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Explore stories in Northwest history through highlights from MOHAI’s collections. Search by keyword below or browse the entire online collection by entering the asterisk symbol (*). Filter your search by type of materials.

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557 results for: Alaska

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Image of Men and sluice at Hunker Creek, circa 1898
Photograph

Men and sluice at Hunker Creek, circa 1898

Like Bonanza Creek, Hunker Creek flows into the Klondike River, Yukon Territory. During the season of 1898-99, $1.5 million of gold was mined at Hunker Creek. By 1899, the day of small scale mining had passed, and industrial mining had already begun.This photo of a group of miners working on a sluice at Hunker Creek was taken by Hegg &…
ID Number:SHS7302
Date:Circa 1898
Image of Women cleaning strawberries at Spokane Street terminal, Seattle, circa 1921
Photograph

Women cleaning strawberries at Spokane Street terminal, Seattle, circa 1921

In 1921 the Port of Seattle completed the Spokane Street Terminal, with nearly 200,000 square feet of space and state-of-the-art cold storage facilities used for freezing, handling, and storing fish from Alaska and local produce until they were exported or sent to local markets. That same year, Puget Sound berry growers harvested 3,160 acres of strawberries, mainly for the processing…
ID Number:SHS7309
Date:Circa 1921
Image of Steamship office and drug store in Nome, Alaska, circa 1903
Photograph

Steamship office and drug store in Nome, Alaska, circa 1903

By late fall 1899, reports of gold strikes at Nome gained enough credibility to draw gold seekers from Dawson. Some 2,500 people left Dawson for Nome, traveling by river or trail. Once the word was out in Seattle and elsewhere, the small settlement grew quickly.This photo shows a commercial building in Nome sometime between 1900 and 1905. A drugstore and…
ID Number:SHS7900
Date:Circa 1903
Image of Court of Honor and Geyser Basin at the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition, Seattle, 1909
Photograph

Court of Honor and Geyser Basin at the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition, Seattle, 1909

In the summer of 1909, a world's fair, the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition, took place on the grounds of the University of Washington in Seattle. Over three million people visited the buildings, grounds, and sites of the A.Y.P.E. between June 1 and October 1, 1909.This panoramic view shows the Geyser Fountain (now known as Drumheller Fountain) looking north towards the Government Building…
ID Number:SHS7920
Date:1909
Image of Performers from the
Photograph

Performers from the "Streets of Cairo" in the Oriental Village pose on the Pay Streak at AYPE, Seattle, 1909

The Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition (AYPE) was a world's fair held in Seattle to publicize the development of the Pacific Northwest. The fairgrounds were designed by the Olmsted Brothers landscape Architecture firm and located on the campus of the University of Washington. The AYPE's amusement park and midway area was located along what is now 15th Avenue, and was called the Pay…
ID Number:SHS7956
Date:1909
Image of Dogsled owned by a mail carrier, near Nome, Alaska, circa 1905
Photograph

Dogsled owned by a mail carrier, near Nome, Alaska, circa 1905

Mail delivery quickly became an important service for prospectors arriving in Alaska for the Gold Rush. During the winter, dogsleds delivered first class mail to Nome once a month. Magazines and newspapers had to wait for the steamers which ran after the ice melted. Dogsled mail carriers generally worked in relay, each carrying the mail along a particular section of…
ID Number:SHS7977
Date:Circa 1905
Image of Down in a Nome gold mine, circa 1903
Photograph

Down in a Nome gold mine, circa 1903

In Alaska and the Yukon, placer gold was found along ancient stream beds, some of which were underground. This often required much digging and long hours in the cold and dark. Candles were scarce and expensive at a dollar apiece.This photo, taken in Nome sometime between 1899 and 1906, shows a group of people working 110 feet underground for the…
ID Number:SHS7980
Date:Circa 1903
Image of Three men and a rocker in the Nome gold fields, circa 1905
Photograph

Three men and a rocker in the Nome gold fields, circa 1905

Many gold miners used rockers (also called cradles) to remove gold from pay dirt. They shoveled the dirt and gravel into a tray at the top of the rocker, and they shook the rocker back and forth as they poured water on the tray. Finer pieces of gold and dirt washed through holes in the tray into the box beneath.…
ID Number:SHS7986
Date:Circa 1905
Image of Packers ascending summit of Chilkoot Pass, circa 1898
Photograph

Packers ascending summit of Chilkoot Pass, circa 1898

The Chilkoot Pass had been used as a Indigenous trade route for generations before the Klondike stampede. When the 1897 gold rush started, the Chilkat, Tlingit, and other Native people hired themselves out as packers for the incoming gold seekers, charging $1.00 a pound to carry goods over Chilkoot Pass. The following year, a tramway put many of the Native…
ID Number:SHS8258
Date:Circa 1898
Image of Klondikers shooting White Horse Rapids, 1898
Photograph

Klondikers shooting White Horse Rapids, 1898

Two miles below Miles Canyon, gold seekers on the Yukon River had to navigate through White Horse Rapids. Those who could afford it hired a pilot or portaged their goods around the rapids and used ropes to guide their empty boats through the dangerous rapids. Some boats broke up among the rocks and whirlpools; some took on so much water…
ID Number:SHS8332
Date:1898
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MOHAI stands on the historic and contemporary lands and shores of the Duwamish, Suquamish, Muckleshoot, and other Coast Salish Nations. We acknowledge the forced displacement of Native Communities from this land while honoring the endurance of the Duwamish people who still live here.
Address: 860 Terry Ave N, Seattle WA, 98109
Phone: 206 324 1126
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