Skagway, one of America’s great historical shrines, played a key role in the dramatic Klondike Gold Rush of 1897-1898. For several hectic months, uncounted thousands poured through these streets on their way north. They were headed for Dawson City, more than 500 miles inland. Conditions were so rigorous that fewer than half of those who arrived in Skagway reached the gold fields.
For the first year of its existence, Skagway was a rough-and-tumble frontier port. Skagway boasted more than 80 saloons; gun play was common; the town was controlled by a gang of organized criminals. Civilization arrived when the White Pass and Yukon Route began constructing its railroad in May 1898, and it advanced when the criminal element was purged two months later. The WP&YR was completed to Whitehorse, Yukon Territory in the summer of 1900; by this time, the gold rush was over.
During World War II, thousands of Army troops were stationed here in order to supply materials for the Alcan (Alaska) Highway and other war-time construction projects. The railroad was the main industry in Skagway for more than 80 years. It closed in 1982, but reopened in 1988 as a summer operation. Tourists first arrived in 1898. The visitor industry remained small until the 1920s; since then it has grown steadily into a major economic force. The Klondike Highway to the Yukon was completed in the fall of 1978.
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