Canada

Yukon

Constantine

Insp. Charles CONSTANTINE (1846-1912) born in Bradford, Yorkshire. He was an officer of the North West Mounted Police. In 1894, the Canadian government sent Insp. Constantine and Staff Sgt. Charles Brown to the Yukon River basin to check out if the miners were a threat to the First Nations population. After a brief reconnaissance he decided they were not a threat but he was concerned about so much Canadian gold being taken back to the United States. At the urging of Constantine, the Canadian government sent 20 men, with Constantine, to the Yukon in 1895. It was a harrowing 53 days journey over rugged terrain, dragging heavy guns through rivers and over rocks. There were no highways then. In 1896 Skookum Jim, Charlie Dawson and George Carmack discovered gold near the mouth of the Klondike River. But the NWMP were already established, in time, to ensure that Canadian laws were obeyed. They set up a legal land registry. The thousands of miners felt secure knowing that NWMP were there to keep the peace. The NWMP became the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP). Constantine died in 1912 in California.

Taylor

Isaac Taylor (1864-1959) born Thirsk, Yorkshire. He met William Drury during the stampede to the Klondike in 1898. They started business in Atlin, later moved to Bennett and, after the railway was completed, Whitehorse. The Taylor and Drury Store dominated the Yukon retail and automotive business for over half a century. Read More »