Category: Skagway families

Posted on

Marion Granger Clark


Marion Granger was born on February 4, 1866 in Calhoun, Wisconsin. When she was 35 she married Henry David Clark in Tacoma and they moved to Skagway to farm. A Clark child was born and died in 1902 who may have been their first child, but they then had two daughters, Floris in 1904 and Dorothy in 1910 who are often pictured in the fields of Clark Farm on postcards.
Henry first started potato farming in Dyea and later had a farm on the other side of the Skagway River where the Jewell Gardens are now. In the tea room are several enlarged photos of the family and the gardens.
Marion was the treasurer of the Presbyterian Church for 26 years and died on this day, April 28, 1947 and is buried in the Pioneer Cemetery with Henry.
Above is picture of a modern gardener at Jewell Gardens with a bushel of organic vegetables! Last summer our family did the CSA with them and I plan to again – what a great program! It is so great to know that your food is free of pesticides and chemicals. Garden On!

1920 and 1929 Skagway census; Mills page 64; Skagway death record; 1880 census in Wisconsin; 1915 directory.

Posted on

Graphie Carmack


The daughter of George Carmack and Kate Nadagaat Tlaa Kaachgaawaa Mason, Graphie was born on January 11, 1893 in Fort Selkirk, Yukon. George met Kate at Healy’s Trading Post in Dyea and they were a common-law marriage until about 1900. That year George took Kate and Graphie to Holister, California to live with his sister. He went back to Dawson where he fell for Marguerite Saftig L’Aimee a large handsome woman who ran a cigar store. Now it was said at the time that Marguerite sold more than cigars, the men loved her. George took her to Olympia Washington where they were married in October 1900. He then took Graphie from her mother and the new family moved to Seattle with Marguerite’s brother, Jacob Saftig.
Jacob, 33, fell for Graphie, 17 and she became pregnant. They married on June 30, 1910 and their first son, Ernest Charles Saftig was born three months later on October 7, 1910. Later, Graphie remarried someone named Rogers because she died as Mrs. Graphie G. Rogers on March 25, 1963 in California, either in Lodi or Los Angeles. She was 70.
I had a visitor come to my desk last summer who claimed her grandfather was G.W. Carmack, son of George Carmack and that he died in Poteau, Oklahoma but could not give me any further information, so perhaps George had other kids from either Kate or Marguerite.
There has been alot of interest in George Washington Carmack with the release of Howard Blum’s book, Floor of Heaven. It is a fun read if you haven’t read anything else on the story, but the footnotes are a little vague, in my opinion. But what do I know…seen above is a cabin with George, Kate and Graphie in happy times.

WA state records; California death index; SS death index.Canadianmysteries.ca; Johnson; Thornton; Kitty Smith oral history:Life Lived Like a story; WA 1910 census;1901 Carcross census;Polk County News, Dec 20, 1923.

Posted on

Clean Sweep


Today marks the 43rd year that local folks of Skagway showed up in their grubby clothes and extra-toughs to pick up trash bags for project Clean Sweep. I don’t know how many people helped today, but there was certainly a great showing given the fact it was cool and blowing. Although earlier this spring the Chamber of Commerce seemed to be on the ropes, the good directors and members pulled off a great luncheon too.
Reed and I decided to clean Pullen Creek by the Peniel Mission. After the devastation of the “hazard tree removal” action last fall, most of the slash and brush had accumulated in the tiny creek. Plastic bags, pieces of cardboard, aluminum cans, one petrified coconut, and even an ancient car battery were also caught up. We noted some new bear poop and we talked to a few visitors from Whitehorse who came down for the long weekend.
We took naps after the luncheon, and I’m now eating the leftover cupcakes I made for the event. Wish you were here to share one!

Posted on

deadly Chamber of Commerce meeting


Henry Clay Parker was one of the members of the Chamber of Commerce meeting in Skagway held on March 28, 1900. During the meeting he had a heart attack and died. What were they discussing?
Mr. Parker was born on this day April 17, 1848 in Illinois and came to Skagway with his wife and son. He worked with Aggers in a business they called appropriately Parker and Aggers, but what they did is a mystery.
His wife had his funeral held in the new Arctic Brotherhood Hall, it was the first funeral held here in the hall. Henry was a member of the AB and apparently also the International Order of Odd Fellows as that is also on his headstone, seen above in the Gold Rush cemetery.

Alaska Weekly 1931 article;Skag death rec;

Posted on

Clayton Leslie Polley


Dr. Clayton Polley was the dentist for Skagway. He was born in 1907 in Massachusetts and moved to Skagway in 1934 just after getting married in Juneau. He practiced dentistry in Skagway from 1932 to 1947. Doc opened his dental office in what was formerly the Peniel Mission. He had his dental office upstairs and the family lived downstairs. In 1936, their first child, Ernest Edward, was born.

While in Skagway, the Doc served as the School Board President for six years and three years on the City Council. He was president of the Skagway Chamber of Commerce for two years and secretary-treasurer for three years. During World War II, Polley was captain of the Territorial Guard unit in Skagway. He was president of the Eagles Lodge, and organized and played in a dance band called the Glacier Bugs. Doc was a charter member and helped organize the Alaska Dental Society and served as its first elected president in 1951, and as its secretary-treasurer from 1956-1959.

He died on this day, April 9, 1996 in Juneau.
Seen above is the Peniel Mission building on 6th before restoration by the Park Service, it is now seasonal housing for the park rangers that do the walking tours in the summer.

Dahl book; Juneau P&R site

Posted on

Canvass White


Canvass was the U.S. Commissioner and White Pass clerk in the Gold Rush in Skagway. He was born in 1863 in Mauch Chunk, Pennsylvania. His daughter Bessie married Henry Dedman and their store is still in business in Skagway run by their great great granddaughter Avril. He died on this day, March 25, 1943 in Skagway and is buried in the Pioneer Cemetery here.

p.28 Klondike Pioneer Rediscovery 1998

Posted on

Sophie Fincke Keith


Sophie Fincke was born on this day, March 2, 1861 in Germany. She came to Skagway and married Phillip Sydney Keith on March 12, 1900 here in Skagway. She is known to have been a “matchmaker” having brought together Antoinette and Peter Edward Kern in 1902 here in Skagway. Seen above is the wedding photo – probably at Moore’s home. Mrs. Keith is sitting to the right of the bride with a big grin on her face.
The Keith’s moved to Dawson where Sophie had a son named Elmo. They moved to Fairbanks but Elmo died there at the age of 11. Sophie died in 1937 at the age of 76.

AK Archives photos of Moore collection; familysearch

Posted on

Skagway Cemeteries


What a pleasant surprise to see that my cemetery databases have been posted on the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park website!
Although I continue to update and work on the various pages of my database it is a really great tool for genealogists.
Below is the link to that page:

http://www.nps.gov/klgo/historyculture/gold-rush-cemeteries.htm

Posted on

Charles Hilty


Charles was a member of the Yukon Order of Pioneers. He was an early gold rusher coming to Skagway about 1893. He went on to Hunker Creek and Bear Creek, and made gold claims.
He met a nice German lady in Skagway about 1897, Carolina Bernhoeffer. She and her sister Mary (see earlier blog) ran the hotel “New Home Restaurant & Lodging house”. Carolina may not have ever been married. In any event, she went with Charles to the Yukon and was recorded in 1901 living with him there. They must have married soon after. Carolina was known as “Dutch Lena” and ran several hotels including the Hotel Skagway 1898, Bernhofer’s Roadhouse, Klondike 1901, the Travelers Home in Bear Creek in 1904, cook for Rigley & Templin in Council Alaska in 1905, and washer for Cascade Steam Laundry in Fairbanks. Carolina Hilty died in Skagway in 1906 and is buried in the Gold Rush Cemetery. I blogged on her earlier before I found the connection with Charles. I believe there are some errors on the headstone.

Meanwhile, Charles got into a shooting scrap in Tanana, Alaska and the Pioneers advanced him $1000.00 for lawyer fees. He was acquitted and repaid the money. The Yukon Order of Pioneers motto was “do as you would be done by”. It was formed during the Gold Rush era to ensure stampeders’ rights were protected.
Charles Hilty died on this day, December 9, 1920.

Yukon Genealogy site; 1901 Yukon census Volume YRG1 page v76 as posted also on the Yukon Genealogy site; Gold Fields of Alaska online no date.