July 21, 2011 - Page 5


‘Alaska Gold Rush’ Cont. from Page 3


they survived the many rapids along the way.


MINING IN THE YUKON


The Fraser party arrived in the gold fields in March 1897, with the Yukon still firmly in the grip of winter conditions.


Even


arriving that early in the game, they found most of the land had already been staked out in large claims. With the ground still snow-covered, the only way to start making money was to purchase and work a claim that had already been staked out.


After examining many claims that were offered for sale, Fraser decided upon a 150,000 square foot section along Carman’s Fork, a tributary of the Yukon River. As with the other mines, it was a placer deposit, which meant long hours moving pay dirt and working it in the frigid water— that is, when the water was not frozen. The claim had been previously located in September of 1896, and was one of the early claims staked by those for- tunate enough to be able to get to the area shortly after the dis- covery of gold. Fraser built a


‘Chuckles’ Cont. from Page 2


man named Maccabia did secrete himself inside Abraham's drum and began to siphon off some of Abraham's business. But he was soon discovered, arrested and prose- cuted for insider trading.


And the young men did take to Dot Com's trading as doth the greedy horsefly take to camel dung. They were called Nomadic Ecclesiastical Rich Dominican Sybarites, or NERDS.


And lo, the land was so feverish with joy at the new riches and the deafen- ing sound of drums that no one noticed that the real riches were going to that enterprising drum dealer, Brother William of Gates, who bought off every drum maker in the land. And he did insist on drums to be made that would work only with Brother Gates' drum heads and drumsticks.


Lo, Dot did say, "Oh, Abraham, what we have started is being taken over by others!" And as Abraham looked out over the Bay of Ezekiel, or eBay as it came to be known, he said, "We need a name that reflects what we are." And Dot replied, "Young Ambitious Hebrew Owner


rough log cabin nearby, and two months later was granted the claim.


Fraser also did some prospect- ing of his own, and purchased or took over another unrecord- ed claim that had previously been staked out on June 28, 1897. Maybe the claim had been abandoned due to the mosquitoes, as the short sum- mer months brought on a plague of the blood-suckers.


As the mines prospered, Fraser built a better log cabin over- looking a lake. It had a canvas roof, a heating stove, a few chairs, and a table inside. One wall had a low bunk for beds, with the hard wood covered by bearskins. A hammock was also supported hanging from the rafters.


Outside, a picnic table


was partly covered by a canvas roof, and a cooking stove was located next to the table, with the stovepipe poking through the canvas.


Some employees


also lived in a tent structure just behind the main cabin. There were two women in the camp by this time, probably con- tributing by doing laundry and cooking for the miners.


The mines were large enough that several people worked


Operators." “YAHOO!," said Abraham. And because it was Dot's idea, they named it YAHOO Dot Com.


Abraham's cousin, Joshua, being the young Gregarious Energetic Educated Kid (GEEK) that he was, soon started using Dot's drums to locate things around the countryside. It soon became known as God's Own Official Guide to Locating Everything (GOOGLE).


And that is how it all began. Honest to God!


The Dead Parrot


At dawn the telephone rings, "Hello, Senor Rod? This is Ernesto, the caretaker at your country house."


"Ah yes, Ernesto. What can I do for you? Is there a problem?"


"Um, I am just calling to advise you, Senor Rod, that your parrot, he is dead".


"My parrot? Dead? The one that won the International competition?"


‘Chuckles’ Cont. on Page 10


them along with Daniel Fraser. At one time, he may have had somewhere between ten and fif- teen claims, and had as many as 28 people working for him. Apparently, he felt he had made enough the first season to be able to afford to take a trip home, wisely choosing the win- ter months to leave the Yukon and leaving his operations in the hands of his employees.


Each time he made a homeward journey, Fraser was to show his relatives some of the gold nuggets.


to the gold fields included at least two relatives who were also convinced they had a chance to make a fortune. Fraser’s nephew, Edwin Fraser, was later hooked on “gold fever,” and decided to make the third trip back with his uncle.


On the second trip, they left a little later in the season, and arrived at the foot of Chilkoot Pass in the late Spring of 1898. By this time, several small "hotels,” basically just some boards thrown together to pro- vide shelter from the icy winds, had sprung up at Sheep Camp. The Frasers heard stories of what had happened just two months before on the Golden Stair as they rested on a Sabbath Day at one of the hotels.


A couple of men also bringing family members to the gold fields had stayed at the same hotel, and as the sons of these two men had grown impatient with the wait, they set out on their own to go up the pass. Not much later, a loud roar was heard echoing through the val- ley, shaking the structures at the base of the pass. A devastating avalanche had struck the Golden Stair, sweeping away all those on the route at the time. Everyone in the camp below grabbed shovels, picks, and any- thing else they could find to try and dig out the victims, but it was too late by the time anyone was uncovered.


first victims found were the sons of the two men that had been staying at the hotel—their impatience had cost them their lives in the infamous disaster of April 3, 1898. Despite hun- dreds of men trying to rescue people, seventy men perished under the tons of snow and ice.


The avalanche was a major set- back for those on the journey, as it took many days to dig out


‘Alaska Gold Rush’ Cont. on Page 13


Some of the His second trip back


‘Man About Town’ Cont. from Page 4


Richard Huls. He’s movie star handsome, has the boyish smile that puts you right at ease, and has many, many stories that will keep you both entertained, informed, and inspired. If you’d like him to speak to your club or organization, call 760.803.4236. For spiritual counsel and help, call 760. 489.6568.


The Town Hall Meeting held by Hizzoner, Sam Abed, Mayor of Escondido, is an exciting idea. It offers transparency in gov- ernment with the people, whether they are with him or against him, or the ideas being discussed, an opportunity of talking to their elected leader. Sam has been a man of his word and had done all that he said he would during his cam- paign. That he has done that and still holds Town Hall Meetings to hear from friend and foe alike strikes as being a great example of open govern- ment.


Same with Jim Desmond, Mayor of San Marcos.


rumor mill has it (and Mayor Jim has not denied it) that he will challenge Bill Horn for his Supervisorial seat. We think Jim Desmond has been a great mayor and that he would make a fine Supervisor . . . and prob- ably a lot more accessible than Mr. Horn has been (and a lot less baggage).


Met some friends on the street the other day and they asked, “Man on the Street, it seems that everyone you talk about in your col- umn are, in your eyes, some of the finest people on this planet. How can that be.”


“Easy,” sez me. “I don’t hang around negative people. I look for and associate with positive people who have a sense of purpose in life and who are interested in accomplishing great goals.


••••• The •••••


out here. You just have to seek them out. The column gives me a chance to point some of them out to you.


There are lots of them


It was all smiles at the Jalapeno Grill and Cantina over the weekend, now that the Grand Avenue project has been com- pleted and the street is once again open. No more parking problems . . . and the restaurant was full both Saturday and Sunday evenings. We dined there Sunday and got a bonus of a Mariachi Band, thanks to a party that was being held.!


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16