Gold Creek (Juneau, Alaska) Gold Creek (Juneau, Alaska) Gold Creek is a waterway in the southeastern section of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is located in Silver Bow Basin at the edge of Juneau. In 1880, Chief Kowee revealed to prospectors Joe Juneau and Richard Harris the presence of gold in Gold Creek; the city of Juneau was founded in the same year. Named by miners, it was first published in 1883. The first gold placer claims of 4 Oct. 1880 by Harris and Juneau were followed by quartz claims in the name of their employers Pilz and Fuller. These sixteen claims were
Joe Juneau (prospector) ore back to Sitka. The settlement founded by Juneau and Harris was originally called Harrisburg or Harrisburgh, and then Rockwell. Miners often used both names in their records. There was also a proposal to name the town Pilzburg in honor of Pilz. The town received its current name at a miners' meeting on December 14, 1881, at which the name Juneau received 47 of the 72 votes cast, while Harrisburg received 21 votes and Rockwell only four. Joe Juneau reportedly bought drinks for fellow miners to persuade them to name the city in his honor. Joe Juneau traveled to Dawson