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Feature Article on the Gold Rush.
Topic: GOLD RUSH
Written by Rich Wallace in May,
1996
GOLD RUSH MINERS FROM SHELBY COUNTY, OHIO...Pg 3 |
| Some made money finding gold, and many others
made it supplying them. The Staleys recalled that winter clothes cost $250, nails were
fetching $8 a pound, and hay cost $500 a ton. Meals ranged from $1.50 to $5 each. The
price for a six pane window: $160. It was not surprising that the adventure turned out
to be a miserable failure for many. Former Sidney resident F. B. Chapman toured the Yukon
area in the spring of 1898 and observed: "The prospector is everywhere to be
found--weary, footsore, haggard looking and disheartened. This is not a poor man's
country." From Sunrise City, he reported that "Hundreds of men came here full of
hope and energy, and returned without going on a prospecting trip...Their hard luck
stories would break the heart of a stone."
Desperate weather conditions
The weather conditions did not help. Joe and Dan Staley reported temperatures
as low as 59 degrees below zero during the winter of 1897. The sun rose briefly at 11 AM
in December. It was dark by 1:30 PM. The work never stopped in the cold winter months, as
the men had to prepare their claims for activity in the summer. F. B. Chapman wrote in
September 1898 that he "expected to spend the winter whipsawing lumber for sluice
boxes and trestles and getting ready to start operations early in the spring." It
cost one dollar to send a letter home. It was months between delivery of mail to the men.
James Perry left his job with John Loughlin's
school desk factory in Sidney to explore the area up north. He reported winter
temperatures of up to 80 degrees below zero. In the short summer he found the miners
encountered poor water supplies in the camps and the existence of malaria.
The 'stampeders' persevered despite these hardships, and a good number prospered. James
Perry saw people who had arrived at Cape Nome dig in the sand on the beach and find gold
30 minutes after arriving. Joseph Staley wrote home in January of 1898 that "We have
done very well financially. We have only worked twelve days...I have plenty of money--more
than I have had for many years, all put together. I shall be out on the first boat next
year." His subsequent successes convinced him to stick around a little while longer.
Staley brothers
encounter luck and gold
As the saying goes, sometimes it is better to be lucky than good. Joseph Staley wrote
to his mother in April 1898 about a side trip he took to the El Dorado area to work on a
bench claim. "We worked only four days until we struck bed rock. I saw at a glance
that we had struck something rich. We took out three pans worth $218.75." Joe and his
brother Dan filed claims immediately. In the same letter, Joe admitted to his mother:
"This mining business has luck connected with it." Joe's luck was destined to
continue. The region's newspaper, the Klondike Nugget, reported on June 23, 1898,
that Joseph Staley found a nugget on his claim worth $71. (Dawson city records document a
number of claims filed by the Staleys.) Joseph Staley made a triumphal return to
Anna for the Thanksgiving holiday in 1898. The Sidney Daily News reported on
November 17, 1898, that Joseph "...arrived at noon. Mr. Staley and his brother Dan
have some very valuable gold claims in Alaska and have been taking out considerable
gold."
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