"General Store" by NPS Photo , public domain
Klondike Gold Rush - Seattle UnitNational Historical Park - Washington |
Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park commemorate the Klondike Gold Rush of the late 1890s. Though the gold fields that were the ultimate goal of the stampeders lay in the Yukon Territory, the park comprises staging areas for the trek there and the routes leading in its direction.
There are four units, including three in Municipality of Skagway Borough, Alaska and a fourth in the Pioneer Square National Historic District in Seattle, Washington. An integral part of the park is the Visitor's Center in Seattle, Washington, in the Pioneer Square National Historic District. It functions as an interpretive center and museum, and also has information on how to visit the Skagway units of the park.
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maps
Official Visitor Map of Klondike Gold Rush - Seattle Unit National Historical Park (NHP) in Washington. Published by the National Park Service (NPS).
Map of the U.S. National Park System. Published by the National Park Service (NPS).
Map of the U.S. National Park System with DOI's Unified Regions. Published by the National Park Service (NPS).
Map of the U.S. National Heritage Areas. Published by the National Park Service (NPS).
Map of Washington State Highways / Tourist Map. Published by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT).
brochures
Official Brochure of Klondike Gold Rush - Seattle Unit National Historical Park (NHP) in Washington. Published by the National Park Service (NPS).
https://www.nps.gov/klse/index.htm
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Klondike_Gold_Rush_National_Historical_Park#Seattle_unit
Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park commemorate the Klondike Gold Rush of the late 1890s. Though the gold fields that were the ultimate goal of the stampeders lay in the Yukon Territory, the park comprises staging areas for the trek there and the routes leading in its direction.
There are four units, including three in Municipality of Skagway Borough, Alaska and a fourth in the Pioneer Square National Historic District in Seattle, Washington. An integral part of the park is the Visitor's Center in Seattle, Washington, in the Pioneer Square National Historic District. It functions as an interpretive center and museum, and also has information on how to visit the Skagway units of the park.
Seattle flourished during and after the Klondike Gold Rush. Merchants supplied people from around the world passing through this port city on their way to a remarkable adventure in the Yukon Territory of Canada. Today, the park is your gateway to learn about the Klondike Gold Rush, explore the area's public lands, and engage with the local community.
The park and visitor center are located on the northwest corner of 2nd Ave South and South Jackson Street in the former Cadillac Hotel. The Pioneer Square neighborhood is serviced by several public transportation options. Visit your directions page for more information about parking.
Bainbridge Island Japanese American Exclusion Memorial
The Bainbridge Island Japanese American Exclusion Memorial is an outdoor exhibit commemorating the internment of Japanese Americans from Bainbridge Island in the state of Washington. Wayside markers provide history and other information. This site is a unit of the Minidoka National Historic Site in Idaho. The park is located at Pritchard Park, 3.8 miles from the Winslow Ferry Terminal. Its open year-round during daylight hours. The memorial is staffed by a Park Ranger during the summer months.
Via public transit The Memorial is accessible via Kitsap Transit bus #99. This bus runs from the Bainbridge Island ferry terminal. Get off at the Eagle Harbor at New Sweden stop and head east on Eagle Harbor Drive towards New Sweden Road. More information can be found via the Washington State Department of Transit and Kitsap Transit.
Klondike Gold Rush Visitor Center
Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park is located in the historic Cadillac Hotel building. Look for the Cadillac Hotel sign on South Jackson Street. The Visitor Center contains interactive exhibits and displays about the Klondike Gold Rush. Free video presentations are shown in the park's theater.
Located in the historic Cadillac Hotel building at the corner of 2nd Ave S and South Jackson Street. Look for the Cadillac Hotel sign on South Jackson Street and NPS arrowhead signs on both streets.
Outdoor Recreation Information Center (ranger station at REI)
At the Ranger Desk in the REI Seattle Flagship Store, we have the information you need to discover the best recreation opportunities on public lands in Washington State. We also have a wide selection of educational merchandise and free printed materials to help you make the most of your visit. We're able to bring you this unique service experience through a dynamic partnership with the National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, Washington State Parks, and REI.
Inside REI store
No camping facilities
Klondike Gold Rush - Seattle Unit is an urban park with no camping facilities.
Cadillac Hotel
Large brick wall with glass windows.
Cadillac Hotel
Interactive exhibits
display of old newspapers
Two floor of interesting and interactive exhibits and displays
Ton of gold
One ton pile of gold bars
How many gold bars take to make one ton?
Front door
Front entrance to park
On the corner of Jackson St and 2nd Ave S
Miners cabin
replica of Stampeders winter cabin
Compare a replica Stampeders winter cabin to your home.
Big Wheel of Fortune
Big wheel to find your fortune
Spin the big wheel and see if you would have struck it rich.
2019 George and Helen Hartzog Awards for Outstanding Volunteer Service
Celebrate 50 years of the NPS Volunteer-in-Parks Program, and learn about the contributions of the volunteer recipients of the 2019 George and Helen Hartzog Awards for Outstanding Volunteer Service, for work performed in fiscal year 2019.
a volunteer wearing a red life vest walks towards you with a smile, lifting a canoe paddle
Teaching with Historic Places in the Parks: Teaching the Klondike Gold Rush
I was apprehensive – how could I write a lesson plan in just five days? I was never trained as a teacher; I had no idea what to do. Fortunately, the TwHP template is easy to use and can be applied to any historical site, public or private, prehistoric or modern.
ad for boots for those heading to the Klondike NPS photo
National Park Getaway: Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park - Seattle Unit
Speeding to Seattle from 1897 to 1899 on transcontinental trains, steam ships, and other modes of transportation, 70,000 gold rushers overran downtown Seattle, now the Pioneer Square National Historic District. The Klondike Gold Rush to the gold fields in the Yukon of Canada ignited the imaginations of the poor, the wealthy, adventurers, and fortune seekers alike.
Museum exhibits
Veteran Story: Patrick Pilcher
After a successful military and NPS career, Patrick Pilcher helps visitors connect with the Klondike Gold Rush as a volunteer.
A man poses in a volunteer uniform by a door labeled "Klondike Gold Rush"
Gang of Gams and Cut Throats
In Seattle Fred W. Dewey had to purchase gear for his trip north. He needed his camp gear plus a year's supply of food. He encountered shell-game-men and other bunco artists during his Seattle visit.
1890s three story brick store with goods to be sold piled on sidewalk in front of building.
But There Is Some Pleasure, too.
Here in Bennett Fred and his friends build their boats, watch stampeders fall through the ice, enjoy each others company and wait for the Yukon River to melt so they can float to the Klondike.
A collection of white tents along a lake.
It Was Grand: Inside Passage
Fred Dewey boards a steamship to go up the Inside Passage from Seattle to Dyea, Alaska. He encounters bad weather, sick dogs and seasick people.
Two photos of steamships alongside wharfs.
Avalanche!
In this section Fred tells about the avalanche that killed almost 100 people near Sheep Camp. He also tells about his final push to the Summit of Chilkoot Pass.
Men at bottom of mountain pass and climbing pass.
You Bloated Mine Owners
Stampeder Fred W. Dewey travels by train in 1898 from New York State to Seattle, Washington on his way to the Klondike Gold Rush.
steam train engine
My Back Is Lame, My Feet Are Sore
The hard works begins for Fred Dewey as he takes his outfit to Sheep Camp up though the frozen canyon of the Taiya River.
Men struggle up a snow covered canyon with their sled.
Series: Fred W. Dewey's Trip to the Klondike
Fred W. Dewey, age 26, left Jamestown in February 1898 to go to the Klondike in search of gold. He represented a group of friends who financed the venture. His letters home give a vivid picture of the almost unbelievable hardships and grueling hard work men endured in the elusive search for great wealth.
Two men sawing, one man above the other on a platform.
Series: Creative Teaching with Historic Places: Selections from CRM Vol 23 no 8 (2000)
These articles are a selection from a special issue of CRM Journal, "Creative Teaching with Historic Places" published in 2000. They provide examples of teaching using historic places both in and out of the classroom, helping students connect with history using the power of place, as well as how to prepare lessons making those connections. Teaching with Historic Places is a program of the National Park Service.
Cover of CRM Journal "Creative Teaching with Historic Places"
Annie Hall Strong
The life of Annie Hall Strong, a white woman who spent decades in Seattle before pursuing wealth in Alaska with her husband, highlights the connection between those two places during the Klondike Gold Rush.
Woman in Victorian dress with large sleeves and hat stands next to two men on her right.
Series: Women's History in the Pacific West - Columbia-Pacific Northwest Collection
Biographies of women from parks in Washington, Oregon Idaho and far western Montana
Map of Washington, Oregon and Idaho
Books and Buildings: Connecting the Past to the Present Through an Employee Library
Emma Rockenbeck shelving books at KLSE's employee library
Emma Rockenbeck shelving books at KLSE's employee library
Trails&Rails 2023 National Conference
Current NPS Director Chuck Sams addresses attendees at the 2023 National Trails&Rails Operations Conference.
A large group of people sit facing forward at tables arranged in a U shap
Sarah Winters’ Sleeping Bag
In the 1890s, Sarah Winters watched gold seekers pour into Seattle. They were headed to the Klondike region and were stocking up on necessary goods to survive arctic conditions. Capitalizing on these events, Sarah patented a sleeping bag especially designed for the cold Alaska weather - an impressive feat considering how few patents were issued to women. The Arctic Down Sleeping Bag would become a makeshift home for gold seekers pursuing their dreams.
Sleeping bag with buttons to keep user warm. Legal patent for design of sleeping bag
Series: Home and Homelands Exhibition: Work
What does it take to build a home? These women lived and breathed hard work, building their homes in difficult circumstances. Several were settlers who benefitted from stolen Indigenous lands. Some shared their knowledge of the land. They all had pride in their work. They all put their hands in the soil to claim resources and build homes. Whether wielding a kapa beater to create cloth or planting a tree to sustain a family for generations, these women created futures for their communities.
Thick white paper peeled back to reveal collage of women.
Dragonfly mercury studies uncover unexpected atmospheric delivery pathways
Read the abstract and get the link to a published paper on how dragonfly mercury studies uncover unexpected atmospheric delivery pathways: Janssen, S.E., C.J. Kotalik, J.J. Willacker, M.T. Tate, C. Flanagan Pritz, S.J. Nelson, D.P. Krabbenhoft, D. Walters, and C. Eagles-Smith. 2024. Geographic Drivers of Mercury Entry into Aquatic Foods Webs Revealed by Mercury Stable Isotopes in Dragonfly Larvae. Environmental Science & Technology. DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.4c02436
close up of dragonfly larvae on white spoon
Klondike Gold Rush
N a t i o n a l Park Service
U.S. D e p a r t m e n t o f t h e I n t e r i o r
N a t i o n a l Historical Park
Seattle, Washington
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The cry of "Klondike gold!" first captured the world's
imagination here in Seattle. It was July 1897. Tens of
thousands of gold seekers soon poured through this
small waterfront city. The Chamber of Commerce aggressively promoted Seattle as the "only place" to outfit
for the goldfields. And sales did soar—to $25 million by
early 1898. Shopkeepers piled their stock 10 feet deep
on storefront boardwalks (bottom photo). Stampeders
eagerly bought supplies and had one last hurrah!
Pioneer Square a b o u t 1897
They then boarded ships bound for the wild unknown
of Alaska and Canada. This frenzy of activity helped to
re-ignite the nation's depressed economy, and it ensured
Seattle's position as a regional trade center.
Discover many fascinating reminders of 1890s Seattle
today in the Pioneer Square National Historic District.
Immerse yourself in the glory days of the Klondike Gold
Rush that this national historical park commemorates.
The Pioneer Building dominated both Seattle's skyline and its gold rush-era commerce. Built in
1892, it faces historic Pioneer Place (see map). Between 1897 and 1908, the building housed 48
mining firms.
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
Seeing Gold Rush-era Seattle Today
Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park—
Seattle is located in t h e historic Cadillac H o t e l ,
319 Second Avenue South, t w o blocks n o r t h o f
t h e Seattle f o o t b a l l s t a d i u m . Visitor center hours
vary by season. Please call 206-220-4240 or visit
www.nps.gov/klse f o r current i n f o r m a t i o n . It
is closed Thanksgiving Day, December 25, and
January 1.
Ask at t h e visitor center a b o u t t h e schedule of
w a l k i n g tours and o t h e r programs and activities.
Exhibits and audiovisual programs t h e r e tell t h e
story of Seattle's crucial role as t h e staging area
f o r t h e Klondike Gold Rush.
Parking is available on t h e street and at several
nearby locations. Bus stops, t h e t r a i n s t a t i o n ,
and local ferries are w i t h i n w a l k i n g distance.
The heart o f g o l d rush Seattle, Pioneer Square
National Historic District has shops, art galleries,
restaurants, and b o o k and a n t i q u e stores. M a n y
g o l d rush-era buildings still stand in t h e historic
district today. The map at r i g h t w i l l help y o u
identify t h e m . To t h e n o r t h is W a t e r f r o n t Park,
t h e site w h e r e t h e steamship Portland docked
in 1897 w i t h t h e 68 miners w h o s e cargo of g o l d
launched t h e Klondike Gold Rush.
Accessibility We strive t o make o u r facilities,
programs, and services accessible t o all. For i n f o r m a t i o n , ask at t h e visitor center or check our
website.
Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park is
one of over 400 parks in t h e National Park
System. Learn more at w w w . n p s . g o v .
S a f e t y The park is located in d o w n t o w n
Seattle. W a t c h f o r traffic and t a k e precautions a p p r o p r i a t e t o a major m e t r o p o l i t a n
area, especially w i t h children. Be careful of
uneven w a l k i n g surfaces in t h e historic district. Firearms are p r o h i b i t e d in this park.
Information
K l o n d i k e Gold Rush
National Historical Park
319 2nd A v e n u e South, Seattle, W A 98104
206-220-4240
www.nps.gov/klse
-GPO:2017—398-407/30877 Last updated 2014
Printed on recycled paper.
Sudden, huge demand for outfits S
' and goods for the Klondike forced
J merchants t o pile their wares many '
feet deep on Seattle sidewalks,
u
' Stampeders scrambled t o assemble
. t h e i r so-called " t o n of goods" that «
Canada's Mounties w o u l d require
r before admitting gold-seekers to
Canada, where tne gold neids <
\ were. What might be called the •„
' "Klondike Outfit Rush" pulled—or
, jerked—Seattle out of economic
depression. A number of today's j
national retailers got their big break here from the gold rush.
. SPECIAL COLLECTIONS. UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON LIBRARIES
Long Trail to the Klondike
GOLD! GOLD! GOLD! GOLD!
screamed headlines that sent over 100,000 people on a quest t o
pull themselves and the nation out of a three-year depression's
economic ruin. But to strike it rich they would struggle against
time, each other, and northern wilderness. U.S. gold reserves
plummeted in 1893. The stock market crashed. Ensuing panic left
millions hungry, depressed, and destitute. Then came hope: on
August 16,1896, gold was discovered in northwestern Canada,
near where the Klondike and Yukon rivers join. On July 17,1897,
the SS Portland reached Seattle with 68 rich miners and nearly
two tons of gold! This promised adventure and quick wealth. For
the lure of gold many risked all, even their lives, t o be a part of
the last grand adventure of its kind.
O SEATTLE & BEYOND
The steamship Excelsior offloaded miners heavy with gold at San Francisco
on the ev