at prospecting? Spurred

both | professional and
amateur, have . ‘redis-_
covered the Cassiar.

A: 100 years ago, this
remcte region in northern
British. Columbia was ‘much
better known than it is today.

But with* access’ through:
High way 3 ‘27 north of. Terrace -
or south of Watson Lake, ‘the:
Cassiar, scenically beautiful
and economically significant,
is making a comeback.

AD century. ago, — 1, 600
miners were feverishly work-

‘being focussed. Look around,

 Broperty’*
‘hi s

_ Secrets.

BLACK HARRY

if yor follow a track to the .
south -side of the road near -
the First North Fork bridge
you will find yourself:in the
middle“of the ghost. town of
Céntreville; : which, . its:
heyday during _ the 1870"s
served as many as 700.

‘miners. working - nearby Mc- °-

Dame: Creek. It owed its.
brief - existence to - ‘black -
prospector Harry McDame, a

ing their claims on'the creeks veteran of gold rushes to the |

of the @assiar: first. Thibert
Creek, then” Dease . Creek,
then: the ‘Tichest: of all,
McDame Creek.
. The early stampedets used
metal pans, wingdams and
wooden rockers. Modern
miners, hoping to uncover
the. gold. left behind, work
with bulldozers, monitors,
and scraper buckets powered
by diesel winches.

You'll find both methods
along the road between,
Dease Lake and Cassiar.

. GHOST TOWNS

“The old ghost towns have
almost gone but touches of
the. past still remain in. the
‘dilapidated log cabins, rows
of barren tailings, caved-in
shafts and abandoned equip-.
ment. CE en

Of Laketon, once | the
capital of the Cassiar, only a
few.cabins and the former
jail now remain on the delta,
across from Dease Lake. at
Dease Creck’s mouth. Before
“the ‘tent city moved north
with the miners in the
1880's, 8,000 persons camp-
‘ed there.

Eight miles further on ‘is’
Porters. Landing, another |

gold rush fame community. |
tt can be seen across the
lake, Just before the turnoff

to Cassiar and much closer |

than the Dease diggings, is a
short quarter-mile detour to

toe

“an, old gold mill. Me

‘south and one who ‘had

always been in the vanguard.
of exploration, =~

' In the summer of 1974, he

‘set out from. Laketon.. on.

Dease Lake, passed Dease
Creek and Thibert Creek, the
original two discoveries, and
then. journeyed. down the

Dease River, panning each.
creek as he came to it. His
tenacity paid off when he

struck rich pay dirt. In the
first month of. mining. his —
quickly formed company took
‘out. $6,000 in gold. A year _
later it’ was fifty tim S more.

Miners followed i in . droves

‘by ocean. steamers from
Victoria to Wrangell, Alaska;

by river steamer or canoe |
along ‘the Stikine River. to
Telegraph Creek; by. trail for
80 miles to Dease Lake then |
by flat-bottomed scow of

canoe down: Dease River to.

McDame Creek.
‘LARGEST NUGGET

Three years after the

initial discovery, a miner,
Alfted Freeman, washed out
a massive gold nugeet
weighing. 73 ounces, the
largest ever found in B.C.

But the yield dropped with
the influx.of miners and by
1912 only five :men were
working the creck. White |
miners moved away to newer:
creeks, The Chinese, more
patient and willing to work
more industriously for longer
hours at lower wages, came

CONTINUED ON PAGE 12

‘But it is just north. of the ~
Cassiar junction that most of
the -goid fever: was and is

but cif ‘Signs | ‘Say. “‘private

steps: as modern ones Ss may —
- not like to share their digging |

“Let a ‘successful retired business person review your. business sand
plans, .making recommendations which could tead to greater

success for you.

par at pn; a oy ae ae

Bol A ian AS gage nt Menem TY

3.3 POSTURE |

BASE & MATTRESS

_ONE. BLOCK NORTH OF MARINE DR.

: Its still a focal point f for

ers of a. ahs =aiiol

PS BIG FURNITURE WAREHOUSE _, "9:30 + 5:30

734 WEST Vath — N. VAN, 985- 9351
_ NEXT DOOR TO STARDUST ROLLER RINK

TURN LEFT AT.

‘Sofa beds in every
style, size and colour
‘you could want. All in

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