The Yukon: Life between the Gold Rush and the Alaska Highway

Joann Robertson's grandfather moved to the Yukon in 1897 to make his fortune. He did not succeed, but loved the North and decided to settle there. Leaving their eldest two children in London, his wife joined him in 1899. They had six more children born in various settlements. The life the family lived and the work they did—telegraphy, dog team mail delivery, teaching and working in the goldmining industry— were typical of the Yukon during this era.

From memories of her Yukon youth, family letters, photographs, unpublished works and news clippings, Joann describes the life of her and other families during this littleknown period of Yukon time. Her narrative—at one point describing the dismantling of a Model T Ford to smuggle it by canoe across a river in the dead of night— echoes her love of this unique society.