Clinton Creek, Yukon
Encyclopedia
Clinton Creek was a company-owned and -operated asbestos
mining town in the western Yukon
near the confluence of the Yukon
and Fortymile River
s. It operated by the Cassiar Asbestos Corporation, which also operated the asbestos mine in Cassiar, British Columbia, from 1966 to 1978, when it was closed and the buildings auctioned off.
Road access was available via a 30 miles (48 km) road that joined with Yukon Highway 3, known since 1978 as Yukon territorial highway 9, the Top of the World Highway
. Mining product was transported across the Yukon River
at Dawson City by ferry
in summer, ice road
in winter, and by a tram system in the spring and fall. At the time, at least some Dawson City residents demanded that a bridge be built. The community was fairly well served, with dial telephone service, and it was one of the only six communities in the Yukon with television service before 1973.
Clinton Creek had a population of 500, a main building housing the post office, grocery store, cafeteria (used mainly for mine workers), and the remaining rooms served for community social gatherings like a projector set up for weekly reel movies, and a snack bar.
Upon the closing of the townsite, many residents dispersed to other mining towns like Cassiar, British Columbia
, and Faro, Yukon
.
Although the townsite is now abandoned, the road is passable to allow access to the historic ghost town of Fortymile, which was itself abandoned around 1898 when Dawson City boomed. Fortymile was the location of a mining office where the Klondike
gold strike claim was registered by George Carmack
and his two relatives, Dawson Charlie
and Skookum Jim Mason.
A reunion of employees of the Clinton Creek and other Cassiar Asbestos operations was planned for July of 2009. More details are available at the Cassiar website
Asbestos
Asbestos is a set of six naturally occurring silicate minerals used commercially for their desirable physical properties. They all have in common their eponymous, asbestiform habit: long, thin fibrous crystals...
mining town in the western Yukon
Yukon
Yukon is the westernmost and smallest of Canada's three federal territories. It was named after the Yukon River. The word Yukon means "Great River" in Gwich’in....
near the confluence of the Yukon
Yukon River
The Yukon River is a major watercourse of northwestern North America. The source of the river is located in British Columbia, Canada. The next portion lies in, and gives its name to Yukon Territory. The lower half of the river lies in the U.S. state of Alaska. The river is long and empties into...
and Fortymile River
Fortymile River
The Fortymile River is a river in Alaska and the Yukon. Prior to the Klondike Gold Rush, there was considerable mining activity along this tributary of the Yukon River. In the 1970s, there was an asbestos mine at Clinton Creek in the Yukon. When gold was discovered on the Fortymille River in 1886,...
s. It operated by the Cassiar Asbestos Corporation, which also operated the asbestos mine in Cassiar, British Columbia, from 1966 to 1978, when it was closed and the buildings auctioned off.
Road access was available via a 30 miles (48 km) road that joined with Yukon Highway 3, known since 1978 as Yukon territorial highway 9, the Top of the World Highway
Top of the World Highway
The Top of the World Highway is a long highway, beginning at a junction with the Taylor Highway near Jack Wade, Alaska traveling east to its terminus at the ferry terminal in West Dawson, on the western banks of the Yukon River. The highway has been in existence since at least 1955 and is only...
. Mining product was transported across the Yukon River
Yukon River
The Yukon River is a major watercourse of northwestern North America. The source of the river is located in British Columbia, Canada. The next portion lies in, and gives its name to Yukon Territory. The lower half of the river lies in the U.S. state of Alaska. The river is long and empties into...
at Dawson City by ferry
Ferry
A ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...
in summer, ice road
Ice road
Ice roads are frozen, human-made structures on the surface of bays, rivers, lakes, or seas in the far north. They link dry land, frozen waterways, portages and winter roads, and are usually remade each winter. Ice roads allow temporary transport to areas with no permanent road access...
in winter, and by a tram system in the spring and fall. At the time, at least some Dawson City residents demanded that a bridge be built. The community was fairly well served, with dial telephone service, and it was one of the only six communities in the Yukon with television service before 1973.
Clinton Creek had a population of 500, a main building housing the post office, grocery store, cafeteria (used mainly for mine workers), and the remaining rooms served for community social gatherings like a projector set up for weekly reel movies, and a snack bar.
Upon the closing of the townsite, many residents dispersed to other mining towns like Cassiar, British Columbia
Cassiar, British Columbia
Cassiar is a ghost town in British Columbia, Canada. It was a small company-owned asbestos mining town located in the Cassiar Mountains of Northern British Columbia north of Dease Lake. After forty years of operation, starting in 1952, the mine was unexpectedly forced to close in 1992...
, and Faro, Yukon
Faro, Yukon
Faro is a small town in the central Yukon, Canada, formerly the home of the largest open pit lead–zinc mine in the world as well as a significant producer of silver and other natural resource ventures. The mine was built by the Ralph M. Parsons Construction Company of the USA with General...
.
Although the townsite is now abandoned, the road is passable to allow access to the historic ghost town of Fortymile, which was itself abandoned around 1898 when Dawson City boomed. Fortymile was the location of a mining office where the Klondike
Klondike Gold Rush
The Klondike Gold Rush, also called the Yukon Gold Rush, the Alaska Gold Rush and the Last Great Gold Rush, was an attempt by an estimated 100,000 people to travel to the Klondike region the Yukon in north-western Canada between 1897 and 1899 in the hope of successfully prospecting for gold...
gold strike claim was registered by George Carmack
George Carmack
George Washington Carmack was a Contra Costa County, California-born prospector in the Yukon. He was originally credited with the discovery of gold that set off the Klondike Gold Rush on August 16, 1896...
and his two relatives, Dawson Charlie
Dawson Charlie
Dawson Charlie or K̲áa Goox̱ [qʰáː kuːχ] was a Canadian Tagish/Tlingit First Nation person and one of the co-discoverers of gold that led to the Klondike Gold Rush located in the Yukon territory of Northwest Canada. He was the nephew of Skookum Jim Mason and accompanied him on his search for his...
and Skookum Jim Mason.
A reunion of employees of the Clinton Creek and other Cassiar Asbestos operations was planned for July of 2009. More details are available at the Cassiar website