William Judge
Encyclopedia
Father William Judge was a Jesuit priest who, during the 1897 Klondike Gold Rush
, established St. Mary's Hospital, a facility in Dawson City which provided shelter, food and any available medicine to the many hard-luck gold miners who filled the town and its environs. For his selfless and tireless work, Judge became known as "The Saint of Dawson".
Judge was born into a religious family in Baltimore
, Maryland
. Becoming a Jesuit priest, in 1890, at the age of forty, he volunteered to go to Alaska. He served for two years at Holy Cross Mission, on the Yukon River
, before being assigned to a smaller mission at Nulato, Alaska
. There he built a church and taught the native children. He was then reassigned to the small mining town of Forty Mile, Yukon. He established a mission there in 1894. When gold was discovered in the Klondike
, practically the entire community relocated there. He followed, arriving in Dawson City in March 1897.
He acquired 3 acres (1.2 ha) and set about building a hospital, church and residence. The hospital was completed on August 20, 1897. Until the arrival of the Sisters of St. Anne in the summer of the following year, he worked single-handedly, raising funds, supervising the construction and the hospital, and tending to his congregation.
Judge's humanitarian work became known due to the writings of Jack London
, whose health — and possibly his life — was saved by the priest. As later self-described, London — like many others involved in the Gold Rush — became malnourished and developed scurvy
. His gums became swollen, eventually leading to the loss of his four front teeth. A constant gnawing pain affected his abdomen and leg muscles, and his face was stricken with sores. Due to Judge's ministrations, he and many others recovered their health.
Father Judge died on January 16, 1899 of pneumonia
. A man of poor health to begin with, he was worn out by his exertions. The whole town mourned and turned out for his funeral. His grave can be viewed behind the remains of the second church built in Dawson (at the end of Front Street past the ferry landing across from Whitehouse Cabins B&B).
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...
, established St. Mary's Hospital, a facility in Dawson City which provided shelter, food and any available medicine to the many hard-luck gold miners who filled the town and its environs. For his selfless and tireless work, Judge became known as "The Saint of Dawson".
Judge was born into a religious family in Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. Becoming a Jesuit priest, in 1890, at the age of forty, he volunteered to go to Alaska. He served for two years at Holy Cross Mission, on 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...
, before being assigned to a smaller mission at Nulato, Alaska
Nulato, Alaska
Nulato is a city in Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 336.-Geography:Nulato is located at ....
. There he built a church and taught the native children. He was then reassigned to the small mining town of Forty Mile, Yukon. He established a mission there in 1894. When gold was discovered in the Klondike
Klondike, Yukon
The Klondike is a region of the Yukon in northwest Canada, east of the Alaska border. It lies around the Klondike River, a small river that enters the Yukon from the east at Dawson....
, practically the entire community relocated there. He followed, arriving in Dawson City in March 1897.
He acquired 3 acres (1.2 ha) and set about building a hospital, church and residence. The hospital was completed on August 20, 1897. Until the arrival of the Sisters of St. Anne in the summer of the following year, he worked single-handedly, raising funds, supervising the construction and the hospital, and tending to his congregation.
Judge's humanitarian work became known due to the writings of Jack London
Jack London
John Griffith "Jack" London was an American author, journalist, and social activist. He was a pioneer in the then-burgeoning world of commercial magazine fiction and was one of the first fiction writers to obtain worldwide celebrity and a large fortune from his fiction alone...
, whose health — and possibly his life — was saved by the priest. As later self-described, London — like many others involved in the Gold Rush — became malnourished and developed scurvy
Scurvy
Scurvy is a disease resulting from a deficiency of vitamin C, which is required for the synthesis of collagen in humans. The chemical name for vitamin C, ascorbic acid, is derived from the Latin name of scurvy, scorbutus, which also provides the adjective scorbutic...
. His gums became swollen, eventually leading to the loss of his four front teeth. A constant gnawing pain affected his abdomen and leg muscles, and his face was stricken with sores. Due to Judge's ministrations, he and many others recovered their health.
Father Judge died on January 16, 1899 of pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
. A man of poor health to begin with, he was worn out by his exertions. The whole town mourned and turned out for his funeral. His grave can be viewed behind the remains of the second church built in Dawson (at the end of Front Street past the ferry landing across from Whitehouse Cabins B&B).