Bennett, British Columbia

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Bennett
Ghost Town
View of Bennett, British Columbia, 1 June 1898 during the Klondike Gold Rush
Bennett, 1 June 1898, during the Klondike Gold Rush
Location of Bennett within British Columbia
Location of Bennett within British Columbia
CountryCanada
ProvinceBritish Columbia
LocationBennett Lake at border between British Columbia and Yukon, Canada
Tent camp for klondikers1897–1899

Bennett, British Columbia, Canada is an abandoned town next to Bennett Lake.[1] It was built during the Klondike Gold Rush of 1897–99 at the end of the White Pass and Chilkoot Trails from the nearby ports of Skagway and Dyea in Alaska. Gold prospectors would pack their supplies over the Coast Mountains from the ports and then build or purchase rafts to take them down the Yukon River to the gold fields around Dawson City, Yukon. When the White Pass and Yukon Route Railroad was completed in 1900 it went right to Whitehorse, passing the port town. This led the entire economy of Bennett, based on stampeders and river travelers, to collapse.

One of the establishments in Bennett was the Arctic Hotel, a combination saloon, restaurant and hotel by Friedrich "Fred" Trump, grandfather of American businessman and television personality Donald Trump.

Today, the historic Bennett townsite is part of the Chilkoot Trail National Historic Site of Canada and managed by Parks Canada. Bennett is also a stop on the White Pass and Yukon Route Railroad during the summer months.

References

  1. ^ a b "Bennett". Geographical Names Data Base. Natural Resources Canada. Retrieved 2014-07-28.

http://www.pc.gc.ca/lhn-nhs/yt/chilkoot.aspx