John Gibson, of Chicopee, set out for the Klondike in February 1898, leaving behind his wife and four children
John Gibson, of Chicopee, set out for the Klondike, a region of Canada's Yukon Territory, crossed by the Klondike River, in February 1898, leaving behind his wife and four children. Gold had been discovered in the river in 1896, and the following year, more than 100,000 men and women made their way into this frozen hinterland, just east of Alaska, with the hope of striking it rich. It is said no more than 30,000 completed the trip.
At his first glimpse of mountains higher than Mount Tom, or the Holyoke Range, Gibson wrote that the sight was truly beautiful. But he got bored with the scenery, the snow and the cold. Some months later, still en route to the Klondike, he wrote to his wife: “I would rather spend a year in the Springfield jail than another week here.”
On Dec. 6, Robert H. Romer, a retired Amherst College professor, will speak about Gibson in a presentation at Amherst History Museum called "The Klondike Gold Rush: A Gold-Seeker from Chicopee goes to the Klondike in 1898 (and Back)."
Gibson was devoted to his family and often wrote letters to his wife, Mag. In one from Lake Lindemann, Yukon Territory, dated April 22, 1898, he told her: "If it is a good day tomorrow, I am going to try and change my underwear. It will be the first time since I left Seattle.”
With the help of these letters, Gibson's diary and news articles in the Springfield Republican, Romer will trace Gibson's round trip to the Klondike. A recent immigrant from Ireland, Gibson told of wearing a green ribbon on St Patrick’s Day, and the enthusiastic welcome he got from others along the way.
Gibson was one of many from Massachusetts, who made the trek. He was “a devoted family man, wanted to improve the situation of his family, wrote to his wife constantly,” Romer explained.
Only a small fraction of those who set out for the Klondike got rich, Romer noted, and many never got there; some died along the way.
“Within a day or two after reaching the diggings, (Gibson) realized that most of the good claims were gone, that he was unlikely to find gold, that the town -- Dawson City - was full of unsuccessful miners who were all desperate for employment and worried about how they could survive the coming winter,” Romer said.
But Gibson had the sense to realize that by selling his gear he would have just about enough money to get home. “So he did just that, got out and got home, poorer by a few thousand dollars, but alive and well and back in Chicopee with his family.”
Gibson told the newspaper after he got home that he planned to go again in a year or two. “But he thought better of that idea,” Romer said.
Romer read the collection of Gibson’s letters at the Lyman and Merrie Wood Museum of Springfield History, with the help of archivist Cliff McCarthy, who introduced him to those documents. Most of his other information came from searches of the archives of The Republican.
Romer's talk is part of the Fall 2013 Lunchtime Lectures, “History Bites,” which take place every other Friday at the Amherst History Museum, 67 Amity St., in Amherst.
Those attending any “History Bites” talk may bring their own lunch. Coffee, tea or cider is provided.
The 30-minute program begins at 12:15 p.m., with seating and beverages ready just before noon.
For updated information, go to www.amhersthistory.org.
If you go:
What: "The Klondike Gold Rush: A Gold-Seeker from Chicopee goes to the Klondike in 1898 (and Back)”
When: Friday, Dec. 6, 12:15 p.m.
Where: Amherst History Museum, 67 Amity St.
Admission: Free; bring a lunch. Beverages will be provided.