Was it a Tea-Room that the young ladies had set-up, David? I understand that
they drank a lot of tea up there back then...
Best regards,Peter Stevens
From: David Young <dsy@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: leicareflex@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent: Monday, September 19, 2016 8:56 PM
Subject: [LRflex] 8 Tons of Soap
Between 1901 and 1937, the British Yukon Navigation Co. built a number
of stern-wheelers to navigate the Yukon River.
By the early 1960's, just three were left on the ways, in the Whitehorse
Shipyard. By then, the Canadian government owned them and eventually it
was decided that the Casca and the Whitehorse were too far gone, in
terms of restoration. So, in 1966, the Klondike had a steel cradle built
under her and she was dragged nearly two miles from the shipyards, to
her present resting place just north of the the Riverdale (now the
Robert Campbell) Bridge. This was accomplished, in September of the
year, using 5 large bulldozes, pulling the steel cradle over wooden
skids, lubricated with a slurry made from 8 tons of Palmolive soap
flakes & a little water.
It looked a bit like this....
http://www.furnfeather.net/Look/Klondike-1.html
Here is a slightly different view, in colour....
http://www.furnfeather.net/Look/Klondike-2.html
Although I took those shots 50 years ago, this month, I'd never noticed
the "Bridge or Bust" note, scrawled in the bulldozer's blade. ;-)
(Mind you, these scans were made from 3x5 inch and 4x4" prints.)
Here is the Klondike, in it's present location, restored to her 1937-40
appearance.
http://www.furnfeather.net/Look/Klondike-3.html
As for the Casca and the Whitehorse, nobody knows what happened, for
sure, but it was well known that squatters were living in them and it
believed that a cooking fire got away on one of them. Whatever the
cause, both ships burned to the ground, on June 20th, 1974, in a
spectacular fire. As is common in small towns, there was a persistent
rumour that the son of a local politician was to blame. True or not,
only the Klondike remains.... now a national monument.
However, this is a bit to this story that you wont' hear if you tour the
Klondike, as Rose and I did, a few weeks ago. In fact, our lovely guide
said she's never heard the story.
But, the Klondike was moved in September, of 1966, so preservation work
was put on hold until the next spring. When the crews turned up to
start restoration work in about June, of '67, they discovered that an
enterprising band of young ladies had moved in and were conducting a
thriving business!
Best regards, from Whistler, BC.
David.
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