The A.J. Goddard, a steamboat built for the Klondike Gold Rush of 1897-1898, wrecked in 1901 on Lake Laberge, Yukon Territory, where it lay undisturbed until its rediscovery in 2008 by the Yukon River Survey Project, directed by John Pollack. The complete and undisturbed nature of the wreck site, which is the only known site from this period to show such remarkable preservation, provides an unparalleled opportunity for studying the construction features of one of the Klondike steamboats and its associated material culture. The wreck of the A.J. Goddard is the only known surviving example of a small, prefabricated sternwheeler from the Yukon River's sternwheeler days. Due to the nature of its construction and building material, the A.J. Goddard represents a period of vast change in shipbuilding techniques, and is part of the fascinating juxtaposition between traditional wooden boats and a new, prefabricated industrial solution to boatbuilding. Work thus far has revealed that the A.J. Goddard possessed a simple design and construction, likely not one developed specifically for the Yukon River. It appears that the need to carry it over a mountain influenced its design more than the qualities of the Yukon River. Modifications were made over the course of its short career to make it more suitable, but its tragic end indicates that it was not a good choice for open-water navigation, though it admirably and successfully fulfilled its mission of serving throughout the gold rush. Though it was not ideally suited for the river and lakes environment where it was built, the quickness and ingenuity with which the vessel was constructed made it one of the few vessels, out of the thousands that set out for the Yukon in the summer of 1898, to actually make it to Dawson in time for the gold rush without being delayed by ice in the north, as so many were. Field seasons were conducted in 2009 and 2010 that focused on recording the boat's construction features and artifacts. Select artifacts were recovered for study and display in Whitehorse, Yukon Territory with the intention of creating an exhibit for the Yukon public.

In September 1901 the North-West Mounted Police learned that a group of American miners, calling themselves the Order of the Midnight Sun, were planning to take over the Yukon. The Conspiracy, as the plot to overthrow the Mounted Police and establish an independent republic in the Alaska boundary region was known, appealed to Americans in the region. The location of the Alaska boundary was not set when the Klondike Gold Rush (1897-1899) brought thousands of miners and traders into the Yukon, northern British Columbia, and Alaska. The Canadian government’s efforts to maintain order and protect its interests in the Alaska boundary dispute angered American miners and businessmen and led them to support the Order. After the Conspiracy was discovered, the Mounted Police and the Canadian government launched a full scale investigation and response. To fully investigate the Conspiracy during the Alaska boundary dispute, the Mounted Police, a domestic force, had to operate in Canada and the United States and cooperate with American authorities in Skagway. The Dominion Police were also involved in the investigation and they too had to work with American authorities in Seattle and San Francisco. But the Mounted Police did not view the Conspiracy as a serious threat. Their experience in the north had shown that such threats rarely amounted to anything. The Canadian government, however, responded differently. Canadian officials in Ottawa feared that the Conspiracy would cost Canada in the Alaska boundary negotiations and they took steps to ensure that the Mounted Police could defend the region and prevent further unrest. This thesis examines the Mounted Police and Canadian government responses to the Conspiracy and the reasons for these different responses, within the context of the Alaska boundary dispute.

This thesis represents the first anthropological perspective to be offered on the nature of the Klondike Gold Rush population. In order to better understand the experience of the average gold rusher, morbidity and mortality patterns are examined for the residents of the Yukon Territory following the discovery of gold in the region (1898-1904). Infectious diseases such as measles, pneumonia, smallpox and typhoid fever are the primary focus of this study, however local factors such as the severe climate and the seclusion of the gold fields from the outside world also offers an interesting opportunity to examine the consequences of leading a particularly harsh and physically demanding lifestyle in an inhospitable environment. / October 2008

This thesis represents the first anthropological perspective to be offered on the nature of the Klondike Gold Rush population. In order to better understand the experience of the average gold rusher, morbidity and mortality patterns are examined for the residents of the Yukon Territory following the discovery of gold in the region (1898-1904). Infectious diseases such as measles, pneumonia, smallpox and typhoid fever are the primary focus of this study, however local factors such as the severe climate and the seclusion of the gold fields from the outside world also offers an interesting opportunity to examine the consequences of leading a particularly harsh and physically demanding lifestyle in an inhospitable environment.

This thesis represents the first anthropological perspective to be offered on the nature of the Klondike Gold Rush population. In order to better understand the experience of the average gold rusher, morbidity and mortality patterns are examined for the residents of the Yukon Territory following the discovery of gold in the region (1898-1904). Infectious diseases such as measles, pneumonia, smallpox and typhoid fever are the primary focus of this study, however local factors such as the severe climate and the seclusion of the gold fields from the outside world also offers an interesting opportunity to examine the consequences of leading a particularly harsh and physically demanding lifestyle in an inhospitable environment.