14

Moran's tunnel
1898

Credits:
(MacBride Museum Collection 1989.30.118)

15

Hand-made Wheelbarrow

Most of the goldfields were in remote areas and transportation of goods arduous. The rugged gold miner was a "jack-of-all-trades" who learned to improvise and make what he needed from available materials.

16

Moran's Tunnel
1898

Credits:
(MacBride Museum Collection 1989.30.115)

17

Stockpile

Pay gravels were stockpiled near the creek until there was a considerable pile ("dump") . Several days diggings could usually be sluiced in a day.

18

Dam and sluice, Kha Sha R.
1898
Kha-Sha River

Credits:
(MacBride Museum Collection 1989.30.152)

19

Dams and Diversions

When sluicing beside a river or large creek a few trees could be used to divert enough water. With a smaller creek, the entire flow would be dammed and directed with a ditch to the sluicebox.

20

Sluicing at Shorty Creek
1898
Shorty Creek

Credits:
(MacBride Museum Collection 1989.30.154)

21

Sluicing

All hands in use - shovelling into the sluicebox, shovelling the "tailings" away from the end, and controlling the flow of water. Tailings or "tails" are the waste materials.

Substantial water to a depth of 3-4 inches above the riffles is needed to create undercurrents. The box was tilted at a "drop" of around 4 inches to the foot of length.

22

Moran panning
1898

Credits:
(MacBride Museum Collection 1989.30.119)

23

Panning the Concentrate

Placer gold mining starts with test panning. It ends with the panning of the concentrate of heavy materials from the bottom of the sluicebox. The final cleanup involves panning to separate the gold from iron pyrites
(fool's gold), black sand (magnetite) and the other heavy compounds.

24

Modern Yukon license plate with goldpanner
1996

Credits:
(MacBride Museum Collection)

25

Icon of the Yukon, Part 2

The silhouette of the solitary gold panner adorns the Yukon license plate to this day.