Tom the backroads traveller hosts this weekly meme.
August 2023 - Carcross Yukon Canada
I never wrote about Carcross Yukon YT.
The village of Carcross—originally called Caribou Crossing—is located on the South Klondike Highway, between Whitehorse and Skagway. It is 74km (46mi) south of Whitehorse. The elevation is 662 metres (2,170 feet). The population is around 500 people, comprised of an even mix of First Nations and white people.
The original name of the village (Caribou Crossing) came from the miners, who observed large herds of caribou that swam the narrows between Bennett and Nares lakes twice a year. The name was changed to Carcross in 1902. The reason being that the postal mail for the local school kept being redirected to Caribou Crossing in British Columbia and to the one in Alaska.
While the post office adopted the name change, the railway kept the station name of Caribou Crossing until 1916. The railway station is still used during the summer months by White Pass & Yukon Route for scenic rail excursions to Bennet, British Columbia and to Skagway, Alaska. The original station burned down during a fire in 1910. That same fire also destroyed the Caribou Hotel and most of the other buildings in downtown Carcross. The station, hotel and store were rebuilt within a year.
For many years the sternwheeler Tutshi stood along the shore of the community; but it too was destroyed by fire in July 1990. The ruins of the boat have been converted into a viewing platform with interpretive displays.
The oldest operating store in the Yukon is the Matthew Watson General Store in Carcross. It was established during the Klondike Gold Rush and is known for its historic ambiance and selection of souvenirs, clothing, and ice cream. The store is also noted for its antique goods and the "genuine vibe" it offers, transporting visitors back to the Gold Rush era.
The Commons is a beautifully designed street lined with small buildings. The shops are covered in vibrant Indigenous art with totem poles rising before you. Each shop offers a range of local crafts,
Each building in the Commons is uniquely decorated with designs representing the local First Nations’ clans. The Carcross Tagish First Nations people follow a matriarchal lineage and belong to one of two larger groups: the Wolf or the Crow.
The Wolf moiety is further divided into the Whale and Wolf clans, while the Crow moiety is made up of the Beaver, Raven, Frog, and Crow clans. Symbols representing these six clans were painted on the building and carved into the totem poles decorating the Carcross Commons.
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More photos around town.
The Carcross cemetery has two famous Tagish First Nation residents. Skookum Jim and Dawson “Tagish” Charlie struck gold at Bonanza Creek—which was a significant find, as it sparked the Klondike Gold Rush. Skookum Jim’s First Nation name is Keish, and Tagish Charlie’s name is KĂĄa Goox. Also buried in the cemetery is Kate Carmack, whose First Nations’ name was Shaaw TlĂĄa. She was Skookum Jim’s sister; and, at the time of the strike, the wife of the third man in the Bonanza Creek strike, George Carmack.
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