MP-0000.2024.22 | Street scene in Whitehorse, YT, 1901
Street scene in Whitehorse, YT, 1901
H. C. Barley
1901, 20th century
Silver salts on glass - Gelatin dry plate process
20 x 25 cm
MP-0000.2024.22
© McCord Museum
Description
Keywords: Cityscape (3948) , Figure (1339) , Figure (1339) , Photograph (77678) , streetscape (1737)
Keys to History
In 1901 Whitehorse was a small place with a population of a few hundred in the summer and fewer in the winter. It was the northern end of the White Pass and Yukon Railway, where steamboats pulled up to the riverbank in front of the train station and loaded passengers and freight for Dawson City. It was not until 1942, when the Alaska Highway came through the town, bypassing the capital at Dawson City, that it began to grow. In 1953 the Territorial capital was moved south to Whitehorse, and when in 1966 the last commercial gold producer, the Yukon Consolidated Gold Company, shut down, Dawson City almost disappeared. It was saved by the federal government, which made it into a major national historic site.
Source : Off to the Klondike! The Search for Gold [Web tour], by William R. Morrison, University of Northern British Columbia (see Links)
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What
These rough buildings and tents were put up quickly at the beginning of the gold rush. The tent on the left is a hotel, then comes a buy-and-sell store, then a barbershop (note the striped pole).
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Where
Whitehorse, Yukon, was where travellers transferred from trains to steamboats for the river trip to Dawson City.
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When
This is a picture from 1901. The tents were soon replaced with more permanent structures.
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Who
Unidentified tradespeople and customers.
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