In the photo above is the old Bettles Trading Post on the Koyukuk riverDriven by gold fever, you’re constantly looking for the next big strike.The Klondike gave up a lot of gold, but quickly became played out. So many stampeders were looking for another strike to cool their fever. They found one.A man named Johnny Folger discovered gold near the middle fork of the Koyukuk River in 1893. When word got out, around 2,000 gold seekers left the Klondike, and headed near the Arctic Circle in Alaska. The Koyukuk Gold Rush of 1902 was on.It was Rough and TumbleBut the Cheechakos from places like New York, Michigan and Illinois, were not prepared for the hardships they encountered on the Koyukuk River. Pictured above is Gordon C. Bettles in 1898 from the Bettles Family Collection“My father was in practically every stampede in Alaska, and he walked to most of them, a pack on his back and a rifle in his hand.”—Mr. Bettles' daughter Marguerite Bettles GolderGordon Bettles was a fur trader, shopkeeper, prospector, and newspaperman.Bettles was in the Klondike, looking for gold, when he heard about the strike on the Koyukuk River. Because of the strike, Gordon Bettles left the Klondike and ordered 20 tons of supplies and formed, G.C. Bettles & Co. His newspaper advertising motto was, “From Pickaxe to a Candle”.On the Koyukuk River, he established the outpost, or “Bean Shop” (a store) of Bergman and another store farther north that he named Bettles. Along the way, Gordon Bettles became known as a kind man who would “grubstake” a miner in need with food and supplies.Yes, You can Share this EditionImagine how happy your friends and family will be when they get to discover Bettles, Alaska because you were thoughtful enough to share this with them. You’ll be their hero.Click on the following link:Thanks for reading Alaska Stories. This post is public, so feel free to share it.By 1899, Gold Fever in the Area had FadedIn the photo above are the first buildings in Bettles, in 1900By 1901, the tiny outpost of Bettles had a post office and the trading post was still doing business with the remaining local miners. The Post Office later closed in 1956.Gordon Bettles passed away on May 18, 1945, in Seattle, Washington.BONUSGet to know Gordon Bettles: Koyukuk Pioneer and discover.So, Where is Bettles Today?In the photo above is the new Bettles on the right, with Evansville on the left. All on the banks of the Koyukuk River.The residents of the original Bettles have moved the community about five miles east to Evansville because the military had left an abandoned airfield at that location.The original, “Old” Bettles became a ghost town. The “New” Bettles was incorporated in 1985.The new Bettles is located on the Koyukuk River, 20 miles south of the Arctic National Park Reserve. It’s on the Dalton Highway as a winter only ice road that crosses the Jim River. Bettles is 35 miles north of the Arctic Circle, just south of the Brooks Range.BONUSEnjoy this video about Old BettlesAlaska Short StoriesFrom the “Tsunami” story:“We were near the nonexistent entrance of the boat harbor trying to lasso another boat when the northeastern wave hit us and drove us sideways into the southwestern wave, and the combination of the two forces generated a giant whirlpool.We were now going backwards with the main engine in full forward position in this swirling vortex with about a ten-degree list. The skipper told me to go down and drive that wedge back into the throttle, which I did in record time. The skipper had the wheel hard over to no avail.There was a red house on the hill just north of the city dock that had been washed from its foundation and was floating along with all the other flotsam, only this house had somehow managed to enter the swirling vortex inside the Fortress.It started to break up and disappeared right before our eyes. We could look right down into this black hole.”Read the 1964 Alaska Earthquake Tsunami short storyConnect with Mike and MaryThis Alaska Stories look at Gordon C. Bettles, and Bettles, Alaska, was a surprising look at the history of Alaska, and the beginning of a town.Do you have a comment about this story? Just reply to this email. Or you can Contact Us to say, “I’ve been to Bettles”. Mike and Mary love to hear from our North Stars (that’s you).Until Next TimeMike and MaryAlaska Stories Get full access to Alaska Stories at www.alaska-stories.com/subscribe
