The Salmon River District is
Marvelously Rich in Minerals
and Hyder is the Gateway in
Consequence of Which Hyder is
the Fastest Growing Town in
the North.
\
HYDER ALASKA MINER
Published at the Gateway to the Salmon River, Alaska - British Columbia, Mineral Area
This Paper is Out to Publish all
the Mining News. Keep 'Your
Friends Posted by Sendir.g them
the Paper after You Have Read
it. Boost for Hyder all the
Time.
VOL. 1. NO. 12.
HYDER, Alaska, Jan. 16, 1920
FIVE DOLLARS A YEAR
Power-Light
and Water
George W. Nelson Writes
of Plans to Provide This
Town With Necessary
Utilities.
Writing from Seattle Geo. W. Nel
son, whose interests in this district are
many and varied, says in part:
1 am not at all surprised to learn that
the town of Hyder is prosperous dur
ing the winter months, as the citizens
you have there today are peop'e who
would not lie down for a few feet of
snow or any drawback that Nature
might cause.
Referring to the Hyder Water, Light
and Tower Company, I am jdeased to!
state that the company is organized
and fully financed to put in the water
light and power system of the town
next spring and charge a reasonable
rate therefor. My engineer is today
laying out the plans and doing other
necessary work in connection with the
enterprise. I hope to have the pipe for
the installation of the water system on
the ground not Later than May or the
first part of June,
There is a lot of talk about Hyder in
this town and throughout the state of
Washington, and I would not be a bit
a lot of good people going up to that
couutry with a view of idvesting, pro
viked however, that the owners of prop
erty, both mining and real estate, do
not go above the average price of prop-1
erty in new and undeveloped districts.
I
MOVES CLAIMS
ACROSS BORDER
“We don’t want boosting, but we do
want the people on the outside to know
the facts concernidg the Hyder and
Salmon river district.”
With the above quotation the Ketch
ikan Times closes an alleged interview
with Pat Benson, who recently passed
through Ketchikan on his way south.
The whole story —none of it was quot
ed except the above paragraph—was
run through the Miner’s separator and
the quotation was the only part that
was saved except the statement that
the Alaska mineral area needs prospec
ting and development. The statement
that Pat’s White Mouse group and Bill
Murphy’s War Eagle group are on the
Alaska side went into the discard since
they are at least eight miles by an air
line and thirteen miles by trail from
the Alaska border and on the Canadian
side. The rest of the story isn’t worth
noticing.
However, when Pat returns to camp
and the oldtimers thake their fingers
at him, he can blame the reporter.'
The Miner is $5.00 a year.
ALASKA MINING BRIEFS
Jerry Ford, one of the leading min
lng men of the Iditarod country, is in
the States for the winter.
J.W.McCord, a Willow creek mining
man, and Miss Irene Majors were re
cently married at Anchorage.
Eneho ToramanofF of McCarthy has
purchased claim No. 11 in the White
Gulch, which adjoins his own, from
James Dennis.
The two dredges on Fairbanks creek
had a successful run last season. Con
tracts have been U t for wood to use as
fuel on the dredges next season.
The last rrip of the Tana, owned by
Capt. Wallace Langley, took 80 tons of
outfit up the Kuskukwim riyer to Mc
Grath for Tom Aitken’s Nixon creek
quartz properties.
Barney McKeown, one of the few indi
vidual mining operators left in the
Nome district, has gone to New York
for the winter. He went to Nome in
the rush of 19 0 and has stayed with
the camp ever since.
Lynch Brothers, diamond drill men
located in the Alaska building in Seat
tle, will work extensively in Alaska
this year. They have one drill operat
ing at Kennecot and one at Gypsum,
two at Jualin. and will have a half doz
en operating In the Ilyder district in a
few weeks
Mike Co ley, operator around Ophir
and owner of much valuable property,
left Iditarod two months ago over the
trail for Seward. Since leaving Idita
rod he has not been seen. Pete Kaga
rod and five other men were deputized
to make a search for Conley on the
way out but they reported they found
no trace of the well known miner.
The output of the Kasaan Mining Co.
who own the old Duncan mines on
Twelve Mile Arm is to be increased
form 15 to (10 tons a day. A ball mill
is being installed to supplant tfye five
stamps, which will be used as primary
crushers. The property was discovered
in 1906 and has produced abont $81,750
from about 7,000 tons of ore mined.
Vice-president E.A.Densmore of the
Cu'.ross Mining and Milling Company
recently visited the property of that
company near Valdez and came away
well pleased with the progress of the
work there. The company is driving a
250-foot tunnel to connect with the ore
shoot at a depth of 250 feet. The prop
erty has a well defined ledge traced for
a distance of 3,000 feet, from which as
says as high as $240 a ton have been
obtained.
The Gold Bullion mine in the Willow
creek district has been pureha ed by a
Canadian syndicate for $500,000. The
property was located in 1906 by Will,
iam and Gene Bartholf and is reputed
to have already produced upwards of
one million dollars. The new owners
propose to install a hydro-electric plant
on the Little Susitna and work the
mine by modern methods.
Hyder Happenings
H.R.Walker, a Ketchikan druggist,
was a visitor this week.
G.Skelly, an oldtime north-in miner,
has arrived from Iditari.d.
The Taku II brought ten passengers
from Ketchikan on her last trip.
F.J.Cox, a Juneau drygoods drum
mer, smiled on the camp this week.
Albert and Axel Johnson and Erick
Erickson have built a cabin in Hyder.
■»
Mrs. J.S. Conner has opened a laundry!
at her residence near the Forty Nine
barns.
Sunday the King Edward Hotel in
Stewa.it will re-open the dining room
on a regular schedule.
Mrs. Rob Keith who went south just1
after Christmas, is reported to be sick
in a Vancouver hospital.
Frances Hall of Dawson is now con
ducting the Hyder Bath House, having
leased it from Mrs. Rose Walker, who
has gone to Vancouver.
H.N. Stackpole, who is connected
with John R.Beegle and Co., a Ketchi
kan insurance and brokerage firm, has
been spending a few days in Hyder.
Chas. Bunting, who staked the Pre
mier and other Salmon river properties
and recently bonded the Northern
Light to the Algunican Syndicate, is
visiting in Victoria.
% Bobby Small, the blacksmith, claims
the record for snow mushing between
Hyder and Stewart. He made it from
Alex Frazer’s to Bill Tooth’s in .'13
minutes and 10 seconds.
G.E.Smith, representing the Sullivan
Machinery Co., was in camp this week
prospecting for future business. His
headquarters are in Juneau, and he
supplies all kinds of mining machinery.
Mrs. Hazel Lewis, who owns consid
erable property^in Hyder, cameoveron
the Sea Breeze early in the week from
Ketchikan but only stayed a couple of
days. While here she let a contract
for the construction of two buildings
near t he Hyder Cigar Store.
Stewart males are happy now. They
have a barber. l or several months
there has been no tonsorial artist in the
town, and many a whisker grew, and'
many a cuss word flew. Now there is i
an abounding joy. Bud Renn has open
ed the King Edward Hotel shop. Fol
lowing the usual custom he started
to r. ad a magazine as soon as he had
his lay-out established, but has not yet
finished the front page.
When it comes to getting buildings
up in a hurry and doing it right, there
are three men in this town who have
no partnership agreement but w ho
work together better than if they had,
and who accomplish results. They are
Ed McLaren, J.W.Marr and Jim Holl—
eran. The new Stewart Trading Com
pany’s building, erected in two weeks,
the Miner office in less than that time,
the Forty Nine office, most of the work
on the Alaskan Hotel and numerous
other buildings stand as monuments to
their industry. While they are work
ing on a building they don’t monkey
around, but finish it and get after the
next or.e.
mm BACKED
BY MEETING
That the trouble at the Premier has
developed into a strike is evidenced by
the fact that the men affected have1
cailed for strike funds to enable them
to carry on untii other employment can
be secured. This was done on the rec
ommendation f the men who came up
from Prince Rupert to go to work but
who refused to do so when the mine
management failed to carry out the
terms of the agreement under which
they came here.
There were no new developments in
the situation during the week. The men
who came from Rupert are making
some talk of seeking legal redress for
the time lost, but this is something for
future consideration after a conference
with the officials of the union who sent
them up heie and signed the agree
ment.
Tuesday afternoon a public meeting:
was called in Hyder for the purpose of
acquainting the citizens with the men’s
position. The meeting was held in the
Willard build ng, and was attended by
between 75 and 100 citizens and strik
ers. J.C.Callahan acted as chairman,
and A. W.Robinson as secretary. The
latter went fully into the history of the
trouble, and stated however that the
principal reason for calling the meeting
was that reports were in circulation to
the effect that the men were a bunch of
I.W. W.’s and Bolshevists and they
wished to publicly put a stop to such
canards. The men, he said, were anx
ious to work. But they are union men
and cannot violate their union princi
ples bv acting as strike breakers. The
demand that a competent cook be em
ployed at the mine, he said, is a reason
able one. They do not demand that
the Chinese cook be discharged from
the employ of the company, but that
another cook be employed in his place.
The meeting closed with the passing
Indian Will
Be Operated
of a resolution endorsing the action of
the striking miners and pledging them
moral and financial support. There was
no discussion, and the resolution went
through unanimously.
MORNING FIRE
DESTROYS »
The cabin in which Frank Graham
has been living in Stewart wa3 com
pletely destroyed by fire at an early
hour Thursday morning, together with
all its contents, and Frank had a na -
row escape, losing part of his eyebrows
and some of his hair, though not so
much of the latter as he would have
lost had he not had his head shaved a
short time ago.
The fire was caused by a piece of can
vas hanging too close to the stove.
Frank had turned in without taking the
i rouble to remove his nether garments,
otherwise he would have been forced
to wade through she snow robed only
in his surging thoughts, as the clothes
he wore were the only tilings he aaved
from the house. He crawled into the
cabin twice to try and save his coat,
which contained a roll of Canadian bills
but blistered hands we e his only re
ward.
Mike Cooney of Nenana has started a
dog team express between the t vo ends
of steel via the Broad Pass route and
will carry baggage for mushers, also
carry passengers. It is 130 miles be
tween the ends of steel.
The people of the Iditarod country
and the upper Kuskokwim river regio
i re very wratliy over the discontinu
ance of the Seward Iditarod mail rout;
and are preparing to urge its re-estab
lishment.
The Alaska Engineering Commission
will ship north about twenty-five thous
and tons of construction material, roll
ing stock, and food supplies with the
coming of s.-ring.
Important Announcement
Concerning Plans for De
velopment of Well Known
Property.
On his return from the south, Roy
Clothier brought the good news that
the Indian Mines Ltd, company is on a
sound financial footing and will start
work on their property as soon as they
can get in supplies.
The Indian is one of the first locations
on Salmon river and has been developed
to a point where it may be truthfully
called a mine. With the resumption
of work, shipping ore can be extracted
from the start, and before fall this pro
perty should be one of the big factors
in ore tonnage of the camp.
The property was stocked during
the Bear river boom and the com
pany has bean kept intact. Now that
there is a general movement of mine
development and ore extraction they
are in a position to join in the process
ion. Mr. Clothier is going out to Van
couver and Victoria again next week
on business in connection with this pro
perty. He says there will be no delay
in getting active operations started.
A Seattle dispatch published in Ket
chikan says:
Information of a conservative char
acter procured frcni the steamship
companies indicates the movement of
about two thousand people, with the
coming of spring, into the new silver
district, and a corresponding amount
of tonnage Present plans contemplate
a regular steamship service betwe n
Sea’tle, Ketchikan and Hyder, these
Vessels making only the principal ports.
A lot of Seattle and eastern capital is
named as being quietly invested in Hy
der properties.
GETTING HOMES OF THE GOVERNMENT
Just north of the Hyder townsite is a government forest re
serve which has been surveyed into hciresiles. \\ he n ite
reserve was thrown open there was quite a rush for lots, as can
be judged by the above scene, Many homes h ve teen built cn
these locations.