Saddle Plates, Sheaves And Sulfur: The Archaeological Visibility Of Chilkoot Pass Aerial Trams

Summary

Chilkoot Trail tramways played a significant role assisting stampeders crossing the perilous Chilkoot Pass during the peak years of the Klondike Gold Rush, 1897-1899.  Competing freight companies constructed three different aerial tram systems to haul equipment and goods over the steep and narrow pass. Today, no tram structures remain standing – all physical evidence of the tram systems survive only as archaeological features scattered among the high outcrops and boulder strewn landscape. Historical documents, period photographs, and archaeological survey have been used to reconstruct tramway routes and details concerning their construction. This presentation will focus on the tram feature ruins and artifacts found in the Pass that contribute to a greater understanding of the development, operational and abandonment phases of the three companies.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Nodes and Modes of Connectivity: Old and New World Studies on Frontiers and Borderlands   •
• Society for Historical Archaeology 2015

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Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 346