Yukonformerly Yukon Territoryterritory of northwestern Canada, an area of rugged mountains and high plateaus. It is bounded by the U.S. state of Alaska to the west, the Northwest Territories to the east, and by British Columbia to the south, and by the U.S. state of Alaska to the west, and it extends northward above the Arctic Circle to the Beaufort Sea. The capital is Whitehorse.

The mineral wealth of the Yukon territory has long been known since the famous Klondike gold rush of the later 1890s, but the combination of an Arctic climate with and remoteness from markets has minimized limited the economic exploitation of such resources and the development of modern settlement. Instead, the territory remains among the few frontiers on the North American continent, a sparsely populated and largely unspoiled wilderness. Area square miles ( square km). Population ; .

Physical and human geographyThe landThe territory Land



Yukon lies within the mountainous cordilleran region of western North America. The more-settled areas lie in a large central plateau surrounded by mountains and drained by the Yukon River system flowing northwestward into Alaska. , notably the Selwyn and Mackenzie ranges of the Rockies to the east; the Logan, Pelly, and St. Elias ranges to the south; and the Ogilvie and Richardson ranges to the west and north. Some of the surrounding mountains are spectacular, especially the St. Elias Mountains in the southwest, which have ; the range has some of the highest peaks in North America, including Mount Logan at 19,524 feet (5,951 metres) .The northern and Mount St. Elias at 18,008 feet (5,489 metres), on the U.S.-Canada border.

Drainage and soils



Summers in Yukon are short, but their days are long, especially in the northern part of the territory lying above the Arctic Circle. Although temperatures vary, sometimes reaching summer highs of 95 °F (in the mid-90s F (about 35 °C) and winter lows below −60 °F (−51 the low −60s F (about −50 °C), the monthly average readings are not unlike those found in some Canadian cities farther east and south. Summers are short but the days are long, especially in the northern part of the territory lying above the Arctic Circle. Precipitation is light, averaging only about 10 inches (250 millimetresmm) annually at Whitehorse.

Plant and animal life

Vegetation is sparse in many regions because of the dry, cool climate and poor soils. There are few trees in the southwest and north; the extreme northern portion of Yukon is above the tree line, but some of the southern valleys are heavily forested. Animal life, on the other hand, abounds in Yukon. Large game animals and Aquatic vegetation thrives in lakes and wetlands, near which orchids can also be found blooming in the summer months.

Animal life abounds in Yukon. Native to the area are a number of large mammal species, including significant populations of grizzly bears and Dall sheep, as well as smaller fur-bearing mammals are native to the area, as are waterfowl . Waterfowl and other common North American birds inhabit wetlands, as do muskrats. Common species of fish fishes include the arctic Arctic grayling, lake trout, and northern pike. Much of the territory remains unspoiled wilderness, but the impact of people on the environment is apparent. Near the settlements, reliance on wood for fuel has destroyed timber, and in more remote places forest fires caused by humans have often gone uncontrolled. In addition, surface mining has scarred the landscape near Dawson and

Population composition


Settlement patterns

Some two-thirds of the total population of Yukon lives in Whitehorse. The city of Dawson and some older Indian villages such as Old Crow, which is situated well above the Arctic Circle, are set in locations of great natural beauty and retain a picturesque appearance. More modern centres Centres of mining and transportation, such as Whitehorse, Watson Lake, and Mayo, resemble towns of like size elsewhere in western North America. On the fringes of some of these, rude settlements provide shelter for people forced from their more remote habitations by the decline of trapping as an economically viable activity and attracted by the social services available in the more urban areas. Some two-thirds of the total population of Yukon live in Whitehorse.

The people

About one-fifth of the people are native American Indians; most belong to the Athabascan language family, of which the Gwich’in (Kutchin) group is the largest. Although registered Indians in the territory are a federal responsibility, there are few occupied Indian reservations. In 1973 the Canadian government recognized the validity of Indian territorial claims based on past treaties, thereby rendering the first official recognition of such rights. The rest of the population comprises people of European descent or of mixed Indian and European stock.


Demographic trends





. Since


The economy

Since the late 19th century, mining has been Yukon’s most important industry, although market fluctuations can cause sharp variations in production. The extensive and varied mineral resources include large deposits of combined silver-lead and lead-zinc ores and of copper, coal, iron, and some petroleum and natural gas. Commercial production of silver-lead-zinc and of copper concentrates has been accomplished, but the economic feasibility of developing other known mineral deposits is not established.

Agriculture, forestry, and fishing

Forest resources are limited, but commercial logging is carried out in some southern areas. Small sawmills produce some of the lumber required for local building, for mining timbers, and for fuel, although imported fuel oil is replacing both wood and locally mined coal as the principal fuel. Farming is possible in some locations, but climate and soil conditions make it so unprofitable that virtually no settlement is undertaken for agricultural purposes. Trapping is still important in some places despite its overall decline, and fox, beaver, wolf, and lynx are caught for their pelts.Tourism is a rapidly expanding industry and is now a mainstay of the territorial economy. In addition, both federal and territorial governments play an important role in the economy. Since the end of World War II, government has assumed major responsibility for building roads, airfields, and electric power facilities, as well as for providing incentives to private companies interested in developing resources in the area

Resources and power





Services, labour, and taxation



Transportation and telecommunications

Yukon has a number of transportation links to other Canadian provinces and elsewhere in North America. The Whitehorse airport is the most important in Yukon. Scheduled air services operate between Whitehorse and Edmonton and Calgary, Alta., and Vancouver, B.C., and connect the capital to other cities and larger towns in the territory. Until the White Pass and Yukon railway closed Route Railroad (WP&YR) suspended operations in 1982, it carried freight and passengers between Whitehorse and Skagway, Alaska, from which point ocean services to other west coast ports were available. The Alaska Highway connects the territory to the North American highway system and serves as the backbone for a limited network of roads within the territory. In the late 1970s an important highway link was provided between

Yukon’s system of roads is concentrated mostly in the southern and southwestern regions, although an important highway link, the Dempster Highway, connects a point on the Klondike Highway near Dawson to with Inuvik, in the Mackenzie delta (the Dempster Highway), Northwest Territories. The Alaska Highway is Yukon’s connection to the North American highway system and serves as the backbone of the limited territorial network of roads. Helicopters and light aircraft are the normal means of travel to more remote remoter areas. The Whitehorse airport is the most important in Yukon.

Administration and social conditions

With the exception of natural resources, which remain a federal responsibility, most administrative and legislative matters normally under the jurisdiction of Canadian provinces are dealt with by the territorial administration. An appointed resident commissioner oversees the interests of the federal government, but the day-to-day governmental operations are the responsibility of the Executive Council. The council is composed of five members selected from the Legislative Assembly (Yukon Council): the elected leader (or the government leader) Yukon has had local telephone services since the gold rush era in the late 19th century, and a landline telegraph connection that linked Dawson to Hazelton was built by the Canadian government in north-central British Columbia. The telegraph link was abandoned in 1936 and replaced by shortwave radio communications. A landline built along the Alaska Highway during World War II provided long-distance telephone service to the outside world. Subsequently, a subsidiary of Canadian Northern Railways consolidated telecommunications services in the region that eventually extended throughout most of the Canadian north, including Yukon. In the late 20th and early 21st centuries a number of other commercial firms began offering Internet services and mobile wireless connections in the more settled areas.

Government and society
Constitutional framework

The status of Yukon as a political entity within the Canadian federal system of government is defined by a statute of the federal government (the Yukon Act [1898]), in contrast to the provinces, whose existence is enshrined within the Canadian constitution. Nevertheless, Yukon’s governmental structure is very similar to that of the provinces, and the territorial government exercises most of the same powers over matters of local importance that provincial governments do. The head of government is the premier, the leader of the majority party in the Legislative Assembly, and four others nominated . The head of state is the commissioner, who is appointed by the government leader and appointed by the commissioner. Each member of the Executive Council acts as a Cabinet minister responsible for a specific department of the territorial government. The members of the Legislative Assembly are elected to four-year terms, and the membership of the assembly may be expanded to 25 representativesof Canada to a term of no less than five years and performs a role similar to that of a provincial lieutenant governor. General elections are held every three to five years and are called by the premier. Residents of the territory are represented in the federal Parliament by one elected member of the House of Commons and one senator, who is appointed by the Canadian prime minister.

Health, welfare, and education

Educational, health, and welfare services are administered by the territorial government with financial assistance from the federal government. Comprehensive medical and hospital services are provided on the same publicly financed basis as elsewhere in Canada. Major hospital facilities are located in Whitehorse, and a system of nursing stations serves remoter centres. Police services are provided by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. Primary and secondary education are provided by a territorial school system, and Yukon College, with its main campus at Whitehorse and a network of community branches, provides two years of university-level courses and a number of vocational and adult - education programs. Comprehensive medical and hospital services are provided on the same publicly financed basis as elsewhere in Canada, with the major hospital facilities located in Whitehorse and a system of nursing stations serving more remote centres. Police services are provided by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.

Cultural lifeCultural life is dominated by modern media. Satellite communication has made North American television available throughout the territory. Publicly operated radio stations serve the region, and Whitehorse and some communities have local newspapers.
Cultural life
The arts and cultural institutions

There has been a revival of interest in native cultural activities relating to Yukon’s heritage. There are a range of programs aimed at encouraging the development of crafts, literary and visual arts, and new media. Promotions, both public and commercial, help keep alive the romanticized image of the Klondike gold - rush era as , which was embodied most famously in the poems of the English-born writer Robert Service, who lived in Yukon, and more recent writersW. Service as well as by the writings of Tom MacInnes. Reminders of the gold - rush days are preserved in museums and displays in Whitehorse and Dawson, and that period is commemorated during the Sourdough Rendezvous, an annual (February) celebration of Yukon’s history and culture held in Whitehorse since 1964. Some historical sites, notably the Palace Grand Theatre in Dawson, have been restored as tourist attractions. The Yukon Arts Centre, located at Yukon College, is the main theatrical venue for Whitehorse and is also home to the Public Art Gallery. The MacBride Museum of Yukon History is a popular attraction in downtown Whitehorse.

Sports and recreation


Media and publishing


Early inhabitants and nonnative settlers

The earliest inhabitants of the region are thought to have been descendants of those who migrated from Asia via the Bering Land Bridge many millennia before. Archaeological research into early human occupation has centred on the Old Crow Basin, in the northern part of Yukon, and has suggested that humans were established there some 20,000 to 12,000 years ago, making it possibly the oldest site of human occupation in North America.

Yukon was among the last areas of North America to be explored by nonnatives. The First Nations peoples inhabiting the Yukon at the time of contact with Europeans included the Southern and Northern Tutchone, Tlingit, Tagish, Kaska, Tanana, Han, and Gwich’in (Kutchin). Two explorers for the Hudson’s Bay Company first entered the region


about 1840


: John Bell came by way of the Peel River from the north


and Robert Campbell by the difficult Liard River route from British Columbia. Some First Nations groups in the area had established trade relationships with one another and were concerned that the newcomers would disrupt those relations. The company subsequently built trading posts in the south, but

Indian hostility

the hostile actions of First Nations peoples soon forced them to be abandoned. Farther north, Fort Yukon (now in



The gold rush and territorial status

During the early 1870s, gold discoveries on tributaries of the Yukon River attracted prospectors to the area. Only small amounts of gold had been mined before Aug. 17, 1896, when

a pioneer

three prospectors—George Washington Carmack and his two

Indian companions found

Tagish partners, Skookum Jim Mason and his nephew, known as “Tagish Charlie”—found rich deposits in Bonanza Creek, a small tributary of the Klondike River near its confluence with the Yukon. The discovery led to the great gold rush of


the late 1890s, at the peak of which the nearby settlement of Dawson grew into a city of some 25,000 people. Access to the area was quickly improved by construction of a 110-mile (177-


km) narrow-gauge railway, the White Pass and Yukon Route (WP&YR), extending from the port of Skagway, Alaska, to Whitehorse, on the upper reaches of the Yukon River. In 1898 the Canadian Parliament separated the rapidly growing area from the Northwest Territories and gave it separate territorial status.

The Klondike boom lasted only a few years. By 1900 many of the individual miners (called “stampeders”) had given up and were leaving Yukon. The gold-mining industry was subsequently reorganized by companies that brought in large-scale mechanical mining techniques. The population fell from 27,219 in 1901 to 8,512 in 1911




’30s ores containing silver and lead were mined in the Mayo district in the central plateau. Development of



Economic and political development of contemporary Yukon

During World War II such military projects as the Alaska Highway, a part of the Pan-American Highway system, brought a second boom to the territory. Some 10,000 workers, both military and civilian, arrived from the United States to construct the highway, a project that took less than a year (1942–43) to complete. Improvements in transportation and communications helped open the territory to greater exploration and development, while increased public interest in the area prompted a great expansion of government services and an increased influx of tourists. Most of this activity centred on Whitehorse, which replaced Dawson as the territorial capital in 1953.


Over the years, Yukon’s political status underwent significant changes. From its creation in 1898, the territory was governed by a commissioner and a six-member legislative council, all appointed by and responsible to the federal government in Ottawa. Eventually council members came to be elected rather than appointed, although the commissioner retained ultimate administrative authority. As political parties became active in the territory, demands for increased local control over governmental decision making became more insistent. In 1979 the federal minister responsible for Yukon instructed the commissioner to withdraw from executive decision making in favour of the elected leader of the majority in the legislature (which was by then called the Legislative Assembly). The commissioner thus became the head of state, and the day-to-day running of the territorial government became the responsibility of the elected premier. In 2003 Yukon was granted control over its natural resources, although public (“Crown”) land in the territory is still deemed to be owned by the federal government.

A seemingly small mineral discovery in the central Faro region in the 1960s eventually became one of the world’s largest lead-zinc mining operations. At the time of their peak production in the 1970s, the Faro open-pit mines accounted for more than one-third of Yukon’s total economic output and together constituted the largest producer of those metals in Canada. Eventually, however, falling metal prices, internal management problems, and declining yields led to the closure of the Faro mining complex in 1998.

In the late 20th and early 21st centuries, ongoing discussions between both the federal and territorial governments and First Nations people regarding native land claims and self-government occupied much of the territory’s political agenda. Beginning in 1973, First Nations leaders negotiated a number of agreements on those issues, at first with the federal government alone; the Yukon government joined the process in 1979. In 1990 a general model agreement for native self-government was reached, followed by detailed negotiations with individual First Nations groups to allocate settlement lands and funding along with other specific matters. Two decades later most of the 14 agreements between the groups had been implemented, creating self-government for 11 First Nations groups.


A general guidebook to Yukon is Polly Evans, Yukon: The Bradt Travel Guide (2010); other useful sources are Yukon Historical & Museums Association, Yukon Heritage Attractions: A Guidebook (2008); and Parks Canada, The National Parks and National Historic Sites of Canada in Northwest Territories and Northern Yukon (2007). Juri Peepre et al., Three Rivers: The Yukon’s Great Boreal Wilderness (2005), is a photographic and prose exploration of the environment of the Snake, Wind, and Bonnet Plume Rivers. Pamela H. Sinclair et al. (eds.), Birds of the Yukon Territory (2003), is a comprehensive guide to birdlife in the territory.


Morris Zaslow, The Opening of the Canadian North, 1870–1914 (1971), and The Northward Expansion of Canada, 1914–1967 (1988), provide a comprehensive general history of the territories.


Kenneth Coates, Canada’s Colonies: A History of the Yukon and Northwest Territories (1985), includes a critical analysis of government policies. Economic history to the early 1960s is treated in K.J. Rea, The Political Economy of the Canadian North (1968).


Kenneth Coates and William R. Morrison, Land of the Midnight Sun: A History of the Yukon (1988), describes the gold rush; as does James Preyde and Susan Preyde, Yukon Gold: High Hopes and Dashed Dreams (1995). Frances Backhouse, Women of the Klondike, rev. ed. (2000), treats the

role of women

roles women played in the region during the gold rush. Shelagh D. Grant, Sovereignty or Security?: Government Policy in the Canadian North, 1936–1950 (1988), examines important changes brought about by World War II. The political development of the territory is analyzed in Gurston Dacks, A Choice of Futures: Politics in the Canadian North (1981). Kirk Cameron and Graham White, Northern Governments in Transition: Political and Constitutional Development in the Yukon, Nunavut, and the Western Northwest Territories (1995), considers


later developments. The history of the indigenous population of the territory is surveyed in Catharine McClellan, Part of the Land, Part of the Water: A History of the Yukon Indians (1987). William R. Morrison, A Survey of the History and Claims of the Native Peoples of Northern Canada (1983); and

Ken S.

Kenneth Coates, Best Left as Indians: Native-White Relations in the Yukon Territory, 1840–1973 (1993), cover the history of the relations between indigenous peoples and Europeans and Canadians of European descent. Some important infrastructural developments are explored in Kenneth M. Lysyk et al., Alaska Highway Pipeline Inquiry (1977); and William G. MacLeod, The Dempster Highway (1979).