Customer Reviews

Yukon River Steamboats: A Pictorial History

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Stan Cohen's "Yukon River Steamboats" book has provided excellent historical and visual information about the early Steamboats on the Yukon River, and their environmental history of that time period.

The Archival Collections of the Mercer County Historical Museum, 130 East Market, Box 512, Celina, OH 45822, contains two gold rush diaries and two photograph albums, with ledgers, claims, and a packet of letters, from a group of 15 men from Ohio, who went on the gold rush 1898-1900. Their Steamer was the D. Armstrong, from St. Marys, Ohio. They mention nearly one hundred different steamboats, in their diaries.

In Cohen's book, he names several of the same steamboats: St. Michael, P.B. Weare,Sybil, Yukon, Susie, Monarch, Alice, Tyrrell, Sarah, Hannah, Oil City, Leah, Louise, and Jennie M. Cohen illustrated his books with excellent photographs. On page 110, he gave reference to Mr. William D. McBride of Whitehorse, who in 1949, compiled a list of boats for "Caribou and NOrthwest Digest" magazine. (Now, I am quest of a copy of that magazine."

This July (2000) I visited Alaska and the Yukon Territory, in quest of information about this 1898-1900 gold rush. People in Fairbanks,Wiseman, Anchorage and Dawson gave me excellent help. This past year, many Alaskans have corresponded with me, helping me with my research on the gold rush story.

Now, I am preparing a manuscript from these Ohioan's gold rush diaries. They spent the winter of 1898-1899 on the Koyukuk river and its tributaries. They spent the summer of 1899, on the Yukon, near Weare (Tanana). They spent the winter of 1899-1900 on the Chena and its tributaries. They often mention the Jennie M. and the Currier parties, in their daily diaries. They also mention members of the Str. Argo, Str. Illinois, Str. Kyle, STr. Winthrop, Str. North Star, Str. Luella, et. al.

If anyone would be interested in corresponding with me, about these diaries of the gold rush, and/or steamboats on the Yukon, I would be glad to hear from them.

I especially recommend Stan Cohen for providing this beautiful book. I also enjoy his book, "Klondike Centennial Scrapbook, with Candy Waugaman's Collection."

Joyce Alig, Director Mercer County Historical Museum, The Riley Home 130 East Market, Box 512 Celina, OH 45822

Fascinating pictorial book about the sternwheelers that plied the lakes and streams of the Yukon River before, during, and after the Klondike Gold Rush.

The sternwheelers played a crucial role in development of the region and in the gold rush, especially prior to the White Pass and Yukon Route railroad, which was built in 1898-99. The WPYR provided a rail route from Skagway to Whitehorse eventually, but it was the connections with the sternwheelers that made the journey of hundreds of miles from Skagway to Dawson City much easier.

Eventually, highways and airplanes killed off the sternwheelers, bringing to an end this romantic era in the north.

This books lets you seem them in their glory days.

Gary Christenson