the Scales.

All 27 items were taken out by helicopter and are now in Skagway as part of the park's museum

collection. [104]

Meanwhile, seasonal staff undertook a second summer of artifact identification. Colleen Sinnott

(formerly known as Colleen Davenport) and Cathy Shank were hired to recheck the condition of

the artifacts located in 1982, to locate new artifacts, and to distinguish those artifacts that should

be included in a museum collection from those that should be preserved in situ or allowed to

deteriorate. As to the first point, Sinnott and Shank were able to relocate all but 15 of the 306

artifacts found the previous year. They also found and photographed 297 new artifacts: 19 in

Dyea, 81 in Canyon City, seven in Sheep Camp, and 190 in the Scales area. Of the newly-found

artifacts, they recommended that 25 be preserved in place because of their "high quality or
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historical significance." [105]

At the end of the 1983 season, park and regional staff were informed that no more funds would

be allotted to artifact inventory efforts. That winter, however, regional staff attempted to

translate what had recently been learned into a trailwide preservation plan, to be approved by

Parks Canada and Alaska State Parks as well as the NPS. A year earlier, a Juneau-based

conservator named Mary Pat Wyatt prepared a "trail treatment proposal" that included elements

of both cultural resource management and interpretation; that report was used as a basis for the

proposed plan. [106]

Wyatt's recommendations were to some extent impractical; she suggested, for example, that

each of the trail artifacts be lifted onto a well-drained gravel pad. Other portions of the report,

however, were more sound, and on that basis, NPS historian Bill Brown recommended various

preservation measures for structures located in the Scales and Chilkoot Summit areas. Brown

also recommended the possible stabilization of other structural remains. He continued to push

for a trailwide preservation plan. If that could not be effected, however, Brown recommended

the imposition of a moratorium on the construction of any major interpretive facilities. [107]

Brown's recommendations were accepted, to a large extent, by the regional office hierarchy.

Superintendent Sims, however, wanted them modified. He, like Brown, recognized the value of

writing an integrated trail plan, and promised to present the idea at the spring 1984 meeting of

state, NPS and Parks Canada officials. He demurred, however, at the idea of a construction

moratorium, noting that the imposition of such a moratorium might delay progress on the

Wayside Exhibit Plan, on which park staff had already been working for more than a year.

[108]

By the spring of 1984, Brown was no longer working on Chilkoot issues; perhaps for that

reason, the idea of an integrated trail plan did not come to fruition. Elements of the plan,

however, persisted in the ideas of Robert Spude, who urged park officials (as noted in Chapter

8) to adopt crystallization as a wood preservation mechanism. Despite the lack of a plan, the

idea of a moratorium was never adopted. Trail construction, as it turned out, was limited to the

replacement of log bridges for the next several years. In 1988, however, the wayside exhibits

were installed, and more recently, several structures have been erected in the trail corridor.

The next major effort to learn about the Chilkoot Trail's cultural resources began in 1985. Under

the direction of Regional Historian Robert Spude, seasonal employee Frank Norris was asked

that year to write several elements for the historical portion of the Chilkoot Trail Historic

Structures Report. As Chapter 8 has noted, most of those elements pertained to resources in the

Dyea area, but four elements described tramway-related features in Canyon City, on Long Hill,

and at the Scales. In addition, Spude asked Norris to assist him in the ongoing data-collection

efforts pertaining to the Mahle Native claims case by writing a history of the Hosford Sawmill

Complex. [109]

The following year, Spude asked Norris to continue his work on the HSR. He wrote an

additional eighteen elements that year; all but three described resources in the Chilkoot Trail

corridor. In 1987, the seasonal historian completed his HSR work by writing seven brief

histories of structural remnants in Dyea, Canyon City, and Sheep Camp.

The architectural component of the HSR was written by seasonal architect Carol Taylor. In

1985, Taylor resided in Skagway and completed Historic American Buildings Survey drawings

of various tramway features. She also made drawings of structural remnants located in Dyea and

along the trail. Two years later, Taylor returned and completed additional work on features in

the Chilkoot Trail Unit.

The fifth Chilkoot Trail cultural resource project was, like the work of Norris and Taylor, a by-
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product of the need to complete the historic structures report. In order to complete the HSR's

archeological component, regional officials hired Karl Gurcke as a seasonal archeologist.

Gurcke, and those working with him, spent the summers of 1984 and 1985 on projects in

Skagway and Dyea. In 1986, however, he commenced surveys in the trail corridor. He and his

two-man crew surveyed the valley east of the Taiya River from Dyea to Finnegan's Point. [110]

Gurcke's archeological efforts were concentrated on Dyea for the remainder of the decade, but

in 1990 his crews resumed their survey of the trail corridor. A three-person crew surveyed that

summer from Finnegan's Point to and including Canyon City. The following summer, a twoperson crew surveyed the east side of the Taiya River from Pleasant Camp to Sheep Camp in

conjunction with the proposed new Sheep Camp campground (see section above). Trail work in

1992 was again related to compliance activities, specifically the proposed improvements at

Finnegan's Point, Pleasant Camp, and Sheep Camp. A year later, however, regular survey work

was able to resume again, and a four-person field crew surveyed the rugged east side of the

Taiya River between Canyon City and Pleasant Camp. In 1994, a three-person archeological

crew completed a survey along the artifact-rich west side of the river between Pleasant Camp

and Sheep Camp, and in 1995, after the floods of the previous fall, a three-person crew did

extensive compliance work in the Sheep Camp campground area. It did some compliance work,

as well as a general survey, in a narrow corridor between Sheep Camp and the site of the Palm

Sunday avalanche, and it also surveyed the site of the proposed campground at Pleasant Camp.

[111]

The various Chilkoot field surveys since 1986 have revealed the true scale, variety, and

complexity of the trail's cultural resources. Carley's 1979 survey had provided a tantalizing,

intriguing hint of what lay in the trail corridor, and the artifact inventorying efforts of 1982-83

had provided additional clues. Most of those surveys, however, had concentrated on the trail's

ghost towns. Gurcke's laborious efforts have shown that many areas between the major gold

rush camps have proven rich in cultural resources. The records of the six-year effort, for

example, have revealed the existence of more than 200 artifacts located outside of the various

trail camps, few of which had been recorded previously. Archeologists have found a wide range

of communications equipment--telephone poles, wires, and insulators--as well as privy pits,

cooking pots, rock piles, log structure remains, and portions of the old wagon road. In 1995, the

crew finally located its first site (a rock shelter with associated artifacts) from a period that

predated the gold rush. [112]

In addition to the efforts made by Gurcke and his crews, personnel have periodically been

assigned to evaluate the condition of the artifacts that had originally been inventoried in 1982

and 1983. In 1986, seasonal worker John Mulder reinventoried the artifacts in and around

Canyon City. Then, in 1989, W. Scott Hoffman made a similar inventory of the Sheep Camp,

Scales, and Summit areas. Hoffman continued his work the following year, working at Dyea and

Sheep Camp, and in 1994, Lise Paradis resurveyed artifacts in the Canyon City and Scales

areas. [113]

As noted at the beginning of the chapter, NPS staff had begun to assemble data on the area's

natural resources back in 1973 when the first rangers were posted along the Chilkoot Trail.

Rangers, particularly those who had a natural science background, had continued to gather

natural resource data during the years that followed. The draft Resource Management Plan,

which was written in 1982, decried the lack of natural resource information, and when the park's

cultural resource specialist was hired in 1987, he was informed that he would be responsible for

natural resource management as well. It was not until the 1990s, however, that park staff were

able to consider the systematic gathering of such information.

Initial activity began in 1991. The park that year embarked on its first natural resource

management program through a series of inventory and monitoring projects, all performed by
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the seasonal ranger staff. Wildlife observation points were established and all observations were

entered in a computer database. Salmon spawning activity was also monitored in selected

streams, and observations were made on regular basis throughout the season. Bald eagle nests in

the Skagway area were inventoried, and the completed data were forwarded to the U.S. Fish and

Wildlife Service. A cursory plant collection and inventory project was completed. The park

spearheaded an educational program for the community on bearproofing homes and household

garbage. [114]

Another step taken in 1991 was the commencement of correspondence that, two years later, led

to a cooperative natural resource inventory program. NPS officials contacted Jere Chidester, a

U.S. Forest Service official based in Juneau, and in response to his interest, the two agencies

agreed in early 1993 to a Memorandum of Understanding and a Scope of Work for future

efforts.

That summer, a Forest Service team under the leadership of plant ecologist Susan Trull

conducted a weeklong field reconnaissance inventory of hydrology and plant communities in the

park's Chilkoot Trail and White Pass units. As a result of those efforts, the Forest Service

completed and published an ecological reconnaissance inventory the following March. The

report contained GIS-formatted maps as well as text. Accompanying the report were some 500

plant specimens, which were catalogued and eventually deposited in the park herbarium. [115]

In 1994, the park signalled its interest in studying the area's natural resources when it hired

seasonal biological technician Claudia Rector to initiate actions recommended by the

reconnaissance inventory and to assist in the development of additional baseline data in support

of the natural resource program. As a part of that effort, the park contracted with former NPS

biologist Greg Streveler to provide professional consultation for the fledgling program. Rector

inventoried another 480 plants that year from a variety of sites along the trail and in the Dyea

area. In 1995 she continued her inventory work, collecting approximately 400 additional plant

species. She initiated a bird survey under the auspices of the Neotropical Migrant Bird

Monitoring Program, and she has recorded numerous wildlife observations. [116]

In 1995, the park signalled its continued interest in the natural resource program by hiring

Damian Sedney as its first permanent Natural Resource Specialist.

Canadian Trail Planning

As noted in chapters 3 and 4, officials with the Canadian government--specifically with the

Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada--had been involved since the early 1960s in

historical preservation efforts in Dawson, Whitehorse, and the Klondike gold fields. The Board

recognized the historical importance of the Chilkoot Trail in 1967. An interest in preserving the

trail's resources followed shortly afterward, during the same period in which U.S. officials began

to work toward the preservation of sites in the Skagway vicinity.

The Canadians' first object of interest along the Chilkoot was the Bennett Church, where it was

hoped an interpretive facility might be opened. But the opening of the trail by the Yukon

Corrections Department, the completion of NPS's Skagway Alternatives Study, and the Labor

Day hike of 1969 broadened the Canadians' interest in trail matters. In response to that interest,

Secretary of the Interior Wally Hickel and the Canadian Minister of Indian Affairs and Northern

Development, Jean Chrétien, issued a joint press release in December 1969 announcing an

international historical park, based on the Klondike Gold Rush theme, to include sites in Alaska,

British Columbia, and the Yukon.

Planning efforts followed quickly. Early in 1970, Canada's National Historic Sites Service issued
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a provisional development plan for the so-called Klondike International Historic Park that called

for the stabilization and preservation of the Bennett Church, the acquisition of two or three

railway cars for interpretive purposes, and a series of interpretive markers to be erected along

the trail. A year later, a consulting firm was chosen to write a provisional master plan study for

the Chilkoot Trail. That study, issued in February 1972, proposed the construction of a hotel at

Bennett, along with campsites, cooking shelters and park staff scattered along the trail. The

National and Historic Parks Branch, upon receiving the report, was quick to note that it was not

in full agreement with its recommendations.

Prior to the issuance of the master plan study there had been little discussion about a park on the

Canadian side of the trail. But the completion of a master plan on the U.S. side of the border,

the submittal of a park bill in the U.S. Congress, and the recommendations of the Canadians'

master plan, all played a role in furthering park creation efforts. Those efforts culminated in a

June 13, 1973 announcement by Jean Chrétien, the Minster of Indian Affairs and Northern

Development, and Jack Radford, British Columbia's Minister of Recreation and Conservation.

Chrétien and Radford reached an agreement in principle that provided for the construction of the

Skagway-Carcross Road across provincial lands. It also paved the way for the eventual transfer

of some 80 square miles from the province to the federal government for park purposes. All

signs seemed to point to the creation of a large historic park on the Canadian side of the

Chilkoot Trail.

After the joint announcement, however, park plans got bogged down in British Columbia's

bureaucracy. Jack Radford soon learned that his road-park agreement ran afoul with the

Provincial Water Resources Chief Engineer, who argued that the trail corridor was still legally

covered by a power withdrawal that extended back to the Yukon-Taiya Project days of the late

1940s. Another roadblock related to aboriginal land rights; the Federal government recognized

such rights but the B.C. government did not. In 1974, the province's Environment and Land Use

Committee was given the task of resolving these conflicts. The committee was not immediately

successful, and the stalemate continued until the park on the U.S. side became a reality.

Shortly after the authorization of the U.S. park, Minister of Recreation and Conservation Robert

Samuel (Sam) Bawlf introduced a bill in the British Columbia legislature that would have

transferred provincial land and water along the trail to the federal government, as per the 1973

agreement. [117] That bill, however, did not become law, and for the next decade little progress

was made on the establishment of a park on the Canadian side of the trail.

Despite the lack of a formally-designated park, the Canadian parks personnel nevertheless

managed the trail in much the same way as if a park existed. As noted in Chapter 4, Bruce

Harvey of the National and Historic Parks Branch first dispatched personnel to the trail in 1972;

a four-student crew spent two summers cataloguing trail artifacts. Then, in 1974, a four-person

crew from Parks Canada--two warden patrolpersons and two maintenance workers--began

serving along the trail from their Lindeman City base camp. [118]

Parks Canada (or its successor agencies, Environment Canada-Parks and the Canadian Parks

Service) [119] continued to manage the trail for another 19 years as one of the Yukon National

Historic Sites. The size of the Lindeman-based crew has varied over the years with the

introduction and reduction in the number of Native trainees, COSEP [120] students, bilingual

(Francophone) patrolpersons, archeologists, and contract maintenance workers. As a result of

specific capital development projects, ten or more staff have often been assigned to summertime

operations in recent years. As on the U.S. side, most of the seasonal workers have served just

one or two summers along the trail. Those who have remained for five years or more have

included Manfred Hedgecock, Christine Hedgecock, Debbie Verhalle, Candy Norris, and Danny

Cresswell. All five have served for at least eight summers, and in 1996, Ms. Hedgecock marked

her nineteenth year working along the trail corridor. [121]
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Several changes have taken place along the trail since Parks Canada began to administer it. A

primary change relates to access. During the mid-1970s, as noted in Chapter 3, a second trail

was blazed between Bare Loon Lake and Bennett in order to minimize the number of hikers

using the White Pass and Yukon Route right-of-way. As a result of the new trail, most hikers

who headed for Bennett remained off the track. During the late summer of 1978, however, the

opening of the new Klondike highway gave hikers who chose not to ride the railway the

opportunity to exit the trail corridor by way of Log Cabin; these hikers used the older trail and

the railroad right-of-way as their means of egress. The shutdown of the WP&YR, in October

1982, caused the large majority of hikers after that date to utilize this route. [122] The reopening

of the railroad, in 1988, did not initially impact upon Chilkoot Trail operations. A year later,

however, the railroad began running a Casey car [123] shuttle service for hikers on the 13-mile

run between Fraser, B.C. (the terminus of tourist trips from Skagway) and the Bennett railway

station. The shuttle remained in operation until 1993 when the WP&YR, for the first time since

1982, began to run regular trains from Skagway all the way to Bennett. These trains ran for only

three years; as of 1996, the WP&YR no longer served Bennett with either a train or Casey car.

[124]

Other changes along the Canadian side of the trail have been unrelated to access issues.

Longtime Chilkoot supporter Bruce Harvey died in 1982, and in recognition of his many efforts

over the years, officials gave the name Mount Harvey to the peak across Lindeman Lake from

the Lindeman City camp. On August 30, 1984, NPS officials attended a ceremony dedicating

the mountain in his honor. It was scheduled to be at Lindeman but, because of inclement

weather, it was held on the S.S. Klondike in Whitehorse. [125]

Several improvements have been constructed on the trail over the years. In 1978, and again in

1983, buildings were erected at Stone Crib to complement the emergency shelter that had been

built in 1976. All three buildings, however, lay in a potential avalanche path, and Parks Canada

staff also identified other building needs along the trail. To respond to those needs, the agency

in 1989 commenced a five-year, $750,000 capital development program. A patrol cabin of

larger dimensions was erected that year just north of Chilkoot Summit (see Table 4). Two years

later, a cabin for trail hikers was built adjacent to the patrol cabin, and that same year the last of

the three Stone Crib cabins were disassembled and removed. A new shelter at Happy Camp

Campground (erected in 1991), new tent frames at Lindeman Lake, new bridges, and trail

improvements were all completed as part of the five-year effort. [126]

On November 5, 1985, after almost a decade of inaction, the process of creating a National

Historic Site on the Canadian side of the Chilkoot was reactivated when British Columbia and

Environment Canada-Parks finalized a land transfer agreement for a 52-square mile area that

included the trail corridor and viewscape areas adjacent to it. The proposed site was roughly

two-thirds the size that Chrétien and Radford had agreed upon in 1973. The new boundaries

added several square miles of new territory southwest of Log Cabin, but it lost a much larger

parcel west of Lindeman Creek, which was west of the trail corridor. [217]

By the following May, the parcel was still owned by the provincial government. Even so,

Environment Canada-Parks began the planning process for the proposed Chilkoot Trail National

Historic Park. The agency issued a newsletter outlining the planning process that month, and in

July public hearings were held on the proposed park management plan in Whitehorse, Carcross,

Atlin, and Vancouver. The agency also issued two questionnaires that summer: one to trail users,

the other to all recipients of the May newsletter. By December the opinions expressed in the

meetings and questionnaires had been collected and summarized, and in May 1987 the agency

issued a draft plan offering three development alternatives. Another round of public meetings

followed shortly thereafter. (A meeting was held in Skagway as well as in Carcross, Whitehorse,

and Vancouver.) Participants' comments were once again ingested and analyzed, and in August

1988 the Canadian Parks Service completed its management plan. The agency issued a summary
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to all who had participated in the planning process. [128]

After the plan was completed, it was forwarded to the federal Minister of the Environment,

whose role it was to decide whether the Chilkoot Trail National Historic Park would become a

reality. Tom McMillan, who served in that portfolio under Prime Minister Brian Mulroney,

could not act on the plan until the complex land transfer process had been completed, and it was

not until April 7, 1993 that the Chilkoot Trail National Historic Site was formally established.

[129] The new NHS had the same size and configuration as had been suggested during the

1986-88 planning process.

Once the new site was debated and passed by Parliament, the Canadian Parks Service continued

to manage the trail, much as it had in the past. In 1993, the agency began a management plan

review program; it, like the 1986-88 planning process which Environment Canada-Parks carried

out for the proposed park unit, has involved several public meetings and plan iterations. That

process was scheduled to be completed in 1995, but the latter-day demand that a

Commemorative Interpretive Statement had to be compiled has delayed the plan for a year or

more. [130]

With the establishment of the new Site, the possibility now exists that an international

designation for the park unit may be declared in the not-too-distant future. As noted in Chapter

4, the dream of an international park has been alive since the late 1960s--particularly since the

Labor Day hike of 1969. The Congressional bill that authorized the U.S. park had provided for

that eventuality but there was no parallel designation of an international park in Canada. Since

April 1993, the Canadian government has taken the necessary internal steps to authorize its

Chilkoot Trail and other borderlands sites for international designation. Further Canadian

legislation, however, may be necessary before international designation can go forward. It is

hoped that Klondike Gold Rush International Historical Park can become a reality, perhaps

during the gold rush centennial period. [131]
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(top) Each spring, the NPS contracts with a helicopter carrier to provide the Sheep Camp ranger station with fuel

and other supplies. This photo, taken in 1979, shows Chief Ranger Jay Cable and Seasonal Ranger David HitesClabaugh prior to a flight. (bottom) When corrections crews roughed out the recreational trail in the early 1960s,

they encountered a cache of canvas boats near the top of Chilkoot Pass. State authorities removed twelve of these

boats in 1967; NPS rangers, in 1981, removed two others and refurbished them for interpretive purposes. (KLGO

SC #1066 (top); Mark Bollinger photo, KLGO SC #1658 (bottom))
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(top) This photo, taken at the 1984 depot dedication, shows (l-r) Roy Nelson, Bruce Hill,Jerry Watson, Pat Moore,

and Barbara Minard (standing). Nelson, Hill, Watson, and Moore were longtime trail crew members, while Minard

was an Skagway interpreter. (bottom) In 1993, several wall tents were erected along the Chilkoot Trail and at the

Dyea Campground. Shown in this photo, taken at the Skagway maintenance facility, are carpenter Michael Yee,

laborer Mike Catsi, and Maintenance Chief John Warder. (Jeff Brady Collection (top); John Warder Collection

(bottom))
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(top) At Mile 11 of the Chilkoot Trail, periodic floods had destroyed several wooden bridges. To solve the

problem, NPS personnel decided to erect a suspension bridge at the site. The photo was taken in 1982, the year

the bridge was completed. (bottom) In 1991, the Chilkoot Trail maintenance crew completed a 90-foot long steel

truss bridge at 1-1/2 mile, one of several major trail improvements. Bridge workers (l-r) included Roy Nelson,

Jerry Watson, and Mike Beierly. (David Cohen photo, KLGO SC #2042 (top); John Warder Collection (bottom))
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(left) During the 1960s and 1970s, historical artifacts such as horseshoes were

more numerous that they are today. (right) NPS crews have been maintaining the

Chilkoot Trail since 1979. In 1982, one of the crew's largest tasks was the

construction of a log bridge at 6-1/2 mile, between Finnegan's Point and Canyon

City. (W. E. Garrett photo, in National Geographic Magazine, June 1965, 801

(left); David Cohen photo, KLGO SC #1931 (right))

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adhi/chap9.htm

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

PART II: MANAGEMENT OF THE ALASKA UNITS

Chapter 10:

The White Pass Trail Unit

As noted in Chapter 1, the Skagway River valley was the site of several gold rush-era

transportation routes. Captain William Moore and Skookum Jim, in June 1887, were the first

recorded people to cross White Pass, and the first prospectors to ascend the valley were a group

of Californians who passed through in February 1895. No trail existed, however, until workers

from the Alaska and Northwest Territories Trading Company completed the task during the

winter of 1896-1897. The "Trail of 1897" meandered up the west side of the valley to a site just

downstream from the confluence of the Skagway River and the White Pass fork; it then crossed

to the east side of the White Pass fork and crossed the top of White Pass approximately one

mile east of the south end of Summit Lake. [1]

The trail was used only sporadically during the first half of 1897. Klondike-bound traffic,

however, totally overwhelmed the route, and it quickly became known as the notorious Dead

Horse Trail. By the winter of 1898 travelers had abandoned the route. Some headed up the

frozen riverbed, while others utilized the Brackett Wagon Road, which was being constructed up

the east side of the valley. By April 1898, the wagon road had been completed to White Pass

City and a new sled trail connected the road terminus to the top of White Pass. (The new trail

summit was located at the south end of Summit Lake.) Two months later, construction began on

the White Pass and Yukon Route railroad. By late summer, stampeders were riding along on a

four-mile stretch of track; by February 1899, the tracks had reached the top of the pass; and by

July 1899, railroad passengers could ride from Skagway all the way to the shore of Bennett

Lake.

Soon after the railroad was completed to the top of the pass, traffic on competing routes slowed

to a trickle, and within a few years the other routes had been abandoned. When government

officials, sixty years later, began to consider the area for inclusion in the national park system,

they were well aware of the valley's historical importance. They also knew about the history of

the railroad, the Brackett Wagon Road, and the ghost town of White Pass City. No one,

however, was certain where most of the gold rush trails lay, and few if any knew whether

tangible cultural resources still remained in association with those trails.

As noted in Chapter 4, the agency's formulation of the park master plan and the outlining of its

boundaries took place at the same time that the City of Skagway and the State of Alaska were

pushing for a road between Skagway and Carcross. NPS planners were careful to avoid

antagonizing the city and state over the road issue; agency planners, in fact, supported the

construction of a road up the west side of the valley because it would provide an excellent

access point to the valley's historical sites. State historical officials had warned them, however,

that the proposed highway was in the same right-of-way as "much of the trail between Skagway
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and White Pass City" and that "there exists no feasible and prudent alternative to this route."

NPS officials knew that two major gold rush-era cultural resources--the Brackett Wagon Road

and the as-yet-unidentified right-of-way of the White Pass Trail--extended south from White

Pass City all the way to Skagway. They recognized, however, that if the proposed park

boundaries were extended south (or west) to include any portion of the proposed highway route,

the agency would have to follow the regulations promulgated by Section 4(f) of the Department

of Transportation Act of 1966. [2] In order to avoid controversy, therefore, NPS planners

decided to exclude the lower Skagway Valley from the proposed park.

When Congress authorized the park, one of the four units it created was the 3,320-acre White

Pass Unit. Slightly more than half of the unit had been part of the Tongass National Forest since

February 16, 1909; that acreage lay either east of the White Pass Fork or, south of its confluence

with the Skagway River, east of the Skagway River. The remainder of the unit was Bureau of

Land Management land. On June 24, 1961, however, the State of Alaska had selected the parcel

as part of the same large selection that had also included most of the BLM's holdings in the

Chilkoot Trail Unit of the park. Then, on June 25, 1974, the BLM tentatively approved the

transfer of the BLM land to the state. As a result of the 1974 action, the parcel was still

officially owned by the Bureau of Land Management, but the State of Alaska exerted de facto

control. Neither the Forest Service nor the state showed any immediate interest in divesting

management authority for its parcels. As a result, the NPS--temporarily, at least--was unable to

manage any land in the park's White Pass Unit.

Early Development Plans

During the planning period which preceded the passage of the park bill, NPS officials proposed

several research, recreational, and interpretive objectives for the unit. In the park master plan,

the agency proposed to

Restore the upper portions of the trail, with access at points along the road, when it

is completed.

Provide campsites, standard signs, and interpretive markers, in cooperation with the

Canadians.

Protect ruins at White Pass City, and collect and preserve artifacts.

Restore a portion of the Brackett Wagon Road below White Pass City.

Continue planning studies with Canada for the future development and

interpretation of the White Pass summit area, and for the possible continuation of

the trails to Lake Bennett, Atlin, and Ben-My-Chree.

Seek the cooperation of officials of the White Pass & Yukon Route Railroad in

preserving and interpreting the historical qualities of their railroad properties.

Cooperate with the State of Alaska and the Forest Service in the development of the

potential recreational uses of lands adjacent to the historical park.

Seek the cooperation of the Federal Highway Administration and the Alaska

Department of Highways in designing and locating the highway into the Yukon ...

so that scenic overlooks and access to White Pass City and the historic trails can be

developed. [3]

The park's Final Environmental Statement, issued in 1974, recommended most of the same
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actions as in the master plan. In addition, it recommended access paths to the historic trail from

the railroad as well as the new highway. It also recommended the restoration of portions of the

White Pass Trail as well as the Brackett Wagon Road. [4]

The primary development proposed for the unit was a trail that would enter the southwestern end

of the unit from the highway. The trail would continue east, using a portion of the Brackett

Wagon Road, to the site of White Pass City, where a proposed camping and interpretive area

would be located. The trail would then climb north up the valley of the White Pass Fork,

presumably along a gold rush-era pathway, to the top of White Pass, where a campground,

shelter, and interpretive area would be located. The trail would then continue north into Canada,

paralleling the eastern shore of Summit Lake. NPS officials espoused the proposed trail because

it promised to be both shorter and less rigorous than the climb over Chilkoot Pass, and opined

that "the White Pass Trail could become a very popular attraction for families and individuals

who have only a few days to spend in the area." [5]

Richard Hoffman, the park's first superintendent, recognized that the development of the White

Pass Unit would be a long, potentially expensive process. He also recognized that the NPS had

no management authority in the White Pass Unit, and he similarly knew that both the Skagway

Historic District and the Chilkoot Trail Unit received far more visitors than the White Pass Unit.

(The NPS did not consider WP&YR passengers to be visitors to the unit.) Even so, Hoffman

pushed ahead with development plans. By January 1978, he was bullish about development

prospects. In a letter to Regional Director Russell Dickenson, focusing on the park's need for a

chief ranger, he noted that

Next summer [1978] we will be providing ... some visitor services and protection in

the White Pass Unit, as the road will be open then. We hope to expand our

interpretation program in Skagway and perhaps on the Bennett train tour. [6]

His plans, however, were more visionary than existing budgets or staff levels would allow. The

agency had higher spending priorities at the park, and it was wary about building a trail into a

historic area in which the extent and value of cultural resources were as yet untabulated. As

Historical Architect Gary Higgins noted, "The White Pass unit is comparatively undisturbed,

relatively inaccessible, and will remain undeveloped pending thorough survey." [7]

Hoffman recognized that his highest priority was to gain management authority over the unit. He

gained authority over the state-controlled portion of the unit on April 6, 1978 when, as noted in

chapters 8 and 9, the NPS and the Alaska Department of Natural Resources signed a cooperative

agreement covering state lands in the Chilkoot Trail and White Pass units of the park.

The park superintendent reacted to the agreement by assuming a broad managerial control over

public lands in the Skagway area. One provision of the agreement, for example, noted that "The

Service has the capability of providing facility maintenance, site and visitor protection, and

other related management activities in the Skagway area." Based on that provision, the NPS that

summer began maintaining the state's Liarsville wayside, which was located along the Klondike

Highway, one-half mile north of the Dyea Road junction. The NPS continued to maintain

Liarsville until 1980, when it refused to provide further work there; thereafter, the state

abandoned the site. [8]

Proposed Energy Projects

No sooner had the cooperative agreement been signed than Skagway, and the Park Service's

White Pass Unit, found itself in the middle of a major oil and gas development proposal.
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A decade before, in January 1968, the Atlantic-Richfield Company had announced that it had

made a major oil strike in the vicinity of Prudhoe Bay, on Alaska's north slope. During the

boom that followed, geologists revealed that vast deposits existed of both oil and natural gas.

The natural gas was ignored for the time being because developers were unsure as to its

commercial possibilities. But by 1972, two companies were competing for the right to transport

the gas to Lower 48 destinations. One company proposed hauling liquified gas on tankers from

Valdez to West Coast ports; the other proposed a pipeline up the Mackenzie River valley in

Northwest Territories, Canada. Neither of these pipeline routes, if built, would have had a

significant economic impact on Skagway. [9]

On September 8, 1977, President Jimmy Carter awarded a contract for construction of the gas

pipeline to the Northwest Alaska Pipeline Company. The company announced its intention to

follow a route that paralleled the Alaska Highway. Skagway, which stood to be a major supplier

of pipeline materials, exulted in the decision. Klondike Superintendent Richard Hoffman noted

that "there is considerable excitement here.... The talk around town is definitely boom oriented."

The park was impacted by the decision. The agency, during this period, was purchasing historic

properties in the Skagway historic district, and the excitement that resulted dramatically (if

temporarily) increased land values. [10]

Skagway residents heard little about the proposed pipeline for the next several months. But in

late May 1978, excitement in Skagway erupted again with the announcement that Foothills Oil

Pipeline Ltd. of Canada (which was working in conjunction with the Northwest Alaska Pipeline

Company) had been selected to construct a gas line--and possibly an oil line as well--from

Delta Junction (along the existing North Slope pipeline) to Edmonton, Alberta. The principal

route, as noted above, would follow the Alaska Highway. But an alternate route would bring the

fuel from the North Slope to Valdez, after which tankers would haul it to Skagway. The fuel

would then go by pipeline over White Pass to Johnson's Crossing, Yukon Territory, and on to

Edmonton for eventual distribution to the midwestern United States. [11]

For the next several months, the proposed Alaska Highway Oil Pipeline Project remained in the

news. The sponsoring companies made no secret that the Alaska Highway route was their first

choice, despite being more expensive than the route via Skagway. The state, meanwhile, issued

a report dubious of the prospects of the Skagway-area pipeline. (One state official said that the

project stood "about as much chance of approval as a snowball in hell.") Meanwhile, company

representatives investigated the economic viability of constructing each of the various pipeline

routes. [12]

On February 20, 1979, Northwest Alaska Pipeline Company representatives held a public

meeting on the project in Skagway. They announced at that time that if the Skagway alternate

were approved, the company would adopt the White Pass and Yukon Route as a partner in the

venture. More important to the Park Service, Northwest proposed the construction of a pipeline

following the railroad right-of-way. [13]

Hoffman, who attended the meeting, opposed the company's plans. In a letter to Regional

Director Dickenson, he discussed White Pass City, the park's proposals there, and the site's

relation to the proposed pipeline route. "Considering that they will need a 90 foot level

construction right of way," he wrote, "it does not seem possible to avoid obliterating most of the

Brackett Road and Trail of '98 with materials blasted from the canyon walls." He urged that an

alternate route, which followed the newly-completed Klondike Highway, be considered. [14]

Although NPS officials had serious reservations about the project, 63 percent of Skagway

residents (according to a poll taken in March 1979) supported it. They did so because

development would have made the town a major oil port. [15]
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On March 20, the Bureau of Land Management held a hearing in Skagway about the Northern

Tier Pipeline System, which included the proposed Alaska Highway Oil Pipeline Project. More

than 80 people attended the meeting, a majority of which supported Foothills' proposal. An NPS

representative who attended the meeting urged that the locations of the proposed utility lines be

changed so as not to ruin the historical character of the railroad, the Brackett Wagon Road, the

Trail of '97, and White Pass City. [16]

Following the hearing, the Skagway City Council passed a resolution endorsing the pipeline.

Soon afterward, Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau also endorsed the route. In late March,

a three-man team conducted an archeological and paleontological survey of the proposed U.S.

portion of the route. The NPS, meanwhile, continued to exert pressure to move the location of

the proposed pipeline away from the railroad right-of-way, and by mid-May a BLM official had

assured the agency that the WP&YR route was no longer being considered. [17]

Local residents remained optimistic until August 10, 1979, when Foothills Pipeline officials

announced in Ottawa that they had decided in favor of a pipeline along the Alaska Highway

rather than one through White Pass. Locals, predictably, were saddened by the decision, but

they still recognized that the construction of an Alaska Highway pipeline would increase

Skagway's importance as a supply point. Prospects for the pipeline, however, diminished during

the months which followed. By 1981, there appeared to be little chance that the pipeline would

be constructed, and a year later, a state official flatly predicted that the pipeline would never be

built. [18] The project remains on the drawing boards.

Soon after the decision was made to not build a White Pass area pipeline, officials began to

consider another energy project that would impact the Skagway Valley and its resources. As

noted in Chapter 8, the idea of a hydroelectric dam in the Skagway area had begun in 1979

when a consulting company, CH2M Hill, surveyed various potential power sites in southeastern

Alaska. That study revealed that Goat Lake, above Pitchfork Falls, was one of several promising

sites in the Haines and Skagway areas. Following that study was a new feasibility study, by R.

W. Beck Associates of Seattle. The Beck study, which was released in draft form in late 1980,

showed that West Creek, near Dyea, was the area's most economically-favorable energy

development site. Goat Lake, for the time being, was ignored. But in April 1981 Beck

completed its study, and Alaska Power Administration officials announced that proposed

facilities at West Creek, Goat Lake, and Upper Chilkoot Lake were "the only projects that have

the capability of serving the total [power] load in Haines and Skagway on a year round basis."

APA officials estimated that a West Creek operation would cost $31.6 million, while a facility

at Goat Lake would cost $51 million. The Upper Chilkoot site promised to be even more

expensive. [19] Following the completion of the Beck study, the APA sponsored a more detailed

feasibility study of the West Creek site. That study, as well, showed that the West Creek site

was "financially, geologically, and environmentally superior" to either Goat Lake or Upper

Chilkoot Lake as a hydroelectric site. Goat Lake, for the time being, was dropped from

consideration. [20]

Archeological and Interpretive Concerns

Having gained assurance from the BLM that the Skagway-to-Whitehorse pipeline would not be

built through the White Pass Unit, the NPS contracted with Caroline Carley in 1979 to identify

and evaluate the area's cultural resources. Carley's survey of the White Pass Unit was part of the

same survey that also included Dyea and the Chilkoot Trail corridor. (See chapters 8 and 9.) She

and her two-person crew were able to spend relatively little time investigating White Pass Unit

sites. Even so, they were able to locate 58 features in old White Pass City. They also located

more than five miles of the Brackett Wagon Road and found numerous features associated with

it. The team investigated a final site outside of the park boundaries. This site, called Porcupine
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Hill, was located just north of the confluence of the Skagway River and Porcupine Creek; it

contained nine features which were undoubtedly historic, including a standing log cabin. Carley

was unable, however, to date the site with any precision. [21]

Complementing Carley's investigations into the White Pass unit were the historical efforts of

Charles Konopa and Kathy Maurich, who wrote a short history of the White Pass Trail. Konopa

and Maurich were employees at the park's Seattle unit; their report was taken largely from

Edwin Bearss's 1970 historic resource study and from the sources which Bearss had

investigated. [22]

Shortly after Carley and the Klondike-Seattle workers completed their investigations, the park

moved to install interpretive signs along the Klondike Highway. As noted in Chapter 4, NPS

had told state highway officials as early as January 1974 that they wanted to have a turnout and

trailhead located along the mile-long stretch of highway that paralleled the western edge of the

park unit. [23] That turnout would overlook the site of White Pass City, and by the summer of

1975 the NPS had decided to include an interpretive signpost there that would include the

history of White Pass City. [24] The NPS intended, at this time, to have only one interpretive

location along the Skagway-Carcross road.

Those plans changed soon afterwards. In 1976, William Ingersoll wrote an interpretive

prospectus that suggested the placement of interpretive material at two locations: at the White

Pass City overlook and on the summit of White Pass. By early 1978 the road was nearing

completion, and Superintendent Richard Hoffman reacted by ordering two sets of signs. From

the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, he ordered a large interpretive sign to be placed on White Pass

Summit as well as a park welcoming sign to be placed closer to town. It addition, he requested

special funding from the agency's Denver Service Center for historical interpretation. [25] A

year later, DSC had produced and funded a wayside exhibit package that called for markers at

two sites along the highway. Appropriate text and photographs were selected, and in May 1979

the agency contracted with Don Knapett and Associates to construct the signs. They were

completed as scheduled, and in mid-June 1980, NPS contractors installed six markers. One set

of three signs was located on a turnout between Black Lake and Porcupine Creek, while the

other was installed along the western boundary of the White Pass Unit. The interpretive signs

ordered from the Bureau of Prisons were completed but never installed, and they were

eventually destroyed. [26]

The agency also moved to provide historical interpretation to the tens of thousands of travelers

who passed through the unit each year via White Pass and Yukon Route tourist trains. Prior to

the authorization of the park, the only interpretation that passengers had received was oral

commentary from conductors and other railroad personnel. In addition, signs were placed at

Black Cross Rock (Mile 10.4), where two construction workers lost their lives; Inspiration Point

(Mile 17.0), where "Packer Jack" Newman installed a plaque in 1929 to honor the horses of the

White Pass Trail; and a "Trail of '98" sign, along the old trail at Mile 19.0. In order to provide

additional interpretation, the NPS offered to place interpreters on the trains. Union officials

rebuffed that overture; the railroad, however, responded by funding a pamphlet extolling the

historical aspects of the route. In order to augment the interpretive program, the NPS in 1982

offered to supply the railroad with additional historical material and publish its own interpretive

brochure. It also offered to fund the creation and installation of historical markers at locations

where the train stopped. [27]

The railroad chose not to accept the NPS's offers. Instead, it hired a group of seasonal

interpreters (high school students in the HOST program) to ride the various tourist trains. The

practice proved successful. It abruptly ended, however, in the fall of 1982 when the railroad

ceased operations. For the next five years, virtually no tourists entered the White Pass Unit. [28]
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Ownership and Management Issues

As noted above, the NPS had gained management control over the western half of the White

Pass Unit in April 1978 when it signed a cooperative agreement with the State of Alaska. The

eastern half remained under the management of the Tongass National Forest for another two

years. Finally, on November 26, 1980, the U.S. Forest Service formally transferred the parcel to

the NPS. [29] Four years after the park was authorized, the Park Service finally had

management authority over the entire unit.

Before long, however, outside forces began to threaten the agency's newly-won authority. As

noted in chapters 8 and 9, local residents had been largely dissatisfied with the actions of NPS

officials following the release of the park Land Acquisition Plan in April 1980, and relations

between the city and park had remained poor for the following year. The visits of Deputy

Regional Director Douglas Warnock and Regional Director John Cook, both in March 1981,

helped improve relations. Before relations could be patched up, however, a movement was

organized to reduce the park's boundaries. At the March 26, 1981 public meeting which John

Cook attended, city councilman Marvin P. Taylor, citing conflicts over the proposed West Creek

hydroelectric project, suggested that the Chilkoot Trail Unit be reduced. That suggestion

reportedly won the "unanimous approval of those in attendance." Five months later, on

September 3, Taylor brought the matter to the Skagway City Council. The resolution called for

the elimination of the Chilkoot Trail Unit except for a 100-foot strip surrounding the trail. In

addition, Taylor urged for good measure that the White Pass Unit be eliminated. [30] That

proposal, as noted in chapters 8 and 9, was forwarded to the Alaska Congressional delegation.

None of the three members, however, acted on it.

Given that reprieve, the NPS was free to manage the area as it wished. In December 1979, the

park applied for the funds necessary to develop the White Pass Trail and an adjacent

campground. [31] That request, however, was low on the priority list and it was not approved.

Richard Sims, who succeeded Richard Hoffman as superintendent, had little enthusiasm for

developing the unit and recognized that Skagway rehabilitation projects and Chilkoot Trail

resource protection activities needed to be completed before projects in the White Pass could be

considered.

By the time the draft Resource Management Plan was completed in early 1982, the park's

attitude toward the unit had become clear. The document noted that the 1973 master plan had

called for trail construction and campground development. The RMP, by contrast, recommended

that

Development within the unit should be kept to an absolute minimum until

additional funds become available for trail development, maintenance, interpretive

exhibits and additional protection personnel.... Considering the existing level of

visitor use, Alternative E [which recommended the continuation of present, passive

management activities] provides adequate protection for resources and is

recommended. [32]

In 1984, the NPS lost its authority to manage almost half of the land in the White Pass Unit. As

noted in chapters 8 and 9, the NPS and the State of Alaska meted out a Memorandum of

Understanding that February. That MOU retained the NPS's right to administer the state's land

in the White Pass Unit. But an April public meeting held in Skagway to present the plan's

details provoked so much protest that officials agreed to renew the pact. In the negotiations that

followed, the NPS agreed to cede control over the White Pass Unit. Hunting was a key

component of the controversy, and it was local hunters who demanded relief from the NPS's

hunting regulations that brought pressure to withdraw the White Pass Unit from the MOU. In
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November 1984, state and federal officials signed a revised MOU. That document did not

include the White Pass within its provisions. Since then, the NPS has lacked management

authority over the western half of the White Pass Unit. [33]

Since 1984, the agency has continued to passively manage the White Pass Unit. City officials,

from time to time, have asked the NPS to fund improvements in the area. However, they have

been quick to agree that the rehabilitation of Skagway buildings takes precedence over any

White Pass Unit projects. The NPS, for its part, has shown little motivation to improve the area.

Factors contributing to the agency's attitude are its inability to manage almost half the area, and

its recognition that the area's cultural resources would be jeopardized if increased visitation

preceded a thorough cultural resources survey. [34]

Managing the Unit's Historical Resources

In 1986, the NPS moved to further protect the historical resources located within the White Pass

Unit by updating the National Historical Landmark (NHL) nomination that pertained to it. As

chapter 3 has noted, NPS historian Charles Snell had visited the Skagway area in July 1961. On

the basis of that visit, which appears not to have included a train ride to the top of White Pass,

he nominated all of the Skagway Valley--from Skagway Bay to the top of White Pass, and from

mountain crest to mountain crest--as a National Historic Landmark. Others agreed with him,

and on June 13, 1962, Interior Secretary Stewart Udall declared the Skagway Historic District

and White Pass a National Historic Landmark.

Four years after Udall's action, the passage of the National Historic Preservation Act in 1966

(see Chapter 7) demanded that each NHL contain a justifiable boundary. In order to comply

with the terms of the act, attempts to discern a boundary were made in 1974 and early 1983, but

little headway was made. Work on an updated NHL lapsed until August 1983, when the NPS

hired a seasonal architect to photograph Skagway buildings. Those efforts were followed by

those of Regional Historical Architect David Snow, who provided brief architectural

descriptions of each Skagway building. Then, in early 1986, Robert Spude assigned Frank

Norris and Terrence Cole to update the old Skagway-White Pass NHL form. (Norris wrote the

description statement and miscellaneous sections, while Cole completed a significance

statement.) The completed nomination, which was forwarded to the regional office in November

1986, featured a much-reduced area of significance north of Skagway. Instead of crest-to-crest

coverage, the areas deemed significant were limited to the known rights-of-way of the Trail of

1897, the Brackett Wagon Road, the sled road extension, the WP&YR railroad, and former trail

towns and section-house sites. The revised nomination, completed in rough draft form in 1986,

has not yet--almost a decade later--been finalized. [35]

A related project that was approved more expeditiously was a National Register nomination for

the park as a whole. In September 1986, NPS historian Robert Spude contracted with Glenda

Choate of Skagway-based Alaska Archives and Records Management to have the nomination

completed; Choate, in turn, assigned the writing task to Frank Norris, who began work on the

project that November. Norris modified information that had been previously gathered for the

Skagway-White Pass NHL and the Dyea-Chilkoot Trail NHL (see Chapter 8); inasmuch as the

entire park was included in the boundaries of the two NHLs, no additional research was

necessary. The form was completed on July 9, 1987 and forwarded to Washington. After agency

review, it was amended by Bonnie Houston and resubmitted in June 1990, where it was

accepted by the Keeper of the National Register on February 26, 1991. [36]

In addition to the above nomination, there have been two attempts to add structures in the White

Pass Unit to the National Register of Historic Places. In 1987, the NPS wrote a White Pass and

Yukon Route and Canol II nomination related to World War II-era railroad and pipeline
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impacts. This nomination was rejected by the National Park System Advisory Board at its April

9, 1987 meeting. Four years later, in January 1991, Karen Swanson-Iwamoto of the U.S. Forest

Service wrote a National Register nomination for the WP&YR railroad, the Canol Pipeline, and

the adjacent telecommunication line in conjunction with the railroad's plans to realign its track

near Milepost 4. Five months later, Iwamoto followed up her nomination with a report

supplying additional information about the pipeline and telephone line. Later that year, these

structures were determined to be eligible to the NRHP. Having ascertained their eligibility, she

took no further action regarding the nomination. [37]

In order to augment the meager amount of historical resource data, two NPS personnel

undertook a series of informal exploratory hikes during the summer of 1986. Seasonal ranger

Mark Bollinger and seasonal historian Frank Norris investigated the slope west of Black Lake

and located a segment of the Trail of 1897. They conducted two hikes in the Porcupine Hill

area, above the existing border station, but found little. Finally, the pair hiked to a point a mile

east of the White Pass railroad summit and located the Trail of 1897; from that point, they

followed the trail south until it was lost in the vegetation. Detours were also made to The Ford,

a gold rush-era trail camp, and to the Brackett Wagon Road. The pair identified and

photographed a number of objects and produced a brief report of their investigations. [38]

A year later, the University of Alaska Press published The White Pass, Gateway to the

Klondike, by Roy Minter. The long-awaited book, which focused on the construction of the

White Pass and Yukon Route railroad, was the result of years of research by the former

WP&YR official. The book, hailed by academics as well as the popular press, was not

sponsored by the NPS; even so, it was the first book to discuss the development of the various

gold rush-era transportation routes since the 1970 release of Edwin Bearss's Historic Resource

Study of the park. [39]

Development and Preservation Projects

As noted above, the Alaska Power Administration during the early 1980s had considered the

idea of constructing a hydroelectric facility at Goat Lake, above Pitchfork Falls. The idea,

however, was put on hold because West Creek was considered a superior site. In July 1991,

however, Skagway's power company, Alaska Power and Telephone, revived the idea, noting that

the project "could produce enough electricity to end Skagway's dependence on diesel generated

power in the winter." The company that month received a temporary permit from the Federal

Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) that allowed it to begin preliminary feasibility studies,

and in September the company announced its interest in the project. Company officials

disclosed that engineering and environmental studies for the $5 million project would

commence immediately, and that the project would be completed within five years. [40]

The project involved the construction of an intake siphon and pump house at the south end of

Goat Lake. From there, an enclosed penstock would carry water downslope, just north of

Pitchfork Falls, to a substation and powerhouse that would be located between the WP&YR

railroad and the Skagway River and approximately one mile south of Pitchfork Falls. From that

point, electrical transmission lines would lead west to the Klondike Highway, then south to

Skagway.

The company held a public hearing about the project on October 29, 1991. The U.S. Forest

Service, on whose land the project lay, expressed concern about how the project would impact

the area's goat population, the fishing resource, and the historic Brackett Wagon road. Local

citizens, although broadly supportive of the project, expressed concerns as well. Because the

White Pass Unit of the park lay more than a mile north of the project, the NPS played a

secondary role in the public review process. The agency was, however, the administrator of the
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National Historic Landmark program; in that role, they expressed their concerns regarding how

the project might impact the Brackett Wagon Road, the Trail of 1897, and other historic

resources in the area. [41]

For the next two years, AP&T proceeded with its background studies. Then, on May 27, 1994,

the company filed an application with the FERC for a license to construct and operate a 4-

megawatt project. [42] A year later, in mid-June 1995, public meetings were held on the project

in Skagway and Juneau; then, on May 22, 1996, the FERC and the U.S. Forest Service issued a

Final Environmental Assessment which included the FERC's approval for the project. AP&T

officials were told that they would have a hydropower license within two months. Stan Selmer,

the company's local general manager, expressed confidence that preliminary work on the project

would begin in the fall of 1996 and that the project would be completed in 1997. [43]

While development plans were proceeding for the Goat Lake project, others were planning to

preserve areas within the Skagway River basin. On October 18, 1993, two representatives of

Lynn Canal Conservation, a Haines-based environmental group, held an organizational meeting

in Skagway in an attempt to elicit support for proposed additions to the National Wild and

Scenic Rivers System. The two representatives, Michael Van Note and Eric Holley, hoped that

Skagway residents would support the nomination of both the East Fork and the main stem of the

Skagway River. Both of the nominated areas would be located upstream from the railroad

bridges that crossed them. Van Note and Holley were particularly enthusiastic about protecting

the upper Skagway River because it was one of the few streams in southeastern Alaska that

flowed through alpine terrain. [44] The proposed areas were located on Tongass National Forest

land; the NPS had no jurisdiction over either one.

City officials, at first, were noncommittal about the LCC proposal. At a November 18 city

council meeting, however, they rejected it as unworkable. One representative felt that it might

prevent the railroad from maintaining its right-of-way; another was worried that the action

might foreclose the area as a future water supply site; another expressed a philosophical bias

against governmental intervention in the area. Because of the city's lack of support, the river is

not being actively considered for eligibility to the National Wild and Scenic Rivers System. [45]
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(top) At the height of the Klondike Gold Rush, White Pass City was a crowded, bustling camp at the northern end

of the Brackett Wagon Road. This photo looks north toward the summit of White Pass from near the confluence

of the Skagway River and the White Pass Fork. (bottom) By 1979, all of the buildings in White Pass City had

collapsed. As noted in a survey headed by archeologist Caroline Carley, the remaining artifacts were limited to

cabin or tent foundations and household paraphernalia. (KLGO SC #1233 (top); David Cohen photo, KLGO SC

#1333 (bottom))
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(left) In 1982, the WP&YR restored and began operating long-dormant

Locomotive #73 through the White Pass Unit. Shown (top, l-r) are Ernie Kelm

and Jim Richards, and (bottom, l-r) Mike Colyer, Joe Kasler, J. D. True, and

Larry Sullivan. (right) Plans for the Goat Lake hydroelectric project have been

active since 1991. This photo was taken at the lake's outflow, looking northeast.

(Skagway News, August 25, 1982, 3 (left) and July 14, 1995, 5 (right))

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

PART III: MANAGEMENT OF THE SEATTLE UNIT

Chapter 11:

Establishing the Seattle Unit

The creation of the Seattle Unit of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park was one aspect

of the revival of Pioneer Square. This area, which in former years had faced Elliott Bay both on

its western and southern edges, had been Seattle's commercial core during the Klondike Gold

Rush period. After World War I, however, the central business district area moved north, and

Pioneer Square became increasingly isolated and dilapidated. The area "gradually fell into lower

uses"--particularly during the Great Depression--and became dotted with cheap hotels and

taverns. It housed an increasing number of seamen, transient workers and the underprivileged.

To a large degree, it became a forgotten corner of the downtown area. [1]

Map 11. The Klondike-Seattle Unit and the Pioneer Square Historic District. Source: NPS,

Draft General Management Plan and Environmental Impact Statement, Klondike Gold Rush

National Historical Park, June/July 1996, 2.12. (click on image for an enlargement in a new

window)
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During a 1948 earthquake, several Pioneer Square buildings suffered the loss of cornices and

sustained other damage. Then, during the late 1950s, Seattle's municipal leaders came under an

increasing amount of pressure to accede to an "urban renewal" plan that would have flattened

most of the area's buildings and converted the space into parking lots for the business district to

the north. [2] Others, however, were unwilling to give up on the area. In November 1958, the

Downtown Parks Committee requested that the Seattle City Planning Commission study the area

with an eye toward its rehabilitation. That study, completed in August 1959, noted that

Today, much of the [Pioneer Square] area is approaching a condition of blight. A

number of the buildings have practically no tenancies above the ground floor and

an increasing number of ground floor vacancies is noted. Property values in the

vicinity of Pioneer Square today are generally less than 10% of the average values

in the Central Business District. A study of the official records shows numerous

violations of building code and fire regulations in the area, reflecting inadequate

maintenance and disregard for standards of health and safety.

To counteract that trend, the Planning Commission proposed small-scale changes. It

recommended that the street in front of the Pioneer Building be closed to automobile traffic, and

that pedestrian circulation be encouraged as had been done in San Francisco's Jackson Square.

These suggestions were implemented. Those alterations, however, had little immediate effect on

area conditions. [3]

The Revitalization of Pioneer Square

The early 1960s witnessed several efforts to rescue the endangered district. First, local architects

Ralph Anderson and Dick White helped publicize interest in the district's potential, and property

owners such as Anderson and Allen Black began to rehabilitate their historic structures. The

Grand Central Arcade and several buildings containing antique shops were renovated. Many

historic buildings, however, remained boarded up during this period, and several notable

structures fell victim to the long-term neglect. [4] Second, a news reporter named William C.

Speidel began to publicize the area. During the 1950s he became familiar with the area. Then, in

the early 1960s, began researching the history of the "underground city" located below the

downtown sidewalks. In 1964 he spearheaded a campaign to clean up the area; a year later he

organized the Underground Tour, a walking tour that quickly became a popular tourist

attraction. The notoriety of the Underground Tour lured many into the area who otherwise

would never have visited it. [5]

In order to preserve the architectural resources of the Pioneer Square area, civic leaders took

action. Victor Steinbrueck, a local architect, compiled an architectural inventory of the district

during the late 1960s; during the same period, the Municipal Art Commission published a list of

historic buildings. Then, on June 22, 1970, the Pioneer Square Historic District was entered onto

the National Register of Historic Places. The irregularly-shaped area, which reached north to

Columbia Street, east to 3rd Avenue South, south to King Street, and west to Western Avenue

South, was one of the nation's first preservation districts. In order to protect the District's

historical resources, the Seattle City Council passed an ordinance in May 1970. That ordinance

created a Historic Preservation Board, which was asked to formulate procedures and guidelines

consistent with the National Register listing. During the same period, area merchants joined

together and founded the Pioneer Square Association. Both the ordinance (which has since been

amended) and the business organization have continued to the present day. [6]

The NPS Shows an Interest
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As noted in Chapter 4, the idea of including a Pioneer Square building in a national park unit

dated from 1971, just one year after the square's inclusion on the National Register. In March

1971, the completed, preliminary working draft of the master plan for the proposed Klondike

Gold Rush National Historical Park contained no references to a Seattle unit. That May,

however, NPS Regional Director John Rutter asked Seattle mayor Wes Uhlman to comment on

the plan, noting that "we believe this proposal ties in quite closely with some of the concepts

you are considering in your Pioneer Square and Seattle Waterfront Park Programs." Two weeks

later, NPS officials, apparently seeking new support for the proposed park, sent copies of the

draft master plan to the Washington state Congressional delegation. By June, NPS official Rod

Pegues was tilting in favor of a Seattle unit, and by September, the NPS had gone on record in

support of it. [7]

Planners originally conceived that the Seattle unit would be included within the Pioneer

Building, a turn-of-the-century, multi-story structure on the east side of Pioneer Place. In 1971,

the Pioneer Building was in imminent threat of being razed, so the NPS proposed that the

agency purchase and restore it. But during the summer of 1972, Mel Kaufman and Tim Morgan

purchased a 50 percent share in the Pioneer Building, and with co-owner Jack Butnick

announced restoration plans. [8] For the next two months, NPS planners continued to assume

that they would purchase the building, then lease out those areas not needed by the agency. But

an NPS appraiser debunked that idea, and by April 1973, planners had decided to lease space

within the Pioneer Building rather than purchase it. (The new owners, as it turned out, were

unable to restore the building, but within a year they sold it to a company headed by Norman

Volotin, which was able to carry out the restoration.) [9]

All of the NPS's plans after 1971 included a Seattle Unit for the proposed park. The 1973

Master Plan noted that the agency intended to do the following:

Lease suitable space within the Pioneer Square Historic District for exhibitions,

interpretive programs, theatrical presentations, living history demonstrations, and

supporting services.

Encourage restoration of historic structures in the area, in cooperation with the city

of Seattle and the Pioneer Square Association.

Develop an interpretive plan for the Pioneer Square District, in cooperation with the

city and the association, re-creating through special events, tours, and exhibits, the

living history of the gold-rush days.

Acquire and display historic objects and documents of the gold-rush era, and,

through a multimedia facility and living interpretive programs, interpret the entire

story of the gold rush, from Seattle to Dawson. [10]

NPS officials looked forward to carrying out those goals; they could do nothing, however, until

Congress authorized and funded the park.

The agency's first priority was the establishment of a Seattle park headquarters. Although the

master plan noted that the proposed interpretive center could be located anywhere in the Pioneer

Square Historic District, they made no secret of their preference for a building that faced

Pioneer Place. They retained an interest in leasing the Pioneer Building; without funding,

however, they were unable to commit themselves financially. [11] Meanwhile, other area

property owners presented lease proposals to the agency. In late 1973 or early 1974, the owner

of the Mutual Life Building, on the west side of Pioneer Place, contacted them, and in late 1975,

tourism entrepreneur Bill Speidel suggested that park officials consider leasing the Korn

Building, just southeast of Pioneer Place. [12] In the spring of 1976, just prior to passage of the
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Klondike park bill, two new proposals surfaced. George Duncan, a descendant of a gold-rushera hardware store owner, offered his building, located on First Avenue South between South

Main Street and South Jackson Street, while Burl Tudor hoped to rent out the Lippy Building,

just south of Pioneer Place, along with two adjacent non-historic buildings. To each of these

property owners, the NPS officials expressed a conditional interest. They explained, however,

that their hands were tied until funding was forthcoming. [13]

Washington State officials, who were fully supportive of the park proposal, hoped that the

proposed park would include more Seattle properties than just an interpretive center. In a July 1,

1975 letter to Secretary of the Interior Stanley K. Hathaway, Governor Daniel Evans suggested

that several additional properties be included in the park. They included the Maud Building, a

Pioneer Square hotel once owned by George Carmack; Carmack's home, also located in Pioneer

Square; a memorial marker for Carmack, to be erected at his grave in Seattle's Washelli

Cemetery; and the erection of a statue, in Pioneer Square, of the discovery of gold by Carmack,

Skookum Jim, and Dawson Charlie. [14]

A week later, regional NPS officials met with Washington state officials on the issue. The state

officials agreed that the proposals had been submitted relatively late; indeed, the U.S. Senate, by

this time, had already completed its hearing on S. 98, the Klondike park bill. As a result, an

NPS participant noted that

It was agreed amongst those present that the state would not raise these issues now

so as not to interfere in any way with the proposed legislation. The NPS agreed to

review and consider the state's ideas with the thought that after the legislation had

passed any appropriate additions to the park could be made.

In addition, the NPS agreed to investigate the suitability of the Maud Building as an interpretive

center. John Rutter noted that of the ideas presented, the one that particularly captured the

agency's interest was the commissioning of a Klondike sculpture. [15] The State of Washington

remained interested in including various Seattle areas in the park bill, and Ralph Munro,

Governor Evans's assistant, testified in favor of those provisions at the November 1975 House

hearing. None, however, were included in the final Klondike park bill. [16]

The City of Seattle, meanwhile, was rediscovering its Klondike roots. In 1973, it held a twoweek "Klondike '73" celebration, and included as part of that celebration an organized hike over

Chilkoot Pass. It organized a sister city committee with Dawson City, and made plans to

purchase and restore Dawson's Ezra Meeker cabin, then donate it to the city. [17] It was fully

supportive of the park effort; on June 17, 1974, the City passed a resolution in favor of a

Klondike bill. In addition, the designation of Pioneer Square as a historic district succeeded in

fostering a rebirth in preserving the area's architectural heritage. Preservation efforts proved so

successful that in July 1974, a city ordinance increased the historic district to almost twice its

former size. [18] Community leaders, in 1975, also considered the district for nomination as a

National Historic Landmark. Rather than nominating the entire district, however, NHL status

was approved for just three elements within it: the Pioneer Building, the pergola located in

Pioneer Place, and the nearby totem pole. The nomination became final on May 5, 1977. [19]

An Interpretive Site is Acquired

The legislation which created Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, passed on June 30,

1976, provided almost no direction for its Seattle Unit. Public Law 94-323 demanded only that

the unit be located in the Pioneer Square Historic District, and the hearings record that

accompanied the bill stipulated that the acquisition and display of historic objects and

documents for the unit would cost approximately $40,000. It was left to the 1973 Master Plan,
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NPS policies, and the decisions of regional officials to guide development of the new unit and

the direction of the suggested expenditures. [20]

Almost two weeks after Congress passed the Klondike Park bill, on July 13, 1976, Regional

Director Russell Dickenson met with his staff to plan for the future park. Those attending the

meeting included Edward J. Kurtz, Deputy Regional Director; James B. Thompson, Associate

Regional Director in charge of Management and Operations; and Charles Gebler, Chief of the

Division of Interpretation and Visitor Services. The office could do nothing until it received an

official notice from the NPS director to implement the new park. Dickenson had originally

hoped to formally dedicate the park in August; perhaps because of the delay from Washington,

however, dedication ceremonies were indefinitely postponed. [21]

In preparation for that time, the group decided that the Skagway portion of the park would

operate under the direction of the Alaska Area Office, in Anchorage. Regarding the Seattle Unit,

normal circumstances suggested that the superintendent, wherever he or she might be located,

would supervise the operations of all park units. (Indeed, a previously-prepared interim

prospectus on the park had made just such a conclusion.) Dickenson, however, recognized that

"it would be not be practical, for the time being, to have the Seattle Unit ... managed by the

Superintendent ... in Skagway." Because of the "unusual situation" brought on by the 900 miles

separating Skagway from Seattle, the Pioneer Square facility would be managed by the Pacific

Northwest Regional Office. [22] The practical effect of Dickenson's decision was the creation of

a park that had no superintendent and little independent management authority. For the time

being, publications issued on behalf of the Seattle unit--statements for management, interpretive

prospectuses, and the like--were included within documents that primarily pertained to the units

in Skagway and vicinity.

On August 17, the directorate in Washington issued its activation memorandum implementing

the new park unit. [23] Shortly thereafter, regional officials met again to plan the Seattle Unit.

Dickenson assigned responsibility for the new unit to James Thompson, the regional head of

management and operations; Thompson, in turn, assigned responsibility to Charles Gebler, the

region's Chief of Interpretation and his assistant Glenn Hinsdale, the region's Chief of Urban

and Environmental Affairs. But Hinsdale and Gebler would not work on the project alone.

Interpretation Specialist James A. "Rocky" Richardson, planner Don Campbell, and Public

Programs Specialist Henry Warren were asked to select the site of the new interpretive center.

Richardson and Warren were asked to develop information and interpretive literature for the

park, and Richardson was also asked to produce an interpretive plan for the exhibits that the

contractor was to install. Eric Williams and Henry Dun, from the General Services

Administration, were assigned the acquisition details. Finally, historical architect Laurin

Huffman was placed in charge of planning the visitor center's interior, although much of

designing work was provided by design consultants. [24]

The officials' first task was the leasing of a historical building in the Pioneer Square area.

Dickenson, at first, hoped to rent, on a temporary (one-year) basis, "sufficient space for the

exhibits and base of operation at ground level adjacent to the Historical Underground Tour."

(Bill Speidel's tour began in the Pioneer Building, on the east side of Pioneer Place.) Using "a

very small space" (1000 to 1500 square feet), the agency intended to open an interim public

facility by March 1, 1977; meanwhile, regional officials would seek a site for a more permanent

facility. [25] NPS officials, in late August, contacted the General Services Administration in

order to obtain the space. As late as December 1976, officials still held out hope that the center

would be open "by March 1, 1977, or as soon as practicable thereafter." [26] The difficulties of

creating the new park unit, however, forced officials to drop the idea of an interim facility.

Work commenced on exhibit design for the proposed visitor center soon after the passage of the

park bill. On August 10, 1976, Thompson noted that "we are moving ahead with the design and
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preparation of exhibits," and on September 7, the agency issued a Request for Proposal for

exhibit planning and construction. A local consulting firm, Systems Architects Engineers, Inc.

(SAE), showed an immediate interest in doing the contract work. [27] By the end of the month,

the company had won the contract, which called for the creation of exhibits, photo murals,

artifact displays, and a small theater. SAE consultants Luis (Lou) Rivera and Carlos Young

were given the task of creating an interpretive exhibit package. Assisting SAE in the work was

architect Ralph Anderson. [28]

Meanwhile, plans for a permanent facility moved ahead. The General Services Administration

(GSA), the federal agency in charge of procuring and operating government buildings,

contacted all property owners in the Pioneer Square area. [29] By October 1976, the NPS and

GSA had selected four area properties: 1) the southeast corner of Yesler Way and Occidental

Avenue South, 2) the northwest corner of South Main Street and First Avenue South; 3) 612

First Avenue, and 4) 117 South Main Street. By January 1977, GSA officials had discarded the

first two possibilities. NPS investigators--Don Campbell, Glenn Hinsdale, Rocky Richardson,

and Henry Warren--toured the other two sites. The first location, which faced Pioneer Place and

was adjacent to the Pioneer Building, was in the heart of Pioneer Square. NPS staff recognized

that the site had certain obvious advantages; it would enjoy relatively high visitation, in large

part because it was adjacent to the Underground Tour. Negative attributes of the area included a

pawnshop and other nearby "aesthetically displeasing" businesses. The other location, the fourstory Union Trust Annex Building, was located across the street from Occidental Park. Located

in a quieter area, it had no objectional land uses in the vicinity; it could be seen from the Alaska

Marine Highway dock; and parking was relatively accessible. The site, three blocks away from

Pioneer Place, would give NPS interpreters an easier opportunity to provide walking tours

without interference from the Underground Tour. Officials worried, however, that it might be

difficult to attract visitors to the relatively remote site, particularly during the winter months.

[30]

The four-man NPS team followed up on their site visit by conferring with Bill Speidel as well

as with NPS architect Laurin Huffman. On January 12, the agency decided to lease 3,500 square

feet on the ground floor of the Union Trust Annex building. (The structure, which was just west

of the Union Trust building, had been built in 1901 and had formerly served as the Union

Gospel Mission store.) The General Services Administration, which assumed leasing duties for

the NPS, arranged a five-year lease with Lincoln Property Company of California, the building

manager, on May 27, 1977. Annual lease payments were to be $51,618. The lease would not go

into effect, however, until the NPS was given clearance to occupy the building. [31]

Preparing the Visitor Center for Public Use

Once NPS signed the Union Trust Annex lease, personnel began to ready the site for its

eventual occupancy. On March 1, 1977, the agency approved a floor plan for the site; that plan

included a mezzanine level which created a total NPS floor area of 5,505 square feet. Over the

next several months, Rocky Richardson and Lou Rivera were involved in design work and

interpretive signing, Laurin Huffman worked on finishes and fabric, and Adell Grochow worked

to obtain the needed furniture, supplies, materials & accessories. [32] But finishing the facility

took longer than required because the agency requested several change orders from the company

in charge of exhibit construction. (The contract, originally scheduled to be completed for

$30,000, was raised five times; it eventually totalled over $51,000.) The contractor contributed

to the delays, too. It mistakenly installed the sprinkler pipes so that they ran through the areas

designated for exhibit. Also (according to the NPS) it repeatedly attempted to save money by

using cheap materials. At one point a subcontractor in charge of exhibit construction reportedly

"ran off to Las Vegas" and was being sued by the contractor. [33]
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In the meantime, NPS personnel had to iron out a host of other difficulties. From the City of

Seattle, for example, the agency had to undergo a building code compliance review period and

had to obtain a rehabilitation permit. [34] The Pioneer Square Historic Preservation Board had

to approve facade alterations, window lettering, and other outside details. The GSA had to fight

with the local Lincoln Property representative over the fire sprinkler system, noise and heatingsystem difficulties, and other details. [35]

As a result of these delays and the multitudinous details that had to be overcome, the date for

opening the Seattle facility had to be repeatedly set back. In 1976, as noted above, the NPS had

hoped to open a temporary facility in March 1977; in March 1977, the opening date for the

permanent facility was predicted to be in June. By September 1977, the opening date had been

pushed back to January 1978; by mid-1978, it was becoming increasingly obvious that work

would not be completed any time soon. On September 1, the NPS was finally given clearance to

move into the building, and the five year lease between GSA and Lincoln Property Co. began.

The task of constructing exhibits and preparing the floor plan to the agency's specifications,

however, was still to come. [36]

During the period between the park's authorization and the opening of the Seattle visitor center,

conflicts arose from time to time over how the unit would be managed. In early 1977, the

agency had appointed Richard E. Hoffman as the park's first superintendent. Hoffman, who was

stationed in Skagway, recognized--as an interim measure--the practicality of managing the

Seattle unit from the regional office. By October, however, he was arguing that the time had

come for Klondike Gold Rush to be managed as a single, comprehensive park. In a letter to G.

Bryan Harry, the Director of the Anchorage-based Alaska Area Office, Hoffman noted that

In my discussions with the Directorate of the Regional Office, it was agreed that

[the regional office] should continue [to administer the Seattle unit] until the Park

Management was established and ready to assume control of the Seattle Unit....

Now that the management of the KLGR park [both Alaska and Seattle units] has

been accomplished and the integration of the Seattle Unit is needed, I propose that

this interim plan be implemented. The physical development and establishment of

the Seattle Unit [should] continue to be the responsibility of the Assigned Regional

Office [but] the planning, staffing, and the implementation of the approved

objectives of this unit [should] be the responsibility of the Park Superintendent....

This can be accomplished by an informal memorandum of understanding between

the principal parties based upon the approved Master Plan Objective, the approved

Statement for Management and other pertinent planning documents.... After the Unit

is established and operational the Regional Office's role will cease and full park

management will be effected. [37]

Some regional officials, including Assistant Regional Director Temple A. Reynolds, supported

Hoffman's position and urged that the regional office divest itself of direct responsibility over

the local park unit. Regional Director Russell Dickenson and Deputy Regional Director Edward

J. Kurtz, however, thought otherwise; consequently, the regional office made no moves to

relinquish management control. [38] The officials may have done so because any movement

toward an independent operation prior to the opening of the visitor center would have been

premature. Second, they may have recognized the practical difficulties involved in managing a

unit located 900 miles away from the superintendent; and third, they may have concluded that

regional officials, who were located less than a mile from the new visitor center, were in a far

better position to play a leadership role than Skagway-based officials who had little recognition

of the unit's day-to-day operations. Management of the two units, therefore, continued to be

separate. Between 1977 and 1979, most NPS documents issued on behalf of the park pertained

to both the Alaska and Seattle units; since then, however, the paper stream of the two park units

has been almost entirely separate.
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Once the NPS was finally given clearance to move in to its new facility, officials began to plan

opening day activities. In early 1978, NPS interpreters contacted officials at the University of

Washington's school of drama and offered a modest grant if one of their number would write a

play with a Gold Rush theme. Ruben Sierra responded, and by May 1 turned in a draft script for

a one-man show. NPS officials heavily criticized the script and ultimately rejected it. Several

months later a fellow playwright, Barry Pritchard, submitted an entirely different script which

was reviewed favorably by the agency. [39]

Little activity took place in the first several weeks after the NPS gained possession of the Union

Trust Annex building. By October no exhibits had yet been installed. By January 1979,

equipment and furnishings had been installed in the auditorium and work spaces had been

created for three full-time and three part-time employees. Exhibit construction, however, was

slow in coming, and NPS officials were clearly becoming alarmed. The contractor had delivered

only a few photo murals and the gold rocker; the remaining exhibits, so far as the NPS knew,

were still uncompleted. [40] After that point, activity apparently accelerated. By mid-March, a

GSA official was able to notify the NPS that the contractor, at long last, was "currently

correcting many deficiencies in the space," and by late March, Gebler felt sufficiently confident

in the progress of construction that he suggested to Reynolds that the center be opened during

the first weekend in June. Reynolds, clearly relieved to see an end to the long delay, quickly

agreed and set an opening date of Saturday, June 2. [41] Hinsdale begged for another delay,

noting that most of the exhibits were still uncompleted. Reynolds, however, stood firm, and

urged that both he and the contractor complete all remaining tasks in the time allotted. [42]

Regional officials next hired employees for the new operation. Glenn Hinsdale, the Urban and

Environmental Affairs chief who had served as unit manager during the center's construction

phase, would not be involved in the day-to-day operations. Instead, Dave Maxon was hired as a

Supervisory Park Ranger and ad hoc unit manager. He, and the various park technicians and

information specialists who worked for him, were described as enthusiastic and sincere, though

relatively weak in experience. [43]

During the few weeks that remained before opening day, Gebler and Hinsdale hurried to

complete a park interpretive program. Regional staff had been assembling interpretive materials

since 1976, when it had prepared a Klondike Gold Rush display for that August's Calgary

(Alberta) Stampede. After the Stampede closed, the collected exhibits were sent to both

Skagway and Seattle. That same year, Rocky Richardson was asked to prepare an interim park

folder that described both the Washington and Alaska units. [44] Films and slide shows, shown

in the center's 102-seat auditorium, would be a staple of the program, so regional staff acquired

six films and a slide show. [45]

One area which proved to be of significant help in compiling materials for the interpretive

program was a series of historical research studies. Edwin Bearss's excellent historic resource

study of the proposed park was published in 1970, a full year before the NPS considered Seattle

for inclusion in Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park. As a result, NPS officials had no

internally-generated historical materials that illustrated the role which Seattle or other gateway

cities played in the gold rush experience. To overcome that handicap, one of the unit's first park

technicians, Charles Konopa, assembled two historical bibliographies. One was a lengthy

compilation dealing with general gold rush topics; the other dealt specifically with Seattle's role

during the rush. [46] In addition, Hinsdale conducted his own research on Pioneer Square

buildings, began a reference library by purchasing a number of Klondike historical volumes,

and assembled photographs and slides for use in future interpretive programs. [47]

Both the contracting personnel and NPS staff labored long and hard to prepare the unit for

opening day. The "long-delayed Klondike museum" (as the Seattle Times phrased it) opened as

scheduled at 11 a.m. on June 2 as part of the ninetieth annual Fire Festival and Pioneer Days
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celebration. The low-key dedication featured a ribbon cutting ceremony and speeches by Rep.

Joel Pritchard (R-WA), Bill Speidel, Pioneer Square Association President Stephen Burger, and

NPS Regional Director Russ Dickenson. The program ended with the first presentation of "Gold

Fever," the play which had been produced by Barry Pritchard and performed by the University

of Washington School of Drama. A varied crowd was on hand. According to NPS personnel in

attendance, "A number of raconteurs and world travellers, who now make their homes in and

around the park benches of Occidental Park, opposite the new facility, were present and added a

touch of old Seattle to the scene." [48]

(left) The Pioneer Building, erected three years after the Seattle fire of 1889, was

one of the most substantial and well-known structures in the downtown area.

Note the absence, in this early photo, of the triangle-shaped park known as

Pioneer Place. (right) By the 1970s, the Pioneer Building (without its cupola)

was one of the major edifices in the newly-revitalized Pioneer Square Historic
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District. The NPS briefly considered locating its Seattle unit in the building, but

in 1973 a private developer, Norman Volotin, purchased and restored it. (Bill

Speidel, Seattle Underground, 14 (left); KLSE Collection (right))

(top) William C. Speidel, a local journalist and historian, became locally famous as the "father of the Seattle
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Underground." In this mid-1960s photo, Speidel is shown leading one of his tours. (bottom) Bill Speidel, who was

largely responsible for the revival of the Pioneer Square area, gave an address at the park's June 1979 dedication.

(Speidel, Seattle Underground, 2 (top); KLSE Collection (bottom))

(top) On May 2, 1978, reconstruction work was well underway on the Seattle Unit's interior. (bottom) At the park's

dedication, two of the assembled dignitaries were Rep. Joel Pritchard (D-WA, left) and NPS Regional Director

Russell Dickenson. Pritchard, who represented the Seattle area in the House of Representatives, was a co-sponsor

of the Klondike park bill. The grandson of a Klondike stampeder, he and his family had hiked the Chilkoot Trail in

August 1975. (KLSE Collection (both photos))
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(top) Two weeks before the dedication ceremony, Supervisory Park Ranger David Maxon and Seasonal Park

Technician Danita Delimont (in uniforms) posed with "visitors" Sheryl Hendrickson and Christie LeClair (both

NPS employees) outside of the Seattle Unit. Maxon led the unit until August 1980. (bottom) James "Rocky"

Richardson (left), Charles Gebler, and Glenn Hinsdale, all of whom worked at NPS's Pacific Northwest Regional

Office, were instrumental in making the Seattle Unit a reality. (Doug Martin, KLSE Collection (left); KLSE

Collection (right))
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The program for the Seattle Unit's dedication, held June 2, 1979. (KLSE Collection)
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(left) Restoration of the Union Trust Annex's first floor facade took place in

March 1978, and by April 10 exterior work had been largely completed. (right)

On June 2, 1979, the Seattle Unit opened. Hundreds of visitors filtered through
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that day to see the exhibits and films. (KLSE Collection (both photos) )

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

PART III: MANAGEMENT OF THE SEATTLE UNIT

Chapter 12:

Operation of the Seattle Visitor Center

The Seattle visitor center for Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park opened on June 2,

1979, almost three years after Congress authorized the park and two years after the visitor center

opened in Skagway's White Pass and Yukon Route depot. Since the visitor center opened, major

changes have taken place in the park's operation and resource management capabilities. The

most significant changes have revolved around 1) physical site attributes, 2) budget and staff

areas, 3) the interpretive program, 4) education and other outreach functions, and 5) the

curatorial collection and similar cultural resource concerns. The chapter will discuss the history

of Klondike's Seattle unit as a function of those changing program areas.

Site Development

When the visitor center opened, the center was fully staffed, with a supervisory park ranger and

several seasonal park technicians. A full coterie of films and slide shows were available for

public viewing; staff quarters and space for a small library had also been completed. Thanks to

a last-minute flurry of construction work, the visitor center was ready for public presentation

when the door were flung open for the first time. Exhibits were largely complete, but many

finishing touches remained to be completed.

More than a year would elapse before the construction job was complete. In August 1979,

regional officials were informed that work was not proceeding because of a pay dispute between

the contractor and one of its consultants. That dispute was eventually resolved, but the

completion of the exhibits continued to lag. Karl Popp, the exhibit fabricator, was still working

on the exhibits the following June, and in January 1981, a regional official noted that exhibits

were still "in progress" and not yet finalized. Klondike staff were also quick to discover that the

completed exhibits were so poorly designed that visitors ignored them. (As one former

employee noted, "There was virtually nothing in the exhibits to display.") As a result, staff

attempted to rework and improve the exhibits with the meager funds made available to them.

[1]

Because the NPS did not own the Union Trust Annex Building, where the visitor center was

located, and because all development in Pioneer Square was regulated by city ordinance and the

decisions of the Pioneer Square Historic Preservation Board, the agency could do little to

modify the appearance of the Klondike visitor center. It quickly recognized, however, that the

unit was away from the primary visitor attractions. In order to enhance its visibility, therefore,

the agency added two flagpoles above the visitor center entrance. Three years later, in 1985, it

installed an awning over the front door. Because both actions altered the center's exterior
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facade, they required (and received) Historic Preservation Board approval. They also installed a

sandwich board on the sidewalk and installed a speaker which played 1890s music to passersby. [2]

Soon after the visitor center opened, Klondike staff began to outgrow the original, 5,505-squarefoot facility that the NPS had leased just a year earlier. Staff space was cramped, library and

curatorial space was limited, there was almost no interpretive workspace, and the lack of a

meeting room prevented the unit from fulfilling its educational and interpretive functions with

school and municipal groups. In the early 1980s, therefore, Superintendent Elaine Hounsell

requested extra funding to expand the unit's working space. Park officials hoped that satisfactory

space could be located near the existing facility. They worked with Lincoln Property Company,

the building manager, in a search for a suitable expansion area.

In June 1983, the new superintendent, Willie Russell, took a more aggressive approach. He

requested extra space based on new public demand. In 1986, three additional rooms became

available in the building's basement, and the agency requested funds for their lease. That request

was approved later that year. During the summer of 1987, the NPS increased its working area by

almost 30 percent when it occupied 1,600 square feet of basement space. [3]

Because the Klondike visitor center was located in a high-crime, inner city location, security has

been a longtime concern. The vast majority of visitors have not been a security risk. The threat

of theft and break-ins, however, resulted in the agency's insistence on a state-of-the-art alarm

system. Soon after the center opened, regional officials established procedures on building

access. Employees hired since that time have been trained to be wary and vigilant; as a 1987

operations evaluations noted, "We are all security oriented." [4] A related security threat has

been visitation of public inebriates, vagrants and emotionally disturbed people, some of whom

are noisy, odiferous, or otherwise objectionable to others. NPS staff over the years have been

trained to handle these individuals with a minimum of confrontation. Such tactics, however,

have sometimes failed, and to assist with the removal of these individuals, officials have

contacted the Federal Protective Service, an arm of the General Services Administration. Seattle

police officers have also been available to assist when necessary. The NPS has enjoyed a

longstanding, excellent relationship with both agencies. [5]

Another way in which the agency has reduced its security problems has been by manipulating

its hours of operation. When the visitor center was being readied for opening day, Glenn

Hinsdale proposed that the visitor center be open for five days per week during the non-summer

months. Upper level regional officials, however, vehemently disagreed with that notion and

ordered year-round daily operations. [6] Those in charge of site operations soon discovered that

security problems were magnified if the visitor center remained open during the evening hours,

when few out-of-town visitors were in the area. Officials, therefore, reduced its hours of

operation and security concerns dropped. [7]

The Union Trust Annex Building has been owned by two different entities during the period in

which NPS has been a tenant. When the NPS first became interested in the building, it was

owned by Lincoln Fotups Associates, a limited partnership based in Arizona; it was managed by

Lincoln Property Company of Northern California. As noted in Chapter 11, the first lease

agreement between the General Services Administration (which handles lease transactions for

the federal government) and Lincoln Property Company became effective on September 1, 1978.

That agreement remained in force for five years; lease payments were $55,802 per annum.

When the agency's lease was renewed on September 8, 1982, annual lease payments rose to

$67,288. [8]

In February 1985, GSA's lease on the Union Trust Annex Building was transferred from the

Lincoln Property Company to William F. Bailey. The new owner initially assigned building
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management to Coldwell Banker Real Estate Management Services. Soon afterward, however,

Martin Smith Inc. assumed management responsibilities. On June 16, 1986, the lease was

revised to reflect a change in the lease fee; the new fee was set at $55,802 per year, the same

rate that had been charged between 1978 and 1982. On September 14, 1987 a new five-year

lease was drawn up between Bailey and GSA calling for annual payments of $83,839. (The

higher payments were due, in part, because of the agency's recent expansion to the building's

basement.) Then, on February 28, 1992, Bailey and GSA consummated a ten-year lease. The

1992 lease called for annual payments of $133,912 until 1997; payments from 1997 until 2002

will be $166,334.20 per annum. [9]

Most NPS officials have recognized that the Pioneer Square lease has been necessary because

high costs prevented the agency from purchasing and managing one of the area's large, capitalintensive historic buildings. Those same officials, however, have chafed at the lack of

management flexibility imposed by a lease arrangement. The solution of even minor buildingmanagement problems has required consultation with both the General Services Administration

and the building manager. Difficulties with fellow tenants have compounded officials'

restiveness. In 1980, and again in 1991, tenants complained about the noise emanating from the

auditorium. [10] The agency's long-term lease and escalating lease payments have exacerbated

the situation; as at least one regional official has been quick to point out, the agency could have

purchased the Union Trust Annex building outright with each ten years' worth of lease payments

it has expended. [11]

Another reason that officials have been dissatisfied with the building has been a simple lack of

space. This problem, as noted above, has existed for years, and officials hoped it was solved

when, in 1987, the park expanded into the building's basement. The benefits of the expansion,

however, proved temporary. The increase in visitation--it more than doubled between 1987 and

1993--put a strain on park facilities, and by the early 1990s the space allotted to staff,

equipment and storage had once again become cramped and unmanageable. [12]

NPS officials have long recognized that the existing arrangement was less than satisfactory. In

1983, and again in 1990, the park's Statement for Management specified that one of its

management objectives would be to "establish a permanent location" for the park. (In neither

case did the accompanying text clarify those remarks. More specifically, the text did not state

that the agency was dissatisfied with the existing site.) [13]

Several NPS officials, however, have suggested that the visitor center be moved. In 1985,

Pacific Northwest Regional Director Daniel J. Tobin, Jr. admitted that he was less than

enthusiastic about the South Main Street site, noting that "The space ... was selected on the basis

of availability, not because it was an especially desirable configuration." The following year, the

approved Resource Management Plan declared that the unit's space problems would be solved if

the visitor center moved to another building. [14] Then, in 1987, an operations evaluation,

noting that the unit's "greatest challenge is public awareness and understanding of its resources,"

reiterated that "Strong consideration should be given to relocating the park to a more

advantageous location.... The best location for a new unit is one of the corners along First

[Avenue South]." [15]

Park Service officials recognize that the unit's space problems can be solved in one of four

ways. First, the agency would ideally like to expand within the Union Trust Annex building, and

an obvious (if expensive) way to effect that expansion would be to purchase it. That purchase is

contingent both on the owner's willingness to sell and the agency's ability to generate the

necessary purchase funds. If those contingencies cannot be overcome, agency officials may

choose a second option; the NPS would move out of the existing site and either purchase or

lease another Pioneer Square building. [16]
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In recent years, NPS officials have pursued a third alternative. That option would establish an

interpretive annex in another Pioneer Square building, but operations at the Union Trust Annex

Building would continue. In 1989, planning discussions began between NPS and Parks Canada

officials regarding the centennial of the Klondike gold rush. Four years later, Seattle NPS

officials revived those discussions and began coordination efforts with the Port of Seattle, the

State of Washington and other entities. As part of those discussions, it was suggested that an

interagency interpretive kiosk be located on the Seattle waterfront. No decisions have yet been

made regarding that proposal. [17]

A fourth alternative was offered in 1993. In order to satisfy short-term space needs, the

superintendent that year requested an additional 2,020 square feet of space in the Union Trust

Annex building. That space, located directly above the auditorium, was needed for work rooms,

administrative offices, and meeting space. NPS officials have responded favorably to Russell's

request, and when Director Roger Kennedy visited the unit in 1994, he indicated that tentative

approval for the expansion had been granted. Park officials hope that they will be able to use the

new space beginning in fiscal year 1997. [18]

Budget and Staff Growth

Klondike's first staff person was Mike Gurling, hired in early 1978 by Glenn Hinsdale. Gurling,

working at the regional office, performed research at various Seattle-area repositories in support

of potential programs and exhibits. Gurling and Kathy Maurich, the unit's first park technician,

purchased hundreds of historical photographs and books, and obtained several items for the

museum collection. [19]

By early 1979 additional staff had been hired, among them Supervisory Park Ranger David

Maxon, who served as unit manager, and several park technicians. Soon after the visitor center

opened, staff levels rose. During fiscal year 1980, however, several staff members were in a

seasonal or subject-to-furlough status. The park that year was allotted just three full-timeequivalent positions (see Appendix C). [20]

During the weeks following the park dedication, regional officials moved to establish the park

as a separate field unit, one that would no longer be managed directly by Glenn Hinsdale,

Charles Gebler, and other regional office personnel. In order to do so, they evaluated the park

operations, helped prepare the unit's first Statement for Management, and commenced the

process for hiring a superintendent, an administrative services assistant, and other personnel.

Maxon helped the process along by sending the regional office an anticipated staffing pattern

and by submitting the proper budget forms. Beginning on August 12, 1979, the regional chief of

interpretation no longer had official management authority over park operations; the unit

manager took over in his stead. Despite that move, Maxon continued to be directed by Hinsdale

and other regional staff. [21]

The Seattle Unit of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park became an independently

operating unit in 1980. The year witnessed a dramatic increase in staff, including the hiring of a

supervisory park technician, an administrative services assistant, several seasonal park

technicians, and three information specialists. The most prominent of the new appointments was

Elaine Hounsell as the unit's first superintendent. Hounsell, formerly the Chief of Interpretation

at Morristown National Historical Park in New Jersey, assumed her new position on August 11,

1980. Supervisory Park Ranger David Maxon, who had been serving as the ad hoc unit

manager until the time of Hounsell's appointment, continued serving in his position and served

as the unit's second in command. [22]

By the end of 1980, the unit had almost three times the full-time-equivalent (FTE) staffing level
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as it had a year earlier. Much of that increase was effected by the upgrading of seasonal

positions to subject-to-furlough status or by upgrading subject-to-furlough hires to permanent

status. Thereafter, staff levels stabilized. Ever since that time, the park has supported either 7 or

8 FTE's (except in 1990, when the FTE level slipped to 6). [23]

The superintendency during this period has reflected the stability in personnel, because there

have been only two superintendents since 1980. (See Appendix D.) Ms. Hounsell served in her

position until June 1983, when she transferred to the assistant superintendency of Crater Lake

National Park. She was succeeded by Willie Russell, who at the time of his appointment was

serving as the Emergency Services Coordinator in the agency's Pacific Northwest Regional

Office. Russell has served as superintendent ever since. [24]

Serving under the superintendent have been a number of rangers. David Maxon served as the

Supervisory Park Ranger until April 1982, when he was succeeded by Mike Gurling, who had

been working in the office since 1978. Gurling served as the head ranger until December 1986;

in early 1987, Paul Henderson was appointed as the Chief Park Ranger, while Mardi Butt was

appointed to be the Lead Park Ranger. Butt continued in her position until August 1989; after

she departed, the Lead Ranger position was phased out. Henderson continued to serve in his

position until 1990, when he stepped down and was replaced by Marianne Mills, a ranger who

had begun working at the park in August 1988. Mills continued working as Chief Park Ranger

until August 1993. The position then lay dormant until December 1994, when it was filled by

Betsy Duncan-Clark, who had been working in Klondike's Skagway headquarters for the

previous eleven years. The two longest-serving rangers were Mike Gurling, who served eight

years, and Marianne Mills, who served for five years. [25]

The other park positions have witnessed a greater degree of personnel turnover, primarily

because their pay levels have been less. Ten people have served as the unit's administrative

officer, and 32 have worked as non-supervisory permanent park rangers, park technicians, or

information receptionists. (See Appendix D.) All of these positions have been at the GS-5, GS4, or GS-3 grade level. Such positions have often proven fruitful to the employee, inasmuch as

they have provided them permanent NPS status. NPS employees, however, often find it

impossible to live in Seattle at that salary level. Because of the low pay, therefore, most park

personnel have remained in those positions for fewer than two years. Of the 32 employees who

had worked as non-supervisory permanent park rangers, park technicians, or information

receptionists, only five have remained in their position for more than two years. Only two--park

ranger Francisco A. Soto and information specialist William E. Rose--have served for more than

five years. [26]

Park managers, over the years, have had three primary staffing concerns. First, they have long

complained about the lack of adequate personnel. Since the unit opened, the number of annual

visitors has more than doubled, and NPS leaders have attempted to remain visible to both

visitors and residents by carrying on interpretation and outreach activities away from the visitor

center. In response to those demands, however, staff levels (as noted above) have not grown. As

a result of stagnant personnel levels, the working staff has become increasingly absorbed in

day-to-day operations and has less and less time for outreach programs. [27] Compounding the

problem has been the reluctance of the regional office, at times, to expeditiously fill vacant

positions. The various Superintendent's Annual Reports note that many months have often

elapsed between the termination of an employee and the hiring of his or her replacement; the

Supervisory Park Ranger position that was vacated in August 1993, for example, was not filled

for another sixteen months. [28]

Second, park managers have long felt that the grade levels assigned to the park staff are

inconsistent with their levels of responsibility and workload. Prior to 1994, only the

superintendent (and David Maxon, when he was unit manager) have held a rating above GS-7.
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Individuals with a GS-5 rating have sometimes been given leadership tasks; and, as noted

above, non-supervisory personnel have traditionally worked at the GS-3, GS-4, and GS-5 grade

levels. The depressed grade levels, combined with the relatively high cost of living in Seattle,

have caused some employees to seek transfers to other parks, and others have chosen to pursue

careers outside of the National Park Service. Relatively few staff members, regardless of their

dedication to the agency, have financially been able to work at the park for an extended period.

[29]

Finally, park managers have long complained that regional officials have exerted, or attempted

to exert, an inordinate amount of authority over park affairs. The park has always been located

within walking distance of the regional office; perhaps as a consequence, many regional

officials have attempted to circumvent the superintendent and decide park matters on their own.

David Maxon, the park's first supervisor, was often overruled by officials in the region's office

of interpretation; those officials may have felt justified in doing so because they had operated

the park before Maxon had been selected for his position. Elaine Hounsell, the first

superintendent, fought a long, uphill battle (primarily against the regional interpretive staff)

before attaining broad decision-making authority. Willie Russell, who succeeded Hounsell, has

been forced to wage some of the same turf battles as his predecessor. He has long been aware of

the problem, and perhaps as a consequence, he has retained a broad degree of management

independence. Both he and others recognize, however, that because of the park's geographical

proximity, regional officials are tempted to manage Klondike's affairs more than those of other

Pacific Northwest Region parks. [30]

Because staff expenses have consistently accounted for more than 95 percent of the park's

budget over the years, budget figures have closely reflected the staffing levels. In fiscal year

1980, the first year in which the park was provided an independent budget, the operations

budget for the Seattle unit of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park was $151,200 (see

Appendix C). The park's budget was cut during four of the next seven years, and in fiscal year

1987 had risen only to $165,800. Since that time the park has witnessed consistent increases in

its budget, and in fiscal year 1993 the park's ONPS budget had risen to $263,000. Although the

park's budget rose 73.9 percent between 1980 and 1993, inflation decreased the value of the

dollar to 56.7 percent of its former value during the same period. As a result, the park actually

absorbed a 2.1 percent budget cut, in terms of constant (real) dollars, between 1980 and 1993.

[31]

Interpretive Program Development

As noted in Chapter 11, personnel at the Pacific Northwest Regional Office began to organize

the park's interpretive program shortly after it was authorized by Congress. By December 1976--

even before the site of the Seattle visitor center had been chosen--a draft version of an

interpretive prospectus had been prepared. That plan, prepared by William T. Ingersoll of San

Francisco, was finalized on June 3, 1977. It called for the unit's permanent interpretive program

to be composed of historic photographs, three-dimensional displays, a slide show, and an NPSproduced "major motion picture." Exhibits were to focus on the materials sold by the Seattle

merchants, a typical stampeder's outfit, Pioneer Square during the gold rush, a selection of goldrush advertisements, exhibits on both marine and overland transportation, and a park orientation

exhibit. [32]

The interpretive program, to a large extent, followed the suggestions contained in Ingersoll's

prospectus. The exhibits were designed by Systems Architects Engineers, a Seattle firm, during

1977 and 1978; they and the various photographs were installed by exhibit fabricator Karl Popp

in 1978 and 1979. The agency did not sponsor the production of a "major motion picture;"

instead, it purchased the rights to the recently-created, hour-long William Bronson
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documentary, Days of Adventure, Dreams of Gold; it then shortened the film to half its former

length and adopted it as its primary interpretive film. Charles Gebler and Glenn Hinsdale

assembled five other films and a slide show that would serve as the core of the park's audiovisual program. (The five films were The Chilkoot Trail, narrated by Lyle Bebensee; City of

Gold, narrated by Pierre Berton; Dyea and Chilkoot Pass and Skagway, White Pass and Soapy

Smith, both of which were narrated by Anchorage entertainer Larry Beck; and The Gold Rush,

starring Charlie Chaplin. The slide show was "The Klondike Gold Rush," a ten-minute

production based on the music of Skagway folk singer Steve Hites.) James "Rocky" Richardson

helped prepare an interim park folder that described both the Seattle and Skagway units of

Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park. [33]

The only other aspect of the park's initial interpretive program was a play, "Gold Fever," that

had been written by Barry Pritchard and produced by the University of Washington School of

Drama. "Gold Fever" had been created as an added attraction for the visitor center's grand

opening, but the play was offered all summer long. Some 4,000 visitors attended one of the 72

matinee performances between June and September. After its four-month run, the play was

funded for a road show in the winter and spring of 1980. [34]

A new interpretive function that the park assumed in 1980 was the agency's co-sponsorship of

the Joint Information Office (JIO). Since 1975, the U.S. Forest Service and the NPS had

combined to support an office that distributed information and answered questions about federal

parks and forests in the Pacific Northwest. At first, regional office staff managed the facility for

the NPS. In 1980, however, NPS management was transferred to Klondike-Seattle, and as a

result, the unit hired several information specialists. These individuals were paid by the NPS

and were managed by Klondike-Seattle, but their duties were only tangentially related to those

of their co-workers at the Klondike visitor center. At first, the park hired information specialists

to work at the JIO, and their duties were restricted to that facility. In 1985, however, the

information specialist classification was largely abandoned. Since that time, Klondike-Seattle's

rangers and technicians have worked short stints at the JIO on a rotating basis.

When Klondike-Seattle began managing the NPS portion of the facility, the Joint Information

Office was located in the new (Henry M. Jackson) Federal Building at Second Avenue and

Marion Street. In December 1981, however, it was moved to the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie

National Forest supervisor's office, located at First Avenue and Spring Street. JIO personnel

recorded more visitor contacts than did their counterparts at the Klondike-Seattle visitor center

(see Appendix C); fewer than half of those contacts, however, were walk-in visitors. (The

remainder of the JIO's workload consisted of answering telephone and mail requests for

information.) [35]

In 1981, the interpretive program expanded when park staff began to offer books, postcards and

maps to park visitors. The Pacific Northwest National Parks Association (PNNPA), a

cooperating association established by federal law for educational purposes, established a

branch at the park. [36] The park's interpretive staff created three temporary exhibits that year.

The previous year's Statement for Management had pointed out the need for new exhibits

located close to the sidewalk, and the installation of the exhibits helped distinguish the visitor

center from adjacent business buildings. [37] Also in 1981, personnel at the agency's Harpers

Ferry Center created, and began distributing, a separate park folder for the Seattle unit. The

project had begun the year before. [38]

The year 1982 saw the completion of a 15-minute slide show on Seattle's role in the Klondike

gold rush. That show, entitled "Seattle: Gateway to the Goldfields," was produced by the park

staff. It had been in the planning stages since before the visitor center had opened. With the

addition of this show, the park dropped the two Larry Beck films it had selected in the late

1970s; thereafter, and for the next decade, the park offered visitors the choice of four films and
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two slide shows. In June of that year, the park's popular gold panning demonstrations were

initiated. Visitors of all ages were intrigued by the exhibit, and school age children enjoyed both

the opportunity to pan gold and their ability to take home a painted "gold nugget" after the

demonstration. A "mudbox" to facilitate the demonstrations was constructed in 1983. [40]

From time to time, well-known speakers and entertainers augmented the regular interpretive

program. In 1982, in conjunction with a re-enactment of the arrival of the S.S. Portland to

Elliott Bay, Seattle historian Murray Morgan lectured in the park auditorium. The following

year, Anchorage balladeer Larry Beck and Skagway entertainer Steve Hites gave dramatic

programs, and Klondike author Pierre Berton paid a visit. Beck returned, on an annual basis,

until the late 1980s. [41]

In 1983, the park's Statement for Management declared the need for an exhibit update; the

exhibits stressed the relationships between Alaska and the gold rush while minimizing the links

between Seattle and the rush. Later that year, the agency began to improve the admittedly

inadequate exhibits it had constructed five years earlier. Operating through a local contractor, it

rehabilitated several exhibit panels, designed and built new panels, and commenced work on

several of the three-dimensional exhibits. The newly-improved exhibits were completed in 1984

and 1985. [42] In late 1985, the agency finalized an interpretive prospectus that heavily

criticized several of the park's exhibits. In response, it announced that it planned to redesign the

entire exhibit package beginning in 1986. The cost of the exhibit package, however--a projected

$360,000--was apparently too high, and the package was therefore not constructed. Four years

later, a Seattle firm designed and produced a revised exhibit plan. That plan, however, had no

better luck than its predecessor. [43]

A great deal of work was expended during the 1980s to create a living history program. The

need for a such a program was recognized in the April 1980 Statement for Management, and by

1982 (as noted above) a semblance of living history was realized with the new gold panning

demonstrations. [44] Research work for a broader program began in 1983, and by 1985, the

park's interpretive plan recognized the need for "a few short living history vignettes presented in

the role of a returned stampeder or other representative gold rush character, mingling with the

visitors among the major exhibits and occasionally appearing on stage ... for scheduled groups

and special occasions." Park staff, therefore, procured various living history costumes that year.

[45] In June 1990, park staff were on the verge of offering a living history program, and

confidently predicted that it would begin within the next month or two. Only a smattering of

living history programs were held during the early 1990s, however, and prospects for an

increased program frequency appear dim. [46]

In 1985, park and regional staff responded to the continuing public interest in the gold rush by

promoting the idea of a Klondike handbook. Many units in the NPS system have sponsored the

publication of park handbooks, and that fall, Mike Gurling of the Seattle office suggested an

agency-sponsored volume that would tell the Klondike story. Gurling contacted Archie

Satterfield, a well-known Seattle journalist and author of three gold rush books. Satterfield

showed an immediate interest in the project, and offered to write a 224-page volume for

$10,000. Superintendent Russell, and the interpretive chiefs in both the Pacific Northwest and

Alaska regional offices, were likewise enthusiastic about the project. Gurling, in response,

prepared a scope of work for the project, and the proposal was sent to the agency's publications

unit in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. The unit, however, did not fund the proposal. The idea was

dropped, and no action has been taken during the past decade to revive it. [47]

Between 1985 and 1990, few major changes took place in the park's interpretive program. The

park's films, slide shows, demonstrations, and exhibits remained static throughout this period.

The number of visitors who participated in the park experience, however, changed significantly.

During the mid-1980s, for example, the number of park visitors consistently dropped; the 1987
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total of 49,617 visitors was 21 percent less than the 62,830 total which had been recorded in

1984. (See Appendix C.) During the late 1980s and early 1990s, however, visitation rose

dramatically, and by 1991 the number of visitors was more than twice as high as had been

recorded in 1987. The number of people who attended the visitor center's interpretive programs

also rose significantly during this period.

Much of the rise and fall in visitation was related to national or local economic trends; as a

result, park staff had relatively little control over the number of park visitors. They soon

recognized, however, that other factors influenced visitation as well. In 1982, for example, staff

noticed that the National Football League strike resulted in a dropoff in visitation; such a

relationship was not surprising considering that the Kingdome (where the Seattle Seahawks play

their home games) was just three blocks from the visitor center, and that visitation on game days

was three times higher than normal. [48] Five years later, staff remarked that downtown

transportation construction projects had depressed visitor totals. They had high hopes, however,

that the completion of the bus tunnel and the streetcar line would increase attendance. Sure

enough, the dropoff in construction activity and the 1990 completion of both the bus tunnel and

trolley line resulted in increased visitation. [49] Another factor that resulted in visitor growth

was the addition of the park to Gray Line's "Downtown Trolley" bus tour. In conjunction with

that tour, park authorities successfully petitioned the city to install a charter bus parking zone

directly in front of the visitor center. [50]

Since the early 1980s, interpretive activities have been guided by a steady stream of reports

generated by park personnel. The first interpretive document completed after William Ingersoll's

1977 Interpretive Prospectus was the Annual Statement for Interpretation and Visitor Services,

completed in June 1981. That document was updated in 1982, 1983 and 1984. Then, in April

1985, park and regional officials along with Harpers Ferry staff combined to create an updated

Interpretive Prospectus. In 1988, and again in 1990 and 1992, park staff issued an updated

Annual Statement for Interpretation and Visitor Services. [51]

During the 1990s, new interpretive activities have been added for park visitors. During the fall

of 1990, the interpretive staff began to sponsor weekly walking tours of the historic district.

These walks have continued, on a weekly basis, each summer since then. That same year, the

park held a weekly Gold Rush film festival, an activity which was not renewed in later years.

[52] And in 1993, park staff began showing a new 15-minute slide program, called Hiking the

Chilkoot, which had been developed by personnel at the agency's Harpers Ferry audiovisual

center and the Skagway interpretive staff. The program, the park's third slide show, was

intended for prospective hikers as well as the general tourist and served as a much needed

replacement for Lyle Bebensee's Chilkoot Trail film which had been produced during the

1970s. [53]

Outreach Activities

During the late 1970s, NPS officials hoped that the visitor center being planned in Pioneer

Square would be an important part of the downtown tourist's visitor experience. They were well

aware, however, that the upcoming visitor center would be a secondary attraction in the area. A

sustained effort would be needed in order to publicize the park to area visitors and Seattle

residents.

Glenn Hinsdale, the region's Chief of Urban and Environmental Affairs and a key creator of the

present interpretive program, felt that a major area of outreach should be the Seattle area

schools. Before the visitor center opened, he designed several posters for use in the area's

elementary and junior high schools. But Hinsdale, together with Gurling and Maxon, recognized

that the available time and personnel prevented site visits. [54]
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Instead, park staff devised a multi-pronged publicity strategy. To the general public, the park

was advertised weekly in the newspaper listings and in occasional feature articles. Dave Maxon,

the unit's first manager, contacted a number of tour operators and mapmakers in order to ensure

that one and all knew about the new National Park Service unit. Most efforts, however, were

directed to area schools. In 1980, park staff sent letters to every elementary and junior high in

King, Pierce, Snohomish, and Kitsap counties, encouraging school group visitation, and for the

next three years staff contacted area school districts in hopes that notices about the park would

be placed in various pedagogical newsletters. Thereafter, letters were sent out every other year.

[55] The effort was successful, and the unit began to attract a wide variety of school groups. By

1985, organized tour groups (primarily composed of students) constituted nine percent of total

visitation. During the decade which followed, school groups have continued to be a staple of

park attendance. To enhance their experience, park staff developed several "site bulletins"

(informal park brochures), a teacher's guide, and so-called "Klondike Kits" for visiting students.

[56]

Park officials also got involved in Pioneer Square organizations. Two organizations

predominated in the area: the Pioneer Square Historic Preservation Board and Pioneer Square

Association. The purpose of the PSHPB was the preservation of historical authenticity in the

area by promulgating and enforcing regulations that influenced the exterior appearance of area

buildings; the PSA, on the other hand, was a business development organization composed of

merchants, professionals and others involved in restoring the district. In order to give the NPS a

voice in local affairs, Superintendent Hounsell became a regular attendee at meetings of both

groups. [57] Superintendent Russell has likewise been a continuing, active participant in the

Pioneer Square Association. [58]

During the 1980s, park staff used a variety of media to publicize the park to residents and

visitors. Beginning in 1982, the park was featured on several local television and radio shows,

and articles appeared in local newspapers. In 1984, park staff augmented their outreach efforts

when they began speaking to local civic, historical and youth groups. [59] In 1985, the park was

featured for the first time in several out-of-state newspapers and national magazines. Ruth

Scott, a staff ranger, further publicized the park when she produced a public relations poster that

was distributed to over 150 sites in the Seattle area. [60] Some of these outreach efforts lasted

for just a few years. Superintendent Russell, however, was a firm believer in the park's outreach

role, and when staffing levels allowed, park personnel continued to speak to a wide variety of

civic organizations. In fulfilling this role, staff sometimes travelled to off-site meeting places.

After the completion of the 1987 facility expansion, however, groups were also invited to attend

meetings in the park's new classrooms. [61]

Special events have often been a spur to park visitation. On the first weekend in June each year

since the center's opening in 1979, Pioneer Square business interests have sponsored the Great

Seattle Fire Festival in commemoration of the 1889 conflagration which nearly wiped out the

town's business district. Tens of thousands of visitors commonly descend upon the area,

attracted as they are by antique fire engines and related equipment. Park staff have consistently

supported the festival, and the visitor center records some of the highest crowds of the year at

this time. [62] Pioneer Square shopkeepers have also been longtime sponsors of special gallery

tours of the area's art and antique galleries, and NPS officials have participated by remaining

open during the evening in conjunction with those events. [63]

Planning for centennial events has encouraged park managers to coordinate their efforts with

others. During the Washington state centennial celebrations in November 1989, the visitor

center was chosen as a key site in the re-enactment of the equestrian mail run which had first

brought the news of statehood to Seattle's residents. [64] Park staff have also played a role in

planning the centennial of the Klondike gold rush. Since the late 1970s, NPS officials in

Skagway had been meeting from time to time with their Parks Canada counterparts on Chilkoot
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Trail management issues. By 1982, however, Klondike-Seattle Superintendent Hounsell was

also communicating with her Skagway and Whitehorse counterparts. In 1987, Superintendent

Russell met with other parks officials and proposed several ideas for commemorating the

centennial. The centennial was discussed again in 1989 at the Northern Parks Planning Session

in Anchorage. [65] Interest thereafter cooled for the next several years. In 1993, however, the

park began to work on centennial issues with the Port of Seattle, the State of Washington (via

Secretary of State Ralph Munro), the NPS in Skagway, and Parks Canada. Those efforts

promise to continue until the centennial celebrations have been completed. [66]

Cultural Resource Management

During the late 1970s, the NPS staff recognized Congress's intention that gold rush-era

interpretation would be the primary purpose of the new visitor center. Therefore, agency

personnel saw that the acquisition of a collection of historic artifacts from that period would be

consistent with legislative intent. Artifacts were needed both for exhibit and study purposes. In

order to be admissible in the collection, artifacts had to help explain Seattle's role in the gold

rush. In addition, because of limited storage space, agency staff preferred small objects over

large ones.

The park museum collection began in September 1976, when Interpretive Chief Richardson

received and catalogued two folding canvas boats which had recently been hauled down from

the cache at the top of Chilkoot Pass. Additional objects began to trickle in during 1977, and by

late 1979 more than sixty objects had been acquired. Some were original historical objects,

while others were reproductions; some were incorporated into park displays, while others were

kept in storage. Four items were on loan, either from the Dawson City Historical Museum or

from Parks Canada in Dawson City; the remaining objects were owned by the National Park

Service. [67]

The museum collection grew rapidly during the 1980s. By the end of 1981 it included more than

80 items, and by the summer of 1984 more than 130 objects were listed. [68] In 1989, the

collection totalled some 200 objects, and by 1993 it had doubled to approximately 400 items.

[69]

The agency was proud of what it had amassed. The collection, after all, represented the park's

sole tangible resource. [70] The NPS was well aware that museums in Juneau, Whitehorse, and

Dawson already had vast collections of gold rush materials, and Klondike-Seattle staff had no

intention of matching those museums in size or scope. As the 1985 Collections Management

Plan humbly noted,

The [Klondike-Seattle] collection is not particularly large nor particularly valuable

in a monetary sense.... The collection does, however, provide the visitor with a

tangible, often poignant touch-stone with an emotionally charged chapter of

American history.

Items in the collection included an original pan, pick, shovel, and pit saw, all borrowed from

repositories in the Yukon; a threadbare blanket, gold nuggets, and a logbook from a Moran

Brothers steamboat. [71]

Initially, storage methods for the museum collection were somewhat primitive. At first, goods

were stored haphazardly in a standard General Services Administration storage cabinet, located

behind the auditorium stage. In January 1981, however, Regional Curator Kent Bush visited the

facility, critiqued the park's storage and cataloguing methods, and recommended improvements

to the ad hoc system. A year later museum cabinets, a fireproof safe, and a hygrothermograph
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were delivered. [72] The goods were stored in the interpreters' work room for the next several

years. The park's 1987 expansion into the basement of the adjoining building provided the

opportunity to create an improved museum storage area, and a year later the collection was

moved into dedicated and environmentally controlled storage space for the first time. They have

remained there ever since. [73]

Museum records were also upgraded. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, the museum

accessions book was kept in a bound volume in the park's safe. Records continued to be kept on

paper until 1988, when they were verified and computerized. Park staff installed and utilized the

Automated National Catalog System for the first time. [74]

In 1989, plans got underway for a local, three-museum exhibit utilizing elements of the

Klondike-Seattle collection. The traveling exhibit, called "Gold! Gold! Gold! Klondike Fever

Strikes Seattle!" was sponsored by the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and the Bon Marche department

store; it was shown to the public in the summer of 1990. Participating museums included the

Seattle Children's Museum, the Seattle Museum of History and Industry, and NPS's KlondikeSeattle visitor center. That August, in conjunction with the exhibit, the Post-Intelligencer

produced a 16-page historical supplement, much of it written by the NPS staff. [75]

NPS staff, over the years, have prepared several documents to guide the development of the

park's museum collection. In 1979, park technician Audrey Mesford and park ranger Mike

Gurling began preparing the park's first Scope of Collections Statement; it was approved in

September 1980. [76] The first resource management plan, which assessed the status of the

park's museum collection, was prepared by park and regional staff and finalized in December

1981. Updates were prepared in February 1983, April 1984, July 1986 and November 1993. [77]

The park's Statement for Management, completed in February 1983, had called for the

preparation of a collections management plan, and by the end of the year, personnel from

Mount Rainier National Park, the Pacific Northwest Regional Office and the Washington

headquarters office began preparing it. The plan was completed in August 1984 and approved in

March 1985. [78] In 1990 and 1991, the regional curator updated the 1980 Scope of Collections

and wrote an new Access to Collections Policy Statement. The park has never been able to

assign personnel to exclusive curatorial responsibilities; instead, various park rangers have

served as Acting Curator in a collateral capacity. [79]

Closely linked to the park's museum collection has been its assemblage of historical reference

materials. A small library of reference books was purchased before the visitor center opened,

and over the years the collection has been augmented from time to time. By the late 1980s the

research library numbered some 200 volumes; in 1993, 50 new books were added to the

collection. [80] The park also contains a significant collection of historical prints and slides,

most of which have been copied from public or private collections. Both the historical library

and the photograph collection were moved in 1988 from the mezzanine level to one of the

newly-acquired basement rooms in the building adjacent to the visitor center. [81]

Because interpretation has been the staff's primary focus, little time has been available for the

pursuit of historical research projects. Prior to the commencement of visitor center operations,

Glenn Hinsdale gathered research materials on Pioneer Square's business buildings, and

technician Charles Konopa created bibliographies on both the Klondike gold rush and Seattle's

role in the rush. [82] Since that time, research projects have included a history of the Union

Trust Annex Building, the creation of an 1897 plat map, and a contract history of the Moran

Brothers shipbuilding company. [83] In addition, Superintendent Russell has reached out to

history departments at Seattle-Pacific University and the University of Washington, and he has

cooperated with students from both universities in their pursuit of gold rush research topics.

[84]
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Elaine Hounsell was the Seattle Unit's first superintendent, serving from August 1980 to June 1983. (KLSE

Collection)
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During the summer of 1986, NPS Director William Penn Mott visited the Seattle Unit and met with

Superintendent Willie Russell. Russell has led the unit from June 1983 to the present day. (KLSE Collection)

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

Appendix A:

Budget and Visitor Figures for Klondike Gold Rush

National Historical Park, Alaska Units

Fiscal

Year

ONPS

Budget

FTE

Total

Recreational

Visitor

Total

Chilkoot

Trail

Hikers

Overnight

Campground

Stays

Guided

Walk

Patrons

Live

Talk

Patrons

Film

Program

Patrons

1973 1,070

1974 1,349

1975 1,395

1976 1,508

1977 1,671

1978 $442,300* 2,046

1979 361,000 8* 2,204

1980 558,800 5 2,383

1981 601,300 23 2,590

1982 636,200 19 49,686 2,321 3,409 5,812 4,700 6,033

1983 768,400 16 52,155 1,668 1,614 7,248 4,462 5,139

1984 738,800 17 61,752 1,835 2,560 8,612 3,730 22,930

1985 778,600 17 81,954 1,449 2,339 11,152 4,932 30,037

1986 744,000 12 100,649 1,835 2,517 9,840 15,049 30,989

1987 775,800 16 102,155 1,674 3,408 7,112 18,880 30,656

1988 790,300 20 105,590 1,755 3,105 7,397 7,259 35,872

1989 792,700 16 87,562 2,081 2,668 6,099 9,661 26,220

1990 854,000 14 103,404 2,333 2,880 6,993 11,045 28,376

1991 1,144,000 19 110,597 2,198 2,666 8,045 11,810 33,068

1992 1,138,000 20 148,019 2,748 4,232 8,688 9,607 34,012

1993 1,131,000 21 403,250# 2,994 4,221 11,180 13,916 29,029

1994 1,208,000 23 371,712 2,623 5,084 15,699 10,786 29,160

1995 1,367,000 20 429,570 3,628 6,543 15,724 13,646 36,020

* - figures are a combined total for KLGO and KLSE. # - in 1993, KLGO changed its
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counting methods; see Chapter 7.

Sources: USDI, Budget Justification, NPS (annual); NPS, Annual Interpretation and Visitor

Services Report, 1982; NPS, Statement for Interpretation, KLGO, 1989 and 1994, in KLGO

Collection; Skagway News, November 24, 1993, 3; USDI, "Monthly Public Use Report,"

various months, AKSO-EEI Collection (for 1990-1993 data); same, KLGO Collection (for

1994-1995 data).

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

Appendix B:

Staff List for Klondike Gold Rush NHP (Alaska Units)

and Chilkoot Trail NHS (Canada)

Klondike Gold Rush N.H.P.:

Superintendents: Richard Hoffman, 1977-79; Richard Sims, 1979-85; Jay E. Cable (acting),

1985-86, 1991; Russell C. (Clay) Alderson, 1986- ; Dave Mills (acting), 1991; Janet McCabe

(acting), 1993

Chiefs of Interpretation and Resource Management: Jay E. Cable, 1978-91; Jeff Mow

(acting), 1991; Bruce W. Reed, 1991-

Interpretive Specialists: Dave Cohen, 1979-82; Betsy Duncan-Clark, 1983-94; Paul Lofgren

(acting), 1995; Cathleen Cook, 1995-

Park Rangers (Interpretation): Paul Lofgren, 1995-

Cultural Resource Specialists: Karl Gurcke, 1987-

Curators: Debra Sanders, 1991- (museum specialist, 1991-94)

Natural Resource Specialists: Damian Sedney, 1995-

Protection Rangers: Jeff Mow, 1990-94; Sandy Kogl (acting), 1991; Tim Steidel, 1994-

Administrative Technicians: Amy (Caldwell) Robertson, 1983-86; Clydene (Schley) Sitton,

1987-

Administrative Assistants: Evelyn Meyer, 1991-

Administrative Clerks: Barbara Montgomery, 1977-80; Amy Robertson (Caldwell), 1980-

83; Niki Hahn, 1988-91

Procurement Clerks/Purchasing Agents: Niki Hahn, 1988 (PC); Evelyn Meyer, 1989-90

(PC); Dawn Brown, 1990-91 (PC-PA); Rebecca (Becky) Snavley, 1991-94 (PA); Teri

Hudgins (acting), 1994 (PA); Cynthia Williams, 1995- (PA)

Office Automation Clerks: Evelyn Meyer, 1990-91; Dawn Brown, 1991-92, 1994; Sherrie

Colyer, 1992-94; Rebecca (Becky) Snavley, 1994-

Clerk/Typists: Nancy Jones-Hill, 1978-79; Susan Hosford, 1979-79; Nancy Richards, 1978-

1979; Emily Olson, 1980-88; Sheilla Mason, 1986-88; Leah Nicholas, 1988-89; Becky Kelly,

1989-90; Carol Kinney, 1991-92
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Chiefs of Maintenance: Hershel Fowler, 1981-1983; John Warder, 1983-

Maintenance Mechanics: Andrew Beierly, 1991-

Maintenance Workers: Andrew Beierly, 1984-91; Silas (Si) Dennis, 1995- ; Patrick (Pat)

Moore, 1995- ; Jerry Watson (Trail), 1995-

Park Painters: George Barrett, 1991-94; Donavon Lee, 1995-

Custodial Workers: Wallace (Dewey) McCracken, 1995-96

Preservation Specialists: Pete Bathurst, 1977-80; Gene Ervine, 1981-84

Historical Architects: Gary Higgins, 1977-79; Tom Busch (acting), 1979; Dave Snow,

1980-84

Chilkoot Trail Rangers (Seasonal):

1973=Chuck R. Nelson, W. S. (Scott) Sappington, Bob Vaughan (SL)

1974=Scott Sappington, Art Mortvedt (May-July), Doug Sanvik (Aug-Sept), Bob Vaughan

(SL)

1975=Roy Richey, Phil Koehl, Doug Sanvik (short-term), Bob Vaughan (SL)

1976=Doug Sanvik, Phil Koehl, Bob Vaughan (SL)

1977=Janet Ross, Meg Jensen, Doug Sanvik (short-term)

1978=Meg Jensen, Janet Ross, Tim Karle, Wendy Williams

1979=Meg Jensen, Tim Karle, Justine Emerson, Mary Fechner (Sheep Camp), Mike Bencic,

David Hites-Clabaugh (Dyea)

1980=Dave Clabaugh, Ingram Fleming, David Golia-Paladin, Chas Dense 

1981=Dave Clabaugh, Chas Dense, Bruce Edmonston, Cristi Herren 

1982=Chas Dense, Bruce Edmonston, Cristi Herren, John Heiser

1983=Carol Ackerson, Mike Emers, Rick Yates, Cindy Jones

1984=Carol Ackerson, John (Mark) Bollinger, M. Colleen Sinnott (Davenport), Rosemary

Libert

1985=Carol Ackerson, Mark Bollinger, Brian Fairbanks, Don Levine

1986=Mark Bollinger, Brian Fairbanks, Scott Home (Sappington), Greg Cebelak

1987=Scott Home, Greg Cebelak, Tim Fairbanks, Don Killian

1988=Scott Home, Greg Cebelak, Tim Fairbanks, Don Killian

1989=Scott Home, Eric Burr, Charles E. (Chuck) Howe, W. Scott Hoffman

1990=W. Scott Hoffman, Mark Hopey, David V. Stanich

1991=David V. Stanich, Nita Nettleton, Dale Gosnell, Chris Carson

1992=David V. Stanich, Nita Nettleton, Dale Gosnell

1993=Dale Gosnell, Nancy Schave, Mike Haubert

1994=Dale Gosnell, Nancy Schave, Mike Haubert

1995=Dale Gosnell, Nancy Schave, Donna Hoitsma

1996=Dale Gosnell, Nancy Schave, Donna Hoitsma, David Schroeder, Lori Brown

Skagway Interpreters (Seasonal):

1977=Linda Chesney, Russell Plaeger, John Jackson, Craig Juleen (also C.T. rangers)

1978=Susan Betnun, Bonnie Fuller, Barbara Hart, (Edith) Margie Pulliam

1979=Mark Hertig, David Bustamante, Marilyn Dize

1980=Jack Sinclair, Rebecca Harriett, Karen Laing, David Snyder, Nancy Wells

1981=Colleen Davenport, Mary Diane Graybeal, Ron Levy, James Marotta-Jaenecke,

Melissa McDonald 

1982=Yvonne Menard, Cathy Shank, Andrea Sharon, Scott Eckberg, Dale Housley

1983=Alice Cyr, Frank Norris, Margaret Yates, Rosemary Libert, Terri Raymond
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1984=Alice Cyr, Frank Norris, Margaret Yates, Jane Sikoryak, Barbara Minard

1985=Alice Cyr, Frank Norris, Jane Sikoryak (May-July), Rosemary Libert, John Mulder,

Zeyland McKinney (July)

1986=Alice Cyr, Dave Hsiung, Brent Williams, Fred Bunch, Matt Graves

1987=Alice Cyr, Kathy McKay, Mike Oexner, Liudyte Novickis, Dave Stecker (short term)

1988=Alice Cyr, Tracey Pharo, Sandy Groves, Sandra Taubel

1989=Anita (Nita) Nettleton, Marnie Chapman, Brynna Evans, Wayne Schrepferman

1990=Nita Nettleton, Nicole L. Copel, James R. McIntosh, David A. Johnson, David Kelley

(USFS)

1991=Brent Williams, James R. McIntosh, James Barnes, Angie Pettit, Judy Munns, Paul

Lofgren

1992=James Barnes, Paul Lofgren, Diane Olthuis, Todd Stoeberl, Allison Levin, Loraine

Yuston

1993=Paul Lofgren, Diane Olthuis, Susan Skrove, Clare Shumway, David Curl, Paul

Stokstad

1994=Paul Lofgren, Diane Olthuis, Clare Shumway, Scott Remick, Peter Luccetti, Sioux

Wiff, Tim Sinclair (Co-op Student)

1995=Paul Lofgren (Jan-Sept), Clare Shumway (April-Sept), Scott Remick, Peter Luccetti,

Bill Gilliland, Doris Gilliland (May-June), David Fredricks (Park Guide, June-Aug), Jenifer

Mueller (Park Guide, July-Sept)

1996=Peter Luccetti, Jenifer Mueller (May-July), David Curl, Ardyce Curl (June-Sept),

Linda Chandler, Lisa Matlock, Eugene Voelzow, David Fredricks (Park Guide)

Project Archeologists, Skagway (DSC): Dan Martin, 1978; Cathy Blee, 1978-1985; Paul

Gleeson (ARO), 1986-92; Doreen Cooper (KLGO), 1992-

Seasonal Archeologists, Skagway (DSC):

1979=Suzanne Bradley, Steve Phillips, Julie Guda

1980=Ross Becker, George Meyers 

1982=Marianne Musitelli, Vicki Varra

1984=Marianne Musitelli, Karl Gurcke

1985=Marianne Musitelli, Diane Rhodes, Forrest Crosley, Grace Oseki, Pati Lockeman

1986=(Malcolm) Lee Stilson (L), Karl Gurcke, Nicole A. von Gaza, Gwen Hurst, Allison

Brooks

1987=Ray Depuydt (L), Ross Curtis, Alfred Cammisa, Gwen Hurst, Stephanie Ludwig, Ann

Miletich-Warder, Nicole von Gaza

1988=Ray Depuydt (L), Alfred Cammisa, Gwen Hurst

1989=Ray Depuydt (L), Gwen Hurst

1991=Diane Fenicle (Oct-Dec)

1992=Diane Fenicle (Jan-Sept), Angie L. Demma

1993=April Hayes, Robert (Bob) Daigle, Megan Wehrstedt, Amy Orenstein

1994=Tim Kardatzke, Ken Graham, Deborah Boettchner 

1995=Tim Kardatzke, Ken Graham, Bob Daigle, Erin Oliver

1996=Tim Kardatzke (March-June), Michael Kell (June-Sept), Ken Graham, Deborah

Boettcher, Christine Stephensen, Lisa Hedman

Archeologists (Seasonal):

1979=Carolyn Carley (L), Robert King, Robert Weaver (all UW-TASP)

1984=Karl Gurcke (L), Harvey Shields (short-term), Linda Medlock (short-term), Dyea (all

ARO)

1985=Karl Gurcke (L), Nicole A. von Gaza, Linda Haws (all Dyea)

1986=Karl Gurcke (L), Frank Norris, Robert (Scott) Zimmerman (all CT)

1987=Scott Zimmerman, Noreen Fritz (all Dyea)

1988=Bill Jurgelski, Heidi Hill (Skagway and Dyea)
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1990=Karlene Leeper, Sarah Marshall, Marty Simpson (Dyea and CT)

1991=Diane Fenicle, Hugh Harris (Dyea and CT)

1992=Ed Tyler, Diane Fenicle, Monica Shah (ARO), and Karleen Leeper (ARO); Gretchen

Guidotte and Davé Warren-Taylor (both CT); Wyndeth Davis/ARO (L), Monica Shah

(ARO), Gretchen Guidotte, Davé Warren-Taylor (USBS)

1993=David Hayes, Gretchen Guidotte, Amy Orenstein, Megan Wehrstedt (Dyea/CT)

1994=David Hayes (L), Megan Wehrstedt, James Lindbeck (CT)

1995=William R. Fortini, Jr. (L), Kathleen (Cassie) Flynn, Jeffrey (Jeff) T. Rasic (CT)

1996=Eva Griffin (L), Peggy Ann Weston, William (Bill) Hedman (CT)

Cultural Resource Workers (Seasonal):

1976=Wendy Wolf, Peter Womble (data gatherers, based at Lindeman)

1977=Tom Busch, Jean Parker (both DSC architects)

1978=Craig Davis (L), Cheryl Stead, John Jackson, Wayne Greenstreet, Don Corwin, Bob

Vaughan, Dave Hunz (all ARO), Dyea; Robert L. Spude (CPSU, park historian, to Dec 1979)

1982=Melissa McDonald, Colleen Davenport (CT, museum techs)

1983=Colleen Sinnott (Davenport), Cathy Shank (CT, museum techs); David Brodherson

(DSC, architect)

1984=Frank Norris (ARO, historian)

1985=Frank Norris (ARO, historian); Carol Taylor (ARO, CT architect); Alice Cyr (museum

tech)

1986=Frank Norris (ARO, historian); Nicole von Gaza, Shirley (Vanessa) Flynn, John

Mulder (all museum techs)

1987=Frank Norris (ARO, historian)

1988=Frank Norris (ARO, historian); Vanessa Flynn (museum tech)

1989=Vanessa Flynn, Nicole von Gaza (museum techs)

1990=Vanessa Flynn (museum tech)

1991=Vanessa Flynn, Sharon Bolton (short term), Timothy Busse (all museum techs)

1992=Vanessa Flynn (museum tech)

1993=Vanessa Flynn (museum tech)

1994=Angie Grindaland, Dona Hoitsma, Lise Paradis (all museum techs)

1995=Lise Paradis (museum tech)

1996=Sharon Voelzow, Katrina (Tina) Sedney (both museum techs); Claudia Rector

(museum bio-tech)

Natural Resource Workers (Seasonal):

1994=Claudia Rector (bio-tech)

1995=Claudia Rector (bio-tech)

1996=Kyle Joly (bio-tech)

Chilkoot Trail Crew (Seasonal):

1961=Tom Murton and Russ Lowell (L, Ketchikan); Tom (Dick) Branton (L, Wasilla).

1962=Alex (Sandy) Mackie, Ed Palmer (both L, Palmer)

1963-67=Don Davis (L, Palmer)

1968=Don Davis and Harold Rock (both L, Palmer)

1969-74=Unknown crew, State of Alaska

1975-76=Mike Metcalf, 2-3 others (State of Alaska)

1977=Doug Sanvik, Tom Hixon, Mike Clark

1978=Mario Juarez, Douglas Metz, Carl Bowman, Tom DeCleene, Wayne Greenstreet, Don

Corwin, Skip Elliott

1979=Bill Edwards, John Murray, Jean Johnson, Bob Hackett, Patricia Magilligan (short

term)

1980=Jerry Watson, Roy Nelson, Polly Hamilton, Cheryl Stead

1981=Jerry Watson, Roy Nelson, James A. (Andy) Robertson, Mike Patterson, James Perras,
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Patrick (Pat) Moore (short term), Larry Lewis (short term)

1982=Jerry Watson, Roy Nelson, Andy Robertson, Tom Saatzer, Bob Spinhoven, Don

Levine, Clark Likes (a.k.a. Jeff McDonald), Bruce Hill, Pat Moore

1983=Jerry Watson, Roy Nelson, Bruce Hill, Pat Moore

1984=Jerry Watson, Roy Nelson, Bruce Hill, Pat Moore

1985=Jerry Watson, Roy Nelson, Chris Phorr, Art Conrad

1986=Jerry Watson, Roy Nelson, Bill Sell

1987=Jerry Watson, Roy Nelson, John Heiser, Greg Podsiki

1988=Jerry Watson, Roy Nelson, Bill Sell

1989=Jerry Watson, Roy Nelson, Mike Beierly, Ed Prusak, Ken Russo 

1990=Jerry Watson, Roy Nelson, Mike Beierly

1991=Jerry Watson, Roy Nelson, Mike Beierly

1992=Jerry Watson, Roy Nelson, Mike Beierly

1993=Jerry Watson, Roy Nelson, Mike Beierly

1994=Jerry Watson, Roy Nelson, Jim Routzahn, Mike Catsi

1995=Jerry Watson, Roy Nelson, Jim Routzahn, Mike Catsi

1996=Jim Routzahn, Mike Catsi, Bill Sell

Maintenance Workers, Skagway (Seasonal):

1978=Ken Thomas, Dave Reese, David Keys

1979=Ken Thomas, Dave Reese, David Keys

1980=Mike Tunnicliff, Steve Fleischman

1983=Silas (Si) Dennis Jr., Patrick (Pat) Moore, Andy Robertson

1984=Si Dennis Jr., Pat Moore, Andy Robertson

1985=Si Dennis Jr., Pat Moore

1986=Si Dennis Jr., Pat Moore, Jeff Graham

1987=Si Dennis Jr., Pat Moore, Todd Worple, Don Levine

1988=Si Dennis Jr., Pat Moore, Todd Worple, Don Levine

1989=Si Dennis Jr., Pat Moore

1990=Si Dennis Jr., Pat Moore, Ken Russo

1991=Si Dennis Jr., Pat Moore

1992=Si Dennis Jr., Pat Moore

1993=Si Dennis Jr., Pat Moore

1994=Si Dennis Jr., Pat Moore, Jay Cable Jr.

1995=Jay Cable Jr.

1996=Jay Cable Jr., Arsenio Macabeo, Willy Cooper

Custodial Worker (Seasonal):

1994=Wallace (Dewey) McCracken

Construction Supervisors (DSC): Randy Conrad (acting), 1985; Henry (Hank) Apodaca,

1985-86; Ray Todd, 1985-88; Keith Newlin, 1987-88; Bill Walker, 1988-89; Jim Gilbert,

1989-90; William (Bo) Bohanan, 1990-91; Mike Colyer, 1991-94; James Aikens, 1993;

Edward (Bud) Zangger, 1994-95; David Ballard, 1995; Erik Hendrickson, 1995-96; Jeff Mull

(acting), 1996-

Rehabilitation/Construction Day Labor Crew (DSC):

1977=Jim Spencer, Jim Jewell, Don Corwin, Cheryl Stead, Sarg ?, ? White

1978=Jim Spencer, Jim Jewell, Don Corwin, Cheryl Stead, Roy Nelson, Allen Reed, Sarg ?,

? White

1979=Jim Spencer, Roy Nelson, Tom Hixon, Walter (Buddy) Honan, Mark (Marcus)

Brooker

1980=Jim Spencer, Roy Nelson, Tom Hixon, Buddy Honan, Marcus Brooker, Ken Mathews

1981=Jim Spencer, Tom Hixon, Buddy Honan, Marcus Brooker, Bill Hunz, "Banana Joe"
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(short term)

1982=Jim Spencer, Tom Hixon, Buddy Honan, Marcus Brooker, Mike Wild 

1983=Jim Spencer, Tom Hixon, Buddy Honan, Marcus Brooker, Tim Henricksen, Todd

Worple, Mike Colyer, Richard (Dick) Brown, Andrew Beierly, Jack Sinclair, Ken Russo,

Mike Wild

1984=Jim Spencer, Tom Hixon, Buddy Honan, Marcus Brooker, Roy Nelson, Todd Worple,

Bill Hunz, Mike Colyer, Dick Brown, Jack Sinclair, Ken Russo, Andrew Beierly, Mike Wild 

1985=Roy Nelson, Mike Colyer, Dick Brown, Don Corwin, Andy Robertson, Ken Russo,

Larry Sullivan, Terry Jacobson

1986=Roy Nelson, Andy Robertson, Ken Russo, Larry Sullivan, Terry Jacobson, Doug

Mahle, Greg Podsiki, Tom Faverty, Bryan Corwin, Joy Yasumiishi, Lee Hartson

1987=Roy Nelson, Mike Colyer, Dick Brown, Larry Sullivan, Bryan Corwin, Don Corwin,

Terry Jacobson, Greg Podsiki, Joy Yasumiishi, Lee Hartson, Don Levine

1988=Roy Nelson, Mike Colyer, Dick Brown, Larry Sullivan, Bryan Corwin, Don Corwin,

Terry Jacobson, Greg Podsiki, Joy Yasumiishi, Lee Hartson, Don Levine, Jim Thomas

1989=Roy Nelson, Dick Brown, Don Corwin, Terry Jacobson, Greg Podsiki, Joy Yasumiishi,

Don Levine, Gene Corbin, Timothy Harrison, Todd Worple

1990=Dick Brown (L), Roy Nelson, Don Corwin, Terry Jacobson, Don Levine, Gene Corbin,

Jeff Mull, John Nye, Albert Vetter

1991=Dick Brown (L), Roy Nelson, Jeff Mull, Robert (Bob) Hale, Dave Lindfords, Dan

Cook, Tim Bourcy, John Nye, Scott Worley, John Beck

1992=Dick Brown (L), Roy Nelson, Jeff Mull, Bob Hale, Dave Lindfords, John (Jay) Frey,

Jerry Watson

1993=Dick Brown (L), Roy Nelson, Jeff Mull, Tim Bourcy

1994=Dick Brown (L), Roy Nelson, Jeff Mull, Don Corwin, Jay Frey, Martin (Marty)

Gunnel, Kody Kosters, Tony Kosters, Dennis Bousson, Michael Yee

1995=Jeff Mull (L), Dick Brown, Don Corwin, Roy Nelson, Kody Kosters, Tony Kosters,

Marty Gunnel, Jerry Watson, Jay Frey, Garth Fisher, David Tyssedal, Dennis Bousson,

Kathleen Joy, Jeff Swan, Jeffrey Rasic, Brent Latuff, Scott Sundberg, Tom Howard

1996=Jeff Mull (L), Dick Brown, Don Corwin, Kody Kosters, Roy Nelson, James Honicker,

Steven Petrini, Eugene Trombo

Chilkoot Trail NHS (formerly part of Yukon NHS), Parks Canada:

Area Superintendents (Yukon National Historic Sites): R. Bruce Harvey, 1969-81; Joe

Pollack (acting), 1981-85; Mike Murphy, 1986-87; Bob Lewis, 1987-95

District Directors (Yukon District): Al Fisk, 1994-95; Linda Johnson, 1995-

District Heritage Integrity Managers: Bob Lewis, 1995-

District Heritage Communication Managers: Patty Moore, 1994-95; John Aldag, 1996-

Heritage Communication Officers (Yukon District): Dan Verhalle, 1996-

Historic Resource Officers (Yukon National Historic Sites): Dave Porter, 1981-85;

Gordon Cassidy, 1986-87; Steve Zimmermann, 1988-89

Yukon Historians: Bill Waiser (Winnipeg), 1984-85; Dave Neufeld, 1986-90 (Winnipeg)

and 1990-95 (Whitehorse)

District Historians: Dave Neufeld, 1995-

Chiefs of Visitor Activities (Yukon National Historic Sites): Dan Verhalle, 1990-96
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Heritage Protection Coordinators (Chilkoot Trail National Historic Site): Lloyd Freese,

1995-

Chief Park Wardens (Chilkoot Trail National Historic Site): Jim MacIntyre, 1988; Tom

Elliot, 1988-92; Jean Fau, 1992-94; Grant Peregoodhoff (acting), 1994-95

General Works Managers (Yukon National Historic Sites): Joe Pollack, 1979-94

Wilderness Management Coordinators (Yukon District): Tom Elliot, 1995-

Chilkoot Trail Management Planners: Greg Thomas, 1984-85; Jeff Ward, 1986-88; Kevin

Lund, 1994; Wayne Bourque, 1995

Trail Program Managers: Wendy Wood, 1989-1994

Warden Patrolpersons, Chilkoot Trail (Seasonal):

1974=Shirley Moore, Marina McCready

1975=Shirley Moore, Marina McCready

1976=Manfred Hedgecock, Christine Jones, Dave Tilden, Eric Greenwood

1977=Manfred Hedgecock, Christine Hedgecock (Jones), Gary Bailey, Mark Bilton

1978=Manfred Hedgecock (P/MW), Christine Hedgecock, Mark Bilton, Dara Sibley

1979=Manfred Hedgecock (P/MW), Christine Hedgecock, Mark Bilton, Dara Sibley

1980=Manfred Hedgecock (P/MW), Christine Hedgecock, Debbie Tosczak, Blaine Oester

1981=Christine Hedgecock, Debbie Tosczak, Candy Dyer, Tom McIlwaine

1982=Christine Hedgecock, Debbie Tosczak, Candy Wellenhoffer (Dyer), Joni Mackinnon,

Richard McNicholl (B) 

1983=Christine Hedgecock, Debbie Tosczak, Candy Wellenhoffer, Bonnie Fordyce, Paul

Brassard (B)

1984=Christine Hedgecock, Debbie Tosczak, Candy Wellenhoffer, Bill Overend (B)

1985=Christine Hedgecock, Debbie Tosczak, Candy Wellenhoffer, Bill Overend (B), Danny

Cresswell (NT)

1986=Christine Hedgecock, Debbie Tosczak, Candy Wellenhoffer, Danny Cresswell (NT/P),

Ron Tait (B)

1987=Christine Hedgecock, Candy Wellenhoffer, Danny Cresswell, Mark Goudreau (B), Bill

Huberschwerlin (NT)

1988=Candy Norris (Wellenhoffer) (L), Danny Cresswell, Mark Goudreau (B), Melissa

Johnson (COSEP)

1989=Candy Norris (L), Debbie Tosczak, Danny Cresswell, Marc Goudreau (B), Derek

Turner (NT), Tricia Gardner (COSEP)

1990=Debbie Tosczak (L), Christine Hedgecock, Danny Cresswell, Rene Rivard

1991=Debbie Verhalle (Tosczak) (L), Christine Hedgecock, Candy Norris, Danny Cresswell,

Rene Rivard

1992=Debbie Verhalle (L), Christine Hedgecock, Danny Cresswell, Rene Rivard, Shawn

McFarlane (COSEP)

1993=Debbie Verhalle (L), Danny Cresswell, Frank James, Ben Alderman (COSEP)

1994=Grant Peregoodhoff (L), Nicola Martin, Rene Rivard, Frank James, Johanny

Sembsmoen (COSEP) 

1995=Grant Peregoodhoff (L/May), Nicola Martin (L/June-Sept.), Christine Hedgecock, Jane

Vincent, Kelly Suits, Karen Dawson (COSEP)

1996=Nicola Martin (L), Jane Vincent, Geoff Barrett, Christine Hedgecock, Kelly Suits

Interpreters, Chilkoot Trail (Seasonal):

1990=Jay Cherian (COSEP)

1991=Jay Cherian, Shauna McClarnon (both COSEP)
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1992=Shauna McClarnon (COSEP)

1993=Christine Hedgecock

1994=Christine Hedgecock, Jennifer Henderson (COSEP)

Maintenance Crew, Chilkoot Trail (Seasonal):

1968-73=John B. Maloney, R. Gary McLaughlin, Harry Deneron, R. J. Dunlap and crews

from the Yukon Correctional Institute, Whitehorse

1974=Manfred Hedgecock, Gordon Blasko (both W)

1975=Manfred Hedgecock, Gordon Blasko (both W)

1976=George Worthy

1977=George Worthy

1978-1980=[see warden patrolpersons list]

1981=Manfred Hedgecock (W)

1982=Manfred Hedgecock (W)

1983=Manfred Hedgecock (W)

1984=Danny Cresswell, Johnny Johns, Jr., Sam Smith, Suzie Bayne, Jim Heinz, Ernest

Richard, Manfred Hedgecock (W), Ed Hebert (W)

1985=Robert Smith, Earl Atlin, Manfred Hedgecock (W), Ed Hebert (W)

1986=Robert Smith, Earl Atlin, Manfred Hedgecock (W), Ed Hebert (W)

1987=Robert Smith, Earl Atlin

1988=Lee Carrythers (L), Joe Mason, Norman Sam (all W)

1989=Lee Carrythers (L), Joe Mason, Norman Sam (all W), plus a contract crew from

Carcross-Tagish First Nation

1990=Lee Carrythers (L), Joe Mason, Norman Sam (all three W)

1991=Rick Halladay (L), Ralph James, Frank James (Bare Loon Lake); Marc Goudreau (L),

Lee Minelle, Charles Johns, Sam James, Jurg Hoffer, Steve Helm (Happy Camp/Summit);

Lee Carrythers (L), Joe Mason, Norman Sam (last 3 W)

1994=Rick Haliday (L), Danny Lutchman, Strahan Tucker (Bennett); Mike Boisse (L), Ian

Pumphrey, Wes Barrett (Lindeman)

1995=Claude Dulac (HJ), Jack Kodwat (L), Glenn Rear, Danny Lutchman

1996=Claude Dulac (HJ), Danny Lutchman (L), Ian Barrett, Wil Weber, Bill Barrett

Cultural Resource Workers, Seasonal (archaeologists unless otherwise noted):

1972=Bill Massé (L), Kenneth Berube, Alex Hermann Kerr, Andrew Holmes (student crew)

1973=Alex Kerr, Bruce Murphy, Colleen Bunn, Patricia Smith (student crew)

1977=Rod Vickers (L), Catherine Ringer, John Priegert, Howard Summerell

1978=Peter Waddell (L), Michael Audy, Bruce Bennett, Denis Page (marine survey)

1984=Jeffrey Murray (L), Jennifer F. A. Hamilton, Arnie Feast, Shannon Wood, Murielle

Nagy (last 3 are COSEP students)

1988=S. Biron Ebell (L), Michael Cassady-Zywina, Heather Jones, Jennifer Hamilton (short

term), Melissa Johnson (short term)

1989=S. Biron Ebell (L), Michael Cassady-Zywina, Scott McNalley, Marsha Brown, Laurie ?

, Andrew ?

1990=S. Biron Ebell (L), Michael Zywina, Kevin Lunn

1991=Kevin Lunn (L), Dave Hems, Peter Nieuwhof; David Gyles, Bay Ryley, Lisa Langlet,

Diana Cooper (last four COSEP)

1992=David Hems (L), Peter Nieuwhof, Tina Christensen, Danielle Chasse, Barbara

Cameron, Blake Evans

1993=Peter Nieuwhof

1995=David Hems (L), Sharon Thompson, Neil Baker (COSEP, historical research)

Other Specialists:

1984=M. Douglas Olynyk (L), Maurice McCracken (heritage recorder), Dennis McGonigal

(survey officer), Gord Bone and Kurt Saunders (survey assistants), all from Engineering and
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Architecture Branch, Winnipeg; Marianne Darragh (cook)

1986=Peter Duck and Wayne Strong (ecological analysts)

1987=Lance Scovill (cook)

1988=M. Douglas Olynyk (L), Maurice McCracken, Dennis McGonigal, Scott Brown

1989=France Companeau (cook); Maurice McCracken (crew chief), Chris Kotecki, Holly ?

(extant recorders); Dennis McGonigal (surveyor)

1991=Maurice McCracken (crew chief), Bob Mitchell (extant recorder), Dennis McGonigal

and Andrew McFarlene (COSEP), surveyors

1993=Tom Elliot (visitor survey researcher)

Abbreviations:

ARO=Alaska Regional Office P=patrol person

B=Bilingual PA=purchasing agent

COSEP=Career Oriented Student Employment

Program PC=procurement clerk

CPSU=Cooperative Park Studies Unit PW=park warden

CT=Chilkoot Trail SL=Skagway liaison

DSC=Denver Service Center TASP=trails archeological survey project

HJ=permanent employees stationed in Haines

Junction, occasional trail visits USBS=U.S. Border Station project

L=Leader USFS=U.S. Forest Service

MW=maintenance worker UW=University of Washington

NT=Native trainee W=permanent employees stationed in

Whitehorse, occasional trail visits

Note: A few people with "ARO" and "DSC" designations are on temporary assignment to the

park from those offices; more often, the designations refer to people funded through those

offices.

Compiled by Candy and Frank Norris, 1986-88; maintained by Karl Gurcke since 1989.

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Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Appendix C)

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

Appendix C:

Budget and Visitor Figures for Klondike Gold Rush

National Historical Park, Seattle Unit

Fiscal

Year

ONPS

Budget

FTE

Total

Visitor

Total

Interpretive

Program

Patrons

Cooperating

Association

Receipts

Joint Info.

Office

Contacts

1977 0*

1978 $442,300* 3

1979 716,100* 8* 37,595 20,315

1980 151,200 3 48,442 30,405

1981 174,500 8 56,182 24,921 $1,848 75,430

1982 174,000 8 53,084 23,809 3,561 75,572

1983 153,400 7 52,551 23,772 4,161 66,435

1984 166,000 7 62,830 29,344 5,515 68,000

1985 162,500 7 59,847 25,869 7,693 56,918

1986 157,000 7 55,561 24,497 11,908 56,017

1987 165,800 7 49,617 23,320 10,547 68,904

1988 183,800 8 64,657 33,564 12,418 55,439

1989 196,300 7 67,182 37,518 14,448 76,455

1990 204,000 6 89,867 34,434 16,686 69,131

1991 235,000 7 108,160 44,514 21,108 62,044

1992 256,000 8 112,136 51,383 25,379 53,731

1993 263,000 8 104,950 54,574 20,977 54,403

1994 279,000 7 103,048 n.a. 20,719 60,360

1995 313,000 7 121,752 n.a. 21,472 67,905

* - figures are combined total for KLGO and KLSE.

Sources: USDI, Budget Justification, NPS (annual); NPS, "Superintendent's Annual Report,

KLSE" (annual); Tod Haskell (KLSE) to author, August 29, 1994; Mike Murphy (KLSE) to

author, August 29, 1994; Betsy Duncan-Clark to author, email, June 3, 1996.
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Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Appendix D)

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

Appendix D:

List of Staff at Klondike Gold Rush National

Historical Park, Seattle, 1979-1994

Superintendents:

*Elaine Hounsell, 1980-1983

**Willie Russell, 1983-present

Supervisory Rangers:

*David Y. Maxon (SPR), 1979-1982 (Unit Manager, 1979-1980)

**Michael E. Gurling (SPT/PR), 1978-1986

*Mardi J. Butt (PR/LPR), 1987-1989

*Paul A. Henderson (PR/CPR), 1987-1990

**Marianne M. Mills (PR/SPR), 1988-1993

+Betsy Duncan-Clark (SPR), 1994-

Administrative Officers:

Mary Louise Hammond (ASA), 1979-1981

*Marlyn J. Birdsey (ASA), 1981-1984

*Elizabeth A. McCallum (CT/AC), 1984-1986

Paul A. Henderson (AC), 1986-1987

Mary Riddle (AC), 1987-1988

Elizabeth Cochran (AA), 1988-1989

Elizabeth A. Henderson (ASA), 1989-1990

Kathryn A. Carver (ASA), 1990-1991

Margaret Koehler (ASA), 1991-1992

Susan Keifer (ASA), 1993-present

Park Rangers and Park Technicians (Permanent Staff):

Kathy Maurich (PT), 1978-1980

Charles Konopa (PT), 1978-1980

Larry In-Hout (PT), 1979-1980

Leslie Murray (PT), 1979-1980

Else Doherty (PT), 1979-1981

Mary Casanova (PT), 1980

*+Rebecca Harriett (PT), 1980-1983

Tom Teaford (PT), 1981-1982

**Frank Soto (PT/PR), 1982-1988

+Andrea Sharon (PT), 1982-1984

Patricia A. Zuccaro (PT), 1983-1984

+R. Bruce Edmonston (PT/PR), 1984-1985

*+Scott B. Eckberg (PT/PR), 1984-1986

Ruth L. Scott (PR), 1985-1986
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Detlef Wieck (PR), 1987-1988

Patrick R. Chapin (PR), 1988-1989

Kathryn A. Carver (PR), 1989-1990

John D. (Jay) Moeller (PR), 1990-1992

David F. Carroll (PR), 1991-1992

*Michael J. Murphy (PR), 1991-present

Edward (Ted) Haeger (PR), 1992-1993

*Sean O'Meara (PR), 1992-present

John Simmons (PR), 1993-1994

Chris Smith (PR), 1993-present

Tod Haskell (PR), 1994-present

Park Rangers and Park Technicians (Seasonal or Temporary Staff):

Danita Delamont (PT), 1979

Christie LeClair (PT), 1979

Mike Dedman (PT), 1980, 1981-1982

Elizabeth A. McCallum (PR), 1986-1987

Jill Campbell (PR), 1986-1987

Carol Hough (PR), 1987, 1988

Andrew C. Batten (PR), 1987-1989

John W. (Jack) Northcutt (PR), 1989-1991

Heather Smith (PR), 1991-93

Jim Hunter (PR) 1991

Michael J. Murphy (PR), 1991

Scott Bogle (PR), 1991

Carlotta Kelly (PR), 1992

Gary Panich (PR), 1992

Marc Blackburn (PR), 1993-present

Information Specialists (Permanent Staff):

Veronica Tomalick, 1979-1981

Ruth Nicholson, 1979-1980

Barb Withey, 1980-1981

Audrey Mesford, 1979?-1982

Teri Kornell, 1981-1982

Carol Tabladillo, 1981-1982

Janice Fikse, 1982-1983

Elizabeth McCallum, 1983-1984, 1988

**William E. Rose, 1984-1993

Information Specialists (Seasonal or Temporary Staff):

Diane Stilwell, 1982

Bill Deubel, 1982

William E. Rose, 1983, 1984

Eric Dierking, 1983

Esti Mintz, 1984

Francis Morrison, 1985

Michael Taylor, 1986

Donna Miller, 1986

Jane Leche, 1987

David J. Marshall, 1988, 1989

Mark Urick, 1988
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Abbreviations:

AA=Administrative Assistant LPR=Lead Park Ranger

AC=Administrative Clerk PR=Park Ranger

ASA=Admin. Services Assistant/ PT=Park Technician

Admin. Support Assistant SPR=Supervisory Park Ranger

CPR=Chief Park Ranger SPT=Supervisory Park Technician

CT=Clerk Typist

Employees who have worked at KLSE for at least 24 months (two years) are indicated with

an asterisk (*); those who have worked for 60 months (five years) are indicated with two

asterisks (**). KLSE staff who have also worked at KLGO are indicated with a plus sign (+).

The list does not include those from other parks who have worked on short-term details at

KLSE.

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Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Notes)

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

NOTES

Chapter 1

1 Dan and Nan Kaiper, Tlingit: Their Art, Culture, and Legends (Saanichton, B.C., Hancock

House, 1978), 2.

2 Ertec Northwest, Additional Cultural Resources Survey and Summary Assessment of the

West Creek Hydroelectric Project (Anchorage, the author, March 25, 1983), IV-13 to IV-21;

Karl Gurcke, interview by author, Skagway, August 9, 1988.

3 Silas Dennis, Sr., interview by author, Skagway, March 5, 1985; J. Bernard Moore,

Skagway in Days Primeval (New York, Vantage Press, 1968), 15-16.

4 Moore, Skagway in Days Primeval, 123-124, 173; Roy Minter, The White Pass: Gateway to

the Klondike (Fairbanks, Univ. of Alaska Press, 1987), 23-24.

5 Catharine McClellan, "Tagish," in June Helm, ed., Handbook of North American Indians:

Vol. 6, Subarctic (Washington, Smithsonian Institution, 1981), 489.

6 Moore, Skagway in Days Primeval, 117; Richard Dick, interview by author, Skagway, June

5, 1984.

7 Kaiper, Tlingit, 14.

8 Archimandrite Anatolii Kamenskii, Tlingit Indians of Alaska: Odessa, 1906 (Fairbanks,

Univ. of Alaska Press, 1985), 28; Kaiper, Tlingit, 34.

9 Kaiper, Tlingit, 38; Aurel Krause, The Tlingit Indians: Results of a Trip to the Northwest

Coast of America and the Bering Straits, translated by Erna Gunther (Seattle, Univ. of

Washington Press, 1956), 85-93.

10 Edwin C. Bearss, Proposed Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park: Historic

Resources Study (hereafter known as Klondike Park Study) (Washington, D.C., Office of

Archeology and Historic Preservation, November 15, 1970), 1; McClellan, "Tagish," 482-

483.

11 McClellan, "Tagish," 482-485.

12 Richard J. Friesen, The Chilkoot Pass and the Great Gold Rush of 1898 (Ottawa?, Parks

Canada, March 31, 1978), 4-5; McClellan, "Tagish," 483.
Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Notes)

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13 Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 1; McClellan, "Tagish," 489.

14 McClellan, "Tagish," 489-490; Catharine McClellan, "Tutchone," in Sturdevant,

Handbook, 494.

15 Bruce B. MacLachlan, "Tahltan," in Sturdevant, Handbook, 459; Catharine McClellan,

"Inland Tlingit," in Sturdevant, Handbook, 478; McClellan, "Tutchone," 495.

16 McClellan, "Tagish," 482; Friesen, The Chilkoot Pass, 5; Minter, The White Pass, 23.

17 Friesen, The Chilkoot Pass, 4; Kamenskii, Tlingit Indians of Alaska, 27.

18 Aurel Krause, Journey to the Tlingits by Aurel and Arthur Krause, 1881/82, translated by

Margot Krause McCaffrey (Haines, Haines Centennial Commission, 1981), 59-61; Lt.

Frederick Schwatka, "A Military Reconnaissance in Alaska," Senate Document 1023

(Washington, GPO, 1888), 293-295; Moore, Skagway in Days Primeval, 94.

19 Friesen, The Chilkoot Pass, 20; Moore, Skagway in Days Primeval, 39; Allen A. Wright,

Prelude to Bonanza: the Discovery and Exploration of the Yukon (Sidney, B.C., Gray's

Publishing, 1976), 144-145.

20 McClellan, "Tagish," 482.

21 Wright, Prelude to Bonanza, 60, 74; Friesen, The Chilkoot Pass, 5.

22 Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 2; Wright, Prelude to Bonanza, 55, 119.

23 Pierre Berton, The Klondike Fever: The Life and Death of the Last Great Gold Rush (New

York, Alfred A. Knopf, 1977), 7-8, 12-14.

24 Wright, Prelude to Bonanza, 132-133.

25 Robert N. DeArmond, Early Visitors to Southeastern Alaska: Nine Accounts (Anchorage,

Alaska Northwest, 1978), 68, 210; Friesen, The Chilkoot Pass, 6.

26 DeArmond, Early Visitors, 76-78; Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 2.

27 Donald J. Orth, Dictionary of Alaska Place Names, U.S. Geological Survey, Professional

Paper 567 (Washington, GPO, 1967), 22, 290, 941.

28 Berton, Klondike Fever, 6.

29 Wright, Prelude to Bonanza, 143; Krause, Journey to the Tlingits, 19.

30 Wright, Prelude to Bonanza, 190; Minter, The White Pass, 21.

31 Wright, Prelude to Bonanza, 135; Eliza Ruhamah Scidmore, "The Northwest Passes to the

Yukon," Alaska Journal 3 (Summer 1973), 145. Scidmore's article is a reprint from the April

1898 National Geographic Magazine.

32 Wright, Prelude to Bonanza, 133-134; Berton, Klondike Fever, 8-9.
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33 Wright, Prelude to Bonanza, 136.

34 Friesen, The Chilkoot Pass, 19; Minter, The White Pass, 21-22.

35 Friesen, The Chilkoot Pass, 20; Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 14; McClellan, "Tagish,"

482.

36 Wright, Prelude to Bonanza, 137-138.

37 Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 11.

38 Frederick Schwatka, A Summer in Alaska (St. Louis, J. W. Henry, 1894), 11.

39 Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 11, 14-17.

40 Wright, Prelude to Bonanza, 167-169.

41 Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 20-22.

42 Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 22; Minter, The White Pass, 25-26.

43 Minter, The White Pass, 28-31; Wright, Prelude to Bonanza, 192-193; Choteau (Montana)

Calumet, May 24, 1886, 3; Choteau Calumet, September 9, 1886, 7.

44 Moore, Skagway in Days Primeval, 102-106, 115-127.

45 Wright, Prelude to Bonanza, 160.

46 Ibid., 266.

47 Wright, Prelude to Bonanza, 194; Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 37-39.

48 Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 40-42. Many suggest that Carmack is the legitimate

discoverer of gold due to his ownership of the discovery claim, and Carmack himself

proclaimed himself to the world as the gold discoverer. Many Canadians consider Robert

Henderson, a Nova Scotian, to be the actual discoverer, because it was he who directed the

three over to the Rabbit Creek drainage. Henderson had previously prospected the creek and

found small colors. He was doubtless denied great riches himself because of his prejudice

against Carmack's Native partners.

49 Berton, Klondike Fever, 47-48.

50 Ibid., 33, 51-55, 71.

51 Ibid., 50, 74; Friesen, The Chilkoot Pass, 41-42.

52 Robert L. S. Spude, Skagway, District of Alaska, 1884-1912: Building the Gateway to the

Klondike, Occasional Paper No. 36 (Fairbanks, Univ. of Alaska Cooperative Park Studies

Unit, September 1983), 5; Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 47.

53 Berton, Klondike Fever, 104-118.
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54 Friesen, The Chilkoot Pass, 45-46; Berton, Klondike Fever, 110-114, 253-254.

55 Berton, Klondike Fever, 123-126.

56 Ibid., 203; Friesen, The Chilkoot Pass, 47, 55, 62-63.

57 Berton, Klondike Fever, 225-243.

58 Ibid., 211-224.

59 Ibid., 205-211.

60 Ibid., 244-245.

61 Wright, Prelude to Bonanza, 267. Josiah Edward Spurr, in "Through the Alaska Gold

Diggings," Alaska Magazine 43 (March 1977), 33-34, suggests that the improved pack trail

was not opened until the spring of 1896. A corduroy road is composed of logs laid in a long,

parallel row.

62 Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 51-53.

63 Ibid., 54-56.

64 Moore, Skagway in Days Primeval, 172-174; Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 80.

65 Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 81-84; Pacific and Arctic Railway and Navigation

Company, "Map of Pacific and Arctic Railway and Navigation Company's Constructed Line

from Harbor at Skaguay Bay to Summit of White Pass, Alaska," c. 1900; British ColumbiaYukon Railway, "Map Showing Located Line of British Columbia-Yukon Railway from the

Summit of White Pass to Lake Bennett, Showing Timber and Meadow Lands," c. 1900. Both

maps in WP&YR Company Archives, Skagway.

66 Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 92-96; Spude, Skagway, District of Alaska, 11, 41-42;

Berton, Klondike Fever, 158-161.

67 Frank Norris, "A Directory of Businesses in Dyea, Alaska," in Norris, Dyea-Chilkoot Trail

Historic Structures Report, draft (hereafter known as Chilkoot HSR), unpub. mss., 1986,

KLGO Collection; Harry L. Suydam, "Fool's Gold," Alaska Sportsman 8 (April 1942), 12.

68 Berton, Klondike Fever, 149; Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 111-113; Frank Berkeley

letter, p. 3, KLGO Collection.

69 Frank Norris, comp., "Officials in the Skagway/Dyea Area During the Gold Rush," 1,

KLGO Collection.

70 Berton, Klondike Fever, 160-161, 340-342, 346-350.

71 Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 54, 93.

72 Ibid., 116-122.
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73 Norris, Chilkoot HSR, chapters on "Finnegan's Point," "Canyon City," "Pleasant Camp,"

"Sheep Camp," and "The Scales."

74 Friesen, The Chilkoot Pass, 93-95, 176; Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 55; KLGO

Collection, photos L6, L7, L8 and L14; David Neufeld, [various notes and maps regarding

historical resources between Chilkoot Summit and Stone Crib], KLGO Collection. Mr.

Neufeld is the Yukon and western Canada historian for Parks Canada in Whitehorse.

75 KLGO collection, photos CV11, CV12, CV13, CV19; Berton, Klondike Fever, 269-271,

276-277.

76 Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 216.

77 Ibid., 199-210.

78 Ibid., 210-211.

79 Ibid., 216-217.

80 Ibid., 212, 217, 219, 220.

81 Ibid., 81-83.

82 Minter, The White Pass, 137-139, 270; KLGO collection, photos WM1, BW1, BW12.

83 Property Deed Books, Skagway Magistrate's Office, v. 17, p. 39; v. 5, p. 180.

84 Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 105-106; Robert L. Spude, comp., Chilkoot Trail: From

Dyea to Summit with the '98 Stampeders, Occasional Paper No. 26 (Fairbanks, University of

Alaska Cooperative Park Studies Unit, 1980), 12-19.

85 Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 124; KLGO collection, photos DB1, DB6, DC1; L. C.

Wilkes, "Packers on the Dyea Trail," Alaska Sportsman 14 (June 1948), 8-9.

86 Engineering and Mining Journal, December 11, 1897; Spude, Chilkoot Trail, 199.

87 Harley Tuck, Klondike Diary, (Monroe, Wash., the author, 1974), 9-10; Property Deed

Books, Skagway Magistrate's Office, v. 17, pp. 62, 106, 107, 171.

88 "Mrs. Kelsey's Ride Across in the Aerial Tramway," Redwood City Times-Gazette, March

5, 1898; Dyea Trail, May 7, 1898; Edward B. Lung, as told to Ella Martinsen, Black Sand

and Gold (Portland, Binford and Mort, 1956), 385.

89 Spude, Chilkoot Trail, 201-203.

90 Archie Satterfield, Chilkoot Pass: the Most Famous Pass in the North (Anchorage, Alaska

Northwest, 1978), 101.

91 Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 127; Spude, Chilkoot Trail, 195-198.

92 Minter, The White Pass, 97-98, 102, 156, 191.
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93 Ibid., 153, 161-165.

94 Ibid., 180, 186-189.

95 Ibid., 190, 220, 225.

96 Ibid., 209, 228-230.

97 Ibid., 235, 238.

98 Ibid., 235, 257-258.

99 Ibid., 266-269.

100 Ibid., 308-311, 353-355.

101 Ibid., 199, 252, 303-304.

102 Berton, Klondike Fever, 300-301; Kathryn Winslow, Big Pan-Out: the Story of the

Klondike Gold Rush (New York, W. W. Norton, 1951), 170-178.

103 Berton, Klondike Fever, 410-413.

104 Lewis Green, The Gold Hustlers (Anchorage, Alaska Northwest, 1977), 18, 20, 59.

105 Norm Bolotin, Klondike Lost, A Decade of Photographs by Kinsey and Kinsey

(Anchorage, Alaska Northwest, 1980), 90. This was Volume 7, No. 4 (November 1980) of

Alaska Geographic.

Chapter 2

1 Spude, Skagway, District of Alaska, 27, 32, 35, 36.

2 Berton, Klondike Fever, 358-365; Spude, Skagway, District of Alaska, 60, 62.

3 Spude, Chilkoot Trail, 53, 55; Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 273-276.

4 U.S. Census Bureau, Twelfth Census of Population, 1900, Alaska, individualized returns;

Vol. 5, Southern District, Enumeration District #7, pp. 1-11; Daily Alaskan (Skagway),

February 7, 1901.

5 Robert D. Jones, "A Municipal Farmer," Alaska-Yukon Magazine, August 1907, 488-492;

Mrs. C. R. Miller, "Alaska's Deserted City and its Flourishing Rival," Leslie's Weekly,

August 2, 1906, 112.

6 Spude, Skagway, District of Alaska, 65; Alaska Federation of Women's Clubs, (1936-1937

Year Book), 99.

7 Spude, Skagway, District of Alaska, 30, 65.
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8 Ibid., 65, 142-161. Because of the geological process of glacial rebound, Skagway's land is

rising about one-half inch per year throughout the twentieth century. No high tides were

known to intrude onto Broadway after 1908.

9 Ted C. Hinckley, "The Inside Passage: A Popular Gilded Age Tour," Pacific Northwest

Quarterly 56 (April 1965), 69-71.

10 Daily Alaskan (Skaguay), July 25, 1898; Daily Alaskan (Skagway), May 10, 1899.

11 Frank Norris, Gawking at the Midnight Sun: The Tourist in Early Alaska (Anchorage,

Alaska Historical Commission Studies in History #170, 1985), 33; White Pass and Yukon

Route, "A Tour Through the Land of Nightless Days," c. 1906, 3, in WP&YR Collection,

Yukon Archives; Daily Alaskan (Skagway), June 23, 1908; July 20, 1908.

12 White Pass and Yukon Route, "Travels in Alaska and the Yukon Territory," 1913, in

WP&YR Collection.

13 White Pass and Yukon Route, "A Handbook of Vacation Trips in Alaska, Atlin and the

Yukon on the White Pass and Yukon Route," 1928, in WP&YR Collection; Martin Itjen, The

Story of the Tour on the Skagway, Alaska Street-Car (Skagway?, the author, 1938), 73.

14 W. D. Gordon, WP&YR River Division, "Superintendent's Annual Reports on

Operations," 1923, pamphlet II-1, WP&YR Collection, Yukon Archives. The effect of the

Princess Sophia's sinking on the north country's economy is explored at length in Ken Coates

and William R. Morrison's The Sinking of the Princess Sophia; Taking the North Down With

Her (Fairbanks, University of Alaska Press), 1991.

15 Cy Martin, Gold Rush Narrow Gauge (Corona del Mar, Calif., Trans-Anglo Books, 1974),

53.

16 Martin, Gold Rush Narrow Gauge, 54-60; Stan Cohen, Gold Rush Gateway; Skagway and

Dyea (Missoula, Mont., Pictorial Histories Pub. Co., 1986), 104-113. Martin (p. 60) notes that

on one extraordinary day, August 4, 1943, the MRS ran 38 trains over the line.

17 Barbara Kalen to author, November 17, 1994.

18 Martin, Gold Rush Narrow Gauge, 64; Helen Clark, interview with author, Skagway,

March 13, 1985; Skagway City Council minutes, July 17, 1944 and August 7, 1944, in Trail

of '98 Museum Collection. Phillip Allen, in One Came Late (Edmonton, the author, 1992) has

several photographs showing the tracks still in place as of September 1947, and the

November 3, 1947 council minutes also note that the tracks were still there. By May 1952,

however, council minutes suggest that tracks had already been removed as far north as

Eleventh Avenue and that the WP&YR was preparing to remove still more trackage.

19 Edward McCourt, The Yukon and Northwest Territories (New York, St. Martin's Press,

1969), 29-30.

20 Mary J. Barry, "Alaska Steamship Company: A Legacy of Nostalgia," in Transportation in

Alaska's Past (Anchorage, Office of History and Archaeology, Publication No. 30, 1982),

287; E. Theed to WP&YR Employees, December 6, 1955, in Parks Canada Collection,

Whitehorse; Barbara Kalen to author, November 17, 1994; Carl Mulvihill to author,

December 5, 1994.
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21 "The Alaska Marine Highway System," Alaska Review of Business and Economic

Conditions 7 (October 1970), 3; Carl Mulvihill to author, December 5, 1994.

22 Robert L. Spude, "Historic Use of the Chilkoot Trail, Alaska," data compiled for BLM

Case File AA-37758, KLGO (Anchorage, NPS, March 1984), 6-8.

23 Robert L. Spude, "Historic Use of the Chilkoot Trail, Alaska," 8-10; Carl Mulvihill to

author, December 5, 1994.

24 Oren Kincaid and Harriet Pullen to [Charles S.] Flory [Regional Forester], October 29,

1932; John J. Chambers, etc. to Flory, October 29, 1932; both in "Dyea Road" file, in Box 1,

Program Planning and Research Correspondence, 1894?-1958, RG 30 (Bureau of Public

Roads/Alaska Road Commission), NARA ANC.

25 Royal R. Pullen (Lead, S.D.) to ARC, March 22, 1934; Ike P. Taylor to Pullen, April 5,

1934; Taylor to J. Ludwig Frolander, February 15, 1935; all in "Dyea Road" file, NARA

ANC. No funds, however, were granted for a pedestrian bridge to cross the Taiya.

26 W. C. Blanchard to Taylor, May 25, 1937; Taylor to Blanchard, June 28, 1937; both in

"Dyea Road" file, NARA ANC.

27 Walter W. Sipprell to Taylor, January 30, 1940; Hawley Sterling (ARC) to Taylor, May 7,

1940 in "Dyea Road" file.

28 Taylor to Col. Atkins, May 11, 1940; Frolander to Sterling, May 31, 1940 (telegram);

"Engineer's Estimate for Skagway Highway, Skagway-Dyea Section," August 20, 1940;

Frolander to Taylor, December 2, 1940; G. H. Skinner to Gruening, June 20, 1941; all in

"Dyea Road" file. Frolander, the local road foreman, told local residents that there were no

funds available for new road construction. Gruening, therefore, convinced the ARC to build

the road using maintenance funds. Carl Mulvihill to author, December 5, 1994.

29 Ruth Hampton to Taylor, April 19, 1941; Taylor to Frolander, April 19, 1941; both in

"Dyea Road" file.

30 J. G. Shepard to Taylor, April 27, 1941; Taylor to Gruening, July 11, 1941, in "Dyea

Road" file; Alaska Road Commission, Annual Report for 1941, 1942, and 1943, all on page

7; Carl Mulvihill to author, December 5, 1994. After 1941, no further word was heard about

the proposed Dyea airport.

31 Frolander to Taylor, November 27, 1944, in "Dyea Road" file; Alaska Road Commission,

Annual Report for 1944 through 1947, all on page 7.

32 Wesley W. Patterson, et. al., to ARC, September 30, 1946; Frolander to Taylor, November

3, 1946; both in "Dyea Road" file.

33 ARC, Annual Report for 1948, 8; Chuck and Helen Clark, interview with author, March

13, 1985; Frolander to Taylor, September 2, 1948; R. J. DeLaHunt to H. B. Schultz,

September 29, 1952; both in "Dyea Road" file.

34 As many longtime residents have noted, the completion of the road made it easier for

Skagway residents to scour the old townsite, and the trail, for bottles and other historical

relics.
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35 Spude, "Historic Use of the Chilkoot Trail, Alaska," 10-11; Edward A. Hosford, interview

by author, June 7 and 9, 1986, in Klondike Gold Rush NHP Administrative History

Collection (hereafter known as AHC). The "trappers' cabin" is near the lakeshore within the

old Lindeman City townsite, between present-day Upper Cabin and Lower Cabin.

36 The company constructed at least two pile bridges across the Taiya River and another over

West Creek. Its first Taiya River bridge was located just north of the mouth of West Creek,

while a later bridge was located just north of the Patterson homestead. Both bridges were

washed away, and today almost no trace remains of either one. As noted in Chapter 8,

Hosford's West Creek bridge was built by the state forest division and remained open until it

was closed by the state in June 1988. It was rebuilt three years later, and it remains open to

vehicular traffic. Ed Hanousek, Sr., who homesteaded on land north of West Creek, built a

predecessor to Hosford's bridge 1000 feet east of it during the 1950s; it was ordered torn

down shortly after Hosford's bridge was completed. Skagway News, July 8, 1988, 3.

37 Edward Hosford interview; Edward A. Hosford to Ike P. Taylor, October 23, 1948; Taylor

to Hosford, October 26, 1948; John C. Fox to William J. Niemi, November 25, 1953; Niemi

to Fox, July 19, 1954; all in "Dyea Road" file.

38 The previous airport had been located between Main and Alaska streets north of Thirteenth

Avenue. Skagway City Council Minutes, September 23, 1949, in Trail of '98 Museum

Collection.

39 George Sundborg to R. A. Smithson, January 16, 1950, in TR-3 (1949-51), Series 53, RG

314, Alaska State Archives (ASA); Skagway Chamber of Commerce resolution, December 1,

1949; Haines Common Council resolution, December 19, 1949; both in "Skagway-Dyea"

file, Box 77, Project Correspondence, 1923-1960, RG 30, NARA ANC.

40 Skagway City Resolution, November 16, 1950; Noyes to Morgan Reed, December 4, 1950;

both in "Dyea Road" file.

41 Elizabeth Selmer to John R. Noyes, January 22, 1951; Noyes to Skagway Chamber of

Commerce, January 26, 1951, in "Dyea Road" file.

42 John C. Fox to Chief, Operations Division, August 29, 1952; ARC Headquarters to Fox,

January 5, 1953; both in "Dyea Road" file.

43 Joseph J. F. Ward, "Skagway Highway Project" (unpub. mss., 1932), KLGO Collection.

44 Ibid.

45 Ibid.

46 See untitled packet of material in Box 26, Program Planning and Research

Correspondence, 1894?-1958, RG 30, NARA ANC.

47 E. W. Rasmuson to Ike Taylor (ARC), August 21, 1933; W. J. Mulvihill to Gov. John W.

Troy (telegram), August 31, 1933; W. J. Mulvihill to John W. Troy, C. H. Flory, and I. P.

Taylor, December 15, 1933; all in File 15-4-4 (1933-52), RG 101, ASA (on MF Roll 232,

NARA ANC).
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48 The old road cut is located approximately 100 feet above the WP&YR tracks between

mileposts 4 and 5. ARC, Annual Report for 1934 (p. 12), 1935 (p. 33), and 1938 (p. 33); W.

C. Blanchard to Ike P. Taylor, May 25, 1937, in "Skagway-Dyea Road" files, RG 30, NARA

ANC.

49 Lynn Canal News, May 21, 1981, 6.

50 House Memorial 51, in Alaska House Journal, 1951, pp. 793, 1233-34.

51 George Sundborg to Files, March 16, 1951; Sundborg to Kent Fuller, March 26, 1951;

both in File TR-3 (1949-51), Series 53, RG 314 (ADB), ASA.

52 Sundborg to Kent Fuller (ARC/Skagway), March 26, 1951, in TR-3 (1949-51), Series 53,

RG 314, ASA; Chester to O. P. Flynn (Skagway), April 20, 1951, in File 18-2-e (1953-58),

RG 101, ASA.

53 Morgan Reed to Gruening, June 6, 1951; E. L. Bartlett to Mrs. Osborne Selmer, June 11,

1951; both in File 18-2-e (1953-58), RG 101, ASA.

54 Joseph T. Flakne to Harold G. Crandall, June 19, 1951; John F. Walker to F. D. Calkins,

June 16, 1951; Gruening to Angelo F. Ghiglione, July 18, 1951; all from File 18-2-e (1953-

58), RG 101, ASA.

55 E. L. Bartlett to Angelo F. Ghiglione, July 26, 1951; Bartlett to Oscar L. Chapman, August

18, 1951; Bartlett to Ghiglione, December 29, 1951; all from File 18-2-e (1953-58), RG 101,

ASA.

56 A. F. Ghiglione to E. L. Bartlett, January 9, 1952; Skagway Chamber of Commerce Road

Committee to Ghiglione, March 3, 1952; Ernest Gruening to John O'Daniel (Skagway), May

6, 1952, all in File 18-2-e (1953-58), RG 101, ASA; George Sundborg to F. D. Calkins, May

9, 1952; J. Aubrey Simmons (M.P./Yukon) to Sundborg, June 5, 1952; Sundborg to

Simmons, June 11, 1952, all in File TR-3 (1951-53), Series 53, RG 314, ASA.

57 Gruening to Chapman, September 6, 1952, in "Skagway-Dyea Road" File, RG 30, NARA

ANC.

58 James P. Davis (Office of Territories, USDI) to Gruening, September 18, 1952; Skagway

Chamber of Commerce Road Committee to Irving Reed, September 7, 1953; both in File 18-

2-g (1953-58), RG 101, ASA; Lynn Canal Weekly, April 28, 1955, 1.

59 Gagliari to Cy Coyne, November 13, 1957; Coyne to Waino Hendrickson, August 12,

1958; both in File 411.7, Series 41, RG 01, ASA; Whitehorse Star, August 7, 1958, 2.

60 U.S. Department of the Interior, Alaska: A Reconnaissance Report on the Potential

Development of Water Resources in the Territory of Alaska for Irrigation, Power Production

and Other Beneficial Uses (House Document 197, 82nd Congress, 1st Session), January

1952, 148-50; Claus-M. Naske, "The Taiya Project," BC Studies 91-92 (Autumn and Winter

1991-92), 7-9, 23-25. Naske's 46-page article provides a thorough account of activity related

to the project between 1946 and 1957. Only the most significant events will be recounted in

this study.

61 Naske, "The Taiya Project," 7-9, 23-25; Robert E. Howe to State Coordinator, Alaska,
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January 7, 1970, in "Yukon Taiya Water Power Project" file, AHC. As plans progressed over

the next few years, the length of the tunnels and penstocks changed, but the basic concept

remained.

62 Naske, "The Taiya Project," 10, 31; BLM, Public Land Order 436, January 13, 1948; BLM,

Power Site Classification No. 396, April 23, 1948. The area within PLO 436 went from the

Canadian border south to Dyea Point. Its eastern boundary was the drainage divide between

the Taiya and Skagway rivers, while the western boundary was a line which connected

Mount Hoffman, Mount Yeatman, and Face Mountain.

63 Naske, "The Taiya Project," 9-11, 19.

64 Ibid., 13-14, 36.

65 Ibid., 16-17, 26.

66 Ibid., 19, 21, 25.

67 Ibid., 23, 26.

68 Ibid., 18, 22-23, 25.

69 House Memorial No. 1, in Alaska House Journal, 1951, pp. 55, 1208; House Memorial No.

28, in Alaska House Journal, 1951, pp. 352, 1221-22.

70 Naske, "The Taiya Project," 37, 39, 50.

71 Ibid., 27-28, 39-40.

72 Ibid., 28-29.

73 Ibid., 30-31.

74 Ibid., 35-36.

75 Ibid., 36-37; Pacific Northwest Public Power Bulletin, September 12, 1952, 1, in File WA6 (1951-53), Series 53, RG 314, ASA.

76 Naske, "The Taiya Project," 36-37.

77 BLM, Public Land Order 868, October 21, 1952.

78 Naske, "The Taiya Project," 37, 41-42.

79 Ibid., 42-43.

80 Ibid., 44-46.

81 Ibid., 46.

82 Ibid., 46-47; Battelle Memorial Institute, Transport Requirements for the Growth of
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Northwest North America, 87th Congress, 1st Session, House Document 176, volume 2

(Washington, D.C., GPO, May 25, 1961), V-133, V-137.

83 Alaska Northwest Books, The Milepost, 44th edition (Bothell, Wash., the author, 1992),

134, 137; Yukon Energy Corporation, "Whitehorse Fishway" (brochure), c. 1994.

84 Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 281.

85 Ibid., 281-82.

86 Ibid., 282; Barry Mackintosh (NPS) to author, email, June 14, 1995.

87 Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 282-83.

88 Ibid., 283-84.

89 Lynn Canal Weekly, June 30, 1955, 3; Spude, Skagway, District of Alaska, 160. A

contemporary article noted that "As in all accumulations of personal possessions there is a

great quantity at the Pullen House that is worthless. On the other hand there are many rare old

pieces of furniture, fine glassware and china and mementos of a bygone age that can never

again be replaced once they are gone." Anchorage Daily News, September 9, 1959, 1.

90 George L. Collins to George W. Rogers, March 17, 1954, in File 15-15 (1953-58), RG

101, ASA.

91 Black to Supt GLBA, February 3, 1954, in File 15-15 (1953-58), RG 101, ASA. Rangers

had been assigned to Glacier Bay only since 1950.

92 Merriam to Director NPS, February 15, 1954, in File 15-15 (1953-58), RG 101, ASA.

93 Merriam to Director NPS, February 15, 1954; Herbert E. Kahler to Ben H. Thompson

(Chief of Cooperative Activities), March 3, 1954; George L. Collins to George W. Rogers,

March 17, 1954; both in File 15-15 (1953-58), RG 101, ASA.

94 Anchorage Daily News, September 9, 1959, 1.

95 John A. Hussey to Regional Naturalist, Region Four, November 4, 1953, in "H-34 Historic

Landmarks - Alaska, Skagway and White Pass," NRHP Files, AKSO-RCR Collection.

96 Merriam to Director NPS, February 15, 1954, in File 15-15 (1953-58), RG 101, ASA.

97 George L. Collins to George W. Rogers, March 17, 1954, in File 15-15 (1953-58), RG

101, ASA.

98 Lawrence C. Merriam to Cyril A. Coyne, February 12, 1959, in "H-34 Historic Landmarks

- Alaska, Skagway and White Pass."

99 Conrad L. Wirth (Director NPS) to Ronald F. Lee (NPS Chief of Interpretation), January

19, 1959, in "H-34 Historic Landmarks - Alaska, Skagway and White Pass."

100 Lawrence C. Merriam to Cyril A. Coyne, February 12, 1959, in "H-34 Historic

Landmarks - Alaska, Skagway and White Pass."
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101 Herbert Maier (Asst. Regional Director, Region Four) to Director NPS, April 5, 1960, in

"H-34 Historic Landmarks - Alaska, Skagway and White Pass."

Chapter 3

1 Charles W. Pfeiffer to Bob Baham, March 17, 1961; Pfeiffer to Bob Henning, May 16,

1961; both in "Chilkoot Trail Reading Files" folder, Series 136, Department of Health and

Social Services Records (RG 06), ASA; Swem to Deputy Director, Operations, February 2,

1970, in Correspondence Files (hereafter known as CF), AHC; Michael Leach, interview by

author, October 12 and October 16, 1995.

2 Mike Leach to A. Earl Plourde, May 23, 1961, in "Chilkoot Trail History Construction"

(CTHC) folder, KLGO. (This folder was copied from material in RG 06, ASA.)

3 Pfeiffer to Dick White, June 7, 1961; Y&AA to T. D. Gregg, June 9, 1961; both in

"Chilkoot Trail Reading File," KLGO; Leach to Plourde, July 25, 1961, in CTHC.

4 Leach to Plourde, July 25, 1961; Lawrence A. Dutton to Leach, July 2, 1962; both in

CTHC.

5 Leach to Sigurd Olson, September 5, 1963, in CTHC; Leach interview, October 16, 1995.

6 Barry Mackintosh, The Historic Sites Survey and National Historic Landmarks Program: A

History (Washington, NPS, 1985), 5-6.

7 Mackintosh, The Historic Sites Survey, 12-13, 19-21, 34.

8 National Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings, Theme XXI, Political and Military

Affairs, 1865-1910: Special Study, Alaska History, 1741-1910 (Washington, NPS, 1961), ii.

9 Ibid., 172-75.

10 Ibid., 176-78.

11 Ibid., a, foreword, 220; National Park Service, National Historic Landmarks: A

Preservation Program of the National Park Service (Washington, the author, 1976), 9;

National Park Service, Skagway, A Study of Alternatives, preliminary working draft (San

Francisco?, the author, March 1969), 4; Herbert E. Kahler to Carl E. Mulvihill, January 8,

1964; Charles W. Snell to Supt. SITK/GLBA, March 17, 1966; both in "H-34 Historic

Landmarks - Alaska, Skagway and White Pass," NRHP Files, AKSO-RCR Collection. The

NPS did not actually designate the area an NHL in June 1962 because designation required

the agreement of landowners or, as in Skagway's case, a municipal official. That request, by

Mayor Malcolm Moe, was made in January 1964, and on February 28, 1964, the site became

an officially-designated Registered National Historical Landmark. That summer, a plaque

designating the NHL was mailed to city officials, and in early 1966 NPS officials mailed the

city an NHL certificate. The former is now visible on Broadway, south of the NPS visitor

center; the latter was (until 1995, at least) on the wall of the city's Trail of '98 Museum.

12 NPS, National Historic Landmarks, 7-9.
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13 The NHL had no boundaries. Before the passage of the 1966 National Historic

Preservation Act, an NHL "was an honorary recognition of national significance and did not

require boundary definition." A. R. Mortenson to Gordon Reno, February 6, 1975, in

"Skagway/White Pass Correspondence" folder, NHL Files, AKSO-RCR Collection.

14 Dutton to Leach, July 2, 1962; Leach to Plourde, July 23, 1962; Leach to Plourde, August

28, 1962; all in CTHC; Alaska Department of Health and Welfare, Youth and Adult

Authority, Annual Report, 1965, 17.

15 Dutton to Leach, July 5, 1963; Leach to Sigurd Olson, September 5, 1963; both in CTHC;

J. R. Lotz, "The Chilkoot Trail To-Day, Dyea to Bennett," unpub. mss., Dept. of Northern

Affairs and National Development (Canada), October 1963, 1; Mike Leach to author,

October 19, 1995.

16 Barry Mackintosh, C&O Canal: The Making of a Park (Washington, NPS, 1991), 68-73;

Egan to Douglas, January 28, 1964, in "Skagway" folder, Series 233, Department of

Economic Development (RG 15), ASA; Egan to Udall, March 28, 1966, in Folder 870, Series

41.2, RG 01, ASA.

17 Bearss trip report, September 2, 1969, in Bearss, Klondike Park Study, 287-92; Southeast

Alaska Empire, June 2, 1972, 3; Scott Home, interview by author, April 27, 1995; Leach

interview, October 16, 1995; Archie Satterfield, Chilkoot Pass, Then and Now (Anchorage,

Alaska Northwest, 1973), 148; NPS, "Chilkoot Trail Report," 1974, 20, in KLGO Archives,

Skagway.

18 Michael Leach, of the Division of Lands, recalls that corrections personnel performed trail

maintenance until a new corrections director decided that inmates should remain incarcerated

rather than work in remote situations. In their stead, Division of Lands personnel maintained

the trail. In 1970, the Division of Parks was created, and workers from the new division

maintained the trail thereafter. Dutton to Leach, February 20, 1964; Henry Hall to Leach,

August 25, 1965; both in CTHC; North Wind, September 1965, 11, and June 1966, 4;

Barbara Kalen, "Part of Chilkoot Pass Ship-Shape for Hikers," Southeast Alaska Empire,

July 23, 1968, 9; Michael Leach interview, October 12, 1995.

19 W. E. Garrett, "Alaska's Marine Highway," National Geographic Magazine 127 (June

1965), 801; Southeast Alaska Empire, April 9, 1979, 4.

20 Leach to Olson, September 5, 1963, in CTHC.

21 NPS, "Skagway and White Pass" nomination form, July 13, 1965, in NRHP Files, AKSORCR Collection.

22 North Wind, August 1965, 1; Folder #2, National Parks and Recreation Subcommittee,

Legislative Bill File, Ralph Rivers Collection, UAF; Stanley Cain, "Trip

Report...Accompanying the Advisory Board...on its Annual Field Trip, July 30 to August 10,

1965, in Alaska," 4-5, in E. L. Bartlett Collection, UAF.

23 Rivers to Hartzog, August 27, 1965, in File 882, Series 41, RG 01, ASA; North Wind,

September 1965, 5.

24 Howard R. Stagner to Rivers, November 3, 1966, in CF, AHC.
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25 NPS, Skagway, A Study of Alternatives, 29; William R. Thomas, Alaska Gold Rush Trails

Study, preliminary draft (Anchorage, Bureau of Outdoor Recreation, 1975), i. The other five

trails planned for study included the Dalton Trail, the Seward-to-Nome (Iditarod) Trail, the

Valdez-to-Fairbanks Trail, the Valdez-to-Eagle (WAMCATS) trail, and the Wiseman Trail

(Koyukuk-Chandalar routes). But the Iditarod and WAMCATS trails, studied in 1973-74,

and the Wiseman Trail, studied in 1974-75, the were the only routes given thorough scrutiny,

and the Iditarod was the only trail added to the National Trails System.

26 Leach advocated the state park idea, but his superior, Ted Smith, recognized that the state,

in those pre-oil days, would be fiscally unable to manage it. Guy Martin, "Testimony of the

State of Alaska," May 12, 1975, in File NR 1-2 (1975), File 88, RG 01, ASA; Mike Leach

interview, October 16, 1995; Michael S. Leach to Ted G. Smith, October 10, 1966, in Box

4578 (Urban Renewal Projects, Alaska State Housing Authority), in Department of

Commerce and Economic Development Records (RG 08), ASA; Ted Smith to the author,

November 14, 1995. The October 1966 study has not yet been located.

27 William J. Stanton, Economic Aspects of Recreation in Alaska, Part 1, Volume 1 of

Alaska Recreation Survey (Washington, NPS), 1953; Charles B. West, Mr. Alaska, The

Chuck West Story: 40 Years of Alaska Tourism, 1945-1985 (Seattle, Weslee, 1985), 68-73;

Marybeth Holleman, Tourism: An Overview of the Industry (Anchorage, UAA Institute of

Social and Economic Research, 1989?), 2.

28 Rodger W. Pegues to Stanley T. Albright, March 27, 1974, in CF; Southeast Alaska

Empire, March 26, 1974, 3.

29 G. R. Stevens, History of the Canadian National Railways (New York, Macmillan, 1973),

401; North Wind, July 1963, 4; West, Mr. Alaska, 82-85; "The Alaska Marine Highway

System," Alaska Review of Business, 3. Lynn Canal News, August 21, 1980, 1, notes that the

Princess Patricia began serving Skagway in 1963.

30 North Wind, June 1963, 1; "The Alaska Marine Highway System," Alaska Review of

Business, 3.

31 North Wind, June 1963, 1; Carl Mulvihill to the author, December 5, 1994.

32 North Wind, September 1967, 7; West, Mr. Alaska, 101-02; San Francisco Examiner,

September 18, 1968, 16; Wall Street Journal, November 12, 1968, 19.

33 North Wind, August 7, 1963, 1; March 1966, 1; Juneau Empire, February 21, 1995, 9.

34 North Wind, April 1964, 6; July 1965, 11; May 1966, 1; Carl E. Mulvihill, "Seventh

Meeting Minutes," November 5, 1964, in "Skagway" folder, Series 233, RG 15, ASA. Alice

Cyr, interview by author, December 21, 1993; Carl Mulvihill to author, December 5, 1994.

35 The hotel was built at the northwest corner of Third Ave. and Spring St.; subsequent

additions, in 1973, 1976, 1980, and 1982-83, have been built on both sides of Third Avenue.

The Klondike also expanded in 1974 when it acquired the Gold Rush Motel, a hostelry at the

corner of Second Avenue and Spring Street which had been constructed in 1972. North

Wind, December 1966, 4; January 1967, 1; March 1967, 6; April 1972, 7; June 1973, 6; April

1974, 11; J. Thomas Ritter to Area Director, Alaska, March 4, 1976, in File L58, CF; Lynn

Canal News, February 14, 1980, 1; Skagway News, July 28, 1982, 3; August 11, 1982, 1.

Other Skagway hotels included the Golden North, which had been operating since the gold
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rush days, along with the Skagway Inn, the White House, and the Sourdough Inn. The

Skagway Inn is still open, but the White House and the Sourdough Inn succumbed to fire

damage in December 1977 and July 1979, respectively. North Wind, January 1978, 7; Lynn

Canal News, July 17, 1979, 1.

36 "Skagway Centennial Grant File" correspondence folder, Series 233, Department of

Economic Development Records (RG 15), ASA. During the first several years of Centennial

Committee activity, the major project was to be an auditorium-sized community center, but

the impending closure of the White Pass Hospital, announced in August 1966, militated a

change in priorities. In July 1967, the city had decided to build both a $150,000 Centennial

Building and a $50,000 Health Building, but by January 1968 the community center had been

dropped. The health clinic was named for Dr. Peter Dahl, who had worked at the White Pass

Hospital for 26 years. North Wind, August 1966, 1; July 1967, 6; December 1967, 6; January

1968, 1; June 1968, 1; July 1968, 2; August 1968, 7.

37 North Wind, February 1964, 6; May 1965, 1; Carl E. Mulvihill, "Seventh Meeting

Minutes," November 5, 1964, in "Skagway" folder, Series 233, RG 15, ASA.

38 Juneau Alaska Empire, August 30, 1964, 2; North Wind, September 1964, 7; Herb Adams

to Ron Saroff, July 22, 1966, in "Skagway" folder, Series 233, RG 15, ASA; Barbara Kalen

to author, November 17, 1994.

39 In early 1962, prior to Engine 52 being moved to town, Engine 195 had been moved from

the railroad yards to the museum grounds, where it has served as an outdoor display ever

since. "Skagway" correspondence folders, Series 233, RG 15, ASA; Southeast Alaska

Empire, August 30, 1964, 2; David P. Morgan, "The Call of the Yukon is a Locomotive

Whistle," Trains 23 (February 1963), 25.

40 Concrete sidewalks were no stranger to Skagway. During the late 1940s and early 1950s,

several businesses, including the Pack Train Inn and the Eagles Hall, had laid their own

concrete sidewalks, and several city council members favored their installation citywide.

During the Alaska Purchase centennial period, concrete sidewalks were laid throughout the

city, except on Broadway. Skagway City Council minutes, April 4, 1949; June 13, 1949; June

22, 1949; and May 1950, all in Trail of '98 Museum Collection; North Wind, July 1966, 2;

December, 1966, 4; July 1967, 2; August 1967, 4; September 1967, 7; July 1968, 10; Martin

F. Schafer to Merrill J. Mattes, October 25, 1968, in CF.

41 Stan Cohen, The White Pass and Yukon Route; A Pictorial History (Missoula, Mont.,

Pictorial Histories Pub. Co., 1980), 77; Roy Minter, "Ninety Years of White Pass History in

Fifteen Minutes," (speech at WP&YR Historic Site Dedication, Whitehorse, August 5, 1988),

unpub. mss., 9-10, in KLGO Collection.

42 Cohen, White Pass and Yukon Route, 79, 83; North Wind, September 15, 1967; North

Wind, December 15, 1967; Thomas Healy, Skagway City Manager, interview by author,

September 14, 1988.

43 Carl E. Mulvihill to G. Dean Olson, June 16, 1966, in "Skagway" folder, Series 233, RG

15, ASA; Alaska Highway Department, Alaska Historical Markers and Centennial Plaques

(Juneau, the author, 1969), 16-22; Carl Mulvihill to author, December 5, 1994.

44 Adams to Benesch, February 27, 1964, in "Canada-Chilkoot Pass" folder, Series 231,

Department of Commerce and Economic Development Records (RG 15), ASA.
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45 Egan to Udall, March 28, 1966; Centennial Meeting Minutes, July 11, 1966, 5; both in

Folder 870, Series 41.2, RG 01, ASA; Micheal Leach to Roscoe Bell, March 27, 1967, in

CTHC.

46 Alaska Highway Department, Alaska Historical Markers, 16. "North to the Future" was the

state's slogan during the mid-1960s; it appeared on license plates and on official state

stationery.

47 Southeast Alaska Empire, July 28, 1967, 1; August 2, 1967, 3; North Wind, August 1967,

3.

48 Gov. Walter Hickel to C. R. Porter, April 12, 1967; Udall to Hickel, May 22, 1967; Herb

Adams to Frank Murkowski, August 1, 1967; "Boy Scouts Leave for Chilkoot Pass

Ceremonies" (press release), August 1, 1967; all in "Canada-Chilkoot Pass" folder, Series

231, RG 15, ASA.

49 Herb Adams to File, August 30, 1967, in "Canada-Chilkoot Pass" folder, Series 231, RG

15, ASA.

50 Alaska Department of Natural Resources, The Chilkoot Trail: A Guide to the Goldrush

Trail of '98 (Juneau, the author), 1968; Mike Leach interview, November 1, 1995.

51 Edward Woozley (Director BLM) to Ernest Gruening, USS, April 15, 1960, in Box 85,

Gruening Collection, UAF.

52 Holdsworth to Egan, August 11, 1960, in File 311.1, Series 41, RG 01, ASA.

53 David E. Clinkenbeard (Arthur D. Little) to Burke Riley, September 14, 1960; Riley to

Clinkenbeard, September 21, 1960; both in File 741, Series 41, RG 01, ASA.

54 Clinkenbeard to Riley, October 14, 1960, in File 741, Series 41, RG 01, ASA.

55 Gary Thurlow (Asst. Atty. General) to Egan, December 28, 1960, in File 421.1, Series 41,

RG 01, ASA.

56 Egan to John R. Derry (AEC), February 1, 1961; William K. Maher (AEC) to Egan,

February 10, 1961; both in File 421.1, Series 41, RG 01, ASA.

57 Ernest Gruening to R. A. Learnard, March 28, 1961; Gruening to Leon Hickman, January

25, 1962; Gruening to Cyril A. Coyne, February 12, 1962; all in Box 85, Gruening

Collection.

58 BLM, Power Site Classification No. 396, in Federal Register, March 11, 1961, 2138.

59 Gruening to Stewart Udall, March 20, 1961, in Box 85, Gruening Collection.

60 Gruening to James W. Burton, March 20, 1961, in Box 85, Gruening Collection.

61 Gruening to James W. Burton, April 3, 1961; Irving Sengel (BLM) to Gruening, April 28,

1961; both in Box 85, Gruening Collection.

62 Federal Register, April 29, 1961, 3703.
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63 File A 061057, in BLM Alaska State Office, Anchorage. The state applied for 203,023

acres of land in ten townships; only five of those townships were located in the Taiya River

drainage system.

64 North Wind, March 1964, 1; H.Res. 10 (1964), in ASA; Alaska House Journal (1964), 248,

308; U.S. Department of the Interior, Rampart Project, Alaska: Market for Power and Effect

on Natural Resources, vol. 2 (Juneau, the author, January 1965), 444-457.

65 Ray G. Williston, "Alaska-British Columbia-Yukon Conference, Northern Power

Resources" (speech), in File 421.1, Series 41, RG 01, ASA; North Wind, September 1964,

10.

66 Phil R. Holdsworth to Carl McMurray, February 21, 1967, in File 421, Series 41, RG 01,

ASA; North Wind, June 1965, 5; North Wind, April 1966, 5.

67 Cy Coyne to Hickel, April 29, 1967; Hickel to Coyne, May 3, 1967; both in File 421,

Series 41, RG 01, ASA; Alaska Senate Journal (1967), 25, 295, 779.

68 Alaska Senate Journal (1967), 101, 113, 597; Arthur Laing (Minister of Indian Affairs and

Northern Development) to Engstrom, May 15, 1967, in File 421, Series 41, RG 01, ASA.

69 SB 356, in "Yukon-Taiya Commission," file, Series 100 (1968), Box 5055, RG 01, ASA;

Alaska Senate Journal (1968), 237, 252, 361.

70 Charles W. Pfeiffer to Paul Winsor, May 11, 1961, in Chilkoot Trail Reading File, KLGO.

71 Leach to Lotz, May 24, 1963; Leach to Lotz, September 5, 1963; Lotz to Murton, October

21, 1963; all in CTHC; North Wind, August 1963, 3; J. R. Lotz, "The Chilkoot Trail ToDay," 1963; Lotz, "On the Trail of '98," Seattle Post-Intelligencer, May 31, 1964, PR 10-12.

72 J. R. Lotz, "The Chilkoot Trail To-Day, Dyea to Bennett," unpub. mss., December 1965;

Leach to Phil R. Holdsworth, May 19, 1964; Leach to Bob Knox, January 27, 1967; both in

CTHC.

73 Gary McLaughlin to the author, February 19, 1995.

74 As Dick North noted in a 1993 letter to Supt. Alderson, "We did it [the press campaign to

open the trail] on behalf of Dick Morrow." Herb Adams to L. J. Wallace, March 23, 1967;

W. R. Morrow to Correctional Supervisor, Adult Camp, Palmer, May 8, 1967; Morrow to

Leach, July 17, 1967; Morrow to Leach, March 7, 1968; all in CTHC; Yukon Daily News,

July 10, 1967, 4, 16; "Newspapers" section, KLGO Collection.

75 Southeast Alaska Empire, August 11, 1967, 1; Yukon Daily News, August 11, 1967, 1;

North Wind, August 1967, 4; September 1967, 2; Gary McLaughlin to author, February 19,

1995; Mike Leach to author, October 19, 1995. Leach was on the trail when the Juneau

woman became lost and unsuccessfully tried to locate her. He recalls that the woman,

claiming a knowledge of the trail route, had advertised in a Juneau newspaper for hiking

companions. The three young people that answered the ad, however, soon discovered that she

did not know her way, and she was also physically unable to complete the trip. The trio,

hiking southbound, deserted her but reported the incident to Leach and his party near Long

Lake. McLaughlin, recalling the crew that marked the trail over Labour Day weekend, noted
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that "Like every one else who hiked the trail back then, [the crew] missed the original trail."

76 Morrow to Leach, March 7, 1968, in CTHC.

77 Morrow had recommended the refurbishment of the Lindeman City "trappers' cabin,"

which dated from the first decade or two of the twentieth century. Perhaps at the suggestion

of Mike Leach, however, a new cabin was built several hundred yards to the south. Leach to

Morrow, March 19, 1968, in CTHC; Gary McLaughlin to author, February 19, 1995.

78 Chilkoot Trail Logbook, 1968, in Parks Canada files, Whitehorse; Ogison to Leach,

September 19, 1968, in CTHC. South of Lindeman, the crew easily found the original trail

and reused it. North of Lindeman, however, signs were more difficult to trace. Gary

McLaughlin, who was assigned to mark the trail to Bennett, spent two summers looking

unsuccessfully for signs of a historic pathway. He finally "concluded that the majority of gold

seekers used Lindeman Lake to reach Bennett by boat." He then found an old game trail that

he followed to mile 37.4. Before long, however, the number of hikers walking the tracks

began to concern White Pass officials. Corrections officials responded by cutting a new trail

west of the tracks, and between 1974 and 1976 a new trail was blazed that ran north from

Bare Loon Lake, passed the cemetery south of Bennett, and ran abreast of the old church

before descending to the railroad station. Alaska Department of Natural Resources, The

Chilkoot Trail: A Guide to the Goldrush Trail of '98, 1974; Parks Canada and NPS, The

Historic Chilkoot Trail, Trail Guide, c. 1976; Gary McLaughlin to author, February 19, 1995.

79 V. L. Ogison to Commissioner, Y.T., January 22, 1969, in Parks Canada files, Whitehorse.

80 Chilkoot Trail Project, 1969 [logbook]; [Chilkoot Trail] 1969 Visitors Book; both in Parks

Canada files, Whitehorse. The two staff members, John Maloney and Gary McLaughlin, were

later joined by R. J. Dunlop and Harry Deneron.

81 R. B. Harvey, "International Gold Rush Park, Report of September 1972," CF; "Klondike

'73 Canoe Pageant Itinerary," in CF; Alaska DNR, Chilkoot Trail Guide, 1968, 18. Plans

hatched during the late 1960s had called for the construction of cabins at the summit and at

Deep Lake. These projects, however, were never implemented. Bearss, Klondike Park Study,

289.

82 [Lake Lindeman] Visitors Book for 1968-1969, in Parks Canada files, Whitehorse; Don

McCune to John A. Rutter, May 13, 1971, in CF; Canadian Environmental Sciences, Ltd.,

Chilkoot Trail: Provisional Master Plan Study (Ottawa, National and Historic Parks Branch,

February 1972), 12; NPS, Proposed Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, Master

Plan, hereafter known as KLGR Master Plan (Denver, the author, May 1973), 25, 44.

83 North Wind, March 1966, 1; Whitehorse Star, May 29, 1967, 5; North Wind, April 1969,

4; Malcolm Moe comments, May 26, 1971, in CF; North Wind, February 1971, 6 and July

1971, 8; NPS, "Chilkoot Trail Ranger Reports," 1973 through 1978, in Box 1, RG 70, KLGO

Archives.

84 Richard Stuart, "Recycling Used Boom Towns: Dawson and Tourism," Northern Review 6

(Winter 1990), 118-21; "Klondike Gold Rush Theme for Four New National Historic Sites"

(press release), Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, November 1969, in

"Klondike Gold Rush NHP" file, Box 1, Swem Collection, Denver Public Library. During the

early 1960s, the National Historic Sites Branch was part of the Department of Northern

Affairs and National Development.
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85 National Historic Sites Service, Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development,

Klondike Gold Rush International Historic Park, Provisional Development Plan: Canadian

Sites (Vancouver?, the author, c. 1970), "Background Data and Current Position" section,

paragraphs 1 and 2; "Judd Buchanan Outlines Parks Canada Developments in the Yukon"

(press release), June 2, 1975, in "L58 1965-76" folder, AHC. The S.S. Klondike was

refurbished during the 1970s, and on Canada Day, July 1, 1981, it was dedicated by

Honorable John Roberts, Canada's Minister of the Environment. Both the Keno and the

Klondike are now on display, in Dawson and Whitehorse, respectively. The Casca and the

Whitehorse were destroyed in a Whitehorse fire on June 20, 1974.

86 Environment Canada-Parks, Proposed Chilkoot Trail National Historic Park, Management

Planning Program, Newsletter No. 1 (May 1986), 2.

87 National Historic Sites Service, Klondike Gold Rush International Historic Park,

paragraphs 4 and 9; Bennett to Luntey, April 25, 1968, in CF; Stuart, "Recycling Used Boom

Towns," 124, 126.

88 John W. Bright to Chief, Office of Resource Planning, SSC, January 24, 1968, in CF.

89 Bennett to Luntey, April 16, 1968; Bennett to Luntey, April 25, 1968; both in CF.

90 Mattes to Chief, Resource Planning, SSC, May 8, 1968; Mattes to Howe, June 12, 1968;

both in CF.

91 Robert S. Luntey to Peter Bennett, March 8, 1968, in CF.

92 Ted Swem, interview by author, November 18, 1994. The so-called Federal Field

Committee had been created in 1964 following the disastrous Good Friday earthquake; since

that time, the committee had served as a conduit for federal assistance funds. These monies

had initially been directed to specific impact areas, but later were used for more broad-based

economic development projects.

93 NPS, Skagway: A Study of Alternatives, 4; Hartzog to Hickel, December 7, 1967, in File

882, Series 41, RG 01, ASA; Theodor Swem, interview by author, November 18, 1994. As

Swem noted years later, Hickel "made no further real commitments to help us out except in

the case of the Skagway-Chilkoot Pass study. In that case he opened the door for us with the

Skagway town fathers, and this enabled us to look at the area in a more open fashion during

1968." Swem to John Kauffmann, November 9, 1976, in "Roger Allin 1966 Report" file, Box

6, Swem Collection.

94 Robert S. Luntey (Chief, Office of Resource Planning, SSC) to RD/WRO, March 8, 1968,

in CF.

95 John W. Bright (Acting Chief, Division of New Area Studies and Master Planning) to

Chief, Office of Resource Planning, SSC), January 24, 1968; Luntey to RD/WR, March 8,

1968; Hall to RD/WR, March 26, 1968; Hall to Edward Hanousek, April 15, 1968; Bennett to

Luntey, April 16, 1968; all in CF. Bennett, though a resident of Ottawa, had a longstanding

interest in the Klondike, having first visited Dawson in 1948. Bennett to Ted Swem,

November 26, 1974, in "Klondike Gold Rush NHP" file, Box 1, Swem Collection.

96 Mattes to Chief, Resource Planning, SSC, May 8, 1968; Mattes to Bob Howe, June 12,

1968; both in CF; Southeast Alaska Empire, May 8, 1968, 8.
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97 Mattes to Carl Mulvihill, September 18, 1968; Team Captain, RPSSC to Chief, RPSSC,

January 29, 1969; both in CF.

98 Luntey to Assistant Director, Cooperative Activities, March 19, 1969; Mattes to Bailey

Breedlove, March 20, 1969; both in CF.

99 Reed Jarvis, the team's historian, noted at the time that "I often feel that the Service gets

bogged down in having a greater number of historic structures than it can really use for

interpretive purposes. If we cannot find uses for the historic structures, they are for all

purposes dead; just being there to complete a picture is not a sound economic or interpretive

reason. At Skagway, I have tried to keep the actual number of Service-owned structures to a

minimum, yet including all those historic structures needed to convey the essence, spirit,

character of the gold rush era to the visitor." Jarvis to Mattes, March 26, 1969, in CF.

100 NPS, Skagway: A Study of Alternatives, 33-41.

101 Ibid., 23-24, 35.

102 The idea of a locomotive on Broadway was not new. Tracks had been a fixture on

Broadway from 1898 to the end of World War II, and in 1964 Cy Coyne, the local newspaper

editor, suggested "that we mount Engine 52 on a concrete pedestal in the middle of

Broadway." North Wind, August 1964, 7.

103 NPS, Skagway: A Study of Alternatives, 42.

104 Luntey to Assistant Director, Cooperative Activities, March 27, 1969; Ernest Allen

Connally (OAHP) to Associate Director, Planning and Development, April 14, 1969; Arthur

C. Allen to Associate Director, Planning and Development, April 7, 1969; all in CF.

105 Bowen to Chief, Office of Resource Planning, SSC, April 3, 1969, in CF.

106 NPS, "Proposed Skagway National Historical Park," May 1969, in "Klondike Gold Rush

NHP" file, Box 1, Swem Collection; Luntey to Assistant Director, Cooperative Activities,

April 15, 1969, in CF.

107 Mattes to Chief, Resource Planning, SSC, May 8, 1968, in CF.

108 Mattes to Schafer, September 20, 1968; Minter to Schafer, October 31, 1968; both in CF.

109 Mattes to Martin Schafer, September 20, 1968; John Rutter (RD/WRO) to Ted G. Smith,

October 16, 1968; both in CF. Rutter's letter had been written by Luntey a month earlier; it

noted, with an admirable prescience, that "If a preservation plan based on national

recognition by the Congress of the United States becomes a reality, preservation of the old

depot by the Government would become a distinct possibility. It might be conceivably

adapted as a future NPS headquarters and museum."

110 Schafer to Mattes, October 25, 1968; Minter to Schafer, October 31, 1968; both in CF;

Southeast Alaska Empire, November 19, 1968, 7; North Wind, November 1968, 1.

111 Theodore G. Smith to John A. Rutter, November 14, 1968, in CF.

112
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 Mattes to William J. Murtagh, January 20, 1969; Mattes to Bailey Breedlove, March 20,

1969; Luntey to Assistant Director, Cooperative Activities; all in CF.

113 Hartzog to Brown, April 7, 1969, in CF.

114 Minter to Hartzog, May 27, 1969; Minter to Robert A. Frederick, May 27, 1969; Mattes

to Martin Schafer, April 21, 1969; all in CF.

115 Mehring to Mattes, June 18, 1969, and Koue to Chief, Branch of Restoration, July 17,

1969, both in CF; NPS, Project Prospectus, Preservation of Historic Railroad Structures,

Proposed Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, October 1969, 2.

116 Koue to Chief, Branch of Restoration, July 17, 1969; Luntey to Assistant Director,

Cooperative Activities, March 19, 1969; Bearss to Chief Historian, September 2, 1969; all in

CF. CF.

117 Mattes to Rutter, June 30, 1969; Minter to Rutter, September 30, 1969; both in CF; North

Wind, November 1968, 1; March 1969, 1; November 1969, 1.

118 Luntey to District Director, Northwest District, September 18, 1969; NPS, Project

Prospectus, Preservation of Historic Railroad Structures, 6.

119 Director NPS to The Directorate and all Regional Directors, October 3, 1968, in CF;

"Bodman to Accept Historic Skagway Depot for National Park Foundation" (press release),

May 24, 1972, in Alaska Parks/Miscellaneous, Box 2, HFC.

120 Mattes to DD/NWD, June 30, 1969, in CF.

121 Mattes to DD/NWD, October 13, 1969, in CF.

122 NPS, Project Prospectus, Preservation of Historic Railroad Structures, 7-12.

123 Mattes to DD/NWD, October 13, 1969; William J. Bowen to DD/NWD, October 31,

1969; both in CF.

124 Robert R. Garvey, Jr. to Roy Minter, March 12, 1970, in CF.

125 NPS, Proposed Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park Master Plan, preliminary

working draft, March 1971, 31; Douglas Cornell to Reed Jarvis, June 8, 1971; "Briefing

Statement for the Alaska Field Committee on the Proposed Klondike Gold Rush International

Historical Park," February 8, 1972; both in CF; Property Deed Books, Volume 17, page 151,

in Skagway Magistrate's Office; Marvin Taylor, interview by author, March 19, 1996.

126 "Bodman to Accept Historic Skagway Depot for National Park Foundation" (press

release), May 24, 1972, in Alaska Parks/Miscellaneous, Box 2, HFC; North Wind, May 1972,

1; June 1972, 1; Southeast Alaska Empire, May 29, 1972, 4; Judy Smith (NPF), interview by

author, February 23, 1994.

Chapter 4

1
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 Bennett to Luntey, April 25, 1968; Mattes to Howe, June 12, 1968; Luntey to RD/WRO,

June 24, 1968; all in CF.

2 Howe to Bennett, August 9, 1968, in "Chilkoot Trail History Construction" file, KLGO.

3 North Wind, September 1969, 2; Whitehorse Star, September 4, 1969, 1.

4 Whitehorse Star, September 4, 1969, 31.

5 Director NPS to Secretary of the Interior, November 6, 1969, in CF.

6 Mattes to District Director, Northwest District, October 13, 1969; NPS, Project Prospectus,

Preservation of Historic Railroad Structures, October 1969, 2.

7 Hartzog to Secretary of the Interior, November 6, 1969, in CF; Harthon Bill (Acting

Director, NPS) to Secretary of the Interior, November 7, 1969, in "Klondike Gold Rush

NHP" file, Box 1, Swem Collection.

8 "Klondike Gold Rush Theme for Four New National Historic Sites" (press release),

Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, November 11, 1969, in "Klondike

Gold Rush NHP" folder, Box 1, Swem Collection.

9 Hartzog to Secretary of the Interior, November 6, 1969, in CF.

10 Mattes to DD/NWD, October 13, 1969; Hartzog to Secretary of the Interior, November 6,

1969; both in CF. Hickel gave more specific approval to the agency's plans at a January 6,

1970 meeting attended by Ted Swem of the NPS and Yvonne Esbensen, Hickel's assistant.

Both Swem and Esbensen had taken part in the Labor Day hike; both showed slides to Hickel

describing the trip over Chilkoot Pass. Ted Swem, interview by author, November 17, 1994.

11 Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, "First Canadian-U.S.

International Historic Park Planned" (press release), December 30, 1969, in "Chilkoot

Trail/International Park" folder, AHC.

12 North Wind, January 1970, 1; "Briefing Statement, Klondike Gold Rush National

Historical Park," April 1970, in CF; National Historic Sites Service, Klondike Gold Rush

International Historic Park, c. 1970.

13 National Historic Sites Service, Klondike Gold Rush International Historic Park.

14 Swem to Deputy Director, Operations, February 2, 1970; "Briefing Statement, Klondike

Gold Rush National Historical Park," April 1970; both in CF.

15 Reed Jarvis to Director, WSC, April 7, 1970, in CF.

16 Hickel to Eldon Engstrom, April 21, 1970, in "Klondike Gold Rush NHP" file, Box 1,

Swem Collection; Hickel to Miller, May 22, 1970, in folder NR 1-1, Series 88, RG 01, ASA.

17 North Wind for March 1970, 1; April 1970, 4; May 1970, 5.

18 Everett W. Buness (Commissioner, Dept. of Economic Development) to Gov. Keith

Miller, June 4, 1970, in Series 100 (1969-70), RG 01, ASA.
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19 North Wind, September 1970, 4; NPS, KLGR Master Plan Draft, March 1971, 5.

20 Egan succeeded Miller as Governor in December 1970. Egan to Morton, February 2, 1971,

in folder NR 1-2, Series 88, RG 01, ASA; State of Alaska, "Comments on the Draft Master

Plan, Proposed Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park," November 21, 1972, in CF.

21 Bearss, Klondike Park Study, i, 287-290.

22 Nathaniel Owings to Secretary of the Interior, April 1971; NPS (PNRO), "Preliminary

Proposal for Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park," May 4, 1971; both in 1971 CF.

23 NPS, KLGR Master Plan Draft, March 1971, 8, 11, 13, 19.

24 Ibid., 7.

25 Rutter to Peter Bennett, April 26, 1971, in CF.

26 North Wind, May 1971, 1; Charles F. Herbert to John A. Rutter, May 10, 1971, in CF.

27 Joseph E. Herpst to Richard Nixon, June 29, 1971, in folder NR 1-3, Series 88, RG 01,

ASA.

28 Section 111(a) of the 1966 National Historic Preservation Act noted that "any Federal

agency...may lease an historic property owned by the agency to any person or organization,

or exchange any property owned by the agency with comparable historic property, if the

agency head determines that the lease or exchange will adequately insure the preservation of

the historic property." NPS, Federal Historic Preservation Laws, 1993, 25.

29 Cornell to Reed Jarvis, June 8, 1971, in CF.

30 Pegues to Cornell, addendum to June 8, 1971 memo, in CF.

31 North Wind, August 1971, 1, 2; NPS, KLGR Master Plan, May 1973, 56, 63-65. Berton's

book was published in the U.S. as Klondike Fever.

32 Donald A. Purse to Chief, Office of Planning and Design, San Francisco Field Office,

December 6, 1971, in CF.

33 NPS, Map 20009 and 20009A, AKSO-EL Collection.

34 Gerald D. Patten to Regional Director, Pacific Northwest Regional Office (hereafter known

as RD/PNRO), December 17, 1971; "Briefing Statement for the Alaska Field Committee on

the Proposed Klondike Gold Rush International Historical Park," in 1971 CF.

35 Egan to Rutter, February 3, 1972; Rutter to Egan, February 14, 1972; both in folder NR 1-

2, Series 88, RG 01, ASA; Archie Satterfield to Rodger Pegues, July 1, 1972; James E.

Wiedeman to Pegues, November 21, 1972; both in CF.

36 "Minutes of the Lake Lindeman Meeting," August 9-10, 1972, in CF.

37 Clark R. Noble to Rodger W. Pegues, April 25, 1972; Laurin Huffman to Pegues and
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Campbell, October 11, 1972; both in CF; Files AA-6272, AA-6528B, and AA-6529C, in

AKSO-EL Collection.

38 Rutter to Wes Uhlman, Brock Adams, etc., November 1, 1972, in "L58 1965-76" folder,

AHC; Rodger W. Pegues to Paul B. Crews, Jr., December 8, 1972, in CF.

39 Acting RD/PNRO to Director DSC, April 20, 1973; KLGR Master Plan, 39, 59. The

Tanner Building was to be moved from the corner of Fifth and State to the corner of Fifth

and Broadway; Boss Bakery was to be moved from Broadway midway between Fourth and

Fifth, to Broadway midway between Second and Third.

40 Bennett T. Gale to Director DSC, February 26, 1973; Gale to Director DSC, March 28,

1973; Gale to Director DSC, May 15, 1973; Gale to Stuart G. Cross (NPF), August 16, 1973;

Robert E. Howe to ARD/PNRO, February 15, 1974; Rutter to Michael Leach, February 22,

1974; Minutes to Klondike Gold Rush International Advisory Committee (hereafter known as

KGRIAC) Meeting, September 13-14, 1974, 2; all in CF. The master plan was dated May

1973, but revisions were made until June. Publication was complete by August, but the

Washington and Alaska congressional delegations did not release it as a public document

until the following February.

41 KLGR Master Plan, 36-49; "The Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park Plan

Released" (press release), n.d. (February 1974), in CF.

42 KLGR Master Plan, 36-49; "The Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park Plan

Released" (press release), n.d. (February 1974); Campbell to Mr. and Mrs. John Cleveland

Kirmse, August 23, 1973; both in CF.

43 Rutter to Uhlman, May 5, 1971; Bennett T. Gale to Henry M. Jackson, May 17, 1971;

Pegues to Cornell, addendum to June 8, 1971 memo; Minutes of First Meeting of the

Klondike Gold Rush International Advisory Committee (KGRIAC), September 23, 1971;

Pegues to Rutter, January 31, 1972; all in CF; Seattle Times, August 1, 1971, B6. The

Klondike Festival was originally known as the "Klondike '72 Festival," and was to have

lasted for just one month.

44 Donald A. Purse to Chief, Office of Planning and Design, San Francisco Field Office,

December 6, 1971, in CF; Seattle Post-Intelligencer, July 5, 1972, A15.

45 The new owners, as it turned out, were unable to restore the building. Within a year they

sold it to a company headed by Norman Volotin, which was able to carry out the restoration.

Bennett T. Gale to Director, DSC, July 28, 1972; Joseph T. Shubert to Team Manager/PNRO,

DSC; Gale to Director DSC, April 20, 1973; all in CF; Russell Jones, Preliminary Estimate

for Restoration and Stabilization of Buildings, Skagway (Denver, NPS, August 1972), 13-14;

Seattle Times, January 27, 1974, C1.

46 Egan to Rogers C. B. Morton, February 2, 1971, in folder NR 1-2, Series 88, RG 01, ASA;

Minutes, KGRIAC meeting, September 21-23, 1971, 3.

47 Gerald Patten to RD/PNRO, December 17, 1971; "Briefing Statement for the Alaska Field

Committee on the Proposed Klondike Gold Rush International Historical Park," February 8,

1972; "National Park Service Action Plan for National Park System Alaska Plan, 1972-73;"

Albert G. Henson to Director PNRO, July 14, 1972; all in CF; Bennett T. Gale to Curtis

McVee (BLM), June 27, 1972, in "L58 1965-76" folder, AHC.
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48 Swem and Bennett, "Outline of Program for Possible International Historic Park in Alaska,

British Columbia and Yukon Territory," September 4, 1969; "Briefing Outline for Walter J.

Hickel," January 6, 1970; Chrétien to Hickel, March 5, 1970; all in "Chilkoot

Trail/International Park" folder, AHC.

49 Ted Swem, "Canada-United States Joint Committee on National Parks," in 1975 CF.

50 "Briefing Paper on the Klondike Gold Rush International Historical Park," late 1975, in

CF; George Hartzog to Egan, May 26, 1971, in folder NR 1-1, Series 88, RG 01, ASA.

51 Tim Sookocheff, Klondike Gold Rush International Advisory Committee (Winnipeg,

[Parks Canada] Prairie Regional Office), 1983, in AHC.

52 Canadian Environmental Services, Chilkoot Trail: Provisional Master Plan Study,

February 1972, 31, 37, 41; "Second Meeting of KGRIAC," March 24, 1972, 4; L. H.

Robinson to Bennett T. Gale, September 7, 1972, in CF.

53 V. P. Rolfson to R. P. Malis, January 28, 1972, in CF; "Second Meeting of KGRIAC,"

March 24, 1972, 4.

54 "Minutes of the Lake Lindeman Meeting, August 9-10, 1972;" R. B. Harvey, "International

Gold Rush Park, Report of September 1972," in "Chilkoot Trail International Park" folder,

AHC.

55 "Second Meeting of KGRIAC," March 24, 1972, 3; R. H. Ahrens to John Rutter, July 20,

1972; Erik Karlson to Rod Pegues, June 14, 1973; all in CF; Whitehorse Star, June 13, 1973,

1; North Wind, June 1973, 10-11; Southeast Alaska Empire, June 18, 1973, 12; June 19,

1973, 4.

56 C. R. Nelson and W. S. Sappington, "Chilkoot Trail: Summer Season, 1973," 11;

"Chilkoot Trail Reports," 1973, in Parks Canada files, Whitehorse.

57 Arthur Laing (Minister of Indian Affairs & Northern Development) to Engstrom, May 15,

1967, in File 421, Series 41, RG 01, ASA; "International Notes Exchanged for Yukon-Taiya

Study," December 17-19, 1968, in Series 100 (1969-70), RG 01, ASA.

58 "Transcript of the first meeting, State of Alaska, Yukon-Taiya Commission," December

20, 1968, in Series 100 (1968), RG 01, ASA.

59 "State of Alaska, Yukon-Taiya Commission, Second Meeting, March 21, 1969," 4; Elmer

Titus to Gov. Keith Miller, April 1, 1969; both in Series 100, RG 01, ASA.

60 Gov. Keith Miller, Press Release, December 5, 1969; Commission Resolution, dated April

6, 1970; both in Series 100 (1969-70), RG 01, ASA; Engstrom to Hickel, April 8, 1970, in

"Klondike Gold Rush NHP" file, Box 1, Swem Collection.

61 Miller to Titus, April 23, 1970, in 1969-70 folder; Titus to Ted Stevens, December 21,

1971, in 1971 folder; John Rutter to Charles F. Herbert, December 23, 1971; all in Series 100,

RG 01, ASA.

62 Titus to William A. Egan, January 29, 1971, in Series 100 (1971), RG 01, ASA.
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63 Titus to Egan, December 30, 1971, in Series 100 (1971), RG 01, ASA.

64 Nathaniel Reed to Christine Thompson, October 8, 1971, in "Yukon-Taiya Water Power

Project, 1970-74" folder, AHC.

65 Southeast Alaska Empire, November 18, 1971, 3.

66 Rush Hoag, The Promise of Power; Potential Economic Development in Southeast Alaska

(Juneau, Department of Economic Development and Yukon-Taiya Commission, January

1972), 28, 81; Charles F. Herbert to William A. Egan, April 17, 1972, in Series 100 (1971),

RG 01, ASA.

67 Archie Satterfield to Rodger Pegues (NPS), July 1, 1972, in CF.

68 Southeast Alaska Empire, December 8, 1972, 8; Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, December

8, 1972, 2.

69 H.B. 125 was sponsored by Mike Miller (D-Juneau) and Mildred Banfield (R-Juneau);

S.B. 72 was sponsored by Bill Ray (D-Juneau). Alaska House Journal, 1973, page H 124.

70 Alaska House Journal, 1973, pp. H 198, H 454, H 491, H 510.

71 Alaska Senate Journal, 1973, S 863; William A. Egan to Tom Fink (Speaker of the

House), January 31, 1974, in Alaska House Journal, 1974, H 100.

72 Southeast Alaska Empire, April 9, 1973, 10. As noted below, the collection was auctioned

off three months later. Oddly enough, however, H.B. 125 was still alive, because the notice

of reconsideration had merely delayed the bill for one legislative day. In January 1974,

therefore, the bill was dutifully brought from the Senate back to the House and sent on to

Governor Egan. On January 31, the governor vetoed the bill as superfluous, and on February

19, both the Senate and the House voted down the by-now-irrelevant bill. The House vote

was 31 to 6, while the Senate voted 18 to 2 against the bill. Alaska House Journal, 1974, H

20, H 100.

73 Southeast Alaska Empire, June 11, 1973, 3; July 6, 1973, 1; Anchorage Daily Times, July

6, 1973, 1; Anchorage Daily News, July 7, 1973, 2; North Wind (Skagway), September 1973,

7; Howard Clifford, The Skagway Story (Anchorage, Alaska Northwest, 1975), 62-63. Many

of the items which had at one time belonged to outlaw Jefferson "Soapy" Smith, and had

come into possession of Mrs. Pullen through an apparent close association between the two,

were returned to the Smith family. Randolph J. Smith, Soapy's grandson, successfully bid for

several items, including the outlaw's headstone ($625) and his roulette wheel ($4,200). Ten

years later, a public auction sold items that belonged to Maxine Selmer; most of those items

had belonged to Mary Pullen Kopanski. Skagway News, June 8, 1983, 3.

74 T. D. Sherard to Richard A. Downing, October 21, 1960, in File 411.7, Series 41, RG 01,

ASA; Lynn Canal News, May 21, 1981, 6.

75 William A. Egan to Richard Sullivan (Skagway), March 14, 1962, in File 411.7, Series 41,

RG 01, ASA.

76 Skagway Chamber of Commerce to Alaska International Rail and Highway Commission,

March 16, 1961; William A. Egan to Ben B. Scott (Skagway), February 17, 1962; both in File
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411.7, Series 41, RG 01, ASA.

77 North Wind, June 1963, 1; October 1963, 4; October 1964, 1; October 1966, 3.

78 North Wind, August 1963, 3; September 1964, 10.

79 North Wind, October 1965, 1; October 1966, 3.

80 Roger Allin, Alaska: A Plan for Action, typescript, November 1966, in "Roger Allin 1966

Report" file, in Box 6, Swem Collection.

81 SJR 44 (1968), in ASA; Rufus Z. Smith to Walter J. Hickel, March 6, 1967, in File 411.7,

Series 41, RG 01, ASA; Southeast Alaska Empire, May 18, 1967, 1; North Wind, September

1967, 5; November 1967, 6; Alaska Senate Journal (1968), 235, 252.

82 Canadian Environmental Sciences, Chilkoot Trail, Provisional Master Plan Study (interim

report), August 1, 1970, in Parks Canada files, Whitehorse; North Wind, June 1969, 1;

August 1969, 1; June 1970, 1.

83 North Wind, September 1969, 6; August 1970, 9; June 1971, 3; August 1971, 2; Lynn

Canal News, May 21, 1981, 6.

84 North Wind, September 1971, 3; Southeast Alaska Empire, July 22, 1971, 5.

85 North Wind, February 1972, 1; James H. Isbell to Warren E. Wild, September 28, 1972, in

CF; Alaska Department of Highways, Skagway to Canadian Border: Draft Environmental

Impact Statement, 1972.

86 North Wind, November 1972, 1; Bruce Campbell to Rutter, December 7, 1972, in folder

NR 1-2; Egan to Rutter, December 12, 1972, in folder NR 1-1; both in Series 88, RG 01,

ASA.

87 North Wind, March 1973, 1; May 1973, 6; Alaska Division of Parks, Initial Historical and

Archaeological Reconnaissance of Alaska Department of Highways Project S-0999(8),

Skagway to Canadian Border, August 1973.

88 Richard T. Myren (Juneau Group, Sierra Club) to Alaska Department of Highways, March

16, 1973; Sandy Sagalkin to Warren Wild, April 25, 1973; Michael Frome to Ronald Walker,

June 16, 1973; all in CF.

89 North Wind, June 1973, 1; July 1973, 1; Southeast Alaska Empire, June 26, 1973, 3.

90 Skagway City Resolution, November 16, 1950; Col. John R. Noyes to Mayor Morgan

Reed, December 4, 1950, in "Dyea Road" file, RG 30, NARA ANC; Mike Leach to A. Earl

Plourde, May 23, 1961, in CTHC.

91 Warren Wiley to Wes Coyner, January 19, 1971, in folder NR 1-1 (1970), Series 88, RG

01, ASA; KGRIAC, minutes of March 24, 1972 and October 13, 1972 meetings.

92 KGRIAC, minutes of March 24, 1972 and October 13, 1972 meetings; Bennett SubCommittee, minutes of April 3, 1973 meeting.
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93 Rutter to Bruce A. Campbell, December 1, 1972, in folder NR 1-2, Series 88, RG 01,

ASA.

94 State of Alaska, "Comments on the Draft Master Plan, Proposed Klondike Gold Rush

National Historical Park," November 21, 1972, in CF; Bruce Campbell to Rutter, December

7, 1972, in folder NR 1-2, Series 88, RG 01, ASA.

95 Egan to Rutter, December 12, 1972, in folder NR 1-1, Series 88, RG 01, ASA; KLGR

Master Plan, 48.

96 S. 1622, introduced April 17, 1973, in CF.

97 North Wind, September 1973, 4; May 1974, 1.

98 North Wind, August 1974, 1; September 1974, 1; Southeast Alaska Empire, September 20,

1974, 1.

99 North Wind, June 1975, 1; August 1976, 1; September 1976, 1.

100 North Wind, September 1977, 1; Skagway News, June 15, 1978, 3; Lynn Canal News,

May 21, 1981, 6.

101 North Wind, October 1973, 1; July 1975, 5; House Joint Resolution 54 (1975); Senate

Concurrent Resolution 90 (1975).

102 North Wind, March 1976, 1.

103 North Wind, September 1977, 1; Skagway News, August 3, 1978, 1; September 7, 1978,

5; Seattle Times, August 13, 1978. Both Thomas Healy and Jeff Brady have chronicled the

long effort to complete the Skagway-Carcross road; their efforts are published in the

Skagway News, October 12, 1978, page 4, and the Lynn Canal News, May 21, 1981, page 6,

respectively.

104 Skagway News, October 12, 1978, 5; Lynn Canal News, May 21, 1981, 6. Jim Masson, a

truck driver for the contractor, and Bill George, a Fraser customs officer, were the first

Canadians to cross the pass; Skagway residents John Edwards and Bob Bissell were the first

Americans to travel over the completed highway. During September and October 1978, U.S.

customs officials recorded 671 vehicles, and 1758 passengers, travelling southbound into

Skagway over the road; the following year, between May and October, traffic volume grew

to 11,730 vehicles and 50,306 passengers. Skagway News, February 10, 1995, 6.

105 Lynn Canal News, September 25, 1980, 1; April 23, 1981, 1. The bronze plaque that was

unveiled at the ceremony was stolen during the mid-1980s. The whereabouts of the sign

remained a mystery until early 1995, when it was found in an abandoned house in Fresno,

California. But as of printing time, it had not yet been returned to Skagway. Skagway News,

May 12, 1995, 1.

106 Rutter to James L. Nelson, January 21, 1974, in CF.

107 Luntey to State Director, Alaska, August 4, 1975, in CF.

108 Rutter to Egan, January 6, 1972, in folder NR 1-2, Series 88, RG 01, ASA.
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109 "Planning Directive, Proposed Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park," February 4,

1971; Rutter to Director NPS, April 29, 1971; Frank A. Bracken to George P. Shultz, March

3, 1972; Donald W. Campbell to Realty Officer, PNRO, July 17, 1972; all in CF; C. F.

Herbert to Egan, February 18, 1972, in folder NR 1-2, Series 88, RG 01, ASA.

110 Ted Stevens to Bennett T. Gale, August 28, 1972, in CF.

111 Stevens to Rep. Don Young, April 2, 1973, in CF.

112 Stevens to Don Young, April 2, 1973, in CF; Marilee Cogswell, comp., Legislative

History for Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, Washington and Alaska, 93rd

Congress through 96th Congress, Volume I (Seattle, NPS, April 1986), 5-16; Congressional

Record 119 (1973), pp. 12635, 12650-51, 12820.

113 Richard K. Griswold to Chief, Division of Legislation, June 20, 1973; Griswold to

Director, Office of Program Planning and Budget, August 7, 1973; Director, OPPB to Chief,

Division of Legislative Coordination and Support, August 23, 1973; Ina Whitlock to

RD/PNRO, August 27, 1973; all in CF.

114 Director NPS to Legislative Counsel, December 19, 1973; Russell Dickenson (Acting

Director NPS) to Legislative Counsel, January 22, 1974; Rutter to Charles Herbert (DNR),

April 18, 1974; all in CF. Because the bill was not considered further, neither the NPS nor

Congress asked the State of Alaska about the proposed change. But DNR head Herbert

caught wind of it and asked the three members of the Alaska Congressional delegation to

include such a provision in all future park bills. Herbert to Young, etc., April 26, 1974.

115 Alaska House Journal (1974), 194, 213, 238, 463; J. R. Gibson to Ted Stevens, May 15,

1974, in CF; Louise Dewey to Wes Uhlman, etc, December 1, 1975, in CF. The Washington

state legislature never passed a park resolution, but Governor Daniel Evans "officially

extend[ed] the full support of the State of Washington to the Park proposal," noting that the

proposed park areas were "of great historical significance and value and therefore most

appropriate for designation as a National Historic Park." Daniel J. Evans to Peter H. Bennett,

July 3, 1974, in CF.

116 Bowers to Edward J. Kurtz, July 21, 1974; n.a. (PNRO), "Summary of the Klondike Gold

Rush National Historical Park Activities for 1974," November 1974, 4, 10; both in CF;

Congressional Record 119 [Index], 1796, 2059.

117 KGRIAC, September 13-14 minutes, 4, in CF; Dave Neufeld to author, June 24, 1994.

118 Bailey O. Breedlove to Carl E. Mulvihill, March 13, 1969, in CF; NPS, Skagway; A

Study of Alternatives, 39.

119 Breedlove to Director, Western Service Center, March 24, 1970, in CF; NPS, KLGR

Master Plan Draft, March 1971, 10.

120 Robert E. Price to RD/PNRO, April 16, 1971; Richard A. Bradley to Robert E. Price, July

15, 1971; both in CF.

121 F. O. Eastaugh to Rodger W. Pegues, July 24, 1972; Skagway City Ordinance No. 72-54;

Southeast Alaska Empire, October 11, 1972, 3.
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122 Alma Joan Everson to NPS, June 3, 1972; Everson to Campbell, July 24, 1972; Bennett

Gale to Vic Watras, December 14, 1973; all in CF.

123 Gale to Frank G. Morelli, September 24, 1973; Howe to ARD/PNRO, February 15, 1974;

Campbell to Gale, June 3, 1974; Campbell to Morelli, June 10, 1974; Campbell to Morelli,

July 10, 1974; all in CF.

124 John P. Bowers to Don Campbell, July 6, 1973; Campbell to Bowers, July 25, 1973; Gale

to Frank G. Morelli, September 24, 1973; Gale to Vic Watras, December 14, 1973; all in CF.

125 John McDermott to Rodger Pegues, October 27, 1973; Howe to ARD/PNRO, February

15, 1974; both in CF.

126 Rutter to John L. Frisbee III, November 21, 1973; Frisbee to Rutter, December 4, 1973;

Frisbee to Shirley Bowers, January 25, 1974; Howe to ARD/PNRO, February 15, 1974;

Bowers to Campbell, March 29, 1974; National Trust for Historic Preservation, March 1974

Field Report; Skagway Ordinance 74-14; all in CF.

127 Howe to State Director, Alaska, June 4, 1974; Campbell to Gale, June 3, 1974; Stanley T.

Albright to RD/PNRO, June 6, 1974; all in file L58, AHC; Southeast Alaska Empire,

November 21, 1974. Renovation projects taking place in late 1974 included the so-called

"Ore House" at Eighth and Broadway and the Reno-Mulvihill House at Seventh and Alaska.

128 Edward J. Kurtz to State Director, Alaska, June 24, 1974; Kurtz to John P. Bowers, June

24, 1974; Rutter and Bowers, "Cooperative Agreement to have an architect come up and

work with the Skagway Historical Commission," July 22, 1974; all in CF.

129 Campbell to Robert S. Luntey, November 5, 1974; Huffman to Luntey, December 18,

1974, both in CF; Rutter to Edward C. Hanousek, December 4, 1974, in L58, AHC.

130 Campbell to Luntey, November 5, 1974; Howe to State Director, Alaska, December 13,

1974; both in CF.

131 Howe to State Director, Alaska, May 9, 1975, in CF; City of Skagway, Ordinance No.

75-19, November 25, 1975.

132 Kurtz to Assoc. Director, Legislation, December 11, 1975, CF; J. Thomas Ritter to Area

Director, Alaska, August 17, 1976, in L58, AHC; Ordinance 76-10, June 3, 1976; Ordinance

76-22, September 2, 1976; Ordinance 77-3, April 7, 1977.

133 Rutter to Stuart G. Cross, January 30, 1973; Rodger W. Pegues to Cross, April 27, 1973;

John L. Bryant, Jr. (NPF) to Rutter, September 27, 1973; all in CF.

134 Rutter to Director NPS, September 20, 1973, in CF.

135 Bennett T. Gale to Stuart Cross, August 16, 1973; Cy Coyne to Patrick Brito (PNRO),

September 19, 1973; both in CF.

136 Rutter to Director NPS, September 20, 1973, in CF.

137 Bryant to Rutter, September 27, 1973, in CF.
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138 Rutter to Bryant, October 9, 1973; Rutter to George W. Gowen, October 9, 1973; both in

CF.

139 Charles F. Bohannon (PNRO) to Rapuzzi, December 17, 1973; Rutter to Michael S.

Leach, January 21, 1974; Howe to ARD/PNRO, February 15, 1974; Bryant to Rutter, August

27, 1974; all in CF; Property Deed Books, Volume 1, page 27, in Skagway Magistrate's

Office.

140 Bryant (NPF) to Rutter, September 27, 1973; George Gowen to Rutter, October 19, 1973;

Bryant to Lowell Thomas, Jr., etc., October 24, 1973; all in CF.

141 Gale to Phil Clemnet, March 25, 1974; Don Campbell to Bruce K. Chapman, March 28,

1974; Bryant to Rutter, April 22, 1974; Bryant to Rutter, August 27, 1974; all in CF;

Anchorage Daily Times, April 2, 1974, 8.

142 Gale to State Director, Alaska, January 29, 1974; Howe to ARD/PNRO, February 15,

1974, both in CF.

143 Bob Howe to Associate Regional Director, Professional Support, PNRO, February 15,

1974; Campbell to Luntey, November 5, 1974; Huffman to Luntey, December 18, 1974; L.C.

Huffman, "Roof Repairs for Railroad Terminal Annex, Skagway, Alaska," n.d. [1974], all in

CF.

144 Howe to State Director, Alaska, March 31, 1975; Bob Howe to State Director, Alaska,

July 25, 1975; Huffman to Luntey, August 14, 1975; all in CF.

145 Cheri Burns to Bob Howe, January 30, 1974; Gale to Bryant, February 26, 1974; Bryant

to Burns, March 26, 1974; all in CF; Howe to State Director, Alaska, June 4, 1974, in L58,

AHC.

146 Campbell to Kurtz, October 15, 1975; Rutter to Bryant, October 29, 1975; Kurtz to State

Director, Alaska, December 10, 1975, all in CF; Dickenson to John L. Bryant, June 17, 1976,

L58.

147 Bryant to Burns, March 26, 1974; Rutter to Goodfellow, September 25, 1975, both in CF;

Goodfellow to Rutter, September 2, 1975; Eldon Elder to Tom Ritter, December 4, 1975;

both in L58, AHC.

148 Eldon Elder to Russell Dickenson, January 28, 1976; Eldon Elder to Tom Ritter,

December 4, 1975; Mike Gravel to Roy Helms, February 10, 1976; all in L58, AHC; "From

Ketchikan to Dillingham, Nine Communities Plan New Arts Facilities," Arts in Alaska,

January 15, 1976, 5.

149 Stevens to Dickenson, February 20, 1976; Edward S. Kurtz to Stevens, March 2, 1976;

Young to Dickenson, April 1, 1976; Kurtz to Stevens, July 6, 1976; Glenn D. Gallison to

Elder, July 16, 1976; all in File L58, AHC. During the period when the depot was being

considered for alternative uses, Skagway was "near the top" of a list of Alaska communities

being considered for the funding of a cultural center. But a prime mover for the project,

Twyla Coughlin, left town in June 1977, and the project was not seriously considered after

that time. Gary Higgins to Mark Berry Hill, February 23, 1978, in "L58 Southeast Regional

Arts Council" file, AHC; Skagway News, December 7, 1978, 3.
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150 Howe to State Director, May 9, 1975; Howe to State Director, July 25, 1975; both in CF;

Howe to Lillian Litzenberger, June 2, 1975, in L58, AHC; Howe to State Director, June 11,

1975, in "L58 1965-1976" folder, AHC.

151 Curtis V. McGee (BLM) to RD/PNRO, August 10, 1972, in CF.

152 "Minutes of the Lake Lindeman Meeting, August 9-10, 1972;" L. H. Robinson to Bennett

T. Gale, September 7, 1972; KGRIAC, Minutes of October 13, 1972 meeting; all in CF.

153 C. R. Nelson and W. S. Sappington, "Chilkoot Trail: Summer Season, 1973," 1-2, 11, 15,

in RG 70, KLGO Archives; Southeast Alaska Empire, June 11, 1973, 3; Christine

Hedgecock, interview with the author, February 14, 1994; Scott Home, interview with the

author, April 27, 1995; Hoffman to Jane Saunders, Waterloo, Ont., October 13, 1977, in CF.

154 Nelson and Sappington, "Chilkoot Trail: 1973," 9, 11, 20; Manfred Hedgecock and

Christine Jones, "Report of the 1976 Chilkoot Trail Crew," in RG 70, KLGO Archives. The

mileage markers remained for several years, but by the early 1980s most had been obliterated

or removed.

155 W. S. Sappington, "1974 Chilkoot Trail Report," 8, in RG 70, KLGO Archives; R. B.

Harvey, "Chilkoot Trail Interim Report," September 11, 1974, in CF; Christine Hedgecock

interview, February 14, 1994.

156 Bennett to Pegues, May 17, 1973; Sappington, "1974 Chilkoot Trail Report," 2; KGRIAC

minutes, September 6, 1973; Harvey, "Chilkoot Trail Interim Report," September 11, 1974;

George R. Newell to Gallison, July 23, 1974, in L58, AHC.

157 NPS, KLGR Master Plan, 44.

158 Nelson and Sappington, "Chilkoot Trail: 1973," 11, 15; Sappington, "Chilkoot Trail:

1974," 4, 20-22. Up until this time, Chilkoot hikers had little trouble finding trailside relics:

horseshoes, clothing, appliances, animal bones, and the like. As the 1974 Final

Environmental Statement noted, "Historical artifacts are prominent within the [trail] corridor,

numbering in the hundreds at many sites. However, artifacts are rapidly disappearing as the

number of users increases along the trail." Rangers recognized that artifacts along the

recreational trail were being lost; thus they fought any efforts to relocate the trail to its

historic right-of-way. National Park Service, Final Environmental Statement: Proposed

Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, Alaska-Washington, hereafter known as

FES/KLGR (Seattle?, the author, 1974), 41.

159 Harvey, "Chilkoot Trail Interim Report," September 11, 1974, 2; Howe to Members,

Operations Sub-Committee, KGRIAC, May 9, 1975, in CF; NPS, Chilkoot Trail Ranger

Reports for 1975 and 1976; Hedgecock and Jones, "Report of the 1976 Chilkoot Trail Crew,"

both in KLGO Archives; Christine Hedgecock interview, February 14, 1994.

160 Nelson and Sappington, "Chilkoot Trail: 1973," 11; Bob Howe, "Preliminary Summer

Report, Chilkoot Trail, 1974," 2.

161 KGRIAC minutes, September 13-14, 1974, 2-3; Howe to Members, Operations SubCommittee, KGRIAC, May 9, 1975; Bob Howe to State Director, Alaska, July 25, 1975;

Philip Koehl and Doug Sanvik, "1976 [NPS] Trail Report," 9; J. Thomas Ritter to Area

Director, Alaska, August 17, 1976, in L58, AHC.
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162 KGRIAC minutes, April 3, 1973 and September 6, 1973; both in CF.

163 Alaska Department of Natural Resources, The Chilkoot Trail, A Guide to the Goldrush

Trail of '98 (Juneau, the author), 1972 and 1974 editions; KGRIAC Minutes for meetings of

October 13, 1972, September 6, 1973, and September 13-14, 1974; Robert Luntey to Karl

Crosby, September 25, 1975; Glenn Gallison to Karl Crosby, June 18, 1976, both in CF;

Tom Ritter to Area Director, Alaska, March 4, 1976, in L58, AHC.

164 Bennett Gale to Ken Tapman (ACHP), January 23, 1973; Wayne R. Howe (Acting

RD/PNRO) to ARD Operations, March 16, 1973; Rutter to Stevens, May 17, 1974; all from

"KLGO General (Planning)" folder, AHC; Robert M. Utley (OAHP) to Assistant Director,

Park Management, April 10, 1973; Glenn Gallison to Peter H. Bennett, March 13, 1974; both

in CF.

165 Richard T. Myren (Sierra Club) to PNRO, June 30, 1974, L58; Director, Bureau of Mines

to RD/PNRO, July 11, 1974.

166 Bea Thompson to Jim Rouse, etc., July 10, 1974; [Don Campbell], "Summary of

KGRNHP Activities in 1974," [December 1974], 5, both in CF; Kurtz to Associate Director,

Park System Management (WASO), September 18, 1974; David Barrett to Rutter, December

24, 1974, both in L58; Cordova Times, December 27, 1974, 4.

167 KGRIAC Minutes, October 13, 1972.

156 Bennett to Rutter, July 13, 1973; Rutter to Associate Regional Director, Professional

Services, August 3, 1973; Campbell to Acting Assistant RD/PNRO, September 26, 1973; all

in CF.

169 Field to Campbell, February 15, 1974; Glenn Gallison to Peter Bennett, March 13, 1974;

both in CF.

170 NPS, Contract CX-9000-4-0112, May 28, 1974; [Campbell,] "Summary of the KGRNHP

Activities for 1974," 5; both in CF.

171 Campbell to Gale, June 3, 1974; Barron and Casavant, Economic Impact of Proposed

Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, Skagway, Alaska, December 1974; Rutter to

Ted Stevens, January 29, 1975; G. D. Acker to Daniel H. Babbitt, November 17, 1975; all in

CF; Babbitt to Edward C. Hanousek, October 24, 1975, in "L58 Proposed Areas, Alaska,

1/1/75-11/26/75," AHC.

172 Luntey to Clyde Courtnage, December 9, 1975, in CF.

173 Wells, "Trip Report, Skagway, Alaska, July 1-31, 1974;" Stephen Wells to Donald

Campbell, May 23, 1975, Earl E. Chase to Donald Baldwin, June 18, 1975; all in CF.

174 Wells, Skagway: A Frontier Community Investing Its Past in Its Future (Seattle, CPSU),

March 1978.

175 Bennett to Gallison, April 29, 1974; Gallison to Bennett, May 13, 1974; Field to Robert

S. Luntey, November 1, 1974; all in CF.

176 Gallison to Bennett, April 21, 1975, in "L58 Proposed Areas, Alaska, 1/1/75-11/26/75,"
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AHC.

177 Earl E. Chase to Proposal Bidders, January 13, 1976, in CF; Womble to R. B. Harvey and

Tom Ritter, October 18, 1976, in Folder 4, RG 70, KLGO Archives; Womble, Wolf, and

Field, Hikers on the Chilkoot Trail: A Descriptive Report (Seattle, CPSU, January 1978), vvi, 1, 5.

178 National Trust for Historic Preservation, "Field Report," March 15, 1974, in CF.

179 "Contract for Services, Comprehensive Planning Assistance Project between Division of

Community Planning, Department of Community and Regional Affairs and City of

Skagway," April 10, 1974, in CF.

180 M. P. Taylor to Campbell, May 9, 1974; M. P. Taylor to Campbell, May 28, 1974;

Campbell to Bennett T. Gale, June 3, 1974; all in CF.

181 Gillian Smythe to Campbell, June 3, 1974; Edward J. Kurtz to State Director, Alaska,

June 24, 1974; both in CF; M. P. Taylor and Associates, City of Skagway, Land Use and

Structural Inventory and Recommendations for a Preservation Plan, June 1974, in AHC.

182 Egan to Rutter, February 3, 1972, in File NR 1-2, Series 88, RG 01, ASA.

183 Michael S. Leach to Pegues, May 11, 1973; G. Thomas Wade to Campbell, August 13,

1973; Wade to Rutter, February 26, 1974; all in CF.

184 Howe to State Director, Alaska, June 4, 1974, in File L58, AHC.

185 Alan G. Olson, Haines-Skagway Area Land-Use Management Study, preliminary first

draft, December 9, 1974; Howe to State Director, Alaska, December 13, 1974; Huffman to

Luntey, December 18, 1974; Howe to State Director, Alaska, April 4, 1975; all in CF;

"Klondike Park: Highlights of State Involvement and Cooperation," in File NR/1-1, Series 88

(1978), RG 01, ASA.

186 Supt. KLGR to Director, AAO, January 13, 1978, in CF; Alaska Department of Natural

Resources, Volume I, (draft) Resource Inventory (Anchorage, the author), June 1978; DNR,

Volume II, (draft) Haines-Skagway Area Landmark Planning Study, Regional Analysis, June

1978; DNR, Volume III, (draft) Haines-Skagway Area Land Use Plan (April 1979; final

issued in June 1979). Also see the following newspaper articles: Skagway News, June 15,

1978, 1; July 3, 1978, 3; Lynn Canal News, April 19, 1979, 1; April 26, 1979, 3; May 10,

1979, 1, 4; June 6, 1979, 1; June 14, 1979, 1.

187 J. A. Hagans (BLM) to Alaska Division of Lands (file A-061057), June 25, 1974, in

"Tract 102-29" file, AKSO-EL.

188 Congressional Record 121 (1975), pp. 213, 509; Cogswell, Legislative History, Volume I,

17, 37.

189 Howe to State Director, Alaska, December 13, 1974, in CF.

190 Lillian Litzenberger to Mike Miller, January 23, 1975, in CF.

191 Campbell to Luntey, November 12, 1974; Howe to State Director, January 29, 1975; both
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in CF.

192 Howe to State Director, Alaska, January 29, 1975, in CF.

193 Marvin P. Taylor to Donald Campbell, May 9, 1974; Taylor to Campbell, May 28, 1974;

Campbell to Robert S. Luntey, November 5, 1974; Taylor to Ted Stevens, December 12,

1974; Rutter to Stevens, January 29, 1975; all in CF.

194 Howe to State Director, March 3, 1975, in CF.

195 Carlton and Margaret Brown to Mike Miller, telegram, February 6, 1975; Howe to Mike

Miller, February 10, 1975, both in CF; William C. Fackler (DNR) to Rutter, February 5,

1975; Howe to State Director, Alaska, February 19, 1975; Kurtz to Stevens, February 21,

1975; Hammond to Mr. and Mrs. Carlton Brown, February 21, 1975, all in L58, AHC.

196 Howe to State Director, March 3, 1975, in CF.

197 Mike Miller to Bob Howe, March 12, 1975; Richard C. Curry to Don Young, April 3,

1975, both in CF; Rutter to Stevens, March 17, 1975, in L58. Miller was careful to note that

the state, as part of the proposed plan, was comfortable in its continuing role as owner of its

Taiya Valley lands. In a letter to Senator Mike Gravel (D-AK), Miller wrote that DNR

representatives at the meeting "were quick to emphasize that the state would in no way

'bargain away' control of those lands in ways which would be detrimental to the state." Miller

to Gravel, April 14, 1975, in CF.

198 Stevens to Rutter, February 6, 1975, in L58, AHC; Stevens to Miller, April 16, 1975;

Mike Gravel to Miller, April 17, 1975, both in CF.

199 Alaska House Journal, 1975, 1174.

200 Robert Landau to Director NPS, May 23, 1975; U.S. Senate, "Hearings on...S. 98,

Establishment of the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park...," May 12, 1975, 34-40,

both in CF; Guy Martin, "Testimony of the State of AK...," May 12, 1975, in Folder NR 1-2,

Series 88, RG 01, ASA.

201 Campbell to Rutter, May 22, 1975; [Campbell], "Summary of KGRNHP Activities for

1974" [amended], 6; both in CF.

202 [Campbell], "Remarks for the Klondike Gold Rush International Advisory Committee,"

n.d. [May 1975]; Gary Everhardt to Jay Hammond, May 27, 1975; Anchorage Daily News,

May 27, 1975, 22; Seattle Times, June 16, 1975, A12.

203 Mike Miller to Glenn Gallison, June 2, 1975; Gallison to Miller, June 30, 1975; both in

CF.

204 Pritchard, "Your Congressman Reports" [newsletter], September 1975; Pritchard to

Taylor, September 24, 1975; Taylor to Pritchard, October 23, 1975; both in CF; Anchorage

Daily Times, April 7, 1976, 2.

205 Lowell Thomas, Jr. to Roy Taylor, November 5, 1975, in L58, AHC; Douglas S. Wheeler

to Roy Taylor, November 12, 1975, in CF; Hammond to Roy Taylor, November 12, 1975, in

Folder NR 1-2, Series 88, RG 01, ASA.
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206 U.S. House of Representatives, "Transcripts of Proceedings, Hearing Held Before

Subcommittee on National Parks and Recreation of the Committee on Internal and Insular

Affairs, H.R. 1194...," Monday, November 17, 1975, in CF.

207 Norman Banfield to NPS, September 9, 1975; Rutter to Associate Director, Legislation,

October 23, 1975; Banfield to Taylor, November 12, 1975; all in CF.

208 It may be remembered that in the 93rd Congress, the same disagreement had taken place;

S. 1622 as introduced included specific Yukon-Taiya language, but Interior Department

lawyers had excised it. Southeast Alaska Empire, November 20, 1975, 3.

209 Rutter to Assoc. Dir. Legislation, December 3, 1975, in CF; Gravel to Hammond, June

21, 1976, in File NR 1-3, Series 88, RG 01, ASA.

210 Keith G. Sebelius (R-KS) to Everhardt, December 1, 1975, in CF.

211 Ken M. Brown to Rep. Roy A. Taylor, December 29, 1975; John A. Rutter to Associate

Director, Legislation, December 3, 1975; Brown to Rep. Keith G. Sebelius, January 6, 1976;

all in CF.

212 Kurtz to Associate Director, Legislation, December 11, 1975; Ken M. Brown to Keith G.

Sebelius, January 6, 1976, both in CF; Kurtz to Stevens, March 2, 1976, in L58, AHC.

213 Anchorage Daily Times, April 7, 1976, 2.

214 Congressional Record 122 (June 8, 1976), 16872-75; Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, June

9, 1976, 2; Jim Rouse to Gallison, June 18, 1976, from "KLGO General (Planning)" folder;

Cogswell, Legislative History for Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, 2-3.

215 Eldon Elder to Tom Ritter, December 4, 1975, in "L58 Proposed Areas, Alaska, 1/1/76-

12/31/76"; Gravel to Hammond, June 21, 1976, in Folder NR 1-3, Series 88, RG 01, ASA;

Eldon G. Reyer to WASO Directorate, July 15, 1976, in L58. As Nancy Mirshah of the

Gerald R. Ford Library noted in a November 28, 1995 letter to the author, there was no

signing ceremony.

216 North Wind, August 1976, 10; "Don Young, Washington Report," Fall 1976, in North

Wind, October 1976, 9.

Chapter 5

1 RD/PNRO to Directorate, PNRO, July 14, 1976, in L58, AHC.

2 Acting Associate Director, Legislation (Ira Whitlock) to RD/PNRO, August 17, 1976, in

L58; Dickenson to Area Dir., AK, September 14, 1976, in L58; James S. Rouse to Manager

DSC, September 1, 1976, from "KLGO General (Planning)" folder; all in AHC.

3 RD/PNRO to Directorate, PNRO, July 14, 1976, in L58, AHC.

4 Gary Higgins, interview by Sandra Faulkner, June 17, 1988; G. Bryan Harry to Gary

Higgins, December 17, 1976, in Gary Higgins File, AHC; North Wind, December 18, 1976,
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1.

5 Higgins interview; Robert L. Spude, "Management Decisions at Klondike Gold Rush NHP,"

CRM Bulletin 2 (September 1979), 1-2.

6 Richard E. Hoffman, interview by Sandra Faulkner and William Hanable, August 22, 1988.

7 Whitehorse Star, November 18, 1977, 8; NPS, "Superintendent's Annual Report" (hereafter

SAR), 1982, 1; Candace Wellenhoffer, Frank Norris, and Karl Gurcke, "Personnel List for

the U.S. and Canadian Parks in Skagway and Along the Chilkoot Trail," unpub. mss, 1996, in

KLGO Collection.

8 Whitehorse Star, March 18, 1977, 2; Gary Higgins to John Edwards, March 30, 1977, in

"Gary Higgins" file, AHC.

9 Anchorage Daily Times, June 4, 1977, 7; June 5, 1977, A-2; Fairbanks Daily News-Miner,

June 6, 1977, A-2, A-4; Anchorage Daily News, June 6, 1977, 20; The North Wind, June 4,

1977, 2; July 13, 1977, 8.

10 The North Wind, June 4, 1977, 3; Jeff Brady to author, March 27, 1996.

11 Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, June 6, 1977, A4.

12 Anchorage Times, June 29, 1977, 6.

13 NPS, Land Resources Division, "Master Deed Listing, Status of Lands as of April 30,

1994," AKSO-EL files; Campbell to Rutter, April 17, 1975, in CF; Philip O. Stewart

(Division of Land Acquisition) to Chief, Div. of Legislation, April 29, 1975, in CF.

14 NPS, KLGR Master Plan, 36-39.

15 Whitehorse Star, November 18, 1977, 8.

16 NPS, Land Resources Division, "Master Deed Listing," April 30, 1994.

17 Messegee to Hoffman, November 30, 1977, in "Gary Higgins file"; Hoffman to Director,

AAO, December 30, 1977, in CF.

18 Hoffman to Gil Acker, January 19, 1978, in CF; NPS, Land Resources Division, "Master

Deed Listing," April 30, 1994.

19 Hoffman to Chief, Lands Division, PNRO, February 16, 1978, in "L58, General

Correspondence, 1978-85," AHC; NPS, "Master Deed Listing," April 30, 1994.

20 NPS, "Master Deed Listing," April 30, 1994.

21 Hoffman to Chief, Lands Division, PNRO, January 6, 1978, in "L58, Gen'l Corresp., 1978-

85" file, AHC.

22 NPS, "Master Deed Listing," April 30, 1994; SAR, 1980, 5.

23 NPS, "Master Deed Listing," April 30, 1994; SAR, 1980, 5.
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24 U.S. Congress, Public Law 94-323, June 30, 1976.

25 SAR, 1980, 2; Federal Register, May 14, 1980, 31805; NPS press release, May 14, 1980,

in "D62-Museum Activities" file, KLSE.

26 NPS, KLGR Master Plan, October 1976, 44, 62; Robert L. Peterson (Acting Area Director,

AAO) to Robert E. LeResche (Commissioner, Alaska DNR), April 7, 1978, in CF.

27 Peterson LeResche, April 7, 1978.

28 Russell Dickenson to Directorate, PNRO, July 14, 1976, in L58; Dickenson to ARD,

M&O, December 7, 1976; Thompson to Chief, I&VS, December 7, 1976; all in CF.

29 R. E. Hoffman to Director AAO, October 21, 1977, in CF.

30 Temple A. Reynolds (ARD, M&O) to Charles Gebler and Glenn Hinsdale, January 15,

1979, in "Space Acquisition File, 1/78-4/79," KLSE Collection.

31 Hoffman interview, August 22, 1988.

32 Jay Cable, interview by Sandra Faulkner, February 27, 1989; Richard E. Hoffman to

RD/PNRO, January 12, 1978, and Hoffman to Director AAO, January 23, 1978, both in CF;

SAR, 1991, 1; Skagway News, August 3, 1978, 3. As early as the summer of 1977, Hoffman

had requested two Interpretation and Resource Management positions. Cable's, however, was

the only permanent I&RM position filled during Hoffman's tenure.

33 Skagway News, August 3, 1978, 3; Robert Spude to Michael Gates, August 16, 1978, in

Spude 1978-79 file; Spude to "NPS, PNRO," (interim report), October 1, 1978, in KLGR--

Historic Structures file; Gary Higgins to Bill Brown, November 2, 1978, in KLGR--Historic

Structures: file, all in AHC; Spude, "Management Decisions," 1-2.

34 Hoffman to Director AAO, October 21, 1977; Hoffman to Glenn Gallison (ARD/PNRO),

October 21, 1977, both in CF; Acting RD/PNRO to Director AAO, January 27, 1978, in

"Statement for Management" file; Dickenson to Supt. KLGR, October 18, 1978, in

"General/Planning Correspondence, 1973-1978" file; NPS, Statement for Management,

KGRNHP, October 1978; all in AHC.

35 North Wind, August 1977, 3, and January 1978, 3; Gary Higgins to Ed Holm, September

29, 1977, in "Gary Higgins file," AHC.

36 Lynn Canal News, August 9, 1979, 1; Gary Higgins to Superintendent KLGR, Feb. 2,

1978, in "Gary Higgins" file; Higgins to Bill Brown, November 2, 1978, in KLGR--Historic

Structures: file, both in AHC. Hoffman's unauthorized use of a bulldozer near Dyea's Pullen

Barn, and the effect of that action on the salmon-bearing West Branch of the Taiya River,

played a major role in Hoffman's transfer.

37 Lynn Canal News, August 16, 1979, 4; October 11, 1979, 1.

38 Richard Sims, interview by Sandra Faulkner, August 24, 1988.

39 Jay Cable, interview by author, October 13, 1994.
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40 Spude, Skagway, District of Alaska, ii; Brown to various, January 7, 1980, in "KLGRPersonnel, budget" file, AHC; Lynn Canal News, May 17, 1979; SAR, 1980, 2; SAR, 1982,

1.

41 SAR, 1983, 1; SAR, 1984, 1. As of this writing, Warder and Beierly are still park

employees; Duncan-Clark remained in her Skagway position for more than eleven years;

then, in December 1994, she transferred to Klondike's Seattle unit.

42 SAR, 1983, 1, 4.

43 Lynn Canal News, March 13, 1980, 4; March 27, 1980, 6; Jay Cable interview, January 26,

1995.

44 U.S. Department of the Interior, Department of the Interior Budget in Brief (Washington,

GPO), fiscal years 1985-1991.

45 SAR, 1984, 1.

46 NPS, Statement for Management, KLGO, May 7, 1984.

47 William E. Brown, "Summary Meeting Minutes and Action List, KLGR Resource

Planning Session, 2/25 to 2/27/80;" William E. Brown to Jay Cable, October 12, 1983, in

"KLGO RMP Comments" file; Bill Welch to Supt. KLGO, March 23, 1983, in "Dyea Plan"

file; SAR, 1982, 1; all in AHC.

48 SAR, 1984, 4: SAR, 1985, 2; Skagway News, November 1985, 2, 3.

49 Skagway News, August 20, 1986, 1; Clay Alderson, interview by Sandra Faulkner,

September 29, 1989.

50 SAR, 1987, 3; Skagway News, March 1987, 11. Gurcke was the first park CRS hired in

the Alaska Region.

51 SAR, 1988, 1; SAR, 1990, 5.

52 SAR, 1991, 4.

53 SAR, 1991, 3.

54 SAR, 1988, 1; Skagway News, November 22, 1991, 3.

55 SAR, 1991, 1; Skagway News, May 17, 1991, 3; April 23, 1993, 5; September 29, 1993, 2.

56 SAR, 1987, 5; SAR, 1988, 3.

57 SAR, 1989, 2; SAR, 1990, 2; SAR, 1991, 1.

58 SAR, 1989, 3.

59 SAR, 1990, 1-2.
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60 SAR, 1991, 1; Skagway News, May 3, 1991, 3.

61 Federal Register, May 29, 1992, 22826.

62 Skagway News, June 26, 1992, 8; John M. Morehead to "follower of national park

planning," in "KLGO GMP" file, AHC.

63 NPS, Public Review of Preliminary Alternatives for KLGO General Management Plan,

Skagway, Alaska and Seattle, Washington, Summer 1993; Skagway News, July 9, 1993, 4.

64 Skagway News, July 23, 1993, 4; August 13, 1993, 1.

65 Skagway News, November 12, 1993, 1.

66 NPS, Scope of Collections, KLGO, April 1988, in "Scope of Collections, 1982 & 1988"

file, AHC; Skagway News, November 22, 1991, 3.

Chapter 6

1 John Thomas Ritter to Area Director, Alaska, August 17, 1976, in KLSE Collection;

Richard E. Hoffman to Pat Thrasher (USFS), July 20, 1977, in CF; North Wind, June 4, 1977,

3; John Jackson, interview by author, September 11, 1995.

2 In July 1978, Hites recorded several of his songs at Juneau's Red Dog Saloon. The songs

appeared that December on the album Yukon Legacy. Spude to Michael Gates, August 16,

1978, in "Spude 78-79 Corresp." file, AHC; Paul Lofgren (KLGO), interview by author,

February 16, 1995.

3 Bill Bronson to Campbell, October 17, 1975; Glenn Gallison to Bronson, October 21, 1975;

RD/PNRO to Directorate, PNRO, July 14, 1976; all in L58, AHC.

4 Yerkes and Associates, [1977 Appraisal Records], in "1977-78 Skagway Appraisal" file;

"Summary of [DSC] Work Session, March 2-3, 1978," in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-

1983" file; both in AHC.

5 Gary Higgins to Bob Simmonds (DSC), January 17, 1978, in CF.

6 R. E. Dickenson to W. S. Hanable, March 27, 1978, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983"

file, AHC.

7 The agency, at one point during the fall of 1977-78, had invited prospective leasees to

submit applications, and six eager applicants responded. But in mid-March, the agency was

forced to admit that "We are not able to process your application for lease of Park owned

buildings in Skagway.... Our preliminary investigation of our structures showed that only two

of them appeared structurally suitable for this purpose. Consequently, the program of leasing

would not have been as extensive as originally envisioned." R. E. Hoffman to (various),

March 16, 1978, in CF.

8 Hoffman to Director AAO, January 23, 1978, in CF; Hoffman to Chief, Lands Division,

PNRO, February 16, 1978, in "L58, Gen'l Corresp., 1978-85;" "Summary of [DSC] Work
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Session, 3/2-3/78," in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file, AHC.

9 Spude to Michael Gates, August 16, 1978, in "78-79 Spude file," AHC.

10 Kenneth Raithel, Jr. (DSC) to Director AAO, June 1, 1979, in "KLGR--Historic

Structures" file, AHC. Martin processed the artifacts he collected and left scattered notes of

his work, but he wrote no formal report of his activities. Karl Gurcke, "History of the

Archaeological Projects at Klondike Gold Rush N.H.P.," n.d. (1996), 1, in KLGO Collection;

Skagway News, August 3, 1978, 3; Craig Davis memo, April 18, 1980, in "KLGO Misc.

Corresp. 1977-1983" file, AHC.

11 Skagway News, August 3, 1978, 3; August 17, 1978, 2; Lynn Canal News, October 18,

1979, 5; Whitehorse Star, November 18, 1977, 8; Edward J. Kurtz (Acting RD/PNRO) to

KLGO, September 29, 1978, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file, AHC; Spude,

"Management Decisions," 1-2; Catherine H. Blee, Robert L. Spude, and Paul C. Cloyd,

Historic Structure Reports for Ten Buildings: Administrative, Physical History and Analysis

Sections, Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, Skagway, Alaska (Denver, NPS,

January 1984), 108, 150, 181, 197; Spude, Skagway, District of Alaska, 142, 148, 157; Supt.

KLGO to RD/PNRO, January 2, 1979, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file; Raithel to

Director AAO, June 1, 1979, both in AHC; Jay Cable, interview by author, February 21,

1995; Harlan Hobbs to author, February 15, 1995; Gary Higgins to author, February 17, 1995;

Robert Spude to author, February 15, 1995.

12 Jay Cable, interview by author, December 8, 1994; David Snow, interview by author,

March 21, 1995; Blee, Spude, and Cloyd, Historic Structure Report for Ten Buildings,

January 1984, 377.

13 Jay Cable, interview by author, December 8, 1994; "Summary of [DSC] Work Session,"

September 28, 1978; R. E. Dickenson to W. S. Hanable, April 13, 1979; both in "KLGO

Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file, AHC; R. E. Hoffman to Director AAO, May 24, 1979, in

"KLGR--Historic Structures file," AHC; David E. Snow and Robert L. Spude, Historic

Structure Report, The Mascot Saloon Group, Historic Buildings 35H, 35G, and 35F,

Historical and Architectural Data Sections, Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park,

Skagway, Alaska (Denver, NPS, September 1981), 128-31; Cook to William Hanable, March

18, 1980, in "KLGR-Compliance" file, AHC; David Snow interview, March 21, 1995.

14 Suzanne B. Sherwood (NTHP), trip report, July 23, 1979, in "KLGO Correspondence

(Spude), 1978-79" file, AHC.

15 That prediction proved only partially correct. In March 1980, the rough draft of the Mascot

Saloon report was completed, followed three months later by the final draft. The rough draft

of depot HSR, however, was not completed until April 1981; no final report was issued.

David Snow, "Administrative History of the Mascot and Depot Group," October 26, 1979, in

"KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file, AHC; Paul Cloyd to author, email, March 22, 1995.

16 Snow, "Administrative History of the Mascot and Depot Group;" R. E. Hoffman to

Manager, Harpers Ferry Center, July 6, 1979; Kenneth Raithel, Jr. to RD/PNRO, September

21, 1979, both in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file, AHC; Robert L. Spude and

Gordon Chappell, "White Pass and Yukon Route/Pacific and Arctic Railway and Navigation

Company, Skaguay Depot and Railroad Building," NRHP nomination, February 20, 1980, in

NRHP files, AKSO-RCR Collection.

17 Raithel to RD/PNRO, September 21, 1979; David Snow, "Administrative History of the
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Mascot and Depot Group;" Robert Carper, David Snow and John Robbins (DSC) to Asst.

Mgr, Pacific Northwest/Western Team, DSC, November 7, 1979; all in "KLGO Misc.

Corresp., 1977-1983" file, AHC; Bill Brown (AAO), RMP meeting notes, February 27, 1980,

in "Klondike Special Planning" folder, AHC; D. E. Snow to ARD, Professional Services,

October 8, 1980, in "KLGR--Historic Structures" file, AHC.

18 Raithel to Director AAO, June 1, 1979.

19 Raithel to Director AAO, June 1, 1979; W. C. Quick (Acting RD/PNRO) to W. S.

Hanable, April 19, 1979, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file, AHC; Hugh Miller and

Dave Snow, "Plan of Action" report, February 27, 1980, in "Klondike Special Planning"

folder, AHC.

20 Supt. KLGO to Manager DSC, December 4, 1978, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983"

file, AHC; Raithel to Director AAO, June 1, 1979; Skagway News, January 11, 1979, 8.

21 Snow and Spude, Historic Structure Report, The Mascot Saloon Group, 128-29, 132-33;

Snow, "Administrative History of the Mascot and Depot Group."

22 Catherine H. Blee, Archeological Investigations in Skagway, Alaska, Volume I: The White

Pass and Yukon Route Broadway Depot and General Offices Buildings, KLGO (Denver,

NPS, September 1983), 1, 10, 12, 114; Gurcke, "History of the Archaeological Projects;"

Catherine Blee to Acting Assistant Manager, Pacific Northwest/Western Team, DSC, July 13,

1979, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file, AHC.

23 Skagway News, September 21, 1978, 2; September 28, 1978, 1; "Summary of [DSC] Work

Session," September 28, 1978, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file, AHC.

24 Bill Brown to Supt. KLGO, November 6, 1979; Brown to various, January 7, 1980; both

in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file, AHC; Spude, Skagway, District of Alaska, ii.

25 Cook to Managers of DSC and HFC, November 6, 1979, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-

1983" file, AHC.

26 Cook to Supt. KLGO, January 21, 1980, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file, AHC.

27 Bill Brown (AAO), RMP meeting notes, February 27, 1980; Miller and Snow, "Plan of

Action," February 27, 1980; both in "Klondike Special Planning" folder, AHC; Lynn Canal

News, March 6, 1980, 3; SAR, 1980, 1.

28 Brown, RMP meeting notes, February 27, 1980; Miller and Snow, "Plan of Action,"

February 27, 1980; Wil Logan (DSC), Skagway Conference Notes, (February 1980); all in

"Klondike Special Planning" file, AHC; Cook to William Hanable, March 18, 1980, in

"KLGR-Compliance" file, AHC.

29 Lynn Canal News, October 11, 1979, 1, 6; March 6, 1980, 3; Brown, RMP meeting notes,

February 27, 1980; Miller and Snow, "Plan of Action", February 27, 1980; both in "Klondike

Special Planning" folder, AHC.

30 SAR, 1980, 2; "Summary Notes from Planning Session, March 3-5," in "Klondike Special

Planning" file, AHC.
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31 Bill Brown to Supt. KLGO, November 6, 1979, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983"

file, AHC; Wil Logan Notes, February 25, 1980, in "Klondike Special Planning" file, AHC.

32 Marc Sagan and Dave Cohen, "Interpretive Work Program," February 1980; W. E. Brown,

"1980 Work Program, KLGR," March 4, 1980; both in "Klondike Special Planning" folder,

AHC.

33 Lynn Canal News, March 6, 1980, 3; Sagan and Cohen, "Interpretive Work Program,"

February 1980.

34 Lynn Canal News, August 21, 1980, 3; David E. Snow to Ken Schoenberg, December 9,

1980, in "KLGR-Compliance" file, AHC; SAR, 1980, 5.

35 Cook to William Hanable, March 18, 1980, in "KLGR-Compliance" file, AHC; Sec. Cecil

Andrus to Sen. Ted Stevens, November 19, 1980, in "Leaseback Info" file, AHC.

36 SAR, 1980, 3, 5; Gurcke, "History of the Archaeological Projects."

37 NPS, "Skagway, Some Steps on the Gold Rush Trail, Walking Tour of the Historic

District;" "Klondike Gold Rush" brochure; both in "KLGO-Brochures" folder, AHC; SAR,

1980, 6; David Snow interview. The park brochure's appearance has changed little since

1981; minor revisions were made in 1983, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1990, and 1994. In April 1996,

work began on a single, unified brochure for the park's Seattle and Alaska units.

38 Paul Cloyd, Historic Structure Report, Administrative Section, Physical History and

Analysis Section, White Pass and Yukon Route, Broadway Depot and General Offices

Building, KLGO, Alaska (Denver, NPS, April 1981), 69-70; Cloyd to author, email, March

22, 1995.

39 Chappell to Director AAO, March 5, 1980, in "KLGR Rolling Stock" file; Chappell to

David Cohen, etc., May 6, 1980, in "Wells Fargo & Co." folder; Chappell to Supt. KLGO,

etc., September 25, 1980, in "Gail Budd Remin." folder; D. E. Snow to ARD, Professional

Services, October 8, 1980, in "KLGR--Historic Structures" file; Chappell to Paul Cloyd,

September 24, 1981; Kenneth Raithel, Jr. to RD/WRO, October 19, 1981, in "N.R. Form"

file; all in AHC; Gordon Chappell, interview by author, February 22, 1995.

40 G. Bryan Harry to Russell Cahill (SHPO), October 7, 1976, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp.,

1977-1983" file, AHC.

41 Charles F. Bohannon (PNRO) to Area Dir. AAO, August 19, 1980; Snow to Director

AAO, September 4, 1980; Cook to Manager, DSC, September 12, 1980; all in "KLGR--

Historic Structures" file, AHC; Snow and Spude, Historic Structure Report, The Mascot

Saloon Group, 26, 66, 70.

42 Skip Elliott to Russ Dickenson, February 27, 1981, in "Historic District Issues, 1981" file,

AHC.

43 Bill Brown, "Skagway Historic District Plan," n.d.; n.a., "Strategy for Amending

Legislation," February 1980; W. E. Brown, "1980 Work Program, KLGR," March 4, 1980;

all in "Klondike Special Planning" folder, AHC.

44 Brown to Warnock, March 12, 1980, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file, AHC.
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45 Snow to Brown, n.d. (early 1981?), in "KLGR--Historic Structures" file, AHC.

46 "Present Status of Proposed Work as of September 1980, KLGO," in "KLGO Misc.

Corresp., 1977-1983" file, AHC; Miller and Snow, "Program of Action," February 27, 1980,

2, in "Klondike Special Planning" folder, AHC.

47 "Present Status of Proposed Work as of September 1980, KLGO" [chart], in "KLGO Misc.

Corresp., 1977-1983" file, AHC.

48 Bill Brown to Howard Wagner, December 19, 1980, in "HD Issues, 1978-1980" file, AHC.

49 Bill Brown, "General Notes on Public Meeting called by City Manager Skip Elliott, April

9, 1981," April 20, 1981, in "HD Issues, 1981" file, AHC.

50 Lynn Canal News, April 16, 1981, 2; RD/ARO to Supt. KLGO, April 24, 1981, in "Moore

House and Cabin & Storefronts, folder 2," AHC.

51 RD/ARO to Supt. KLGO, April 24, 1981.

52 Skip Elliott to John E. Cook, June 5, 1981, in "HD Issues, 1981" file, AHC.

53 Skip Elliott to John E. Cook, June 5, 1981; Cook to Snow, July 22, 1981; both in "HD

Issues, 1981" file, AHC.

54 Lynn Canal News, November 5, 1981, 5; November 12, 1981, 10.

55 Spude to Chief Historian, WASO, December 7, 1979, in "Spude, 78-79" file; Bill Brown,

"RMP Meeting Notes," February 27, 1980, in "Klondike Special Planning" folder; Bill

Brown, "General Notes on Public Meeting called by City Manager Skip Elliott, April 9,

1981," April 20, 1981, in "HD Issues, 1981" file; Director ARO to Supt. KLGO, April 24,

1981, in "Moore House & Adjacent Lots" file; all in AHC.

56 Supt. KLGO to Bill Duckworth, November 20, 1980, in "KLGR-Personnel, budget" file;

David E. Snow to Ken Schoenberg, December 9, 1980, in "KLGR-Compliance" file; Snow to

Supt. KLGO, January 2, 1981, in KLGR--Historic Structures file; Bill Brown to Howard

Wagner, January 5, 1981, in "KLGR-Personnel, budget" file; all in AHC.

57 Snow to Chief of Professional Services, January 23, 1981, in "KLGR--Historic Structures"

file, AHC; Blee, Spude, and Cloyd, Historic Structure Reports for Ten Buildings, i.

58 Snow to Cook, July 7, 1981; Cook to Snow, July 22, 1981; both in "HD Issues, 1981" file,

AHC.

59 Blee, Spude, and Cloyd, Historic Structure Reports for Ten Buildings, passim.; Robert

Spude to ARO Chief of Interpretation, June 6, 1983, in "Goldberg Cigar Store" folder, AHC.

60 NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO (draft), February 1982, pp.

4-5, in "KLGO RMP Comments" file, AHC.

61 NPS, Interpretive Prospectus, KLGO, October 1981, 2, 10-12, 21; Lynn Canal News, June

12, 1980, 3. In 1988 the park's interpretive specialist, Betsy Duncan-Clark, updated the
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document with an addendum. NPS, Scope of Collections, KLGO, April 4, 1988, 2, in File

K1815, KLGO Collection.

62 Lynn Canal News, November 5, 1981, 5.

63 SAR, 1982, 1-2; Lynn Canal News, June 10, 1982, 3; June 17, 1982, 2; Skagway News,

October 6, 1982, 6; Dave Snow interview, March 21, 1995.

64 SAR, 1983, 1; Skagway News, June 22, 1983, 2; November 9, 1983, 6.

65 "L1425 Renting and Leasing" file, KLGO central files; Robert L. Carper (DSC) to

Assistant Manager, Alaska/Pacific Northwest/Western Team (DSC), July 20, 1983, in "NPS

Memoranda-KLGO, 1980-87" file, AHC.

66 SAR, 1983, 4; Carper to Assistant Manager, DSC, July 20, 1983; Skagway News, August

3, 1983, 6.

67 Snow to Chief, RCR, December 12, 1983, in "KLGR--Historic Structures" file, AHC;

Skagway News, March 28, 1984, 9.

68 SAR, 1984, 1; SAR, 1985, 1; Skagway News, April 10, 1985, 2; Betsy Duncan-Clark,

interview by author, February 15, 1995; Jay Cable interview, February 21, 1995.

69 Skagway News, February 1, 1984, 2; March 28, 1984, 2; SAR, 1984, 3.

70 Skagway News, November 9, 1983, 6; March 28, 1984, 2, 9; SAR, 1984, 3.

71 SAR, 1984, 1.

72 Skagway News, June 20, 1984, 4; July 4, 1984, 6; SAR, 1984, 4.

73 Skagway News, March 28, 1984, 9; June 20, 1984, 7; July 4, 1984, 1; SAR, 1984, 3.

74 SAR, 1984, 1; Skagway News, April 10, 1985, 2.

75 Barbara Montgomery to National Trust for Historic Preservation, March 21, 1978, in CF;

Spude to PNRO, (interim report), October 1, 1978, in "KLGR--Historic Structures" file,

AHC; SAR, 1980, 6; Diana Pardue and Donald Cumberland, Collection Preservation Guide,

KLGO, June 1983, 23.

76 SAR, 1980, 6; Pardue and Cumberland, Collection Preservation Guide, 22; Debbie

Sanders to author, email, March 2, 1995; NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management

Plan, KLGO (draft), February 1982, 13.

77 Pardue and Cumberland, Collection Preservation Guide, KLGO, June 1983, 7.

78 SAR, 1982, 2; NPS, Scope of Collections, KLGO, December 3, 1982, in "Scope of

Collections, 1982 & 1988" file, AHC.

79 Pardue and Cumberland, Collection Preservation Guide, KLGO, June 1983.

80 SAR, 1987, 5; SAR, 1988, 3.
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81 SAR, 1989, 2; SAR, 1991, 11.

82 SAR, 1983, 2; July 4, 1984, 6; Jay Cable interview, February 21, 1995.

83 Skagway News, July 18, 1984, 3; Catherine Holder Spude, Douglas D. Scott, and Frank

Norris, Archeological Investigations in Skagway, Alaska, Volume 4: Father Turnell's Trash

Pit, Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, Alaska (Denver, NPS, August 1993), 1, 6.

84 William C. Welch to Manager HFC, March 5, 1984, in "Sarah M. Olson, Historic

Furnishings Report" File, AHC.

85 Robert J. Shelley (Asst. Manager, DSC) to RD/ARO, March 28, 1985, in "Sarah M. Olson,

Historic Furnishings Report" File, AHC.

86 Skagway News, April 10, 1985, 2; Skagway News, November 1985, 3.

87 Skagway News, November 1985, 3.

88 Skagway News, January 1986, 4; March 1986, 5.

89 Skagway News, November 1985, 3.

90 NPS, Request for Proposals, Leasing of Historic Structures, KLGO, Skagway, Alaska, in

various L1425 building files, KLGO central files; Skagway News, February 1986, 3; March

1986, 5.

91 William C. Welch to Manager HFC, March 5, 1984, in "Sarah M. Olson, Historic

Furnishings Report" File, AHC.

92 Sarah Olson, "Report on Historic Window Displays for Seven Storefronts, KLGO," 1985,

1-9; Director NPS to Manager HFC, September 29, 1985; Ellsworth R. Swift (HFC) to

RD/ARO, April 15, 1986; RD/ARO to Manager HFC, May 23, 1986; all in "Sarah M. Olson,

Historic Furnishings Report" File, AHC.

93 Glenda Choate to Robert Spude, March 17, 1986, in "Glenda Choate" file, AHC; Skagway

News, June 25, 1986, 2.

94 Skagway News, June 25, 1986, 2; SAR, 1986, 1; SAR, 1987, 1.

95 William Penn Mott (Director NPS) to Regional Directors, August 13, 1986; NPS, "Historic

Property Leasing, FY 1986 Report;" both in "L1425 Leasing and Renting" file, KLGO

Central Files.

96 Skagway News, July 23, 1986, 5; August 20, 1986, 4; September 17, 1986, 3; Alderson to

Historian/ARO, October 15, 1986, in "Boss Bakery" file, Chief Ranger's office, KLGO; Clay

Alderson interview, March 10, 1995.

97 SAR, 1986, 3; SAR, 1987, 1, 7; Skagway News, March 1987, 3; SAR, 1990, 6; "Historic

Structure Leases, KLGO," February 28, 1995, in Chief Ranger's files, KLGO. The Ritters

soon moved away from Skagway, and in 1988, unbeknownst to the NPS, they subleased the

Boss Bakery property to another party. The agency, unhappy with the action, reacted by
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revising the Ritters' contract and by changing the boilerplate in future requests for proposals

prohibiting subleases. Since that time, Choate has also subleased her building.

98 Skagway News, April 10, 1985, 2.

99 Catherine Holder Blee, Archeological Investigations in Skagway, Alaska, Volume 2: The

Moore House and Cabin, KLGO (Denver, NPS, 1988), 193-232; Skagway News, November

1985, 3.

100 SAR, 1986, 3: Skagway News, April 1987, 10; John Warder, interview by the author,

February 22, 1995.

101 Skagway News, June 29, 1987, 7; July 10, 1987, 3; SAR, 1987, 5.

102 NPS officials probably decided to change the order of construction in order to speed the

completion of revenue-generating projects; both the Itjen House and the Mascot, at the time,

were intended to be leasebacks. Skagway News, March 1986, 5; n. a., "Status of Project as of

11/27/86," in "KLGR--Historic Structures file," AHC; Paul Cloyd to author, email, March

22, 1995.

103 Skagway News, August 20, 1986, 4; September 17, 1986, 3; Karl Gurcke, interview by

author, February 9, 1995; Clay Alderson to author, May 2, 1995.

104 SAR, 1987, 1.

105 Skagway News, July 22, 1988, 1; SAR, 1987, 4.

106 SAR, 1987, 1; Skagway News, December 1987, 7; July 22, 1988, 1, 9.

107 SAR, 1988, 3, 4; Don Corwin (NPS), interview by author, February 21, 1995.

108 Skagway News, January 1989, 7; February 1989, 8; SAR, 1988, 1-2; SAR, 1989, 4, 6;

Clay Alderson to author, email, September 18, 1995.

109 Skagway News, July 22, 1988, 1; September 2, 1988, 3; Skaguay Alaskan, 1989, 8; SAR,

1989, 6.

110 SAR, 1990, 4; SAR 1991, 3; Skagway News, February 22, 1991, 3; June 28, 1991, 3; Jay

E. Cable to Kate Lidfors, June 17, 1991, in "Norris/Mascot Info" file, AHC.

111 SAR, 1991, 10-11.

112 SAR, 1987, 4; SAR, 1988, 2; SAR, 1989, 2; SAR, 1991, 10; NPS, Scope of Collections,

KLGO, April 4, 1988.

113 Robert Spude, "Chronology of Skagway Interpretive Activities," c. 1986, in

"Depot/Waiting Room" file, AHC; Robert G. Johnsson (HFC) to Frank Deckert (ARO),

January 13, 1984, in D6215 Depot/ Exhibit file, KLGO Central Files.

114 SAR, 1984, 1; SAR, 1986, 2; Betsy Duncan-Clark interview, February 15, 1995.

115 Spude, "Chronology of Skagway Interpretive Activities;" Betsy Duncan-Clark interview,
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February 15, 1995.

116 SAR, 1986, 2; SAR, 1987, 1; Skagway News, August 20, 1986, 4; Karl Gurcke, interview

by author, February 9, 1995.

117 Acting RD/ARO to Manager, HFC, November 21, 1986, in SC files, AKSO; Stenmark to

Assistant Manager, Western Team, DSC, March 9, 1987, in "KLGO-Mascot/Exhibits" file,

AHC; Skagway News, June 28, 1991, 3.

118 Acting RD/ARO to Manager DSC, April 2, 1987, in "KLGO-Mascot/Exhibits" file, AHC;

SAR, 1987, 6.

119 SAR, 1987, 6; Skagway News, July 22, 1988, 1.

120 Skagway News, September 2, 1988, 3; Sarah Olson (HFC) to Superintendent KLGO,

August 4, 1988, in "KLGO-Mascot/Exhibits" file, AHC; SAR, 1988, 5.

121 SAR, 1988, 4; John Warder interview, February 22, 1995.

122 SAR, 1988, 5; SAR, 1989, 6; Skagway News, December 1989, 3; Superintendent KLGO

to RD/ARO, April 16, 1990, in "KLGO-Mascot/Exhibits" file, AHC; Clay Alderson to

author, email, May 6, 1995.

123 SAR, 1989, 2; Robert G. Johnsson (HFC) to ARO Chief of Interpretation, March 14,

1990, in "KLGO-Mascot/Exhibits" file, AHC.

124 Acting RD/ARO to Manager HFC, April 27, 1990, in "KLGO-Mascot/Exhibits" file,

AHC; SAR, 1991, 7.

125 SAR, 1990, 4, 6-7; Skagway News, February 22, 1991, 3.

126 SAR, 1991, 3, 7; Betsy Duncan-Clark, "Skagway, Alaska: Examination of a Model of

Private-Federal Partnership in Interpreting a Historic Community," in Raymond S. Tabata,

Jane Yamashiro, and Gabriel Cherem, Joining Hands for Quality Tourism: Interpretation,

Preservation, and the Travel Industry (Honolulu, University of Hawaii Sea Grant Extension

Service, June 1992), 93.

127 Betsy Duncan-Clark to author, September 1, 1994; NPS, Statement for Interpretation,

KLGO, FY 1994. Soon after they completed the exhibit package, Harpers Ferry Center staff

produced a sound-slide video program, "Hiking the Chilkoot Trail," for those who were

planning a trail hike. Recent changes in the interpretive program have included the

elimination of the afternoon movie in favor of another showing of Days of Adventure,

Dreams of Gold, beginning in 1993, and the installation in late 1994 of several large historic

photographs in the auditorium.

128 SAR, 1990, 6; SAR, 1991, 6-7.

129 Gurcke, "History of the Archaeological Projects." Work on the Itjen property ceased after

the 1987 excavation because the cultural deposit proved not to be as rich or as extensive as

first thought.

130 Skagway News, August 4, 1989, 5; December 1989, 3.
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131 Skagway News, December 1989, 3; February 22, 1991, 3; SAR, 1990, 4, 6; SAR, 1991, 3.

132 Skagway News, February 22, 1991, 3; June 28, 1991, 3; SAR, 1991, 6.

133 Skagway News, June 28, 1991, 3; November 22, 1991, 3; SAR, 1991, 3.

134 Skaguay Alaskan, Summer 1993, 6; Skagway News, September 10, 1993, 8.

135 Jay Cable interview, February 21, 1995.

136 Skagway News, September 17, 1986, 3; SAR, 1986, 2.

137 SAR, 1987, 4, 7; Skagway News, December 1987, 7; Clay Alderson interview, March 10,

1995.

138 Skagway News, July 22, 1988, 1; September 2, 1988, 3; SAR, 1988, 6.

139 SAR, 1988, 7.

140 Skagway News, August 4, 1989, 5; December 1989, 3.

141 SAR, 1989, 5; SAR, 1990, 1, 3; Skagway News, February 22, 1991, 3.

142 SAR, 1991, 1.

143 Skagway News, November 25, 1992, 3; September 10, 1993, 8.

144 Skagway News, November 12, 1993, 1; October 7, 1994, 3; Steve Peterson, interview by

author, February 13, 1995.

145 Gurcke, "History of the Archaeological Projects;" Skagway News, February 22, 1991, 3;

August 23, 1991, 8; November 22, 1991, 3.

146 SAR, 1991, 3; Skagway News, November 25, 1992, 3; Juneau Empire, December 6,

1992, C3.

147 Skagway News, March 12, 1993, 5; May 28, 1993, 1.

148 Diane Lee Rhodes, Archeological Investigations in Skagway, Alaska, Volume 3: The Mill

Creek Dump and the Peniel Mission (Denver, NPS), 1988; Gurcke, "History of the

Archaeological Projects."

149 Skagway News, February 22, 1991, 3; August 23, 1991, 8; November 22, 1991, 3;

November 25, 1992, 3; Juneau Empire, December 6, 1992, C3.

150 Blee, Spude, and Cloyd, Historic Structure Reports for Ten Buildings, 429, 439; Juneau

Empire, December 6, 1992, C3.

151 Skagway News, April 23, 1993, 5; November 12, 1993, 1; Steve Peterson interview,

February 13, 1995; Clay Alderson to author, email, May 6, 1995.
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152 Skagway News, October 7, 1994, 3; May 26, 1995, 7; Don Corwin interview, February

21, 1995.

153 Skagway News, November 12, 1993, 1; August 12, 1994, 8; October 7, 1994, 3.

154 Gurcke, "History of the Archaeological Projects;" Skagway News, September 10, 1993, 8;

August 12, 1994, 8.

155 Steve Peterson interview, February 8, 1994; Clay Alderson interview, September 6, 1995.

156 Robert Spude to ARO Chief of Interpretation, June 6, 1983, in "Goldberg Cigar Store"

file; Robert Spude to Leslie Starr Hart, May 23, 1986, in "NPS Memoranda-KLGO, 1980-

87" file; William C. Welch to Gary Higgins, May 27, 1986, in "Moore Lots & Adjacent Lots"

file; all in AHC; Steve Peterson interview, February 13, 1995.

Chapter 7

1 Martin, Gold Rush Narrow Gauge, 65; Cohen, The White Pass and Yukon Route, 90.

2 NPS, KLGR Master Plan, 41.

3 Gary Higgins interview, June 17, 1988; Richard Hoffman interview, August 22, 1988; Jeff

Brady to author, March 27, 1996.

4 NPS, KLGR Master Plan, 38-40.

5 R. E. Hoffman to Director AAO, January 19, 1978, in CF.

6 R. E. Hoffman to Director AAO, May 3, 1978, in "CA 9700-3-0012" file, AKSO-ABC

files; Skagway News, September 21, 1978, 2; January 11, 1979, 8.

7 Messegee to Hoffman, November 30, 1977, in "Gary Higgins" file, AHC.

8 Hoffman to Alaska Area Director, December 30, 1977, in "Gary Higgins" file, AHC;

Hoffman to RD/PNRO, February 28, 1978, in CF.

9 "Historic Preservation: A Symposium on Financial, Technical, and Legal Assistance

Available to Owners of Historic Resources in Skagway" (conference program), in "Gary

Higgins" file, AHC.

10 Higgins to Mike Miller, January 30, 1978; Higgins to Bill Hanable, January 30, 1978; both

in "Gary Higgins" file, AHC; Higgins to John Frisbee (NTHP), January 31, 1978, in CF.

Miller and Duncan's bill was signed into law but was not funded.

11 Gary Higgins to Wayne Selmer, March 24, 1978, in CF; John L. Frisbee to Gary Higgins,

April 13, 1978, in "Gary Higgins" file; "Historic Preservation: A Symposium;" all in AHC.

12 Historic Preservation Grant Files, SHPO, Anchorage; "Historic Sites Advisory Committee

Transacts Much Work at Juneau Meeting," Alaska History News 2 (April 1980), 1; Lynn

Canal News, August 30, 1979, 1; February 19, 1981, 6; SAR, 1980, 5.
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13 Historic Preservation Grant files, SHPO; Lynn Canal News, August 21, 1980, 3; May 28,

1981, 3; September 24, 1981, 2; December 17, 1981, 7.

14 SAR, 1980, 5; Lynn Canal News, December 17, 1981, 7; Jeff Brady to author, March 27,

1996.

15 Kurtz to Bowers, June 24, 1974, in CF.

16 Eldon G. Reyer to WASO Directorate, July 15, 1976; Gary Catron (Asst. to the Interior

Secretary) to Don Young, May 12, 1977, both in File L58, AHC; P.L. 94-465, passed

October 20, 1976.

17 Anchorage Times, November 8, 1977, 5; Anchorage Daily News, November 18, 1977, 10;

R. E. Hoffman to Director AAO, December 30, 1977, in CF; North Wind, January 27, 1978,

1. Mid-November news articles on the tax-base issue were published in Seattle, Port Angeles,

and elsewhere.

18 R. E. Hoffman to Director AAO, January 19, 1978, in CF; Anchorage Daily Times,

February 25, 1978, 6; Congressional Record, 1978, 4157.

19 Skagway News, September 21, 1978, 2, 3; Lynn Canal News, June 14, 1979, 4; David

Funk, interview by author, March 8, 1995.

20 Skagway News, September 21, 1978, 3; September 28, 1978, 1.

21 R. E. Hoffman to RD/PNRO, October 10, 1978, in "CX 9700-3-0012" file, AKSO-ABC

files; Hoffman to Bill Brown, May 5, 1979, in "General Correspondence, 1978-1985," AHC;

Lynn Canal News, June 14, 1979, 4.

22 Lynn Canal News, August 30, 1979, 1, 4.

23 Lynn Canal News, September 13, 1979, 3; September 27, 1979, 1, 4.

24 Douglas C. Warnock to Supt. KLGO, February 6, 1980, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-

1983" file, AHC.

25 "Cooperative Agreement, NPS and City of Skagway, Alaska," in "Historic District Issues,

1978-80" file, AHC.

26 Lynn Canal News, February 28, 1980, 3; March 6, 1980, 3.

27 Lynn Canal News, March 27, 1980, 6; SAR, 1980, 2: SAR, 1988, 8; Skagway News,

August 23, 1991, 4; May 29, 1992, 8; June 10, 1994, 4; Supt. KLGO to RD/ARO, October

29, 1984; "Budget and Work Plan," various years, in "CA 9700-8-8008" file, AKSO-ABC

Collection. In FY 1991, the payment was raised to slightly more than $46,000 in order to pay

for an $18,000 paving job on Broadway adjacent to the depot.

28 NPS, FES/KLGR, 8-9, 45, 56.

29 North Wind, March 1974, 3; Ritter to M. I. Henricksen, April 14, 1976, in CF; Ritter to

Area Director, August 17, 1976, in Folder 4 (1976), Box 1, RG 70, KLGO Archives.
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30 R. E. Hoffman to Director AAO, September 22, 1977, in CF.

31 R. E. Hoffman to Director AAO, February 2, 1978, in CF; Engineering Man Power

Services, Skagway Campground Study (Juneau, the author, January 1978), 33.

32 Alaska House Journal 10 (1978), 252; Alaska Senate Journal 10 (1978), 223.

33 Hilton Wolfe (DNR) to Mike Whitehead (Office of the Governor), February 9, 1978, in

RG 01, Series 88, NR 1-1, ASA.

34 Hammond to Stevens, February 14, 1978, in NR 1-1, Series 88, RG 01, ASA.

35 Stevens to Hammond, March 14, 1978, in NR 1-2, Series 88, RG 01, ASA; R. E. Hoffman

to Area Director, AAO, in CF.

36 Alaska House Journal 10 (1978), 550, 613, 1087, 1140, 1142, 1183; Alaska Senate Journal

10 (1978), 289, 337, 418, 450-52, 988, 1038, 1154; Southeast Alaska Empire, March 29,

1978, 13.

37 Skagway News, October 26, 1978, 3.

38 Jay Cable, interview by author, May 1, 1995.

39 Lynn Canal News, February 7, 1980, 5.

40 Lynn Canal News, October 9, 1980, 1; Skagway News, June 6, 1984, 4; Skaguay Alaskan

7 (1984), 16.

41 Chappell to Bill Brown, January 28, 1979, in "KLGR Rolling Stock" file, AHC.

42 Chappell (Special Project Historian) to Supt. KLGO, July 30, 1979; Chappell to Bill

Brown, December 6, 1979; both in "Rolling Stock" file, AHC.

43 Bill Brown to John Cook, October 5, 1979; n.a., "Inventory and Current Status of Critical

Rolling Stock," n.d. (late 1979?); both in "Rolling Stock, KLGR" file, AHC.

44 John Cook (AAO) to Supt. KLGO, November 27, 1979, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-

1983" file, AHC; Chappell to Brown, December 3, 1979, in "KLGR--Rolling Stock" file,

AHC.

45 Cook to Director NPS, January 22, 1980, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file,

AHC.

46 North Wind, March 1964, 1; Gordon Chappell (WRO) to Bill Brown, February 27, 1980,

in "KLGR--Rolling Stock" file, AHC.

47 Brown to Douglas Warnock, August 27, 1980, in "KLGR Rolling Stock" file, AHC.

48 Brown to Warnock, October 30, 1980; Warnock to Brown, October 31, 1980; both in

"KLGR Rolling Stock" file, AHC; Bill Brown, Skagway Historic District Plan (draft), April

24, 1981, in "HD Issues, 1981" file, AHC.
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49 NPS, "Skagway and White Pass," National Register of Historic Places (revised)

registration form, December 11, 1986.

50 NPS, Scope of Collections, KLGO, December 3, 1982, 3; NPS, Scope of Collections,

KLGO, April 4, 1988; both in "Scope of Collections, 1982 & 1988" file, AHC; Robert Spude

to L. S. Hart, April 8, 1985, in "NPS Memoranda-KLGO, 1980-87" file, AHC.

51 North Wind, August 1968, August 1973; NPS, KLGR Master Plan, 39; Lynn Canal News,

May 28, 1981, 3.

52 Campbell to Bennett T. Gale, June 3, 1974; Laurin Huffman to Robert S. Luntey,

December 18, 1974; Luntey to David Brena, March 11, 1975; Robert Howe to State Director,

Alaska, March 31, 1975; all in CF.

53 Higgins to Mike Miller, January 30, 1978; Higgins to Bill Hanable, January 30, 1978; both

in "Gary Higgins" file, AHC; Suzanne B. Sherwood (NTHP) trip report, July 23, 1979, in

"KLGO Correspondence (Spude), 1978-79" file, AHC.

54 Sherwood trip report, July 23, 1979; Lynn Canal News, Aug 9, 1979, 3. A small fire, along

its Pack Train's eastern exterior wall, occurred during the summer of 1979; minor damage

was sustained.

55 Lynn Canal News, May 28, 1981, 3.

56 North Wind, July 1966, 3. Sheila Brena noted in a 1990 interview that prior to the Brenas'

purchase of the old hotel, "the city was going to bulldoze it and turn it into a tin can civic

center. So you can say we saved it for 25 years." Skagway News, December 21, 1990, 1.

57 NPS, Skagway: A Study of Alternatives, 24; Douglas B. Cornell, Jr. to Reed Jarvis, June

8, 1971, in CF.

58 NPS, KLGR Master Plan, May 1973, 3, 40; NPS, KLGR Master Plan, October 1976, 38.

59 Yerkes and Associates, [Pullen House Hotel appraisal], July 1978, in "1977-78 Skagway

Appraisal" file, AHC.

60 Sherwood trip report, July 23, 1979; Anchorage Daily News, December 17, 1990, B1;

Skagway News, December 21, 1990, 1; Clay Alderson to Charles Gilbert, August 28, 1989,

telephone transcription, in "KLGO-Pullen House" file, AHC.

61 Brena to Alderson, August 30, 1989, in "KLGO-Pullen House" file, AHC.

62 Brena to Gilbert, August 28, 1989; Brena to Alderson, August 30, 1989, in "KLGO-Pullen

House" file, AHC.

63 Skagway News, September 15, 1989; Alderson to Charles Gilbert, telephone conversation,

August 28, 1989; transcription in "KLGO-Pullen House" file, AHC.

64 Robin Brena to Gilbert, telephone conversation, August 28, 1989; Brena to Lidfors,

telephone conversation, August 28, 1989; transcriptions of both in "KLGO-Pullen House"

file, AHC.
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65 Anchorage Daily News, December 17, 1990, B-1; Skagway News, December 21, 1990, 1.

Robin Brena noted, in an interview made after the demolition was complete, that he refused

the offer because the NPS could not accept a stabilization or restoration option.

66 Skagway News, October 26, 1990, 2; Anchorage Daily News, December 17, 1990, B-1.

67 Anchorage Daily News, December 17, 1990, B-1; Robert Pilk, Connie Rudd, and Paul

Cloyd, Cultural Landscape Assessment for the Peniel Mission, Captain Moore Cabin, J.

Bernard Moore House and Pullen House Sites, 90% Draft (Denver, NPS, December 1993), 7,

60, 66-68; NPS, Cultural Landscape Report for the Capt. William Moore Cabin, J. Bernard

Moore House, Peniel Mission, and Pullen House Sites (Denver, the author), September 1995.

68 Steve Peterson, interview by author, February 27, 1995.

69 Wil Logan (DSC) Skagway Conference Notes, February 1980; Hugh Miller/Dave Snow,

"Plan of Action," February 27, 1980; both in "Klondike Special Planning" folder, AHC; Jay

Cable, interview by author, February 21, 1995; Robert Spude, interview by author, March 21,

1995.

70 NPS, KLGR Master Plan, October 1976, 42, 62.

71 Superintendent Hoffman showed some interest in obtaining a site during the selection

process for a state campground, but neither he nor other NPS officials made a serious attempt

to purchase any of the recommended lots. R. E. Hoffman to Director AAO, February 1, 1978,

in CF.

72 Wil Logan, "Skagway Conference Notes" [February 1980]; Bill Brown, "RMP meeting

Notes," February 27, 1980; both in "Klondike Special Planning" folder, AHC; Debbie

Sanders to author, email, March 2, 1995.

73 Jay Cable, interview by author, December 8, 1994; Lynn Canal News, July 31, 1980, 2.

74 NPS, Land Resources Division, "Master Deed Listing, Status of Lands as of April 30,

1994," AKSO-EL files; SAR, 1980, 5; Jay Cable, interview by author, February 21, 1995 and

March 13, 1995.

75 Skip Elliott to Russ Dickenson, February 27, 1981, in "HD Issues, 1981" file, AHC.

76 Lynn Canal News, February 25, 1982, 3.

77 Skagway News, March 1986, 4; September 17, 1986, 3; SAR, 1986, 2.

78 SAR, 1986, 2; Jay Cable, interview by author, February 21, 1995.

79 SAR, 1988, 2; Karl Gurcke and Frank Norris, "Historical Overview of Four Vacant Tracts

at KLGO, Skagway, Alaska" (Skagway, NPS), 1988; Gurcke and Norris, "Archeological

Clearance Report: The Myrick Tract/Administrative Site Clearance" (Skagway, NPS), 1988;

Karl Gurcke, interview by author, March 10, 1995.

80 Skagway News, October 7, 1994, 3.

81 Plans had originally called for the construction of two unheated storage buildings on the
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property; when the construction of the buildings went unfunded, the containers were brought

onto the property on an interim basis. Clay Alderson interview, March 10, 1995 and

September 6, 1995; Alderson to author, email, June 16, 1995.

82 Snow and Spude, Historic Structure Report, The Mascot Saloon Group, 3; Martin Itjen,

The Story of the Tour on the Skagway, Alaska, Street Car (Skagway?, George Rapuzzi,

1962), 48; Blee, Spude, and Cloyd, Historic Structure Reports for Ten Buildings, 368.

83 Robert Howe to State Director, Alaska, March 31, 1975, in CF; Skagway News,

September 21, 1978, 2; Jay Cable, interview by author, March 13, 1995; Frank Norris, "A

History of Skagway's Gardens," unpub. mss., 1988, 25, in KLGO Collection.

84 NPS, KLGR Master Plan, 39; Skagway News, September 21, 1978, 2.

85 Skagway News, September 21, 1978, 2; September 28, 1978, 1; "Summary of [DSC] Work

Session," September 28, 1978, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file, AHC.

86 Marc Sagan and Dave Cohen, "Interpretive Work Program," February 1980; Hugh Miller

and Dave Snow, "Plan of Action," February 27, 1980; Bill Brown, "RMP meeting notes,"

February 27, 1980; all in "Klondike Special Planning" folder, AHC; John Cook to William

Hanable, March 18, 1980, in "KLGR-Compliance" file, AHC.

87 Skip Elliott to John Cook, December 28, 1981, in "HD Issues, 1982- " file, AHC; Daily

Alaska Empire, April 3, 1928, 3; Lynn Canal News, November 1, 1979, 3; November 8,

1979, 1, 5; Skagway News, August 31, 1990, 9.

88 Cook to Elliott, January 19, 1982, in "HD Issues, 1982- " file, AHC.

89 Lynn Canal News, February 25, 1982, 3.

90 Skagway News, September 22, 1982, 8; October 6, 1982, 1.

91 Skagway News, October 20, 1982, 1, 2; November 3, 1982, 1; SAR, 1982, 1.

92 In the summer of 1980, the local Alaska Visitors Association chapter set up a booth on the

White Pass dock, but it did not last beyond the season. Lynn Canal News, June 19, 1980, 1;

Jay Cable interview, March 13, 1995; Jeff Brady, interview by author, September 17, 1995.

93 Skagway News, July 28, 1982, 7; March 28, 1984, 2; May 8, 1985, 3; June 25, 1986, 4;

Robert Ward, interview by author, March 10, 1995.

94 Skagway News, September 17, 1986, 2; November 1986, 5.

95 Skagway News, June 12, 1987, 3; Leslie Starr Hart to Superintendent KLGO, November

18, 1987, in "NPS Memoranda-KLGO, 1980-87" file, AHC.

96 Skagway News, December 1987, 7; SAR, 1988, 8.

97 Skagway News, December 1989, 4; Skaguay Alaskan, 1989, 8; Steve Peterson, interview

by author, March 13, 1995. In 1985, the NPS had hoped to write a historical data section and

make Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) drawings of the AB Hall as part of the

proposed Historic Structures Report for Dyea and the Chilkoot Trail. That proposal, however,
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was never implemented. Leslie Starr Hart, "Work Plan, Historical and Archeological

Evaluation of the Historic Townsite of Dyea and Outlying Sites Along the Chilkoot Trail,

KLGO, AK, 1985," in "KLGO-C.T. Archeo Survey 1986" file, AHC.

98 Skagway News, September 28, 1990, 4; October 12, 1990, 1; May 17, 1991, 4; July 26,

1991, 1, 5; August 9, 1991, 6; Robert Ward interview, March 10, 1995.

99 Skagway News, September 1, 1989, 4; May 1990, 4; June 9, 1990, 4; October 28, 1991, 5;

August 28, 1992, 2; Skaguay Alaskan, 1993, 6.

100 North Wind, March 1966, 1; Juneau Empire, February 21, 1995, 9.

101 Lynn Canal News, June 14, 1979, 4.

102 R. E. Hoffman to RD/PNRO, January 12, 1978, in CF.

103 Lynn Canal News, March 6, 1980, 3; August 7, 1980, 3; SAR, 1980, 6; Glenda Choate,

Historical Records of the City of Skagway, Alaska, October 1980.

104 Lynn Canal News, September 11, 1980, 4.

105 Skagway News, November 2, 1978, 3; Lynn Canal News, October 18, 1979, 3; November

1, 1979, 1; August 7, 1980, 3; February 11, 1982, 3; Glenda Choate, interview by author,

March 10, 1995.

106 Lynn Canal News, February 11, 1982, 3; February 18, 1982, 2; Glenda Choate, Historical

Records of the City of Skagway, Alaska, Phase II, July 1982.

107 Skagway News, May 27, 1994, 3; October 7, 1994, 9.

108 NPS, KLGR Master Plan, 39.

109 Bill Brown to Howard Wagner, December 19, 1980, in "HD Issues, 1978-1980" file,

AHC.

110 Jay E. Cable to Supt. KLGO, January 15, 1981, in "HD Issues, 1981" file, AHC; Lynn

Canal News, April 16, 1981, 2.

111 Bill Brown, "General Notes on Public Meeting Called by City Manager Skip Elliott, April

9, 1981," April 20, 1981, in "HD Issues, 1981" file, AHC; Bill Brown, Skagway Historic

District Plan, April 24, 1981, in "HD Issues, 1981" file, AHC.

112 Skip Elliott to John E. Cook, June 5, 1981, in "HD Issues, 1981" file, AHC.

113 Skagway News, August 3, 1983, 6; SAR, 1987, 4.

114 SAR, 1988, 2, 5, 6; Skagway News, August 19, 1988, 7; Karl Gurcke, "KLGO, History of

Cultural Resource Projects," February 1995, in AHC.

115 Jeff Brady to author, March 27, 1996.

116 Jones and Jones, Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, Skagway, Alaska:
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Conceptual Master Plan for Landscaping in the Historic District, June 1994, 50-51.; Skagway

News, December 10, 1993, 2.

117 Skagway News, December 10, 1993, 2; Jones and Jones, Conceptual Master Plan, 52-54.

118 NPS, KLGR Master Plan, 42.

119 Skagway City Code, "Historic District Regulations" (Chapter 40), passed April 7, 1977.

120 Hoffman had been appointed to the P&Z three months earlier. Richard E. Hoffman to Bill

Brown, May 5, 1979, in "General Correspondence, 1978-1985," AHC; Skagway News,

February 15, 1979, 1.

121 Lynn Canal News, February 28, 1980, 3.

122 Bill Brown, "RMP meeting notes," February 27, 1980; Wil Logan (DSC), "Skagway

Conference Notes" [February 1980]; both in "Klondike Special Planning" file, AHC.

123 Bill Brown to Howard Wagner, December 19, 1980, in "HD Issues, 1978-1980" file,

AHC.

124 Bill Brown, "General Notes on Public Meeting called by City Manager Skip Elliott, April

9, 1981," April 20, 1981, in "HD Issues, 1981" file, AHC; Director AAO to Supt. KLGO,

April 24, 1981, in "Moore House & Adjacent Lots" file, AHC.

125 Randall Copeland, Design Guidelines for Skagway Historic District, c. 1981.

126 Spude, Skagway, District of Alaska, September 1983; Spude to author, email, June 19,

1995.

127 Skagway Ordinance 81-11, passed August 20, 1981; Lynn Canal News, August 27, 1981,

12.

128 Skagway News, July 28, 1982, 2.

129 Skagway News, July 28, 1982, 3; August 11, 1982, 1.

130 Skagway News, June 5, 1985, 6; May 28, 1986, 1; Karl Gurcke interview, March 10,

1995.

131 Skagway News, August 29, 1984, 2, 6; April 23, 1993, 6.

132 Skagway News, August 13, 1993, 5; August 27, 1993, 2; Skaguay Alaskan, 1989, 6.

133 Further action on the sign ordinance, however, did not take place until 1993 when, as

noted below, the design guidelines were revised. Skagway News, July 23, 1986, 5; September

4, 1987, 4; September 18, 1987, 4; October 16, 1987, 4.

134 Skagway News, February 1990, 2; Skaguay Alaskan, 1993, 6.

135 Jeff Brady to author, March 27, 1996; Karl Gurcke to author, May 3, 1996.
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136 Skagway News, April 23, 1993, 6; August 13, 1993, 5; October 15, 1993, 2; December

22, 1993, 4; January 14, 1994, 4; City of Skagway, Alaska, Skagway Historic District Design

Guidelines: A Place to Live, Work, Play & Visit, 1994.

137 Correspondence in "SGY Archeo Overview" file, AHC; Adams and Brauner, Historical

Archaeology in Skagway, Alaska: Archaeological Overview and Assessment of the

Downtown Skagway Unit, KLGO (Philomath, Ore., Wabana Press), 1991; Karl Gurcke,

interview by author, March 10, 1995.

138 Lynn Canal News, October 9, 1980, 1; October 30, 1980, 4; November 13, 1980, 1;

March 26, 1981, 7.

139 Lynn Canal News, November 13, 1980, 1; April 16, 1981, 5; July 2, 1981, 4.

140 Jeff Brady to author, March 27, 1996.

141 SAR, 1982, 1; NPS, "Annual Interpretation and Visitor Services Report," KLGO, 1982.

142 SAR, 1989, 3; NPS, "Annual Interpretation and Visitor Services Report," KLGO, various

years; Robert Ward interview, March 10, 1995.

143 SAR, 1991, 9.

144 SAR, 1991, 7; Skagway News, March 12, 1993, 3; Betsy Duncan-Clark, interview by

author, March 9, 1995.

145 NPS, KLGR Master Plan, 38; NPS, FES/KLGR, 49.

146 Thirty years earlier, in October 1944, the city council had voted to prohibit parking

between Third and Fifth avenues, but it rescinded its action soon afterward. Skagway City

Council minutes, October 2, 1944 and October 16, 1944.

147 Skagway News, September 28, 1978, 2; October 12, 1978, 3; Lynn Canal News, March

15, 1979, 3.

148 Lynn Canal News, September 11, 1980, 4; October 9, 1980, 2.

149 Lynn Canal News, December 18, 1980, 4; February 26, 1981, 1.

150 Lynn Canal News, April 8, 1982, 1; May 13, 1982, 4.

151 Skagway News, April 13, 1983, 5; April 27, 1983, 1; May 11, 1983, 1; June 8, 1983, 1.

152 Skagway News, July 20, 1983, 3; August 3, 1983, 2.

153 Skagway News, September 14, 1983, 1; October 12, 1983, 1, 5; SAR, 1983, 3.

154 North Wind, August 15, 1964, 2; Skagway News, September 28, 1983, 2.

155 Skagway News, October 12, 1983, 1, 2; September 26, 1983, 1.

156
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Skagway News, May 23, 1984, 3; June 6, 1984, 4; SAR, 1984, 3.

157 Skagway News, May 25, 1983, 6; September 14, 1983, 2, 7; September 28, 1983, 2; June

6, 1984, 4; May 28, 1986, 6; June 11, 1986, 3; Jeff Brady to the author, March 27, 1996. In

1995, Broadway was paved as far north as Fifteenth Avenue, as were cross streets between

Tenth and Fifteenth avenues.

158 Skagway News, June 25, 1986, 4; July 9, 1986, 3; July 23, 1986, 5; September 1989, 1.

159 John D. McDermott to John Rutter, November 24, 1974, in "KLGO General (Planning)"

folder, AHC; Gordon Reno to Gary Everhardt, January 21, 1975; A. R. Mortenson (OAHP)

to Reno, February 6, 1975; both in CF.

160 Barry Mackintosh to Gary Higgins, April 6, 1977; J. A. Mohr to William J. Murtaugh,

February 21, 1978; both in "KLGO Misc. Corresp. 1977-1983" file, AHC.

161 Skagway News, August 31, 1983, 7.

162 Author to Spude, November 5, 1986, in "Norris Letters to Spude" file, AHC; SAR, 1988,

2; Skagway News, March 13, 1992, 3.

163 Spude to Choate, September 17, 1986, in "Glenda Choate" file, AHC; author to Spude,

November 5, 1986, in "Norris Letters to Spude" file, AHC; SAR, 1988, 2; NPS,

"Supplementary Listing Record," February 26, 1991, in "KLGO-Final Nomination" file,

NRHP files, AKSO-RCR Collection.

164 Clifford, The Skagway Story, 94-95; Jay Cable interview, March 13, 1995.

165 Bill Brown, "General Notes on Public Meeting called by City Manager Skip Elliott, April

9, 1981," April 20, 1981, in "HD Issues, 1981" file, AHC; Jay Cable interview, February 21,

1995.

166 Bill Brown, "General Notes," April 20, 1981; John Cook to Supt. KLGO, April 24, 1981,

in "Moore House and Cabin & Storefronts, folder 2," AHC.

167 Lynn Canal News, August 13, 1981, 6.

168 Skagway News, November 1986, 1.

169 "KLGO, ARO, George and Edna Rapuzzi Collection," April 19, 1988, in "KLGORapuzzi Donation - Structures" file, AHC; Skagway News, July 22, 1988, 9; Clay Alderson

interview, March 10, 1995.

170 Skagway News, August 19, 1988, 5.

171 Author to Chief, Land Resources Division, ARO, August 6, 1990; David B. Ames to

Phyllis A. Brown, May 24, 1991; both in "KLGO-Rapuzzi Donation - Structures" file, AHC.

172 Janet McCabe to RD/ARO, September 23, 1993; Phyllis A. Brown to Clay Alderson,

October 1, 1993; Alderson to Chuck Gilbert (ARO-OL), October 27, 1993, all in File L1415,

KLGO.
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173 Clay Alderson interview, March 10, 1995.

174 Skagway News, January 19, 1983, 3; April 1987, 10.

175 Skagway News, December 1987, 7.

176 SAR, 1989, 5; Supt. KLGO to Northern Park Managers, March 2, 1990, in "KLGOMascot/Depot Exhibits" file, AHC.

177 SAR, 1991, 2; Skagway News, February 8, 1991, 3; February 22, 1991, 2; Alaska House

Journal 17 (1991), 126, 555-56; Alaska Senate Journal 17 (1991), 159; Skagway News,

February 28, 1992, 1.

178 Skagway News, October 9, 1992, 1, 5; Skagway News, January 5, 1993, 1; Alaska Gold

Rush Centennial, "1993 Annual Report," in SHPO Collection.

179 Skagway News, October 15, 1993, 3; Jeff Brady to author, March 27, 1996.

180 Richard E. Hoffman to Bill Brown, May 5, 1979, in "General Correspondence, 1978-

1985," AHC. The attitude of at least one local citizen appeared in the Skagway News on

November 30, 1978 (p. 2). The anonymous writer denounced Dick Hoffman as the "local

tried and true voice recording of the NPS Dictatorial Cow," who was planning "to have

absolute and total control of not only Skagway, but the valley of Dyea as well." A more

broad-based feeling of community negativity toward the NPS was conveyed in a Southeast

Alaska Empire article dated April 27, 1979, p. 1.

181 Bill Brown to Howard Wagner, December 19, 1980, in "HD Issues, 1978-1980" file,

AHC.

182 William E. Brown, interview by author, March 6, 1995.

183 Skagway News, August 3, 1983, 2.

184 Skagway News, April 10, 1985, 2; November 1985, 3.

185 Skagway News, March 1986, 5; December 1987, 7; City of Skagway Resolution 86-14R,

September 18, 1986; SAR, 1987, 1.

186 SAR, 1987, 8; SAR, 1988, 8; SAR, 1989, 5.

187 SAR, 1985, 1; SAR, 1986, 2; SAR, 1987, 8; SAR, 1991, 7.

Chapter 8

1 "Cooperative Agreement...," August 11, 1972, in "Cooperative Agreement, KLGO" file,

AHC; NPS, Land Resources Division, "Master Deed Listing, Status of Lands as of April 30,

1994," AKSO-EL files; SAR, 1980, 5.

2 BLM lands officials felt that its only land in the park, a 270-acre parcel near the top of

Chilkoot Pass, had been automatically transferred when Congress passed the park bill. But
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NPS officials demanded a written notification of the transfer, which they did not receive until

1993. William Calkins (BLM) to RD/ARO, August 19, 1993, KLGO Tr. 103-03 file, AKSOEL.

3 "Cooperative Agreement...," August 11, 1972.

4 Jay Hammond to Ted Stevens, February 14, 1978, in NR 1-1, Series 88, RG 01, ASA; R. E.

Hoffman to RD/PNRO, February 24, 1978, in CF; "Cooperative Agreement...," April 6, 1978,

in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file, AHC; Hoffman to Bill Brown, May 5, 1979, in

"General Correspondence, 1978-1985," AHC.

5 "Cooperative Agreement...," April 6, 1978.

6 Lynn Canal News, April 26, 1979, 3; Alaska Department of Natural Resources, HainesSkagway Area Land Use Plan, Volume III (Anchorage, the author, June 1979), 75-77.

7 Dyea apparently had two minor cemeteries as well. One was a picket-fenced enclosure,

about 100 yards north of the old Healy and Wilson store, which contained the graves of

Klanot, the Chilkoot Chief, and several others killed in an 1888 battle between the Chilkoot

and Sitka Tlingit. Historian Melody Webb Grauman also noted that two or three black

soldiers may have been buried near the Dyea-Klondike Transportation Company wharf, three

miles southwest of Dyea. Norris, "Dyea-Klondike Transportation Company Wharf Site" and

"Dyea Cemetery" chapters, Chilkoot HSR.

8 Norris, "Matthews Cabin" and "Dyea Cemetery" chapters, Chilkoot HSR.

9 Norris, "Dyea Cemetery" and "Slide Cemetery" chapters, in Chilkoot HSR.

10 Ibid.

11 Bill Matthews to Gov. Heintzleman, July 17, 1953, in "Dyea Road" file, RG 30, NARA

ANC.

12 John Bowers to Don Campbell, March 29, 1974; John Rutter to Charles F. Herbert (DNR),

April 11, 1974; both in CF.

13 Rutter to B. A. Campbell, June 3, 1974; Campbell to John Rutter, July 1, 1974; NPS,

"1974 Activity Report for KLGO;" all in CF.

14 Bomhoff and Associates, Inc., Corps of Engineers, Alaska District, Dyea Erosion Study,

April 1975, in KLGO Collection; Craig W. Davis, The Old Dyea or Native Cemetery

Excavation and Exhumation Project Report, 1978, 1; Anchorage Daily News, May 19, 1978,

1-2.

15 Cahill meeting notes, Juneau, November 30, 1976, in "Dyea Cemetery Removal" file,

KLGO; Anchorage Daily News, May 19, 1978, 1-2.

16 North Wind, October 25, 1977, 5; R. E. Hoffman to Director, AAO, January 18, 1978;

Higgins to McWilliams, January 25, 1978; Hoffman to Hilton Wolfe, February 1, 1978; all in

CF.

17 Hoffman to Melody Grauman, February 2, 1978, in CF.
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18 Skaguay Alaskan 2 (1978), 3; G. Bryan Harry to Robert LeResche, April 12, 1978; Harry

to William Hanable, April 17, 1978; both in "Dyea Cemetery Removal" file, KLGO;

Anchorage Daily News, May 19, 1978, 1-2.

19 Craig W. Davis, The Old Dyea or Native Cemetery Excavation and Exhumation Project

Report, 1978, 1, 3, 14, 49; Skagway News, June 15, 1978, 2; Skaguay Alaskan 2 (1978), 2;

Anchorage Daily News, May 19, 1978, 1. Davis was assisted by local residents Cheryl Stead,

John Jackson, Wayne Greenstreet, Don Corwin, Robert Vaughan, and Dave Hunz.

20 Skaguay Alaskan 2 (1978), 2; NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management Plan,

KLGO (draft), February 1982, 7; SAR, 1991, 10; Skagway News, September 23, 1994, 1, 12;

October 7, 1994, 6; October 28, 1994, 2; Karl Gurcke to author, April 16, 1996.

21 "Chilkoot Trail" nomination form, in "Chilkoot Trail and Dyea" NHL file, AKSO-RCR

Collection.

22 Bill Hanable to Leslie Starr Hart, December 14, 1988, in "Correspondence - CT/Dyea"

file, in "Chilkoot Trail" NHL file, AKSO-RCR Collection.

23 George F. Emery to Terry McWilliams, August 10, 1978, in "Chilkoot Trail" NHL file,

AKSO-RCR Collection; Southeast Alaska Empire, January 17, 1980, 10; Lynn Canal News,

January 24, 1980, 3; January 31, 1980, 4; Southeastern Log, March 1980, 12. Snure accepted

the plaque on behalf of Bella Hammond, the wife of Alaska's governor. Ms. Hammond had

been chosen because the state owned most of the trail corridor.

24 Skagway News, November 16, 1978, 1; November 30, 1978, 1, 2, 5.

25 Skagway News, January 25, 1979, 1, 2; Lynn Canal News, March 8, 1979, 4; Robert L.

Spude, "The Bark Canada's Legacy," in The Sea in Alaska's Past, Alaska Historical Society

Conference Proceedings (Office of History and Archaeology Publications Series No. 25,

November 1979), 206-214. As noted in the Bark Canada (SKG-076) Alaska Heritage

Resources Survey case file in the State Historic Preservation Office, the Historic Site

Advisory Committee met on March 22, 1979 and rejected Spude's nomination because of

"failure to meet [NRHP] criteria." But the city council's decision made moot any actions by

the HSAC.

26 Lynn Canal News, March 15, 1979, 3; April 5, 1979, 1, 3; April 12, 1979, 2; April 26,

1979, 1, 5; May 17, 1979, 1.

27 NPS, KLGR Master Plan, 43.

28 Skagway News, November 30, 1978, 6.

29 Lynn Canal News, April 12, 1979, 8. By 1981, the Dyea Country Club had moved to the

Dave Hunz cabin, just north of the Slide Cemetery. It remained active for several years

thereafter, but has been dormant since the mid-1980s. Lynn Canal News, April 1, 1982, 1;

Robert Spude to Jay Cable, February 23, 1984, telephone conversation record, in "1984 Dyea

Improvements" file, AHC.

30 Lynn Canal News, April 12, 1979, 8; Southeast Alaska Empire, April 24, 1979, 4.

31
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 Bill Brown, "RMP Meeting Notes," February 27, 1980; Wil Logan, "Skagway Conference

Notes;" both in "Klondike Special Planning" file, AHC.

32 NPS, KLGR Master Plan, 43.

33 M. I. Henricksen to NPS, January 24, 1976; Tom Ritter to Henricksen, April 14, 1976;

both in L58, AHC.

34 NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, February 1982, 30; Ken

Schoenberg to Bill Brown, November 14, 1979, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file,

AHC; Jay Cable, interview by author, April 4, 1995.

35 Skagway News, December 1987, 7.

36 Lynn Canal News, March 6, 1980, 3; SAR, 1980, 2; NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource

Management Plan, KLGO, February 1982, 30; SAR, 1984, 2; Craig Davis (Chief, RCR) to

Supt. KLGO, March 14, 1985, in "Dyea, XXX Forms" file, AHC.

37 Sealaska Corporation, Native Cemetery and Historic Sites of Southeast Alaska,

preliminary report (Seattle, Wilsey and Ham, 1975), 578.

38 Robert C. Dunnell to Robert S. Luntey, September 5, 1975; Luntey to Dunnell, November

3, 1975; Dunnell to Luntey, November 10, 1975; all in L58, AHC.

39 Gary Higgins to Ed Holm (American West), September 29, 1977, in CF.

40 Caroline D. Carley, Inventory of Cultural Resources in Klondike Gold Rush National

Historical Park (Seattle, Office of Public Archaeology, University of Washington,

Reconnaissance Report No. 40, 1981), xiv, 9.

41 NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, February 1982, 3; Carley,

Inventory of Cultural Resources, 23, 225, 234.

42 Glenn Gallison (PNRO) to Supt. KLGO, October 1, 1979, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp.,

1977-1983" file, AHC.

43 Lynn Canal News, January 29, 1981, 8; May 14, 1981, 7; Spude to author, email, June 19,

1995.

44 Southeast Alaska Empire, March 29, 1978, 13; Skagway News, November 2, 1978, 2;

Lynn Canal News, August 30, 1979, 1; October 4, 1979, 1; November 1, 1979, 4; November

15, 1979, 1; November 21, 1979, 1, 4.

45 Jay Cable to Robert L. Peterson, November 26, 1979, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-

1983" file, AHC; Lynn Canal News, February 21, 1980, 1; March 6, 1980, 1.

46 NPS, Land Acquisition Plan, KLGO, draft for public comment, March 1, 1980, 1, 3, in

"Land Protection Plan, 7/84" file, AHC.

47 NPS, Land Acquisition Plan, KLGO, 1980, 7. Regarding the park's BLM land, see footnote

2.
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48 NPS, Land Acquisition Plan, KLGO, 14; Skip Elliott to Russell Dickenson, February 27,

1981, in "HD Issues, 1981" file, AHC. The residence on public land was later identified as

that of Al and Janeen Huntley. Their cabin had been built years earlier by Alfred Nelson.

Lynn Canal News, February 19, 1981, 1.

49 SAR, 1980, 1; Lynn Canal News, April 17, 1980, 3; Robert and Julie Burton to Governor

Hammond, April 16, 1980, in file NR 1-2, Series 610, RG 01, ASA.

50 Willard F. Elliott to Ted Stevens, September 1975; Wayne R. Howe to Ted Stevens,

September 11, 1975; both in L58, AHC.

51 Lynn Canal News, April 24, 1980, 2, 4; May 22, 1980, 3; Skip Elliott to Russell

Dickenson, February 27, 1981, in "HD Issues, 1981" file, AHC; Juneau Empire, February 17,

1981, 1.

52 Douglas G. Warnock, "Report on Meeting with Skagway City Officials Concerning

NPS/Skagway Relationships," March 13, 1981, in "Hist. District Issues, 1981" file, AHC;

Lynn Canal News, April 2, 1981, 1; Skagway News, November 1985, 3.

53 Southeastern Log, September 1980, 6-7; SAR, 1980, 1.

54 Lynn Canal News, February 19, 1981, 1. Huntley's cabin, as noted elsewhere, was later

determined to be on public land, and in 1987 it was dragged north to a privately-owned

parcel. Hites and Hosford's garden, located near the old Dyea dump, had allegedly been used

for the past ten years. Dyea residents also occasionally tilled a second garden, just south of

Alf and Edna Kalvick's land. Skip Elliott to Russell Dickenson, February 27, 1981, in "HD

Issues, 1981" file, AHC; Karl Gurcke to author, facsimile, February 16, 1995; Nancy

Berland, interview by Karl Gurcke, March 4, 1995.

55 Lynn Canal News, August 14, 1980, 3; SAR, 1980, 2.

56 Lynn Canal News, October 2, 1980, 1; April 2, 1981, 1; Skagway News, August 12, 1994,

1. Soon afterward, the state got bogged down with the Mental Health Trust dispute, which

delayed the transfer of state lands both within and outside the park boundaries until the

dispute was settled. Then, in the mid-1990s, the issue of the transfer of state lands to the city

as part of the municipal land selection program flared up again; see below.

57 Lynn Canal News, February 19, 1981, 1.

58 Juneau Empire, February 17, 1981, 1; Lynn Canal News, February 26, 1981, 1; March 19,

1981, 2. In mid-March, Elliott returned to Juneau with city officials Robert Messegee, John

McDermott, and Jim Richards to provide further support to SB 36, which became law four

months later. Senate Bill History, 1981, 557.

59 Skip Elliott to Russell Dickenson, February 27, 1981, in "HD Issues, 1981" file, AHC.

60 Alaska House Journal, 1981, 421; Alaska Senate Journal, 1981, 364, 462.

61 Warnock, "Report on Meeting with Skagway City Officials Concerning NPS/Skagway

Relationships;" Lynn Canal News, March 12, 1981, 1; March 26, 1981, 6.

62 Lynn Canal News, April 2, 1981, 1. Because Cook, unlike Warnock, allowed locals to
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operate the community garden, the city council followed suit and requested a garden permit

from the NPS. The agency made no attempt to regulate the use of the garden, and soon

afterward, public use of the garden ceased due to a lack of interest. Lynn Canal News, May

14, 1981, 4; Jay Cable interview, May 1, 1995.

63 Alaska Department of Natural Resources, Haines-Skagway Area Land Use Plan, Volume

III, 77; Lynn Canal News, June 14, 1979, 3; April 23, 1981, 2; May 28, 1981, 7; Jeff Brady,

interview by Karl Gurcke, May 3, 1995.

64 Lynn Canal News, April 30, 1981, 1; NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management

Plan, KLGO, February 1982, 28; Ertec Northwest, Additional Cultural Resources Survey,

1983, IV-4.

65 Lynn Canal News, January 8, 1981, 4; April 30, 1981, 1.

66 Lynn Canal News, January 15, 1981, 2; April 23, 1981, 2; April 30, 1981, 1.

67 Lynn Canal News, May 14, 1981, 4. The bill was introduced in the Senate on January 13

and was passed on March 10. A slightly different version passed the House on June 8, and a

conference committee resolved the differences between the two bills on June 18. Governor

Hammond signed the bill on June 21. Alaska Senate Journal, 1981, 23, 411-12, 1599; Alaska

House Journal, 1981, 2017, 2216, 2261.

68 Warnock, "Report on Meeting with Skagway City Officials Concerning NPS/Skagway

Relationships."

69 Skagway Resolution 81-12K, September 3, 1981; Lynn Canal News, September 10, 1981,

8.

70 Frank H. Murkowski to Ira Whitlock, October 19, 1981; Theodore J. Garrish to David A.

Stockman, December 8, 1981; Garrish to Murkowski, December 8, 1981; all in "L58-General

Correspondence, 1978-1985," AHC.

71 Lynn Canal News, October 15, 1981, 3.

72 Lynn Canal News, January 21, 1982, 1.

73 Lynn Canal News, April 15, 1982, 4; April 29, 1982, 1.

74 Harvey M. Shields to Chief, ARO-RCR, May 14, 1982, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-

1983" file, AHC; Ertec Northwest, Additional Cultural Resources Survey, 1983, I-4, I-5;

Karl Gurcke, Gold Rush Archeology: The Surveying and Testing of Dyea, Alaska, 1984-85,

unpub. mss., 1986, 8, 9, at KLGO.

75 Lynn Canal News, January 21, 1982, 1; April 29, 1982, 1.

76 New York Times, September 1, 1982, A17; Skagway News, October 6, 1982, 2; Jay Cable

interview, December 8, 1994; SAR, 1982, 1. Richard Stenmark, in the NPS's Alaska Regional

Office, was an outspoken supporter of the plan, but many others in the agency opposed it. If

the deal had gone through, specific areas that would have been transferred to the state were

located near McKinley Village, Gustavus, and the West Creek area, as well as a large tract in

Denali National Park.
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77 Skagway News, October 6, 1982, 2; October 20, 1982, 7. Watt's proposed land trade was

never considered as a Congressional bill.

78 Skagway News, November 17, 1982, 2; December 15, 1982, 3.

79 Skagway News, October 6, 1982, 2; Robert M. Weaver to Craig Davis, May 4, 1983; L. S.

Hart to Supt. KLGO, June 8, 1983; both in "West Creek Hydro Project" file, AHC.

80 Ertec Northwest, Additional Cultural Resources Survey, 1983, IV-13 to IV-21, VI-1;

Skagway News, January 16, 1985, 8; Glenda Choate, interview by author, April 26, 1995.

The site, however, was not placed on the National Register. Choate's findings, in fact, were

probably never forwarded to the state Historic Sites Advisory Committee.

81 NPS, KLGR Master Plan, 43.

82 Lynn Canal News, March 6, 1980, 3; SAR, 1980, 2; NPS, Interpretive Prospectus, KLGO,

1981, 15; Harvey M. Shields to Betsy Duncan-Clark, November 17, 1983; Jay Cable to

Leslie Starr Hart, December 6, 1983; and Leslie Starr Hart to Supt. KLGO, September 21,

1984; all in "Waysides" folder, AHC; Karl Gurcke, interview by author, May 2, 1995. As of

this writing, Libert's two signs are still standing.

83 R. E. Hoffman to Ed Fairbanks, November 14, 1977, in CF; "Alaska Natural History

Association Info Folder" file, AHC; Frankie Barker (ANHA) to author, facsimile, January 30,

1995. Titles sold at KLGO's ANHA outlet included Alaska-Yukon Wildflowers, Birds of

North America, Chilkoot Pass, Discover Southeast Alaska with Pack and Paddle, Field Guide

to Animal Tracks, Field Guide to Mammals, Klondike Fever, This Last Treasure, and Wild,

Edible Plants, along with both U.S. and Canadian maps of the Chilkoot Trail corridor.

84 SAR, 1983, 2, 3; author to Robert Spude, August 28, 1984, in "Norris Letters to Spude"

file, AHC.

85 "Chilkoot Trail Float Tours" file, AKSO-EC Collection; Skagway News, August 14, 1985,

5; Scott Home interview, April 27, 1995.

86 Scott Home interview, April 27, 1995.

87 Cooperative agreements, in AKSO-ABC; "Cooperative Agreement, KLGO" file, AHC;

SAR, 1983, 2.

88 Cynthia E. Wilson (Assistant to the Secretary of the Interior) to Mike Whitehead (Special

Assistant to the Governor), December 2, 1977, File NR 1-1, Series 88 (1978), RG 01, ASA;

Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Public Law 96-487, Alaska National Interest Lands

Conservation Act, Legislative History, Volume XL: Section-By-Section Progress Analysis,

unpub. mss., Fall 1981, 7, 616-17.

89 Skagway News, July 4, 1984, 5.

90 "Memorandum of Understanding Between the National Park Service, Alaska Regional

Office and the Alaska Department of Natural Resources" (MU-9700-4-8006), February 14,

1984, in "Coop Agreement KLGO" file, AHC.

91
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Skagway News, April 11, 1984, 1.

92 Skagway News, May 9, 1984, 1; Cable to Spude, telephone conversation record, May 1,

1984, in "Coop Agreement KLGO" file, AHC; SAR, 1984, 4.

93 Skagway News, May 9, 1984, 1, 2; May 23, 1984, 2.

94 Skagway News, June 6, 1984, 5.

95 Skagway News, April 11, 1984, 1; May 23, 1984, 2; July 4, 1984, 5

96 Skagway News, July 18, 1984, 2; September 26, 1984, 3; "Memorandum of Understanding

Between the National Park Service, Alaska Regional Office and the Alaska Department of

Natural Resources," November 27, 1984, in "Coop Agreement KLGO" file, AHC.

97 Jay Cable interview, May 1, 1995.

98 In September 1982, the NPS's Washington office issued a guideline that replaced land

acquisition plans with land protection plans, and called for the preparation of 120 new plans

by April 30, 1985. NPS, "Land Protection Plan Instructions," September 15, 1982, 1, in "NPS

Land Protection Guidelines" file, AHC.

99 SAR, 1983, 4; Skagway News, January 4, 1984, 1.

100 Skagway News, January 18, 1984, 7; February 1, 1984, 2.

101 Skagway News, March 28, 1984, 9; SAR, 1984, 3; NPS, Land Protection Plan, KLGO,

n.d. (c. 1984), 12, in "Land Protection Plan, 7/84" file, AHC.

102 Lynn Canal News, April 12, 1979, 8; NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management

Plan, KLGO, February 1982, 37, 43.

103 Ken Schoenberg to Bill Brown, November 14, 1979; Bill Brown to Doug [Warnock],

March 20, [1980]; both in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file, AHC; NPS, Cultural and

Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, 44.

104 Cook to Supt. KLGO, February 14, 1980, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file,

AHC; Jay Cable interview, May 1, 1995.

105 SAR, 1980, 2; Bill Brown to Doug [Warnock], March 20, [1980]; NPS, Cultural and

Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, 44.

106 Warnock, "Report on Meeting with Skagway City Officials Concerning NPS/Skagway

Relationships;" Lynn Canal News, May 28, 1981, 4; July 2, 1981, 6; NPS, Cultural and

Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, 37, 44.

107 NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, 45; Lynn Canal News,

July 2, 1981, 6.

108 Skagway News, April 11, 1984, 1.

109 Skagway News, July 18, 1984, 2.
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110 Jay Cable interview, May 1, 1995.

111 Skagway News, September 26, 1984, 6; October 10, 1984, 2, 3; October 24, 1984, 5;

January 16, 1985, 8; Claudia Rector to author, email, May 15, 1995.

112 NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, 6; Brown to Jay Cable,

October 12, 1983; both in "KLGO RMP Comments" file, AHC.

113 Spude to Jay Cable, February 23, 1984, tel. conversation record, in "1984 Dyea

Improvements" file, AHC; NPS, Interpretive Prospectus, KLGO, October 1981, 15.

114 Author to Spude, June 29, 1984, in "Norris Letters to Spude" file, AHC; Supt. KLGO to

RD/ARO, July 11, 1984, in "Dyea DCP" file, AHC.

115 "Dyea/General Development, 1984," in "Maps" file, AHC; n.a., "Historic Dyea Plan,"

summer 1984, in "Dyea DCP" file, AHC; SAR, 1984, 2.

116 Spude to L. S. Hart, April 8, 1985, in "NPS Memoranda-KLGO, 1980-87" file, AHC;

Skagway News, April 10, 1985, 2; Suzy Stutzman to Spude, August 6, 1985; Stutzman to

Chief, Division of Planning, ARO, September 12, 1985; both in "Dyea DCP" file, AHC.

117 Skagway News, November 1985, 3; Stutzman to Nebel, December 31, 1985, in "Dyea

DCP" file, AHC.

118 Skagway News, September 17, 1986, 3; December 1987, 7; SAR, 1987, 5; SAR, 1988, 4.

119 Norris, "A Directory of Businesses in Dyea, Alaska" and "An Historical Map of Dyea,

Alaska and Vicinity," both in "Dyea: Directory of Businesses, Notes for Historical Base

Map" file, AHC; Craig Davis to Supt. KLGO, May 9, 1984, in "Karl Gurcke, 'Gold Rush

Archeology: The Surveying and Testing of Dyea, Alaska, 1984-85'" file, AHC.

120 Karl Gurcke, interview by author, May 2, 1995; Gurcke, Gold Rush Archeology, iii-iv;

SAR, 1984, 2; Ahlstrand to Regional Archeologist, ARO, October 18, 1984, in "Tree Rings"

file, AHC.

121 Gurcke, Gold Rush Archeology, iv; Skagway News, November 1985, 3; SAR, 1985, 1.

122 The drawings would need to conform to the standards of the Historic American Buildings

Survey (HABS) and the Historic American Engineering Record (HAER). Leslie Starr Hart,

"Work Plan, Historical and Archeological Evaluation of the Historic Townsite of Dyea and

Outlying Sites Along the Chilkoot Trail, KLGO, AK, 1985," 1, in "KLGO-C.T. Archeo

Survey 1986" file, AHC.

123 Regional Historian, ARO to Supt. KLGO, December 2, 1985; Frank Norris and Carol

Taylor, Historic Structures and Sites, Dyea and the Chilkoot Trail, unpub. mss.; both in "CT

HSR" file, AHC; SAR, 1985, 1.

124 SAR, 1987, 4; SAR, 1988, 2; Gurcke, "KLGO, History of Cultural Resource Projects," 4,

5; L. S. Hart to Supt. KLGO, November 18, 1987, in "CT HSR" file, AHC; Bill Hanable to

author, May 12, 1988, in author's collection.
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125 NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, 7; NPS, KLGR Master

Plan, 44; NPS, FES/KLGR, 7-8. The three other buildings that Cable suggested for

crystallization included the so-called Sheep Camp Hotel (actually a warehouse, located near

the former recreational campground), the knock-down boats just south of Chilkoot Pass, and

Archie Burns's horse whim just above the Golden Stairs.

126 Robert L. Spude, "The Klondike Gold Rush, a Preservationist's View," paper given at

Western Historical Association, St. Paul, October 11, 1984, in "Dyea Plan" file, AHC; Spude,

"Crystallization, KLGO," n.d. (c. 1987), in "Crystallization at KLGO" file, AHC.

127 Bearss to Spude, October 25, 1984, in "Dyea Plan" file, AHC; Sandra Faulkner, interview

by author, January 10, 1995.

128 Lidfors to Files, July 14, 1988, in "CT HSR" file, AHC.

129 Bill Hanable to author, May 12, 1988; Hanable to author, June 13, 1988; author to

Hanable, June 27, 1988; all in author's collection; Ronald E. Sheetz, Alan M. Levitan, and

Bart Rogers, Condition Survey Report of Chilkoot Trail (KLGO) Artifacts (draft), 1994, in

File D5, KLGO central files.

130 Boyd Evison to Associate Director, Cultural Resources, WASO, November 24, 1986, in

Chilkoot Trail NHL files, AKSO-RCR Collection.

131 Chilkoot Trail and Dyea NHL files, AKSO-RCR Collection.

132 Skagway News, August 7, 1987, 9.

133 SAR, 1987, 7; SAR, 1988, 6; "West Creek Land Exchange" file, AKSO-EL.

134 Clay Alderson to Neil Johanssen, November 15, 1989, in "MU 9700-0-9001" file,

AKSO-ABC; SAR, 1989, 5; SAR, 1990, 3; Clay Alderson, interview with author, April 25,

1995.

135 SAR, 1989, 5; Clay Alderson to Neil C. Johanssen, November 15, 1989, in "MU 9700-0-

9001" file, AKSO-ABC.

136 SAR, 1990, 4; Skagway News, February 22, 1991, 1.

137 SAR, 1991, 2; Clay Alderson to author, email, April 23, 1995.

138 Skagway News, June 24, 1988, 1, 2; July 8, 1988, 3.

139 Skagway News, July 8, 1988, 3; August 5, 1988, 3; February 1990, 4; February 22, 1991,

5; April 10, 1992, 1, 2.

140 Jay Cable interview, May 1, 1995.

141 Skagway News, June 5, 1985, 7; SAR, 1987, 5, 7; SAR, 1988, 6.

142 Jay Cable interview, May 1, 1995; SAR, 1988, 7; SAR, 1989, 3; SAR, 1990, 6; SAR,

1991, 6.
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143 SAR, 1991, 5; Skagway News, March 11, 1994, 6; Bruce Reed interview, September 8,

1995.

144 Alderson to author, email, March 7, 1996.

145 SAR, 1988, 3; SAR, 1989, 3; SAR, 1990, 7; SAR, 1991, 11.

146 SAR, 1989, 3; Skagway News, December 21, 1990, 7; David Funk, interview by author,

May 1, 1995. NPS procedures state that, ideally, each park should complete a new land

protection plan every two years. Few parks, however, have been able to keep such a

schedule, and Alaska parks have been particularly tardy in the timely completion of land

protection plans.

147 SAR, 1990, 2, 4; SAR, 1991, 1; Skagway News, February 22, 1991, 1; May 3, 1991, 3.

148 The 1984 land protection plan, ironically, had noted that the property "intruded upon the

historic scene" and that "acquisition of this property will allow removal of the intrusions and

restoration of the historic scene." Just a year later, however, Sims told regional officials that

the Kalvick property would be used as a ranger station, inasmuch as the existing ranger

facility was neither within the park nor on NPS land. NPS, Land Protection Plan, KLGO,

1984, 22; Sims to Garey Coatney, September 27, 1985, in Edna Kalvick file, AKSO-EL.

149 NPS, Land Protection Plan, KLGO, April 3, 1991, 23; SAR, 1990, 1, 3, 7; SAR, 1991, 2;

Edna Kalvick file, AKSO-EL.

150 Although the NPS began legal action about the trespassing activities during the mid1980s, they informed (and possibly harassed) the cabin occupants, as noted above, beginning

in 1980. Legal action by the Jacquots, however, had prevented the agency from clearing up

the title difficulty. Mark Noyd file, AKSO-EL; Karl Gurcke, interview by author, May 2,

1995.

151 SAR, 1987, 7; Mark Noyd file, AKSO-EL. Hanousek died in July 1986.

152 Karl Gurcke interview, May 2, 1995; Scott Home, "Daily Patrol Report," May 1, 1988, in

Box 1, RG 70, KLGO archives.

153 Skagway News, June 26, 1992, 8. NPS officials had been aware of the access problem for

years, but they had been unable to overcome it because of the lack of money, the lack of a

Dyea-area management plan, and the difficulties presented by the seasonal appearance of

anadromous fish.

154 Skagway News, July 23, 1993, 4; August 13, 1993, 1.

155 Skagway News, September 29, 1993, 2; December 10, 1993, 4; Clay Alderson interview,

April 25, 1995.

156 Skagway News, June 10, 1994, 1. The USFS eventually rejected the bridge grant.

157 For background information on early radio-controlled airplane activities on Dyea flats, see

Skagway News, June 8, 1983, 4, and June 6, 1984, 8.

158 Knorr apparently based his finding on statements that Superintendent Hoffman had made
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during the preparation of the Dyea area management plan. That plan, as noted above,

represented Hoffman's aspirations rather than NPS policy; it was never finalized.

159 Skagway News, June 10, 1994, 1, 2.

160 Skagway News, June 24, 1994, 2; Clay Alderson interview, April 25, 1995 and November

2, 1995.

161 Skagway News, August 12, 1994, 1; Clay Alderson interview, April 25, 1995.

162 Clay Alderson to author, October 30, 1995.

163 Skagway News, September 9, 1994, 4.

164 Skagway News, December 21, 1994, 4; City land selection map, in AKSO-EL files; Clay

Alderson interview, April 25, 1995.

165 Skagway News, January 12, 1996, 1; January 26, 1996, 1; March 22, 1996, 3; April 5,

1996, 1; June 14, 1996, 9.

166 Skagway News, June 10, 1994, 1; Ken Pendleton, interview by author, April 24, 1995.

167 Skagway News, March 24, 1995, 1; Karl Gurcke interview, May 2, 1995; NPS,

Commercial Visitor Service Directory, December 1994; Alderson to author, email, December

21, 1995.

168 Skagway News, March 24, 1995, 1; Karl Gurcke interview, May 2, 1995; NPS,

Commercial Visitor Service Directory, August 1995; Alderson to author, email, December

21, 1995.

Chapter 9

1 In 1946, the General Land Office became the Bureau of Land Management.

2 "Cooperative Agreement...," August 11, 1972, in "Cooperative Agreement, KLGO" file,

AHC.

3 Wellenhoffer, Norris, and Gurcke, "Personnel List for the U.S. and Canadian Parks."

4 Ibid.

5 R. E. Hoffman to Radio Coordinator, DSC, September 19, 1977, in CF; SAR, 1991, 6; Jay

Cable, interview by author, May 30, 1995.

6 Alderson to author, email, March 7, 1996.

7 n.a., "Chilkoot Trail Operations, 1977 and 1978," in "KLGO - Chilkoot Trail Ranger

Reports" file, AHC; NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO,

February 1982, 38; Jay Cable interview, May 30, 1995.
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8 n.a., "Chilkoot Trail Operations, 1977 and 1978;" Jay Cable interview, May 30, 1995.

9 NPS, "Chilkoot Trail ranger reports," 1973-74, 1981, in Box 1, RG 70, KLGO Archives.

10 Scott Home, "Wildlife in Dyea," unpub. mss., in KLGO Collection; NPS, Cultural and

Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, 37-38, 47-48.

11 William W. Edwards to Chief I&RM, August 13, 1979, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-

1983" file, AHC; NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, 39-40.

12 Womble, Wolf, and Field, Hikers on the Chilkoot Trail: A Descriptive Report, 10, 41;

NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, 38.

13 Jay Cable interview, May 30, 1995. The following articles from local newspapers

described wintertime trail attempts: Lynn Canal News, January 28, 1982, 4; March 11, 1982,

4; March 18, 1982, 3; Skagway News, March 22, 1991, 1, 3.

14 Anchorage Daily Times, September 18, 1981, C-1; National Geographic Society, Yukon

Passage (film), 59 minutes, 1977; Keith Tryck, "Rafting Down the Yukon," National

Geographic Magazine 148 (December 1975), 830-61; NGM 152 (October 1977), 439; NGM

152 (December 1977), front cover. The film was first shown on television on December 5,

1977.

15 NPS, "Chilkoot Trail Ranger Report" for 1974, 1977, and 1979.

16 Skagway News, November 24, 1993, 3; Anchorage Daily News, December 10, 1993, D3.

17 Margaret Jensen, "Bears, Living With Them on Your Hike Over the Chilkoot Trail"

(brochure), 1980, in AHC.

18 NPS, Chilkoot Trail Weekly Ranger Reports, 1980-85, in Box 1, RG 70, KLGO Archives.

19 Skagway News, July 23, 1986, 1; August 6, 1986, 2; August 20, 1; SAR, 1986, 1.

20 Skagway News, June 10, 1988, 9; August 18, 1989, 6; SAR, 1991, 9.

21 The area south of the Sheep Camp campground and east of the Taiya River was thought to

be bereft of artifacts, but surprised archeologists discovered that miscellaneous gold rush-era

items were strewn across the area selected for the new campground. SAR, 1991, 10; Jay

Cable interview, May 30, 1995.

22 Anchorage Daily News, June 14, 1992, K2; Skagway News, August 14, 1992, 6; April 23,

1993, 5; Joan Darnell to "Dear Reader," August 28, 1992, in "Chilkoot Trail Cabin/Shelter

Construction Project 1992" file, AHC; Clay Alderson to author, email, June 16, 1995.

23 Clay Alderson, interview by author, June 27, 1995.

24 Skagway News, April 23, 1993, 5; Anchorage Daily News, December 10, 1993, D3.

25 SAR, 1987, 4; SAR, 1989, 3; SAR, 1990, 7, 8. Maintenance chief John Warder and

seasonal carpenter Ken Russo received awards for their work on the building.
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26 Wellenhoffer, Norris, and Gurcke, "Personnel List for the U.S. and Canadian Parks;" n.a.,

"Chilkoot Trail Operations, 1977 and 1978;" n.a. [William Edwards?], "1979 Trail Crew

Report," in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file, AHC.

27 The first of these bridges spanned a side creek approximately one mile south of the

Canyon City shelter; the second bridge crossed a side creek between Pleasant Camp and

Sheep Camp. Mileage figures used in this chapter show mileage north from the Dyea

trailhead. As Chapter 4 has noted, NPS rangers in 1973 installed mile and half-mile markers.

They remained until the early 1980s.

28 William W. Edwards to Chief, I&RM, August 13, 1979, in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-

1983" file, AHC; NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, 6, 38; Lynn

Canal News, July 12, 1979, 2.

29 Michael D. Shields to RD/PNRO, August 28, 1978, in "1978 C.T. Trip Report" file, AHC;

William W. Edwards to Chief I&RM, KLGO, August 13, 1979; Douglas G. Warnock (AAO)

to William Hanable (SHPO), April 22, 1980, in "Coop Agreement KLGO" file, AHC.

30 Ken Schoenberg to Bill Brown, November 14, 1979; John E. Cook to Supt. KLGO,

February 11, 1980; both in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983" file, AHC; Douglas G.

Warnock (AAO) to William Hanable (SHPO), April 22, 1980, in "Coop Agreement KLGO"

file, AHC.

31 Brown to various, May 19, 1980, in "KLGR--Historic Structures" file, AHC; Louis S.

Wall (ACHP) to John E. Cook, June 26, 1980; Douglas G. Warnock to Wall, July 15, 1980;

both in "Coop Agreement KLGO" file, AHC; Robert Spude to author, email, June 19, 1995.

32 SAR, 1980, 4; NPS, "Chilkoot Trail Ranger Report," 1980, in Box 1, RG 70, KLGO

Archives; Jay Cable interview, December 8, 1994. Bill Edwards, in his "1979 Trail Crew

Report," had recommended that the maintenance camp be relocated to a site near milepost 7,

almost a mile south of the Canyon City shelter.

33 Jerry Watson, trail foreman, recalls that several of the logs used in the replacement bridges

were hauled to the site from Sitka, where they had been part of the Russian Bishop's House

prior to NPS restoration efforts. Lynn Canal News, September 10, 1981, 1; NPS, Cultural and

Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, 6, 22; Karl Gurcke to author, email, May 30,

1995.

34 The 6.5 mile bridge was 76 feet long; the 11.5 mile bridge was 86 feet long.

35 David E. Snow to Ken Schoenberg, December 9, 1980, in "KLGR-Compliance" file,

AHC; NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, 22; SAR, 1982, 1. In

May 1982, park officials gave seasonal employee Roy Nelson a special achievement award

for his work as crew leader on the two suspension bridges.

36 SAR, 1983, 2; SAR, 1984, 2; SAR, 1985, 2; SAR, 1987, 4; SAR, 1988, 3.

37 SAR 1991, 11; Karl Gurcke to author, April 16, 1996.

38 SAR, 1991, 11; NPS, "Chilkoot Trail Ranger Report," 1976, 11, in Box 1, RG 70, KLGO

Archives; Southeast Alaska Empire, October 31, 1975, 8; November 5, 1975, 1; Carl

Mulvihill to author, June 3, 1995.
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39 Wellenhoffer, Norris, and Gurcke, "Personnel List for the U.S. and Canadian Parks."

40 John B. Warder, Jr. to Supt. KLGO, February 14, 1984, in "A-76" file, AHC; SAR, 1984,

4; John Warder, interview by author, May 11, 1995.

41 Pete Bathurst to Chief of Interpretation, PNRO, February 8, 1978, and R. E. Hoffman to

Area Supt., Parks Canada, March 3, 1978, both in CF; Jay Cable interview, February 21,

1995.

42 NPS and Parks Canada, "Chilkoot Trail" (brochure), editions of 1981, 1984, 1986; NPS

and Canadian Parks Service, "Chilkoot Trail," edition of 1988; SAR, 1990, 7; Karl Gurcke to

author, March 15, 1991.

43 Marc Sagan, "Interpretive Work Program," February 1980, in "Skagway Special Planning"

file, AHC; NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, 30.

44 NPS, Interpretive Prospectus, KLGO, October 1981, 15.

45 NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, 7, 9, 14, 30.

46 Richard B. Hoffman, "KLGO, Wayside Exhibit Proposals," September 29, 1983, in

"Waysides" folder, AHC; SAR, 1983, 3.

47 Jay Cable to Joe Pollack, November 9, 1983, in "MOAs with Federal, State & Local

Agencies" file, AHC; SAR, 1983, 3; Contor to Chief, Division of Wayside Exhibits, HFC,

May 25, 1984, in "Waysides" folder, AHC.

48 Skagway News, November 1985, 3; SAR, 1985, 1; Clay Alderson to Glenn Clark (ARO),

September 30, 1986, in "Waysides" folder, AHC; Acting RD/ARO to Chief, Division of

Wayside Exhibits, HFC, October 9, 1986; both in "Waysides" folder, AHC; SAR, 1986, 2.

49 Debra Sanders to author, email, July 6, 1995. Only 24 of the 32 exhibits were installed at

that time; maintenance personnel put up only two of the six signs in Dyea and five of the nine

in Canada. The remaining four Dyea signs were installed in the fall of 1995.

50 SAR, 1987, 6; SAR, 1988, 4; Karl Gurcke interview, May 2, 1995.

51 Steve Peterson, interview by the author, May 30, 1995; SAR, 1989, 2; n.a., "Cultural

Landscape Recommendations, KLGO" (draft), unpub. mss., 1989.

52 Lynn Canal News, April 2, 1981, 1; April 9, 1981, 1, 8.

53 Skagway Resolution 81-12R, September 3, 1981; Lynn Canal News, September 10, 1981,

8.

54 Frank H. Murkowski to Ira Whitlock, October 19, 1981; Theodore J. Garrish to David A.

Stockman, December 8, 1981; Garrish to Murkowski, December 8, 1981; all in "L58-General

Correspondence, 1978-1985," AHC; NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management Plan,

KLGO, 24.

55 Skagway News, August 7, 1987, 9.
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56 SAR, 1987, 7; SAR, 1988, 6; "West Creek Land Exchange" file, AKSO-EL.

57 Clay Alderson to Neil Johannsen, November 15, 1989, in "MU 9700-0-9001" file, AKSOABC; SAR, 1989, 5; SAR, 1990, 3; Clay Alderson interview, April 25, 1995.

58 SAR, 1989, 5; Clay Alderson to Neil C. Johannsen, November 15, 1989, in "MU 9700-0-

9001" file, AKSO-ABC.

59 SAR, 1990, 4; Skagway News, February 22, 1991, 1.

60 SAR, 1991, 2; Clay Alderson to author, email, April 23, 1995.

61 BLM, "Decision," December 1, 1988, in file AA-6272. Each of the Mahle allotment files

are located in the AKSO-EL Collection.

62 Allen to Cook, October 7, 1982, in File AA-6272.

63 Robert Spude, "Historic Use of the Chilkoot Trail, Alaska," data compiled for BLM Case

File AA-37758, KLGO, March 1984, 13, in File AA-6272; William C. Welch to ARD

Operations, March 23, 1984, in "CT-Native Allotment Findings" file, AHC.

64 Andrew Mahle to Paul O. Johnson (BLM), July 3, 1984; Paul O. Johnson (BLM),

"Decision," July 9, 1984, in file AA-6272.

65 Robert Spude, untitled reports, in file AA-6272; Roger Contor to State Director, BLM,

July 3, 1985, in "CT July 85 reports" file, AHC. The NPS also wrote to the BLM on July 11,

1985, requesting the agency to contest the applications.

66 Michael Penfold (BLM) to Ted Stevens, December 17, 1985, in AA-6272.

67 Choate obtained taped interviews from Barbara Kalen, William Feero, Les Fairbanks,

Nova and Wanda Warner, Paul Sincic, Virginia Burfield, and Robert Rapuzzi. She also

interviewed Jigger Hosford, Laura McCarley, Betty Selmer, and Manuel Yglesias. Spude to

Choate, April 17, 1985; Choate to Spude, April 27, 1985; Choate to Spude, August 31, 1985;

"Affidavit of Glenda Choate," January 21, 1986; all in "Glenda Choate" file, AHC.

68 Choate initially interviewed Thomas R. (Dick) Branton, Don Davis, John Hoyt, and Si

Dennis, Sr. NPS personnel later spoke to Ed Hosford and obtained an affidavit from Fred

Barker. Spude to Choate, December 16, 1985; Glenda Choate, "Chilkoot Trail Project II,

National Park Service," February 24, 1986; Geoffrey L. Haskett to Paul Johnson, September

5, 1986; all in "Glenda Choate" file, AHC; "Affidavit of Fred Barker," March 13, 1986, in

"Fred Barker" file, AHC.

69 Karl Gurcke to Craig Davis, August 16, 1985, in "Allotment Apps" file, AHC; Clay

Alderson to Garey Coatney, June 23, 1987, in AA-6272.

70 BLM, "Decision," August 31, 1988, in file AA-6529; BLM, "Decision," December 1,

1988, in AA-6272; BLM, "Decision," December 1, 1988, in AA-6528.

71 Richard Stenmark to Regional Solicitor, Alaska, January 13, 1989, in file AA-6272; SAR,

1988, 7.
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72 Dennis J. Hopewell to BLM and NPS, April 7, 1989, in AA-6272.

73 Richard Stenmark, notes of telephone conversation with Chris Bockmon, April 25, 1989.

74 Clay Alderson to Paul Hunter, June 15, 1990, in AA-6272; John T. Baker to Mark Regan,

November 2, 1990, in AA-6272; SAR, 1990, 4.

75 SAR 1991, 2; Clay Alderson to Paul Hunter, June 15, 1990, in AA-6272.

76 Charles Gilbert to John Brower, notes of telephone conversation, February 8, 1993; Supt.

KLGO to RD/ARO, March 15, 1993; Norman H. Lee to Chief, ARO-OL, May 5, 1993; John

M. Morehead to Chief, Land Resources Division, WASO, May 13, 1994; all in "Tr. 102-15"

file, AKSO-EL.

77 McAllister to Chief, ARO-OL, January 10, 1994, in "Tr. 102-15" file.

78 NPS, "Chilkoot Trail Ranger Reports," 1973 through 1978, in Box 1, RG 70, KLGO

Archives; Jeff Brady to author, March 27, 1996.

79 Bonnie Kaden (Alaska Discovery) to Richard Sims, April 20, 1983; Richard E. McGowan

(Mountain Travel) to Joe Alston, October 15, 1984; both in "Alaska Discovery" file. This and

other concessioners' files are located in the AKSO-EC Collection.

80 Mike Cottingham to Rebecca Kaiser, May 5, 1988, in "Wilderness Ventures, Inc." file.

81 Rebecca Kaiser to Mike Cottingham, March 24, 1988, in "Wilderness Ventures, Inc." file.

82 Bonnie Kaden to Richard Sims, April 20, 1983; Sims to Kaden, May 17, 1983; Kaden to

Contor, June 25, 1983; all in "Alaska Discovery" file.

83 Contor to Director NPS, September 21, 1984, in "Wilderness Ventures, Inc." file.

84 Contor to Director NPS, September 21, 1984; Stanley T. Albright (Acting Deputy

Director, NPS) to Contor, October 15, 1984; both in "Wilderness Ventures, Inc." file.

85 Richard E. McGowan to Joe Alston, October 15, 1984, in "Alaska Discovery" file; Kaiser

to Cottingham, March 24, 1988, in "Wilderness Ventures, Inc." file.

86 Ken Leghorn to Rebecca Kaiser, December 17, 1987, in "Alaska Discovery" file; SAR,

1987, 6.

87 Clay Alderson to Ken Leghorn, January 6, 1987, in "Alaska Discovery" file; Rebecca

Kaiser to Mike Cottingham, March 24, 1988; Cottingham to Kaiser, May 5, 1988; both in

"Wilderness Ventures, Inc." file.

88 Rebecca Kaiser to Mike Cottingham, March 24, 1988, in "Wilderness Ventures, Inc." file;

SAR, 1988, 3; SAR, 1989, 3; SAR, 1990, 2; SAR, 1991, 1; Ken Leghorn to Lew Hamburger,

February 8, 1989; Leghorn to Jay Cable, June 4, 1989; both in "Alaska Discovery" file.

89 Ken Leghorn to Rebecca Kaiser, December 17, 1987, in "Alaska Discovery" file; also see

"Tamarack Camps" and Wilderness Ventures" files.
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90 NPS, Commercial Visitor Service Directory, September 1993.

91 Ibid., August 1995.

92 Skagway News, November 25, 1992, 1, 3.

93 Bruce Reed to author, email, May 31, 1995.

94 Norris, "Knockdown Boats" chapter, in Chilkoot HSR; Lynn Canal News, June 12, 1980,

3; Karl Gurcke to author, April 16, 1996. Also see Robert L. Peterson to Ty Dilliplane, April

22, 1983, in "CT - Misc. Corresp." file, AHC.

95 Carley, Inventory of Cultural Resources, passim.

96 Lynn Canal News, January 29, 1981, 8; May 14, 1981, 7; Spude, Chilkoot Trail: from

Dyea to Summit with the '98 Stampeders, 1980.

97 Dick Hsu (AAO Archeologist) to Chief, Cultural Resources, September 11, 1979; Ken

Schoenberg to Bill Brown, November 14, 1979; both in "KLGO Misc. Corresp., 1977-1983"

file, AHC; Meg Jensen to Bill Brown, November 10, 1979, in "KLGR-Compliance" file,

AHC.

98 Bill Brown, RMP Meeting Notes, February 27, 1980; Wil Logan, Skagway Conference

Notes [February 1980]; both in "Klondike Special Planning" folder, AHC; Douglas G.

Warnock, "Report on Meeting with Skagway City Officials Concerning NPS/Skagway

Relationships," March 13, 1981, in "Hist. District Issues, 1981" file, AHC; Lynn Canal News,

March 12, 1981, 1; NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, 24.

99 James J. Berens (ARO) to State Director, BLM, April 4, 1985, in "NPS MemorandaKLGO, 1980-87" file, AHC; Spude to File, August 1, 1985, in "CT July 85 reports" file,

AHC; Karl Gurcke, Cultural Resources Along the Chilkoot Trail: Trailhead to Finnegan's

Point, unpub. mss., 1986, KLGO Collection.

100 NPS, KLGR Master Plan, 44; NPS, FES/KLGR, 58.

101 NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, 12-14; NPS, Scope of

Collections, KLGO, December 3, 1982, 2; Pardue and Cumberland, Collection Preservation

Guide, KLGO, June 1983, 11. By allowing most of the gold rush-era objects to deteriorate,

the park policy, at first glance, appeared to violate guidelines contained in both NPS-6

(pertaining to interpretation) and NPS-28 (pertaining to cultural resources preservation) as

well as NPS management policies. But both the state (which owned the land) and the NPS

wanted to keep the objects in situ. Financially, moreover, the NPS had no alternative but to

allow the objects to remain where they were.

102 Louis Wall (ACHP) to John E. Cook, June 26, 1980, in "Coop Agreement KLGO" file,

AHC.

103 SAR, 1982, 2; Melissa McDonald and Colleen Davenport, "Cataloguing of Significant

Artifacts Along the CT in KLGO, Summer 1982," in "KLGO Artifacts" file, AHC.

104 Bill Brown to Frank Deckert, etc., June 24, 1983; Roger Contor to Neil C. Johannsen,

June 29, 1983; Richard Sims to Brown, September 19, 1983; Sims to Brown, October 11,
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1983, all in "KLGO Artifacts" file, AHC; SAR, 1983, 3; Heritage #10 (July 1983), 3.

105 Colleen Sinnott and Cathy Shank, "Cataloguing of Artifacts Along the Chilkoot Trail in

KLGO," Summer 1983, in "KLGO Artifacts" file, AHC.

106 Brown to Frank Deckert, December 3, 1983, in "KLGO Artifacts" file, AHC; Wyatt, M.

P., Conservation Recommendations, Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park," 1982,

KLGO Collection.

107 Brown, "Summary Report on Chilkoot Trail Artifact Recovery, Summer 1983,"

November 25, 1983, in "KLGO Artifacts" file, AHC.

108 Bill Welch (Acting RD/ARO) to Supt. KLGO, December 8, 1983; Sims to RD/ARO,

January 31, 1984; both in "KLGO Artifacts" file, AHC; SAR, 1983, 3.

109 Leslie Starr Hart, "Work Plan, Historical and Archeological Evaluation of the Historic

Townsite of Dyea and Outlying Sites Along the Chilkoot Trail, KLGO, Alaska, 1985," in

"KLGO-C.T. Archeo Survey 1986" file, AHC; Spude to L. S. Hart, April 8, 1985, in "NPS

Memoranda-KLGO, 1980-87" file, AHC.

110 Skagway News, August 20, 1986, 5; SAR, 1986, 1; Karl Gurcke, "Cultural Resources

Along the Chilkoot Trail: Trailhead to Finnegan's Point," September 1986.

111 As noted in Appendix B, the 1990 archeological crew consisted of Karlene Leeper, Sarah

Marshall, and Marty Simpson; in 1991, Diane Fenicle and Hugh Harris; in 1992, Ed Tyler,

Diane Fenicle, Gretchen Guidotte, Davé Warren-Taylor, Karlene Leeper, and Monica Shah;

in 1993, David Hayes, Gretchen Guidotte, Amy Orenstein, and Megan Wehrstedt; in 1994,

David Hayes, Megan Wehrstedt, and James Lindbeck; and in 1995, Bill Fortini, Cassie

Flynn, and Jeff Rasic. Gurcke, "KLGO, History of Cultural Resource Projects," February

1995, in KLGO Collection; SAR, 1991, 10; Karl Gurcke, interview by author, May 30, 1995.

112 Karl Gurcke, Archeological Features Found in the Dyea and Chilkoot Trail Unit, KLGO,

June 1995, KLGO Collection.

113 Gurcke, "KLGO, History of Cultural Resource Projects," February 1995, in KLGO

Collection.

114 SAR, 1991, 9.

115 Steve Paustian, Susan Trull, Rick Foster, and Brad Krieckhaus, Klondike Gold Rush

National Historical Park Ecological Reconnaissance Inventory, Final Report (Sitka, U.S.

Forest Service), 1994.

116 N. Duane Atwood, KLGO, Ecological Reconnaissance Inventory, final report (Juneau,

NPS/USFS), March 1994; Claudia Rector interview, September 6, 1995; Alderson to author,

email, March 7, 1996.

117 North Wind, July 1977, 3.

118 Parks Canada was organized in 1973.

119 Between 1974 (when agency staff first began to patrol the area) and 1985, Chilkoot Trail
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personnel worked for Parks Canada; the agency was first part of the Department of Indian

and Northern Development, then part of the Department of the Environment. In 1986, the

agency became known as Environment Canada-Parks. Then, in 1988, another name change

was recorded, and for the next several years the Chilkoot staff worked for the Canadian Parks

Service (which was still part of Environment Canada). By 1994, the agency was once again

being called Parks Canada, but it was part of the newly-designated Department of Canadian

Heritage.

120 COSEP is an acronym for the Career Oriented Student Employment Program.

121 Wellenhoffer, Norris, and Gurcke, "Personnel List for the U.S. and Canadian Parks."

Hedgecock's former surname was Jones, Verhalle's former surname was Tosczak, and

Norris's former surnames were Dyer and Wellenhoffer. All three married during the years

they worked on the trail.

122 SAR, 1982, 2. A few hikers during the mid-1980s left the trail corridor by taking a boat

service down Lake Bennett from Bennett to Carcross. The vast majority of hikers, however,

used the railroad right-of-way to walk from either Lindeman or Bennett to Log Cabin.

123 A Casey car is the popular name for a gang car or track maintenance car. The

Northwestern Motor Company, of Eau Claire, Wisconsin, began manufacturing the Casey

Jones Motor Car prior to World War II. The WP&YR bought several, and the car proved so

popular (both here and elsewhere) that the name was applied to a wide variety of work cars,

regardless of make. Carl Mulvihill to author, June 3, 1995.

124 SAR, 1989, 3; Skagway News, May 13, 1994, 4; Karl Gurcke to author, email, May 30,

1995.

125 SAR, 1984, 4.

126 Christine Hedgecock, interview by author, October 21, 1993; Dave Neufeld to author,

facsimile, February 6, 1995; Neufeld to author, facsimile, July 20, 1995.

127 The primary reason for the boundary change is that a national park (as was proposed in

1973) is managed according to watersheds, while the emphasis for a national historic site is

the viewscape. Environment Canada-Parks, Proposed Chilkoot Trail National Historic Park,

Management Planning Program, Newsletter No. 1 (May 1986), 2-3; North Wind. June 1973,

11; Dave Neufeld to author, facsimile, July 20, 1995.

128 Environment Canada-Parks, Proposed Chilkoot Trail National Historic Park,

Management Planning Program, Newsletter No. 1 (May 1986), No. 2 (December 1986), and

No. 3 (May 1987); Canadian Parks Service, Proposed Chilkoot Trail National Historic Park,

Management Planning Program, Plan Summary (August 1988); Skagway News, September 3,

1986, 7; May 29, 1987, 7; Tom Elliot to Dave Neufeld, February 6, 1995.

129 In a confusing twist, the new unit is both a park and a site. It is a site under National

Historic Site regulations but has certain provisions from the National Parks Act for law

enforcement purposes. Skagway News, June 12, 1987, 1; April 23, 1993, 5; Parks Canada,

Chilkoot Trail National Historic Site, Management Planning Program, Newsletter #3

(January, 1995), 5; Tom Elliot to Dave Neufeld, February 6, 1995.

130 Skagway News, March 24, 1995, 1; David Neufeld, interview by the author, June 1, 1996.
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131 Clay Alderson to author, email, June 16, 1995.

Chapter 10

1 Blee, Spude, and Cloyd, Historic Structure Reports for Ten Buildings, 274-75; Bearss,

Klondike Park Study, 79-84; Minter, The White Pass: Gateway to the Klondike, 46, 66.

2 NPS, KLGR Master Plan, 1973, 48; NPS, FES/KLGR, 73.

3 NPS, KLGR Master Plan, 48-49.

4 NPS, FES/KLGR, 10-11.

5 NPS, KLGR Master Plan, 1973, 45, 46; Nathaniel Reed to Sen. Henry M. Jackson, May 9,

1975, in "Hearings on...S. 98, Establishment of the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical

Park..." May 12, 1975, 17, in CF.

6 R. E. Hoffman to RD/PNRO, January 12, 1978, in CF.

7 Higgins to Ed Holm, September 29, 1977, in CF.

8 Jay Cable interview, May 1, 1995.

9 Claus-M. Naske and Herman Slotnick, Alaska: A History of the 49th State (Grand Rapids,

Mich., William B. Eerdmans, 1979), 237, 279.

10 Anchorage Daily News, September 8, 1977, 1; September 9, 1977, 1; R. E. Hoffman to

Chief, Lands, PNRO, September 19, 1977; Hoffman to Director AAO, January 19, 1978;

both in CF.

11 Skagway News, June 15, 1978, 1.

12 Skagway News, August 17, 1978, 3; September 28, 1978, 1; November 2, 1978, 1, 6;

December 14, 1978, 1, 3; January 11, 1979, 1, 8; Chicago Tribune, December 17, 1978.

13 Company representatives, apparently unaware of the park's historical resources, wrote in

the pipeline application that "preliminary evaluations have indicated that there are no

unacceptable environmental impacts in this area." R. E. Hoffman to RD/PNRO, February 22,

1979, in "KLGR-Pipeline" file, AHC.

14 Ibid.

15 Lynn Canal News, March 1, 1979, 1; March 8, 1979, 1.

16 "Hearing on Northern Tier Pipeline Set" (BLM Alaska news release, March 16, 1979;

NPS, "KLGO, Position Statement, Skagway Pipeline," March 20, 1979, in "KLGR-Pipeline"

file, AHC; Lynn Canal News, March 22, 1979, 1.

17 Lynn Canal News, March 29, 1979, 1; April 12, 1979, 1; Bill Brown to Howard Wagner,

April 13, 1979; Brown to Wagner, May 11, 1979; both in "KLGR-Pipeline" file, AHC;
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Robert E. Ackerman, Carl E. Gustafson, and Timothy B. Riordan, Alaska Highway Oil

Pipeline Project: Skagway-White Pass Archeological and Paleontological Survey, March 26-

31, 1979 (Pullman, Wash., Washington State University, Laboratory of Anthropology), 1979.

18 Lynn Canal News, August 16, 1979, 3; October 15, 1981, 2; June 3, 1982, 6.

19 Lynn Canal News, January 15, 1981, 2; April 23, 1981, 2; April 30, 1981, 1.

20 Lynn Canal News, January 21, 1982, 1.

21 Carley, Inventory of Cultural Resources, 207-09, 225-27, 233-45, 471-72, 491-92. Carley

concluded that the Porcupine Hill cabin and other features dated from the winter of 1898-99,

when the WP&YR was being constructed up the east side of the valley. Several Skagway

oldtimers, however, feel that the cultural materials are related to Charles Nye, the owner of

the Home Power Company, who contemplated building a dam at the site during the 1920s.

Barbara Kalen interview, October 24, 1985; Dynes' Alaska Directory Company, Southeastern

Alaska Directory, 1921, 129.

22 Charles Konopa and Kathy Maurich, A Brief History of the White Pass Trail: Skagway

Bay to White Pass Summit, c. 1979, in KLSE Collection.

23 John A. Rutter (RD/PNRO) to James L. Nelson (Alaska Department of Highways),

January 21, 1974, in CF.

24 Luntey to State Director, Alaska, August 4, 1975, in CF.

25 NPS, Interpretive Prospectus, KLGO, 1976, 41; Pete Bathurst to Chief of Interpretation,

PNRO, February 8, 1978, in CF; Jay Cable, interview by author, June 30, 1995.

26 n.a., "Park Chronology," c. 1979, in "Special Events" file, KLSE Collection; Marc Sagan

and Dave Cohen, "Interpretive Work Program," February 1980, in "Klondike Special

Planning" file, AHC; SAR, 1980, 2; Jay Cable interview, May 30, 1995.

27 WP&YR, "Re-Live 'The Gold Rush Trail of '98'" (pamphlet), n.d.; NPS, Cultural and

Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, 19, 30; Skagway News, November 12, 1993, 2.

28 During the summer of 1986--four years after the railroad shut down--WP&YR official

Paul Taylor donated the Inspiration Point plaque to the NPS, noting that "we wanted the NPS

to have it because we know they will take good care of it." Acting Superintendent Jay Cable

accepted the plaque and soon afterward had it installed in the visitor center. Skagway News,

August 20, 1986, 11.

29 BLM, Historical Index, T26S, R60E, in Alaska State Office, BLM.

30 Skagway Resolution 81-12K, September 3, 1981; Lynn Canal News, September 10, 1981,

8. Why Taylor added the White Pass Unit to the resolution is uncertain. In his position as

WP&YR's manager for rail and Alaska operations, he may have felt that the NPS unit was an

encumbrance to rail operations; or, as a development-minded city official, he may have seen

an opportunity to strip the park of all land that was not being actively used.

31 Sims to Director AAO, December 28, 1979, in "KLGO Misc. Correspondence, 1977-1983"

file, AHC.
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32 NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO, 18-19, 30.

33 Skagway News, May 23, 1984, 2; SAR, 1989, 5; Clay Alderson to author, email, May 6,

1995.

34 Skagway News, November 1985, 3; March 1986, 5; Clay Alderson, interview by Sandra

Faulkner, September 29, 1989.

35 Author to Spude, May 21, 1986, in "Yukon and White Pass NHL/Correspondence" file,

NHL files, AKSO-RCR Collection; author to Spude, November 5, 1986, in "Norris Letters to

Spude" file, AHC; SAR, 1988, 2; Skagway News, March 13, 1992, 3.

36 Spude to Choate, September 17, 1986, in "Glenda Choate" file, AHC; author to Spude,

November 5, 1986, in "Norris Letters to Spude" file, AHC; SAR, 1988, 2; NPS,

"Supplementary Listing Record," February 26, 1991, in "KLGO-Final Nomination" file,

NRHP Files, AKSO-RCR Collection.

37 Skagway News, March 1987, 6; Edwin C. Bearss to Marvin P. Taylor, April 22, 1987, in

"Yukon and White Pass NHL/Correspondence" file; Karen Swanson-Iwamoto, "White Pass

and Yukon Route railroad, Canol Pipeline, Telecommunication line" NRHP Nomination

form, January 25, 1991; Karen Iwamoto, "Supplemental Information for the Determination of

Eligibility for the Canol 2 Pipeline & Telecommunication System," June 1991; all in NHL

files, AKSO-RCR Collection.

38 SAR, 1986, 1; Mark Bollinger and Frank Norris, "White Pass Field Investigations, 1986,"

in "Yukon and White Pass NHL/Correspondence" file, NHL files, AKSO-RCR Collection.

Both the report and the original slides are located in the KLGO Collection.

39 Bearss, Klondike Park Study; Minter, The White Pass: Gateway to the Klondike; Skagway

News, June 10, 1988, 5.

40 Skagway News, September 6, 1991, 1.

41 Skagway News, November 22, 1991, 5.

42 Chris Campbell, "An Archeological Reconnaissance Survey of Sections of the Brackett

Wagon Road and the Remains of the Scenic Viewing Station at Pitchfork Falls in

Conjunction with the Proposed Goat Lake Hydro Electric Project," January 16, 1994, in

"Yukon and White Pass/Misc. Information" file, NHL files, AKSO-RCR Collection;

Skagway News, June 10, 1994, 11.

43 Skagway News, June 14, 1996, 4. Since 1991, the location of the proposed penstock

between Goat Lake and the powerhouse has shifted from the north to the south side of

Pitchfork Falls. In early 1996, AP&T officials suggested that they might move the proposed

powerhouse from the east to the west side of Skagway River. Karl Gurcke to author, April

22, 1996.

44 Skagway News, October 29, 1993, 1.

45 Skagway News, November 24, 1993, 1.
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Chapter 11

1 Margaret A. Corley, "Pioneer Square National Register District Inventory and Boundaries,"

July 1969, in Urban Conservation Division files, City of Seattle; Pioneer Square Historic

District Bulletin 5 (October 1972), 7.

2 Pioneer Square Historic District Bulletin 5 (October 1972), 7; Bill Speidel, Seattle

Underground (Seattle, UnderGround Tours, 1968), 3; Katherine Krafft (Krafft and Krafft

Architects), interview by author, June 15, 1995.

3 Seattle City Planning Commission, Pioneer Square: A Report (Seattle, the author, August 6,

1959), 1-3.

4 Notable buildings that did not survive included the Seattle Hotel and the Olympic Block,

the latter being located at the southeast corner of First Avenue South and Yesler Way. The

Olympic Block had housed the Cooper and Levy Company, a popular gold rush supply

house. A corner of the building collapsed in 1972; it was immediately vacated and was

demolished in 1974. The lot on which it stood remained vacant for years afterward. Jill Novik

(Office of Urban Conservation, City of Seattle), interview by author, July 21, 1994; Katherine

Krafft interview, June 15, 1995; Corley, "Pioneer Square National Register District;" Speidel,

Seattle Underground, 3.

5 Bill Speidel, Seattle Underground, 2-3; Pioneer Square Business Improvement Area,

"Discovering Pioneer Square" (promotional booklet), c. 1990; "Pioneer Square," Bill

Speidel's Seattle Guide 67 (August 25-September 2, 1989), 30.

6 Corley, "Pioneer Square National Register District," July 1969; Pioneer Square Business

Improvement Area, "Discovering Pioneer Square;" NPS, KLGR Master Plan, 34-35; Pioneer

Square Historic District Bulletin, vols. 1-6, October 1972. The historic district has been

expanded twice since 1970. On July 7, 1978, its boundaries were extended to the northeast

and east; a decade later, they were extended to the southeast and south. The city's original

preservation ordinance, passed in May 1970, was Ordinance #98852; Ordinance #103655,

which provided for the district's first extension, was passed in July 1974.

7 Rutter to Uhlman, May 5, 1971; Bennett T. Gale to Henry M. Jackson, May 17, 1971;

Pegues to Cornell, addendum to June 8, 1971 memo; Minutes of First Meeting of the

Klondike Gold Rush International Advisory Committee, September 23, 1971; all in CF;

Seattle Times, August 1, 1971, B6.

8 Donald A. Purse to Chief, Office of Planning and Design, San Francisco Field Office,

December 6, 1971, in CF; Seattle Post-Intelligencer, July 5, 1972, A15; NPS, KLGR Master

Plan, 12.

9 Bennett T. Gale to Director, DSC, July 28, 1972; Joseph T. Shubert to Team

Manager/PNRO, DSC; Bennett T. Gale to Director DSC, April 20, 1973; all in CF; Seattle

Times, January 27, 1974, C1.

10 NPS, KLGR Master Plan, 34.

11 Don Campbell to Bruce K. Chapman, March 28, 1974; Bennett T. Gale to Bill Primavera

(Bellevue), March 26, 1974; both in CF.
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12 John Rutter to Arthur Coulter, February 1, 1974; Bill Speidel to NPS, November 26, 1975;

both in CF.

13 George Duncan to Joel Pritchard, May 23, 1976; Burl Tudor to Don Campbell, June 18,

1976; both in CF. Duncan's building was located at 313-317 First Avenue South. The NPS

also received several lease proposals from individuals whose properties were located outside

of Pioneer Square; those replies were politely rebuffed by agency officials because the

pending legislation would exclude those properties from consideration.

14 Daniel J. Evans to Stan Hathaway, July 1, 1975, in CF.

15 Ralph Munro to Glenn Gallison, July 11, 1975; Don Campbell to Glenn Gallison, July 23,

1975; John Rutter to Wes Uhlman, July 24, 1975; Kent Frizzell to Gov. Evans, September 4,

1975; all in CF.

16 Ralph Munro, in "House of Representatives, Transcripts of Proceedings, Hearing Held

Before Subcommittee on National Parks and Recreation of the Committee on Internal and

Insular Affairs, H.R. 1194...," Monday, November 17, 1975, Serial No. 94-42 (Washington,

GPO, 1977), p. 39. The Seattle Unit of the park received no funding until Fiscal Year 1978;

perhaps for that reason, none of the ideas suggested by Washington state officials were ever

implemented by the NPS. The Alaska-Yukon Pioneers, a group which had originally

suggested the Carmack memorial marker, erected such a marker in August 1975 using its

own funds, as noted in James Albert Johnson's, Carmack of the Klondike (Seattle, Epicenter

Press, 1990), 157. The Maud Building and the Carmack home were restored with private

funds. No Klondike sculpture has yet been erected in the Pioneer Square area.

17 Glenn Gallison to Peter Bennett, January 16, 1973, in File L58, AHC; Don Campbell to

Bruce K. Chapman, March 28, 1974; Ralph Munro to John Rutter, March 4, 1974; both in

CF.

18 The larger-sized historic district, as noted above, was not established until July 1978.

19 Bruce Chapman, Joel Pritchard, and Brock Adams to Dr. Horace Sheely, June 1, 1975;

Cornelius W. Heine to Chapman, September 1, 1975; Louise Dewey to Wes Uhlman, etc,

December 1, 1975, all in CF; Douglas M. Whisman to Robert B. Moore, July 25, 1973, in

"KLGO General (Planning)" folder; "Pioneer Square," Bill Speidel's Seattle Guide, 30. *

20 U.S. Senate, Report to Accompany S. 98 (Calendar No. 158, Report 94-166), June 2, 1975,

p. 6.

21 Dickenson to Directorate, PNRO, July 14, 1976, in L58, AHC.

22 Ibid.; Dickenson to ARD/M&O, December 7, 1976, in CF; Thompson to Chief, I&VS,

December 7, 1976, in CF.

23 Ira Whitlock (Acting Associate Director, Legislation) to RD/PNRO, August 17, 1976, in

L58, AHC.

24 Dickenson to ARD/M&O, December 7, 1976; ARD/M&O to Chief, I&VS, December 7,

1976; both in L58, AHC; ARD/M&O to Chief, I&VS, January 11, 1977; Chief, U&EA to

ARD/M&O, January 13, 1977, in "KLSE Space Acquisition File, 7/76-11/77," KLSE; Carlos

A. Young (SAE) to Earl Chase (NPS), June 7, 1977, in "K1817 Interpretive Planning, FY 79"
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file, KLSE.

25 Dickenson to Directorate, PNRO, July 14, 1976; Edward J. Kurtz to Burl Tudor, July 21,

1976, in CF; James B. Thompson to Duncan, August 10, 1976, in CF.

26 NPS to J. Wayne Roy (GSA), August 23, 1976, in "KLSE Space Acquisition File, 7/76-

11/77," KLSE; Dickenson to ARD/M&O, December 7, 1976, in CF.

27 James B. Thompson to George Duncan, August 10, 1976, in CF; Louis C. Warner

(President, Systems Architects Engineers, Inc.) to Earl Chase, September 14, 1976, in CF.

28 ARD/M&O to Chief, I&VS, December 7, 1976, in "KLSE Space Acquisition, 7/76-11/77"

file, KLSE Collection; Pioneer Square Association, Pioneer Square Newsletter 5 (March 11,

1977); Seattle Times, March 20, 1977, B14.

29 Edward J. Kurtz to Burl Tudor, July 21, 1976; William L. Carpenter, (Director, M&O,

OSI) to J. Wayne Roy (GSA), September 7, 1976; both in CF.

30 Dickenson to David L. Head (GSA), October 27, 1976; Charles Gebler (Chief, I&VS) to

ARD/M&O, January 6, 1977; both in "KLSE Space Acquisition File, 7/76-11/77," KLSE.

The site not picked, at 612 First Avenue, was the Howard Building. The current (1996) firstfloor Howard Building occupants are the Pioneer Square Pizza shop and Klondike Sam's

delicatessen.

31 Dickenson to David Head (GSA), January 12, 1977; Chief, U&EA to ARD/M&O, January

13, 1977; Glenn Hinsdale to ARD/M&O, January 27, 1977; all in "KLSE Space Acquisition

File, 7/76-11/77," KLSE; Seattle Times, March 20, 1977, B14; NPS, Resource Management

Plan, KLSE, December 21, 1981, 4. The site was established by publication in the Federal

Register 42 (June 21, 1977), 31501.

32 Russ Hendricks to Chief, I&VS, March 4, 1977, in CF; Glenn Hinsdale (Chief, U&EA) to

ARD/M&O, January 13, 1977; James Richardson to Glenn Hinsdale, March 10, 1977; both in

"KLSE Space Acquisition, 7/76-11/77" file, KLSE.

33 Carlos A. Young (SAE) to Earl Chase (NPS), June 7, 1977, in "K1817 Interpretive

Planning" file; Charles Gebler to Jim Thompson, September 22, 1977, in "KLSE Space

Acquisition File, 7/76-11/77;" Gebler to Temple A. Reynolds (ARD/M&O), January 25,

1979; Michael R. Sorenson to Karl Popp, April 9, 1979; both in "KLSE Space Acquisition

File, 1/78-4/79;" all at KLSE.

34 Hinsdale to ARD/M&O, May 23, 1977; Hinsdale to RD/PNRO, August 17, 1977; both in

"KLSE Space Acquisition File, 7/76-11/77," KLSE.

35 Chief, U&EA to Chief, I&VS, April 27, 1978; NPS to R. Allan Strader, June 26, 1978;

NPS to Strader, September 15, 1978; Henry Dun (GSA) to Strader, April 23, 1979; all in

"KLSE Space Acquisition File, 1/78-4/79," KLSE.

36 Seattle Times, March 20, 1977, B14; Higgins to Ed Holm, September 29, 1977, in CF;

Richard E. Hoffman (Supt. KLGR) to Heath Pemberton (HFC), December 12, 1977, in CF;

W. C. Quick (PNRO) to Charles Guetle (GSA), November 28, 1978, in "KLSE Space

Acquisition File, 1/78-4/79," KLSE; NPS, NPS, Resource Management Plan, KLSE,

November 1993, 1; GSA "U.S. Government Lease for Real Property" No. GS-10B-04523,
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May 27, 1977, KLSE.

37 R. E. Hoffman to Director AAO, October 21, 1977, in CF.

38 Temple A. Reynolds (ARD/M&O) to Charles Gebler & Glenn Hinsdale, January 15, 1979,

in "KLSE Space Acquisition, 1/78-4/79" file, KLSE.

39 Chief, I&VS to Ruben Sierra, March 22, 1978; Barry Pritchard to Rocky Richardson,

November 20, 1978; both in "K1817 Interpretive Planning, FY 79" file, KLSE.

40 Chief, I&VS to ARD/M&O, January 25, 1979; Chief, U&EA to ARD/M&O, January 29,

1979; both in "KLSE Space Acquisition, 1/78-4/79" file, KLSE.

41 Charles Guetle (GSA) to Dickenson, March 15, 1979; Gebler to ARD/M&O, March 30,

1979; Reynolds to Chief, I&VS, April 3, 1979; all in "KLSE Space Acquisition File, 1/78-

4/79," KLSE.

42 Edward J. Kurtz to Louis C. Warner (SAE), April 10, 1979; Chief, I&VS to Chief, U&EA,

April 12, 1979. SAE had installed the exhibits by April 10, soon after Hinsdale uttered his

warning plea.

43 Chief, U&EA to ARD/M&O, January 13, 1977; Chief, I&VS to Chief, U&EA, April 12,

1979; ARD/M&O to Chief, I&VS, May 10, 1979; all in "KLSE Space Acquisition, 1/78-

4/79" file, KLSE Collection.

44 Dickenson to Directorate, PNRO, July 14, 1976, in L58, AHC.

45 Chief, U&EA to ARD/M&O, April 19, 1979, in "KLSE Space Acquisition" file, 1/78-

4/79," KLSE. See Chapter 12 for a list of the video offerings.

46 Charles Konopa, A Bibliography of the Klondike Gold Rush, January 1979, 55 pp.;

Konopa, Seattle Bibliography: The Early and Turn-of-the-Century Gold Rush Days, February

1979, 7 pp.

47 Chief, U&EA to ARD/M&O, January 29, 1979; Chief, U&EA to ARD/M&O, April 19,

1979, in "KLSE Space Acquisition, 1/78-4/79" file, KLSE.

48 Seattle Times, May 13, 1979; Seattle Post-Intelligencer, June 1, 1979, 206; June 3, 1979,

A3; NPS, Interpretation and Visitor Services Staff Meeting Notes, June 7, 1979, KLSE; Press

Release (undated), "K3415 News Media" file, KLSE.

Chapter 12

1 Chief, I&VS to ARD/M&O, August 13, 1979, KLSE; Supervisory Ranger, KLSE to

ARD/M&O, June 6, 1980, in File A2623 ("Reports; Situation, 1977-81"), KLSE; NPS,

Resource Management Plan, KLSE, December 21, 1981, 16; Elaine Hounsell, interview by

author, October 26, 1994; Mike Gurling to author, January 13, 1995.

2 NPS, "Superintendent's Annual Report," KLSE (hereafter known as SAR), 1982, 2; SAR,

1985, 4; Willie Russell, interview by Sandra Faulkner, August 31, 1989; Mike Gurling to
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author, January 13, 1995.

3 SAR, 1986, 3; SAR, 1987, 2; NPS, Statement for Management, KLSE, June 1990, 14;

Willie Russell interview, August 31, 1989; Elaine Hounsell interview, October 26, 1994.

4 ARD/M&O to Chief, I&VS, June 26, 1979; NPS, "Operations Evaluation, KLSE," March

25-27, 1987, in "Miscellaneous Inactive Records" file, KLSE.

5 SAR, 1980, 2; NPS, Statement for Interpretation, KLSE, June 1981, 11; Willie Russell,

interview by author, October 19, 1994; Elaine Hounsell interview, October 26, 1994.

6 Chief, U&EA to ARD/M&O, April 19, 1979; ARD/M&O to Chief, I&VS, May 10, 1979;

both in KLSE Collection.

7 NPS, Annual Statement for Interpretation and Visitor Services, KLSE, June 1981, 11;

Willie Russell, interview by author, July 21, 1994.

8 NPS, Resource Management Plan, KLSE, November 23, 1993, 1; GSA, "U.S. Government

Lease for Real Property," May 27, 1977, KLSE.

9 NPS, Statement for Management, KLSE, June 1990, 14; SAR, 1991, 3; John M. Morehead

to "Follower of National Park Planning," June 15, 1992; GSA, "U.S. Government Lease for

Real Property" for Lease No. GS-10B-05386, (September 14, 1987) and for Lease No. GS10B-05696, (February 28, 1992).

10 The noise problem was resolved through cooperation with fellow tenants, and by pointing

out to them that the park's noise levels remained within legal limits. Supervisory Ranger

KLSE to ARD/M&O, June 6, 1980; SAR, 1989, 3; SAR, 1991, 3; Willie Russell interview,

October 19, 1994.

11 Laurin Huffman interview, October 19, 1994.

12 Willie Russell, interview by author, May 5, 1995.

13 NPS, Statement for Management, KLSE, February 7, 1983, 16; NPS, Statement for

Management, KLSE, June 1990, 17.

14 Tobin to Supt. Russell (KLSE), Interpretive Prospectus cover letter, May 15, 1985; NPS,

Resource Management Plan, KLSE, July 1986.

15 NPS, "Operations Evaluation, KLSE," March 25-27, 1987, in "Miscellaneous Inactive

Records" file, KLSE.

16 Willie Russell interview, October 19, 1994.

17 SAR, 1989, 3; SAR, 1993, 1; Willie Russell interview, July 21, 1994.

18 Willie Russell interview, May 5, 1995.

19 Mike Gurling to author, January 13, 1995.

20 Chief, U&EA to ARD/M&O, January 13, 1977; Chief, I&VS to Chief, U&EA, April 12,
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1979; ARD/M&O to Chief, I&VS, May 10, 1979; all at KLSE; U.S. Department of the

Interior, U.S. Department of the Interior Budget Justifications, Fiscal Year 1982; Elaine

Hounsell interview, October 26, 1994.

21 RD to ARD/M&O, July 12, 1979; ARD/M&O to Chief, I&VS, July 13, 1979; ARD/M&O

to Maxon, August 16, 1979; all at KLSE; Elaine Hounsell interview, October 26, 1994.

22 RD/PNRO to Maxon, June 24, 1980, KLSE; SAR, 1980, 1.

23 U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Department of the Interior Budget Justifications,

1982 through 1995; Elaine Hounsell interview, October 26, 1994.

24 SAR, 1983, 1; Willie Russell interview, August 31, 1989; Elaine Hounsell interview,

October 26, 1994.

25 SAR, various years, 1980-1993.

26 Willie Russell interview, August 31, 1989. Soto worked from 1982 until 1988, while Rose

worked on a permanent basis from 1984 through 1993 after having served in two seasonal

appointments.

27 In 1990, for example, park staff had to cancel its off-site programs due to the lack of

staffing; two years later, park staff noted that the visitation figures had not grown due to lack

of staff time to work on press releases. SAR, 1990, 2, and SAR, 1992, 2.

28 NPS, "Operations Evaluation, KLSE," March 25-27, 1987; SAR, 1993, 1.

29 Willie Russell interview, July 21, 1994; Paul Henderson, interview by Sandra Faulkner,

August 22, 1988. The 1993 SAR, p. 1, dramatized the problem of insufficient pay when it

noted that "Park Ranger Edward Haeger resigned in October due to experiencing a financial

hardship living in the Seattle area on GS-5 wages."

30 Elaine Hounsell interview, October 26, 1994; Willie Russell interview, July 21, 1994.

31 NPS, Statement for Interpretation, KLSE (draft), 1989, 19; USDI, Department of the

Interior Budget in Brief, fiscal years 1982-1995; U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract,

1993 (Washington, GPO, 1992), 481.

32 William Ingersoll, Interpretive Prospectus, KLGR, June 3, 1977, 19-27.

33 Chief, U&EA to ARD/M&O, April 19, 1979, KLSE; SAR, 1980, 2; SAR, 1981, 4; NPS,

Interpretive Prospectus, KLSE (Harpers Ferry, the author, April 1985), 13, 17.

34 Maxon to ARD/M&O, September 28, 1979, KLSE.

35 SAR, 1980, 1; SAR, 1981, 4. In 1986, the Washington State Parks Commission joined the

NPS and USFS in sponsoring the JIO; in April 1990, the center was moved back to the new

Federal Building. SAR, 1986, 2; SAR, 1993, 1; Elaine Hounsell interview, October 26, 1994.

36 In 1982, the PNNPA became known as the Pacific Northwest National Parks and Forests

Association; in 1990, it changed its name again to the Northwest Interpretive Association.

Receipts during the first year's operation (FY 1981) totalled $1,848. Michael Murphy to
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author, email, September 28, 1994; SAR, 1990, 2; Joanne Conrad, interview by author,

October 19, 1994; Appendix C. The Joint Information Office, noted above, also sold

interpretive materials through the cooperating association; JIO receipts sometimes exceeded

those of Klondike-Seattle's.

37 SAR, 1981, 3; SAR, 1982, 3; SAR, 1984, 3; SAR, 1985, 4; NPS, Statement for

Management, KLSE, April 25, 1980, 14.

38 The 1981 brochure was revised or reprinted in 1991 and 1993, and perhaps also in

intervening years. Audrey Mesford and Michael E. Gurling, Scope of Collections, KLSE,

September 15, 1980; Supervisory Ranger KLSE to ARD/M&O, June 6, 1980; SAR, 1980, 2;

SAR, 1981, 4. In 1996, staff in the Seattle and Alaska units began work on a combined park

folder.

39 Chief, U&EA to ARD/M&O, April 19, 1979; SAR, 1982, 3; NPS, Statement for

Interpretation, KLSE (draft), 1989, 7; Elaine Hounsell interview, October 26, 1994.

40 SAR, 1982, 3; Supt. KLSE to ARD/M&O, Statement for Interpretation and Visitor

Services (updated), December 8, 1982; NPS, Statement for Interpretation, KLSE (draft),

1989, 24.

41 SAR for 1982 (p. 3), 1983 (pp. 2-3), 1984 (p. 2), 1985 (p. 3), 1986 (p. 2), 1987 (p. 2), and

1988 (p. 3).

42 SAR, 1983, 3; NPS, Statement for Management, KLSE, February 7, 1983, 16; SAR, 1984,

3; SAR, 1985, 4.

43 NPS, Interpretive Prospectus, KLSE, April 1985, 14-16, 21; NPS, Statement for

Management, KLSE, December 1985, 19-27; NPS, Statement for Interpretation, KLSE

(draft), 1989, 7.

44 NPS, Statement for Management, KLSE, April 25, 1980, 1; SAR, 1982, 3.

45 SAR, 1983, 4; NPS, Interpretive Prospectus, KLSE, April 1985, 20; SAR, 1985, 4.

46 Willie Russell interview, August 31, 1989 and October 19, 1994; NPS, Statement for

Management, KLSE, June 1990, 16.

47 In 1993, Satterfield completed Klondike Park: from Seattle to Dawson City, which in some

ways fulfilled the ideas which Gurling had suggested eight years earlier. Archie Satterfield to

Mike Gurling, October 15, 1985; Willie Russell to Acting RD/PNRO, December 9, 1985;

James A. Richardson to Frank Deckert (ARO), March 20, 1986; all in "KLGO Handbook

Proposal" file, AH Collection.

48 SAR, 1982, 2; NPS, Statement for Management, KLSE, February 7, 1983, 9.

49 SAR, 1987, 3; SAR, 1988, 3; SAR, 1990, 2; NPS, Statement for Management, KLSE, June

1990, 1.

50 SAR, 1987, 3; SAR, 1988, 3; Willie Russell interview, August 31, 1989.

51 SAR, 1988, 3; SAR, 1990, 1; SAR, 1992, 2.
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52 SAR, 1990, 2; Willie Russell interview, October 19, 1994.

53 SAR, 1993, 1; Karl Gurcke, interview by author, October 26, 1994.

54 Chief, U&EA to ARD/M&O, January 29, 1979; ARD/M&O to Chief, I&VS, February 20,

1979; ARD/M&O to Chief, I&VS, May 10, 1979; Chief, I&VS to ARO/M&O, August 13,

1979; all at KLSE; Mike Gurling to author, January 13, 1995.

55 Chief, I&VS to ARD/M&O, September 5, 1979, KLSE; SAR, 1980, 2; SAR, 1981, 2;

SAR, 1982, 2; SAR, 1983, 2; Paul Henderson interview, August 22, 1988.

56 NPS, Interpretive Prospectus, KLSE, April 1985, 11; SAR, 1988, 4; SAR, 1990, 1; SAR,

1992, 3; SAR, 1993, 5.

57 SAR, 1980, 2; NPS, Statement for Management, KLSE, April 25, 1980, 9.

58 SAR, 1987, 2; SAR, 1988, 4; SAR, 1989, 4.

59 SAR, 1982, 2; SAR, 1983, 2; SAR, 1989, 4-5; SAR, 1990, 2; SAR, 1984, 3-4.

60 Willie Russell interview, August 31, 1989; SAR, 1985, 3.

61 Willie Russell interview, August 31, 1989; SAR, 1987, 2; SAR, 1988, 4; SAR, 1989, 4;

SAR, 1990, 1; SAR, 1992, 2.

62 SAR, 1988, 3; SAR, 1989, 3; SAR, 1990, 2; SAR, 1992, 2; Willie Russell interview,

October 18, 1994.

63 Elaine Hounsell interview, October 26, 1994.

64 SAR, 1988, 4; SAR, 1989, 3; Willie Russell interview, October 19, 1994.

65 SAR, 1987, 2; SAR, 1989, 3.

66 SAR, 1993, 2.

67 Mesford and Gurling, Scope of Collections Statement, KLSE, September 15, 1980, 1;

SAR, 1980, 2; Tod Haskell (KLSE), interview by author, February 23, 1995.

68 SAR, 1980, 2; SAR, 1981, 3; Diana Pardue, Lynnette Arthur, and Kent Bush, Collections

Management Plan, KLSE, August 1984, 5.

69 NPS, Statement for Interpretation, KLSE (draft), 1989, 9; NPS, Resource Management

Plan, KLSE, November 23, 1993, 2.

70 SAR, 1988, 3.

71 Pardue, Arthur, and Bush, Collections Management Plan, KLSE, August 1984, 3, 5; SAR,

1981, 3.

72 NPS, Resource Management Plan, KLSE, December 21, 1981, 5, 14; SAR, 1982, 2; SAR,
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1983, 3.

73 SAR, 1987, 2; SAR, 1988, 3.

74 NPS, Resource Management Plan, KLSE, December 21, 1981, 2; SAR, 1988, 3; SAR,

1989, 2; SAR, 1990, 1.

75 SAR, 1989, 4; SAR, 1990, 1, 2.

76 Chief, I&VS to Chief, U&EA, June 18, 1979, KLSE; Mesford and Gurling, Scope of

Collections Statement, KLSE, September 15, 1980.

77 NPS, Resource Management Plan, KLSE, December 21, 1981; Ibid., February 11, 1983;

Ibid., April 18, 1984.

78 SAR, 1983, 3; Pardue, Arthur, and Bush, Collections Management Plan, KLSE, August

1984.

79 SAR, 1990, 1; SAR, 1991, 3; NPS, Resource Management Plan, KLSE, November 23,

1993, 3.

80 Chief, U&EA to ARD/M&O, January 29, 1979; NPS, Statement for Interpretation, KLSE

(draft), 1989, 9; SAR, 1993, 1.

81 SAR, 1980, 2; SAR, 1987, 2; NPS, Resource Management Plan, KLSE, November 23,

1993, 3.

82 Chief, U&EA to ARD/M&O, January 29, 1979; Konopa, A Bibliography of the Klondike

Gold Rush, January 1979; Konopa, Seattle Bibliography, February 1979.

83 Maxon to ARD/M&O, November 26, 1979; SAR, 1987, 4; Robert F. Hogg, Ambition and

Ability; A History of Moran Brothers Company, With an Emphasis on its Role in the

Klondike Gold Rush, July 28, 1986.

84 Willie Russell interview, July 21, 1994.

<<< Previous <<< Contents>>> Next >>>

adhi/notes.htm

Last Updated: 24-Sep-2000
Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Selected Bibliography)

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KLONDIKE GOLD RUSH

Legacy of the Gold Rush:

An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

I. Archival Collections

Alaska State Archives (ASA), Juneau:

 Alaska Development Board Records (RG 314)

 Department of Commerce and Economic Development (RG 08)

 Department of Economic Development (RG 15)

 Department of Health and Social Services (RG 06)

 Records of the State Governor (RG 01)

 Records of the Territorial Governor (RG 101)

Denver Public Library:

 Theodor (Ted) Swem Collection

National Archives, Alaska Region, Anchorage (NARA ANC):

 Bureau of Public Roads/Alaska Road Commission Collection (RG 30)

 U.S. Census Bureau Collection (RG 29)

National Park Service:

 Alaska System Support Office (AKSO), Anchorage:

 Cultural Resources (RCR) Collection

 Harpers Ferry Center, Harpers Ferry, West Virginia:

 National Park Service History Collection

 Klondike Gold Rush NHP (KLGO), Skagway:

 Administrative History Collection (AHC)

 Archives (RG 70)

 Central (Working) Files

 Chief Ranger's Files

 Historical (Library) Collection

 Photograph Collection

 Klondike Gold Rush NHP (KLSE), Seattle:

 Manuscript Collection

Parks Canada, Whitehorse:

 Chilkoot Trail Historical Collection.

State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO), Anchorage:

 Historic Preservation Grant Files.

Trail of '98 Museum Collection, Skagway:

 Skagway City Council Minutes

University of Alaska, Fairbanks (UAF):
Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Selected Bibliography)

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 E. L. "Bob" Bartlett Collection

 Ernest Gruening Collection

 Ralph Rivers Collection

White Pass and Yukon Route (WP&YR) Company Archives, Skagway.

White Pass and Yukon Route Collection, Yukon Archives, Whitehorse.

IIa. Government Reports (Federal)

Atwood, N. Duane, KLGO, Ecological Reconnaissance Inventory, final report (Juneau,

NPS/USFS), March 1994.

Battelle Memorial Institute, Transport Requirements for the Growth of Northwest North

America, 87th Congress, 1st Session, House Document 176, volume 2 (Washington, D.C.,

GPO), May 25, 1961.

Bearss, Edwin C., Proposed Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park: Historic

Resources Study (briefly cited as Klondike Park Study) (Washington, D.C., NPS Office of

Archeology and Historic Preservation), November 15, 1970.

Blee, Catherine H., Archeological Investigations in Skagway, Alaska, Volume I: The White

Pass and Yukon Route Broadway Depot and General Offices Buildings, Klondike Gold Rush

National Historical Park (Denver, NPS), September 1983.

Blee, Catherine Holder, Archeological Investigations in Skagway, Alaska, Volume 2: The

Moore House and Cabin, Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Denver, NPS), 1988.

Blee, Catherine H., Robert L. Spude, and Paul C. Cloyd, Historic Structure Reports for Ten

Buildings: Administrative, Physical History and Analysis Sections, Klondike Gold Rush

National Historical Park, Skagway, Alaska (Denver, NPS), January 1984.

Cloyd, Paul, Historic Structure Report, Administrative Section, Physical History and Analysis

Section, White Pass and Yukon Route, Broadway Depot and General Offices Building,

KLGO, Alaska (Denver, NPS), April 1981.

Cogswell, Marilee, comp., Legislative History for Klondike Gold Rush National Historical

Park, Washington and Alaska, 93rd Congress through 96th Congress, Volume I (Seattle,

NPS), April 1986.

Copeland, Randall, Design Guidelines for Skagway Historic District, c. 1981.

Ingersoll, William, Interpretive Prospectus, KLGR, June 3, 1977.

Jones, Russell, Preliminary Estimate for Restoration and Stabilization of Buildings, Skagway

(Denver, NPS), August 1972.

Konopa, Charles, A Bibliography of the Klondike Gold Rush, January 1979.

Konopa, Charles, and Kathy Maurich, A Brief History of the White Pass Trail: Skagway Bay

to White Pass Summit, c. 1979.

Konopa, Charles, Seattle Bibliography: The Early and Turn-of-the-Century Gold Rush Days,

February 1979.
Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Selected Bibliography)

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Mackintosh, Barry, C&O Canal: The Making of a Park (Washington, NPS), 1991.

Mackintosh, Barry, The Historic Sites Survey and National Historic Landmarks Program: A

History (Washington, NPS), 1985.

Mesford, Audrey, and Michael E. Gurling, Scope of Collections, KLSE, September 15, 1980.

National Park Service, Commercial Visitor Service Directory, editions of December 1994 and

August 1995.

NPS, Cultural and Natural Resource Management Plan, KLGO (draft), February 1982.

NPS, Cultural Landscape Report for the Capt. William Moore Cabin, J. Bernard Moore

House, Peniel Mission, and Pullen House Sites (Denver, the author), September 1995.

NPS, Federal Historic Preservation Laws (Washington, the author), 1993.

NPS, Final Environmental Statement: Proposed Klondike Gold Rush National Historical

Park, briefly cited as FES/KLGO (Seattle?, the author), 1974.

NPS, Interpretive Prospectus, KLGO (Harpers Ferry, the author), October 1981.

NPS, Interpretive Prospectus, KLSE (Harpers Ferry, the author), April 1985.

NPS, Land Acquisition Plan, KLGO, draft for public comment, March 1, 1980.

NPS, Land Protection Plan, KLGO, 1984.

NPS, National Historic Landmarks: A Preservation Program of the National Park Service

(Washington, the author), 1976.

NPS, Project Prospectus, Preservation of Historic Railroad Structures, Proposed Klondike

Gold Rush National Historical Park, October 1969.

NPS, Proposed Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park Master Plan, preliminary

working draft (briefly cited as KLGO Master Plan Draft), March 1971.

NPS, Proposed Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, Master Plan (briefly cited as

KLGO Master Plan) (Denver, the author), May 1973. Updated in October 1976.

NPS, Public Review of Preliminary Alternatives for KLGO General Management Plan,

Skagway, Alaska and Seattle, Washington, Summer 1993.

NPS, Resource Management Plan, KLSE, December 21, 1981; July 1986; and November 23,

1993.

NPS, Scope of Collections, KLGO, December 3, 1982 and April 4, 1988.

NPS, Skagway, A Study of Alternatives, preliminary working draft (San Francisco?, the

author), March 1969.

NPS, Statement for Interpretation, KLGO, FY 1994.

NPS, Statement for Interpretation, KLSE, June 1981 and 1989 (draft).

NPS, Statement for Management, KLSE, April 25, 1980; February 7, 1983; December 1985;
Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Selected Bibliography)

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and June 1990.

National Survey of Historic Sites and Buildings, Theme XXI, Political and Military Affairs,

1865-1910: Special Study, Alaska History, 1741-1910 (Washington, NPS), 1961.

Orth, Donald J., Dictionary of Alaska Place Names, U.S. Geological Survey, Professional

Paper 567 (Washington, GPO), 1967.

Pardue, Diana, and Donald Cumberland, Collection Preservation Guide, KLGO, June 1983.

Pardue, Diana, Lynnette Arthur, and Kent Bush, Collections Management Plan, KLSE,

August 1984.

Paustian, Steve, Susan Trull, Rick Foster, and Brad Krieckhaus, Klondike Gold Rush

National Historical Park Ecological Reconnaissance Inventory, Final Report (Sitka, U.S.

Forest Service), 1994.

Pilk, Robert, Connie Rudd, and Paul Cloyd, Cultural Landscape Assessment for the Peniel

Mission, Captain Moore Cabin, J. Bernard Moore House and Pullen House Sites, 90% Draft

(Denver, NPS), December 1993.

Rhodes, Diane Lee, Archeological Investigations in Skagway, Alaska, Volume 3: The Mill

Creek Dump and the Peniel Mission (Denver, NPS), 1988.

Schwatka, Lt. Frederick, "A Military Reconnaissance in Alaska," Senate Document 1023

(Washington, GPO), 1888.

Sheetz, Ronald E., Alan M. Levitan, and Bart Rogers, Condition Survey Report of Chilkoot

Trail (KLGO) Artifacts (draft), 1994.

Snow, David E., and Robert L. Spude, Historic Structure Report, The Mascot Saloon Group,

Historic Buildings 35H, 35G, and 35F, Historical and Architectural Data Sections, Klondike

Gold Rush National Historical Park, Skagway, Alaska (Denver, NPS), September 1981.

Spude, Catherine Holder, Douglas D. Scott, and Frank Norris, Archeological Investigations in

Skagway, Alaska, Volume 4: Father Turnell's Trash Pit, Klondike Gold Rush National

Historical Park, Alaska (Denver, NPS), August 1993.

Spude, Robert L., comp., Chilkoot Trail: From Dyea to Summit with the '98 Stampeders,

Occasional Paper No. 26 (Fairbanks, University of Alaska Cooperative Park Studies Unit),

1980.

Spude, Robert L. S., Skagway, District of Alaska, 1884-1912: Building the Gateway to the

Klondike, Occasional Paper No. 36 (Fairbanks, Univ. of Alaska Cooperative Park Studies

Unit), September 1983.

Stanton, William J., Economic Aspects of Recreation in Alaska, Part 1, Volume 1 of Alaska

Recreation Survey (Washington, NPS), 1953.

Thomas, William R., Alaska Gold Rush Trails Study, preliminary draft (Anchorage, Bureau

of Outdoor Recreation), 1975.

U.S. Census Bureau, Statistical Abstract, 1993 (Washington, GPO), 1992.

U.S. Department of the Interior, Alaska: A Reconnaissance Report on the Potential

Development of Water Resources in the Territory of Alaska for Irrigation, Power Production
Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Selected Bibliography)

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and Other Beneficial Uses (House Document 197, 82nd Congress, 1st Session), January

1952.

U.S. Department of the Interior, Department of the Interior Budget in Brief (Washington,

GPO), fiscal years 1982-1995.

U.S. Department of the Interior, Rampart Project, Alaska: Market for Power and Effect on

Natural Resources, vol. 2 (Juneau, the author), January 1965.

U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Department of the Interior Budget Justifications,

various years, 1978-1995.

IIb. NPS Contract Reports and Other Unpublished Reports

Adams, William Hampton, and David R. Brauner, Historical Archaeology in Skagway,

Alaska; Archaeological Overview and Assessment of the Downtown Skagway Unit, KLGO

(Philomath, Ore., Wabana Press), 1991.

Barron, James C. and Kenneth L. Casavant, Economic Impact of Proposed Klondike Gold

Rush National Historical Park, Skagway, Alaska, December 1974.

Bomhoff and Associates, Inc., Corps of Engineers, Alaska District, Dyea Erosion Study,

April 1975.

Carley, Caroline D., Inventory of Cultural Resources in Klondike Gold Rush National

Historical Park (Seattle, Office of Public Archaeology, University of Washington,

Reconnaissance Report No. 40), 1981.

Corley, Margaret A., "Pioneer Square National Register District Inventory and Boundaries,"

July 1969.

Davis, Craig W., The Old Dyea or Native Cemetery Excavation and Exhumation Project

Report, unpub. mss., 1978.

Ertec Northwest, Additional Cultural Resources Survey and Summary Assessment of the

West Creek Hydroelectric Project (Anchorage, the author), March 25, 1983.

Gurcke, Karl, Archeological Features Found in the Dyea and Chilkoot Trail Unit, KLGO,

unpub. mss., June 1995.

Gurcke, Karl, Cultural Resources Along the Chilkoot Trail: Trailhead to Finnegan's Point,

unpub. mss., 1986.

Gurcke, Karl, Gold Rush Archeology: The Surveying and Testing of Dyea, Alaska, 1984-85,

unpub. mss., 1986.

Gurcke, Karl, "KLGO, History of Cultural Resource Projects," unpub. mss., February 1995.

Gurcke, Karl, and Frank Norris, "Historical Overview of Four Vacant Tracts at KLGO,

Skagway, Alaska," unpub. mss., 1988.

Gurcke, Karl, and Frank Norris, "Archeological Clearance Report: The Myrick

Tract/Administrative Site Clearance," unpub. mss., 1988.

Hogg, Robert F., Ambition and Ability; A History of Moran Brothers Company, With an
Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Selected Bibliography)

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Emphasis on its Role in the Klondike Gold Rush, July 28, 1986.

Jones and Jones, Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park, Skagway, Alaska: Conceptual

Master Plan for Landscaping in the Historic District, June 1994.

NPS, "Superintendent's Annual Report" (SAR), KLGO, 1982 to present.

NPS, "Superintendent's Annual Report" (SAR), KLSE, 1980 to present.

Norris, Frank and Carol Taylor, Historic Structures and Sites, Dyea and the Chilkoot Trail,

unpub. mss., 1986.

Spude, Robert L., "Historic Use of the Chilkoot Trail, Alaska," data compiled for BLM Case

File AA-37758, Klondike Gold Rush N.H.P. (Anchorage, NPS), March 1984.

Wellenhoffer, Candace, Frank Norris, and Karl Gurcke, "Personnel List for the U.S. and

Canadian Parks in Skagway and Along the Chilkoot Trail," unpub. mss., 1996.

Wells, Stephen, Skagway: A Frontier Community Investing Its Past in Its Future (Seattle,

CPSU), March 1978.

Womble, Peter, Wendy Wolf, and Donald R. Field, Hikers on the Chilkoot Trail: A

Descriptive Report (Seattle, CPSU), January 1978.

IIc. Government Reports (Territorial, State, or Municipal)

Alaska Department of Fish and Game, Public Law 96-487, Alaska National Interest Lands

Conservation Act, Legislative History, Volume XL: Section-By-Section Progress Analysis,

unpub. mss., Fall 1981.

Alaska Department of Health and Welfare, Youth and Adult Authority, Annual Report, 1965.

Alaska Department of Highways, Skagway to Canadian Border: Draft Environmental Impact

Statement, 1972.

Alaska Department of Natural Resources, The Chilkoot Trail: A Guide to the Goldrush Trail

of '98 (Juneau, the author), editions of 1968, 1972, and 1974.

Alaska Department of Natural Resources, [Haines-Skagway area] Resource Inventory, draft,

Volume I of land use study (Anchorage, the author), June 1978.

Alaska Department of Natural Resources, Haines-Skagway Area Landmark Planning Study,

Regional Analysis, draft, Volume II of land use study (Anchorage?, the author), June 1978.

Alaska Department of Natural Resources, Haines-Skagway Area Land Use Plan, draft,

Volume III of land use study (Anchorage?, the author), April 1979. Final plan issued in June

1979.

Alaska Division of Parks, Initial Historical and Archaeological Reconnaissance of Alaska

Department of Highways Project S-0999(8), Skagway to Canadian Border, August 1973.

Alaska Highway Department, Alaska Historical Markers and Centennial Plaques (Juneau, the

author), 1969.

Alaska Road Commission, Annual Report, fiscal years 1934 through 1948.
Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Selected Bibliography)

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Choate, Glenda, Historical Records of the City of Skagway, Alaska, October 1980. Phase II

of her inventory was completed in July 1982.

City of Skagway, Skagway Historic District Design Guidelines: A Place to Live, Work, Play

and Visit, 1994.

Engineering Man Power Services, Skagway Campground Study (Juneau, the author), January

1978.

Hoag, Rush, The Promise of Power; Potential Economic Development in Southeast Alaska

(Juneau, Department of Economic Development and Yukon-Taiya Commission), January

1972.

Holleman, Marybeth, Tourism: An Overview of the Industry (Anchorage, UAA Institute of

Social and Economic Research), 1989?

Olson, Alan G., Haines-Skagway Area Land-Use Management Study, preliminary first draft

(Juneau?, Alaska State Parks), December 9, 1974.

Seattle City Planning Commission, Pioneer Square: A Report (Seattle, the author), August 6,

1959.

Taylor, M. P., and Associates, City of Skagway, Land Use and Structural Inventory and

Recommendations for a Preservation Plan, June 1974.

III. Government Reports (Canadian)

Canadian Environmental Sciences, Ltd., Chilkoot Trail: Provisional Master Plan Study

(Ottawa, National and Historic Parks Branch), February 1972. Interim report issued August 1,

1970.

Canadian Parks Service, Proposed Chilkoot Trail National Historic Park, Management

Planning Program, Plan Summary, August 1988.

Environment Canada-Parks, Proposed Chilkoot Trail National Historic Park, Management

Planning Program newsletters. Issue No. 1 was dated May 1986; No. 2, December 1986; and

No. 3, May 1987

Friesen, Richard J., The Chilkoot Pass and the Great Gold Rush of 1898 (Ottawa?, Parks

Canada), March 31, 1978.

Lotz, J. R., "The Chilkoot Trail To-Day, Dyea to Bennett," unpub. mss., Dept. of Northern

Affairs and National Development (Canada), written in October 1963 and updated (with the

same title) in December 1965.

National Historic Sites Service, Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development,

Klondike Gold Rush International Historic Park, Provisional Development Plan: Canadian

Sites (Vancouver?, the author), c. 1970.

Parks Canada, Chilkoot Trail National Historic Site, Management Planning Program

newsletters. Issue #1 was dated May 1993; #2, April 1994; #3, January 1995; and #4, August

1995.

Sookocheff, Tim, Klondike Gold Rush International Advisory Committee (Winnipeg, [Parks
Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Selected Bibliography)

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Canada] Prairie Regional Office), 1983.

IV. Public Documents

Alaska House Journal for 1951, 1964, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1978, 1981, and 1991.

Alaska Senate Journal for 1967, 1968, 1973, 1975, 1978, 1981, and 1991.

BLM, Public Land Order 436, January 13, 1948; PLO 868, October 21, 1952.

BLM, Power Site Classification No. 396, April 23, 1948.

Congressional Record, 1973, 12635, 12650-51, and 12820; 1975, 213 and 509; 1976, 16872-

75; 1978, 4157.

Federal Register, March 11, 1961, 2138; April 29, 1961, 3703; June 21, 1977, 31501; May

14, 1980, 31805; May 29, 1992, 22826.

Historical Index Records, in BLM, Alaska State Office, Anchorage.

Property Deed Books, Skagway Magistrate's Office.

Senate Bill History (Alaska), 1981.

U.S. Census Bureau, Twelfth Census of Population, 1900, Alaska, Individualized returns:

Vol. 5, Southern District.

U.S. Congress, Public Law 94-323, June 30, 1976; Public Law 94-465, October 20, 1976.

U.S. Senate, Report to Accompany S. 98 (Calendar No. 158, Report 94-166), June 2, 1975.

V. Newspapers

Anchorage Daily News, September 9, 1959; July 7, 1973; May 27, 1975; June 6, 1977;

September 8 and 9, 1977; November 18, 1977; May 19, 1978; December 17, 1990; June 14,

1992; December 10, 1993.

Anchorage Daily Times, July 6, 1973; April 2, 1974; April 7, 1976; June 4 and 5, 1977; June

29, 1977; November 8, 1977; February 25, 1978; September 18, 1981.

Chicago Tribune, December 17, 1978.

Choteau (Montana) Calumet, May 24, 1886; September 9, 1886.

Cordova Times, December 27, 1974.

Daily Alaska Empire (Juneau), April 3, 1928.

Daily Alaskan (Skagway), various issues, 1898-1924.

Dyea Trail, various issues, 1898.

Fairbanks Daily News-Miner, December 8, 1972; June 9, 1976; June 6, 1977.
Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Selected Bibliography)

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Juneau Alaska Empire, various issues, August 1964-June 1968.

Juneau Empire, February 17, 1981; December 6, 1992; February 21, 1995.

Lynn Canal News, various issues, 1979-1982.

Lynn Canal Weekly, April 28, 1955; June 30, 1955.

New York Times, September 1, 1982.

North Wind (Skagway), various issues, 1963-1978.

Redwood City (California) Times-Gazette, March 5, 1898.

San Francisco Examiner, September 18, 1968.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer, July 5, 1972; June 1 and 3, 1979.

Seattle Times, August 1, 1971; January 27, 1974; June 16, 1975; March 20, 1977; August 13,

1978; May 13, 1979.

Skaguay Alaskan (summer tourist newspaper), various issues, 1978-1993.

Skagway Alaskan, August 28, 1952.

Skagway News, various issues, 1978-1979, 1982-1996.

Southeast Alaska Empire (Juneau), various issues, October 1968 to January 1980.

Southeastern Log (Ketchikan), March 1980, September 1980.

Wall Street Journal, November 12, 1968.

Whitehorse Star, August 7, 1958; May 29, 1967; September 4, 1969; June 13, 1973; March

18, 1977; November 18, 1977.

Yukon Daily News (Whitehorse), July 10, 1967; August 11, 1967.

VI. Books

Robert E. Ackerman, Carl E. Gustafson, and Timothy B. Riordan, Alaska Highway Oil

Pipeline Project: Skagway-White Pass Archeological and Paleontological Survey, March 26-

31, 1979 (Pullman, Wash., Washington State University, Laboratory of Anthropology), 1979.

Alaska Federation of Women's Clubs, Alaska Federation of Women's Clubs, 1936-1937

[yearbook] (n.p., the author), March 1937.

Alaska Northwest Books, The Milepost, 44th edition (Bothell, Wash., the author), 1992.

Allen, Phillip, One Came Late (Edmonton, the author), 1992.

Berton, Pierre, The Klondike Fever: The Life and Death of the Last Great Gold Rush (New

York, Alfred A. Knopf), 1977.

Bolotin, Norm, Klondike Lost, A Decade of Photographs by Kinsey and Kinsey (Anchorage,
Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Selected Bibliography)

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Alaska Northwest), 1980. This was Volume 7, No. 4 (November 1980) of Alaska Geographic.

Clifford, Howard, The Skagway Story (Anchorage, Alaska Northwest), 1975.

Coates, Ken and William R. Morrison, The Sinking of the Princess Sophia; Taking the North

Down With Her (Fairbanks, University of Alaska Press), 1991.

Cohen, Stan, Gold Rush Gateway; Skagway and Dyea (Missoula, Mont., Pictorial Histories),

1986.

Cohen, Stan, The White Pass and Yukon Route; A Pictorial History (Missoula, Mont.,

Pictorial Histories Pub. Co.), 1980.

DeArmond, Robert N., Early Visitors to Southeastern Alaska: Nine Accounts (Anchorage,

Alaska Northwest), 1978.

Dynes' Alaska Directory Company, Southeastern Alaska Directory, 1921, 129.

Green, Lewis, The Gold Hustlers (Anchorage, Alaska Northwest), 1977.

Itjen, Martin, The Story of the Tour on the Skagway, Alaska Street-Car (Skagway?, the

author), 1938. Reprinted in 1962.

Johnson, James Albert, Carmack of the Klondike (Seattle, Epicenter Press), 1990.

Kaiper, Dan and Nan, Tlingit: Their Art, Culture, and Legends (Saanichton, B.C., Hancock

House), 1978.

Kamenskii, Archimandrite Anatolii, Tlingit Indians of Alaska: Odessa, 1906 (Fairbanks,

Univ. of Alaska Press), 1985.

Krause, Aurel, Journey to the Tlingits by Aurel and Arthur Krause, 1881/82, translated by

Margot Krause McCaffrey (Haines, Haines Centennial Commission), 1981.

Krause, Aurel, The Tlingit Indians: Results of a Trip to the Northwest Coast of America and

the Bering Straits, translated by Erna Gunther (Seattle, Univ. of Washington Press), 1956.

Lung, Ed, as told to Ella Martinsen, Black Sand and Gold (Portland, Binford and Mort),

1956.

Martin, Cy, Gold Rush Narrow Gauge: the Story of the White Pass and Yukon Route

Railroad (Corona del Mar, Calif., Trans-Anglo Books), 1974.

McCourt, Edward, The Yukon and Northwest Territories (New York, St. Martin's Press),

1969.

Minter, Roy, The White Pass: Gateway to the Klondike (Fairbanks, Univ. of Alaska Press),

1987.

Moore, J. Bernard, Skagway in Days Primeval (New York, Vantage Press), 1968.

Naske, Claus-M., and Herman Slotnick, Alaska: A History of the 49th State (Grand Rapids,

Mich., William B. Eerdmans), 1979.

Norris, Frank, Gawking at the Midnight Sun: The Tourist in Early Alaska (Anchorage,

Alaska Historical Commission Studies in History #170), 1985.
Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Selected Bibliography)

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Satterfield, Archie, Chilkoot Pass: the Most Famous Pass in the North (Anchorage, Alaska

Northwest), 1978.

Satterfield, Archie, Chilkoot Pass, Then and Now (Anchorage, Alaska Northwest), 1973.

Satterfield, Archie, Klondike Park: from Seattle to Dawson City (Goldon, Colo., Fulcrum),

1993.

Schwatka, Frederick, A Summer in Alaska (St. Louis, J. W. Henry), 1894.

Sealaska Corporation, Native Cemetery and Historic Sites of Southeast Alaska, preliminary

report (Seattle, Wilsey and Ham), 1975.

Speidel, Bill, Seattle Underground (Seattle, UnderGround Tours), 1968.

Stevens, G. R., History of the Canadian National Railways (New York, Macmillan), 1973.

Tuck, Harley, Klondike Diary, (Monroe, Wash., the author), 1974.

West, Charles B., Mr. Alaska, The Chuck West Story: 40 Years of Alaska Tourism, 1945-

1985 (Seattle, Weslee), 1985.

Winslow, Kathryn, Big Pan-Out: the Story of the Klondike Gold Rush (New York, W. W.

Norton), 1951.

Wright, Allen A., Prelude to Bonanza: the Discovery and Exploration of the Yukon (Sidney,

B.C., Gray's Publishing, 1976), 144-145.

VII. Articles

"Alaska Marine Highway System, The," Alaska Review of Business and Economic

Conditions 7 (October 1970), 1-16.

Barry, Mary J., "Alaska Steamship Company: A Legacy of Nostalgia," in Transportation in

Alaska's Past (Anchorage, Office of History and Archaeology, Publication No. 30, 1982),

269-92.

Duncan-Clark, Betsy, "Skagway, Alaska: Examination of a Model of Private-Federal

Partnership in Interpreting a Historic Community," in Raymond S. Tabata, Jane Yamashiro,

and Gabriel Cherem, Joining Hands for Quality Tourism: Interpretation, Preservation, and the

Travel Industry (Honolulu, University of Hawaii Sea Grant Extension Service, June 1992),

92-93.

"From Ketchikan to Dillingham, Nine Communities Plan New Arts Facilities," Arts in

Alaska, January 15, 1976, 5.

Garrett, W. E., "Alaska's Marine Highway," National Geographic Magazine 127 (June 1965),

776-819.

Hinckley, Ted C., "The Inside Passage: A Popular Gilded Age Tour," Pacific Northwest

Quarterly 56 (April 1965), 67-74.

"Historic Sites Advisory Committee Transacts Much Work at Juneau Meeting," Alaska

History News 2 (April 1980), 1.
Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Selected Bibliography)

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Jones, Robert D., "A Municipal Farmer," Alaska-Yukon Magazine, August 1907, 488-492.

Lotz, J. R., "On the Trail of '98," Seattle Post-Intelligencer, May 31, 1964, PR 10-12.

MacLachlan, Bruce B., "Tahltan," in June Helm, ed., Handbook of North American Indians:

Vol. 6, Subarctic (Washington, Smithsonian Institution, 1981), p. 458-68.

McClellan, Catharine, "Inland Tlingit," "Tagish," and "Tutchone" chapters in June Helm, ed.,

Handbook of North American Indians: Vol. 6, Subarctic (Washington, Smithsonian

Institution, 1981), pp. 469-505.

Miller, Mrs. C. R., "Alaska's Deserted City and its Flourishing Rival," Leslie's Weekly,

August 2, 1906, 112.

Morgan, David P., "The Call of the Yukon is a Locomotive Whistle," Trains 23 (February

1963), 25.

Naske, Claus-M., "The Taiya Project," BC Studies 91-92 (Autumn and Winter 1991-92), 7-

52.

"Pioneer Square," Bill Speidel's Seattle Guide 67 (August 25-September 2, 1989), 30.

Scidmore, Eliza Ruhamah, "The Northwest Passes to the Yukon," Alaska Journal 3 (Summer

1973), 144-46.

Spude, Robert L., "The Bark Canada's Legacy," in The Sea in Alaska's Past, Alaska

Historical Society Conference Proceedings (Office of History and Archaeology Publications

Series No. 25, November 1979), 206-15.

Spude, Robert L., "The Klondike Gold Rush, a Preservationist's View," paper given at

Western Historical Association, St. Paul, October 11, 1984.

Spude, Robert L., "Management Decisions at Klondike Gold Rush NHP," CRM Bulletin 2

(September 1979), 1-2.

Spurr, Josiah Edward, "Through the Alaska Gold Diggings," Alaska Magazine 43 (March

1977), 32-34, 60-62.

Stuart, Richard, "Recycling Used Boom Towns: Dawson and Tourism," Northern Review 6

(Winter 1990), 108-31.

Suydam, Harry L., "Fool's Gold," Alaska Sportsman 8 (April 1942), 12-13, 19-22.

Tryck, Keith, "Rafting Down the Yukon," National Geographic Magazine 148 (December

1975), 830-61.

Wilkes, L. C., "Packers on the Dyea Trail," Alaska Sportsman 14 (June 1948), 6-11, 49-58.

VIII. Interviews (by the author unless otherwise noted; locations provided for in-person

interviews)

Alderson, Clay, by Sandra Faulkner, Skagway, September 29, 1989.

Alderson, Clay, March 10, 1995; April 25, 1995; June 27, 1995; September 6, 1995;
Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Selected Bibliography)

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November 2, 1995.

Berland, Nancy, by Karl Gurcke, March 4, 1995.

Brady, Jeff, by Karl Gurcke, May 3, 1995.

Brady, Jeff, September 17, 1995.

Brown, William E., March 6, 1995.

Cable, Jay, by Sandra Faulkner, Anchorage, February 27, 1989.

Cable, Jay, Anchorage, October 13, 1994; December 8, 1994; January 26, 1995; February 21,

1995; March 13, 1995; April 4, 1995; May 1, 1995; May 30, 1995; June 30, 1995.

Chappell, Gordon, February 22, 1995.

Choate, Glenda, March 10, 1995; April 26, 1995.

Clark, Chuck and Helen, Skagway, March 13, 1985.

Conrad, Joanne, Seattle, October 19, 1994.

Corwin, Don, February 21, 1995.

Cyr, Alice, December 21, 1993.

Dennis, Silas, Sr., Skagway, March 5, 1985.

Dick, Richard, Skagway, June 5, 1984.

Duncan-Clark, Betsy, February 15, 1995; March 9, 1995.

Faulkner, Sandra, Anchorage, January 10, 1995.

Funk, David, Anchorage, March 8, 1995; May 1, 1995.

Gurcke, Karl, Skagway, August 9, 1988; October 26, 1994; February 9, 1995; March 10,

1995; May 2, 1995; May 30, 1995.

Haskell, Tod, February 23, 1995.

Healy, Thomas, Skagway, September 14, 1988.

Hedgecock, Christine, Whitehorse, October 21, 1993; February 14, 1994.

Henderson, Paul, by Sandra Faulkner, Seattle, August 22, 1988.

Higgins, Gary, by Sandra Faulkner, Denver, June 17, 1988.

Hoffman, Richard E., by Sandra Faulkner and William Hanable, Friday Harbor, Wash.,

August 22, 1988.

Home, Scott, Anchorage, April 27, 1995.

Hosford, Edward A., Skagway, June 7 and 9, 1986.
Klondike Gold Rush NHP: Legacy of the Gold Rush: An Administrative History of Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park (Selected Bibliography)

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Hounsell, Elaine, October 26, 1994.

Huffman, Laurin, Seattle, October 19, 1994.

Jackson, John, Skagway, September 11, 1995.

Kalen, Barbara, Skagway, October 24, 1985.

Krafft, Katherine, June 15, 1995.

Leach, Michael, October 12 and 16, 1995; November 1, 1995.

Lofgren, Paul, February 16, 1995.

Novik, Jill, Seattle, July 21, 1994.

Pendleton, Ken, April 24, 1995.

Peterson, Steven M., February 8, 1994; February 13, 1995; February 27, 1995; March 13,

1995; May 30, 1995.

Rector, Claudia, Skagway, September 6, 1995.

Reed, Bruce, Skagway, September 8, 1995.

Russell, Willie, by Sandra Faulkner, Seattle, August 31, 1989.

Russell, Willie, Seattle, July 21, 1994; October 19, 1994; May 5, 1995.

Sims, Richard, by Sandra Faulkner, Renton, Wash., August 24, 1988.

Smith, Judy, February 23, 1994.

Snow, David, March 21, 1995.

Spude, Robert, March 21, 1995.

Swem, Theodor, Denver, November 17 and 18, 1994.

Taylor, Marvin, March 19, 1996.

Ward, Robert, March 10, 1995.

Warder, John, February 22, 1995; May 11, 1995.

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