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General Information The Copperbelt Railway & Mining Museum (CRMM) is run by the Miles Canyon Historic Railway Society (MCHRS), which consists of a board of six members. The objectives of the society are to: 1) promote the development and operation of a historical railway in the city of Whitehorse; 2) promote and enhance the preservation and restoration of railway transportation and mining artifacts; and promote and enhance tourism development in the City of Whitehorse and the Yukon (http://www.yukonrails.com/objectives.html). The 8 hectare parcel of land that the CRMM is located at was provided by the Yukon Electric Company Ltd. in 1998. Construction on the first loop section of narrow gauge track began the same year, further sections were added in subsequent years with a 1.8km figure eight configuration that is currently in operation (2010). The museum itself was built from blueprints to replicate a train station built in 1906. The museum is open 7 days a week, from 10am – 5pm starting in early June to Labour Day weekend in September. It is a non-profit museum that relies on government funding and donations from tourists and patrons. The museum and train rides are both free. For more information, go to http://www.yukonrails.com/index.html.

The Whitehorse Waterfront Trolley is also managed by the MCHRS on behalf of the Yukon Territorial Government. History of the CRMM

The CRMM is located on a rich copper-bearing skarn, 4km west of the city of Whitehorse. Copper deposits were first discovered in this area in 1898 as Gold Rush Stampeders were making their way to Dawson. Because of the Gold Rush, most people overlooked the outcroppings of copper on their way to the Klondike. However, a few men did stay in Whitehorse to stake claims. Some of these more notable individuals were John McIntyre, William P. Grainger, John Hanly, Andrew Olsen, Ole Dickson, H.E. Porter and Sam McGee.

McIntyre staked the first claim on July 6, 1898 and called it the Copper King. Grainger staked a claim just north of the Copper King and named it the Copper Queen. Copper King was found to be more prosperous than the Copper Queen, which led Grainger to buy a 50% share for $1,000.00 . The early prospecting of copper was done largely by surface prospecting and underground tunnelling. (Mackay, 1993, p.7). Work began on the Copper King in 1899. The first shipment of ore out of the Copper King yielded nine tons of handpicked ore, which consisted of 46.4% copper, 11 ounces of silver and $2.58 of gold per ton (Dobrowolsky, et al., 1993, p.4). The very high concentration of copper from the Copper King is uncommon, as a typical copper mine will have .4 to 1% copper in its ore . The Copper King would later be sold by Grainger to a Pennsylvanian syndicate for $210,000 and a percentage of royalties . Tragically, Grainger died a few days later in the mines of the ‘black damp’ (carbon monoxide poisoning) (Dobrowolsky, et al., 1993, 13).

Nearly 500 stakes were claimed on the Copperbelt by 1905. The staked claims covered an area approximately 100 sq.miles going 20km north to south from Fish Lake to McCrae . The actual Copperbelt area is 30km in length, extending from an area south of the Klondike and Alaska highways to an area west of Porter Creek subdivision (Dobrowolsky, 1993, p.2). Due to the high costs of moving the ore out of the Copperbelt, construction of a spur line started in 1907 that would connect McCrae to the principal mines (Dobrowolosky et al., 1993, p.6). Because of the fluctuations in copper prices in the following years, construction on the 12 mile spur lines was fraught with delays and work stoppages. It was finally completed in 1910 at the Pueblo Mine (Dobrowolosky et al., 1993, p.6).

The most prosperous of all early copper mining was done at the Pueblo mine, staked by John Hanly in 1898 (Dobrowolsky, et al., 1993, p.3).