The Failed Gold Rush

Skagway earns its fame in an enthralling story, as the gateway to the Klondike Gold
Rush, nearly fifty years after the California Gold Rush of 1849. It’s easy to get caught up in the
daydream of the myriad pioneers and adventurers who made their fortune passing through
Skagway to the abundant troves of gold waiting in the wilderness beyond. But the story didn’t
actually unfold that way.

Today, Skagway is home to the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park. The
Visitor Center resides in one of the restored buildings, right on Broadway, close to the docks.
Many of those Wild West buildings are, in fact, part of the park, and the stories of the fortune-
seekers – adventurers and scoundrels alike – are housed within their walls.