Skagway Historical Walking Tour

Jeff Smith's Parlor

One of Skagway’s best-known characters, for better or worse, was Jefferson Randolph “Soapy” Smith. Here is his saloon, Jeff Smith’s Parlor, still looking much as it did during gold rush days. Smith, the last of the big-time western bad men, was a con man who took over Skagway during the winter of 1897-98. He landed here with only a few confederates, but through a combination of skill and guile he soon controlled an underworld of more than 200 gamblers, swindlers and thugs. His power seemed almost limitless until July 8, 1898. On that fateful day, he and surveyor Frank Reid shot it out on one of the town’s docks. “Soapy” was killed instantly. A hundred wild stories have been attributed to Smith, most of them true. His saloon was originally located on 6th Avenue; it was moved here in 1964. As you walk up Broadway, you’ll find history all around you. The pioneer scene before you has not changed much since the time of the gold rush “stampeders.” For the next two blocks, almost every building you see was constructed between 1897 and 1900.

Red Onion Saloon

One of Skagway’s best-known watering holes, the Red Onion Saloon, has a provocative past. It was built in 1898 at the corner of 6th and State, as a saloon, dance hall and bordello. When it was moved here in 1914, the movers somehow installed it backwards, putting the rear of the structure on Broadway. The upstairs has changed little since the time when it was frequented by turn-of-the century “working girls.” The mannequins leering down from the second story windows help preserve the old era.

AB Hall

The Arctic Brotherhood Hall is perhaps the most photographed building in Alaska. In times past, it was a fraternal hall; the local chapter of the Brotherhood first met here in August 1899. (Step across the street, and you’ll notice the letters “A.B.” and the “1899” above the door, and “Camp Skagway No. 1” on the overhang. The organization’s symbol, a gold pan and nuggets, is up near the roof line.‚ The facade, which dates from 1900, has been called a prime example of Victorian Rustic Architecture. Charley Walker and his fellow lodge members collected over 8,800 driftwood sticks on the shores of Skagway Bay and nailed them to the front wall. The Brotherhood, which remained active into the 1920s, once entertained President Warren G. Harding. The building is currently the home of the Visitor Information Center operated by the Skagway Convention & Visitors Bureau. The outside façade of the Arctic Brotherhood Hall underwent a restoration during the winter of 2004-2005. All of the 8,883 pieces of driftwood on the front of the building were removed. Forty percent (3,533) had rotted and were replaced, while sixty percent (5,300) were still able to be preserved over one hundred years later.

Golden North Hotel

The Golden North Hotel, now home to several retail stores, started operating during the Gold Rush. Built by the Klondike Trading Company in 1898 it was originally a two-story building. George Dedman and a business partner purchased the building following the Gold Rush. It was moved to its present location in 1908. At this time the third story and dome were added and the building began operating as a hotel. The dome, which appears to be of Russian or Slavic origin, was constructed by a carpenter from Montana. The tower helped show visitors, some of whom were illiterate in early days, the building’s location.

Mascot Block

At the corner of 3rd and Broadway lies the Mascot Block, a row of three separate business buildings. The Mascot Saloon, on the corner, dates back to 1898. It was one of more that 80 saloons in a town once described as “the roughest place in the world.” The saloon operated until August 1916, when Prohibition closed it down; it later served as a drug store. Next door sits the old Pacific Clipper Line office. Skagway was an active port both during and after the gold rush, and many buildings in this block once served as ticket offices for steamship lines. The narrow building at the south end was Hern’s Liquor Store. It opened in 1937, shortly after Prohibition was lifted. The entire building, along with several others in Skagway, is now owned by the National Park Service. Each has been repainted in its original colors. Some are leased back to private businesses. The Mascot houses an exhibit and restrooms.

Pack Train Building

The large, three-story Pack Train Building is the tallest historic building in Skagway. The three buildings that make up this block date from 1900, but like many others on Broadway, they were first located elsewhere. These were originally barracks that once comprised part of Camp Skagway, located two blocks up Broadway on 6th Ave. The military abandoned them when it moved to the Haines area in 1904, and four years later, they were moved here. The corner business, run by the mayor and his partner, was a saloon called The Trail. (On the 4th Avenue side of the building, there is a large sign, proclaiming “U-AU-TO-NO-THE-TRAIL,” which dates from this period.) Soon afterwards, the Lynch and Kennedy clothing store opened just south of the saloon. To appreciate how much a facade can improve a building, step back and note the intricate woodwork facing Broadway. Then turn down 4th Avenue and see how the barracks look from the back side.

St. James Hotel

The St. James Hotel, presently a hardware store warehouse, is famous as the birthplace of the White Pass and Yukon Route railroad. During the winter of 1897-98, it took tremendous effort for the stampeders to haul the required “ton of goods” from Skagway to the Canadian lakes. To ease the strain, several tramways and railroads crossing White Pass were proposed, but the plans were long on speculation and short on money. Into this atmosphere came Sir Thomas Tancrede, who sailed from London to Skagway in the spring of 1898. Representing a well-heeled investment firm, he wanted to see if a railroad could be built over White Pass. After traveling up the rugged White Pass Canyon, he was skeptical at first. That evening, however, he stumbled across Mike Heney, here in the hotel’s saloon. Heney was a railroad contractor who had also looked over the canyon north of town, but he was convinced that a route over the pass was entirely feasible. Legend has it that the two met in the early evening, talked all night long, and wound up their discussion just as dawn broke. Tancrede’s money and Heney’s construction knowledge proved an unbeatable combination. Construction of the line began in late May 1898. Two years, two months and two days later, the line was completed to Whitehorse, the present capital of Canada’s Yukon Territory. Look up on the mountain before you! Depending on your point of view, the inscriptions on the cliff face are either historical resources, or they are graffiti. The pocket watch, which advertised Kirmse’s jewelry store, dates from the 20th century. The other advertisements are more recent.

Skagway Customs

Across the street, the Skagway Customs building was built by the WP&YR railroad and leased to the government. It originally sat on the south side of 2nd Ave. adjacent to the railroad depot. In 1969, with the construction of the new depot, the building was moved across the street to the north side 2nd Ave. After the Klondike highway opened in the fall of 1978, the offices were moved to a location on the highway. For a time after the customs staff left, the building was used as the United Transportation Union Local 1787 meeting hall, and later as a retail store. It was moved to its present location on October 1, 2004.

Moore Cabin

The Moore Cabin is the oldest structure in Skagway. It was built by Captain William Moore and his son in 1887-88. Moore was 65 years old when he arrived. He had followed gold rushes all his life, and settled here to pursue one more chance at a fortune. When the big rush came, his land was overrun by a flood of gold seekers. But he prospered because he owned a dock, a warehouse and a sawmill. He stayed here until 1906, long enough to see his homestead blossom into a major port and railroad terminal. Captain Moore’s son, Ben, built the main house to the right of the old cabin. National Park Service archaeologists have discovered that the large lawn between the Moore Cabin and the Goldberg Cigar Store was the beginning of the White Pass Trail, the famous “Dead Horse Trail” used by so many stampeders. This spot is half a mile from the bay today, but 100 years ago, occasional high tides reached here. The geological process of “glacial rebound” has caused Skagway to rise from the ocean about one inch each year.

Goldberg Cigar Store

The Goldberg Cigar Store was built sometime during the hurried days of the Klondike stampede but the exact date of construction is unknown. A November 1897 photograph shows the completed building on the south side of Fifth Avenue. Annie Leonard, a Skagway madam and the first woman to stake lots in Skagway in August 1897, staked that lot and probably had the building constructed shortly thereafter and then rented it out rather than using it as a brothel or crib. D. Goldberg operated his shop from the fall of 1897 through the fall of 1898 and possibly into the spring of 1899. An advertisement in the Skagway News (September 16, 1898) lists his stock of goods - "Everything Fresh. Fruits, Confectionery, Cigars, Tobacco, Nuts, Cakes, Candies, and Dried Fruits. Fifth Ave. above Broadway, next door to 'The Office' [a saloon]. D Goldberg." The building was moved to it's present location in 2014.

Portland House

Built in 1897 by town founder, Captain William Moore, the Portland House is one of the oldest surviving structures in Skagway. It first served as the center for all of Moore's Alaska & Northwest Trading Company Business. An ad in the Daily Alaskan from October 24, 1908 advertises "First class rooms at the Portland House. Skagway's Medium priced house. Baths and all conveniences."

Skagway's First City Hall

Built in 1897, this 1 1/2 story log structure served as Skagway's first City Hall & jail, the first courthouse & the first US Marshalls office. Left vacant since the early 1990's, the Municipality of Skagway is now undertaking the building's rehabilitation.

Eagles Hall

In the Eagles Hall each summer, the curtain rises on the popular Days of ’98 Show, Alaska’s longest-running theater production. The show dates back to 1923. Those interested in the history of the show can view photographs of early scenes and characters in the hall’s gambling room. The hall is composed of two gold rush hotels: the Mondamin Hotel was moved here in 1916 and the Pacific Hotel was added to the rear in 1920. The fraternity first met here in 1899. Of the thousands of Eagles Aeries (chapters), this is Aerie No. 25. The wing on the south side dates from the 1960s; it once housed a bowling alley.

Mollie Walsh Park

A small bust, just west of the public rest rooms, in the corner of Mollie Walsh Park, proclaims the memory of a remarkable woman. Mollie Walsh came to Skagway, unaccompanied, in the fall of 1897. A rarity in her day, she was young, unmarried and at least somewhat respectable. She remained in Skagway for a few months, then headed north to open a restaurant in Log Cabin, a tent town located along the White Pass Trail. She soon received the attentions of many packers along the trail. One who was particularly fond of her was Jack Newman. He professed his love for her and even killed a rival to earn her affections, but alas, she soon married Mike Bartlett and left the area. Crestfallen, Newman soon married Hannah Barry instead, but he never stopped thinking about Mollie. Meanwhile, the Bartletts’ marriage was turbulent at best, and while they were living in Seattle in October 1902, an argument erupted which resulted in Mollie’s murder. Newman read about the slaying and was heartbroken. He revered the memory of the “Angel of the White Pass,” and in 1930, he had this bust built and installed in Skagway. The bust, as you may notice, was donated in the name of both Newman and his wife. To calm down Hannah’s understandable jealousy, he also installed a plaque in downtown Seattle in honor of Mrs. Newman.

McCabe College (Skagway Museum and City Hall)

The McCabe College building, currently occupied by the Skagway Museum and City Hall, was built in 1899 of native granite brought from Clifton on the WP & YR railroad. The Methodist school, named for Bishop McCabe, was Alaska’s first institution of higher education. Facing financial difficulties, private McCabe College closed after only three terms. From 1901 until 1956, the building served as the U.S. Court House with the U.S. Marshal’s office and jail on the first floor. District Court was held on the second floor in the former chapel of McCabe College. In 2000, the City of Skagway completed a new addition to the venerable McCabe building. The Skagway Museum, open daily in the summer, is a fascinating storehouse of Skagway history from the gold rush to present.

Gutfeld Residence (Historic Skagway Inn)

Along 7th Avenue between Broadway and State Street, is the Gutfeld Residence (Historic Skagway Inn). Built using materials from an 1897-1898 building, Max Gutfeld built this residence in 1918. In the 1920’s the rear wing was added by moving the vacant Ross-Higgins warehouse (1901) from 4th Avenue and Main Street to the present site. This street is the site of Skagway’s once thriving Red Light District. As was true in most frontier towns, prostitution was first a common practice here, then it was regulated, and finally it was outlawed. During the gold rush, rows of cribs (two-room huts where the “soiled doves” plied their trade) occupied the alleys between 4th and 7th, but after the rush, they were moved onto 7th. Some cribs were moved again before they closed, about 1910; others simply closed where they were. A local brothel included the red, two-story structure, at 8th and Broadway, known as The Cottage during the Gold Rush.

White House

The plantation-style White House was built in 1902, and was originally the home of Lee Guthrie, saloon keeper and civic official. After Guthrie left town, the house was converted into a small hotel. The Army used it for a small hospital during World War II. The building’s name occasionally caused delightful confusion. One story about it dates back to 1956, when a Republican campaign worker stopped by to visit. No one responded to the knock, but because the door was ajar, the worker called out, “Would you be interested in keeping Eisenhower in the White House?” The owner’s response was, “No! Let him stay downtown!” The hostelry operated through the 1977 season; a fire that year damaged the facility. The new owners have restored it as a bed & breakfast.

First Presbyterian Church

The First Presbyterian Church, located at 5th and Main, is Skagway’s only remaining gold rush church. It was built in 1901 by the Methodists, but in a denominational realignment, that church body vacated Skagway in 1917. The Presbyterians, who had lost their church building to a fire the previous year, moved in and have remained ever since. During the gold rush, Skagway had but one house of worship, the Union Church. But by 1900, several other religious groups were in evidence.

Reid-Smith Gun Battle

As a nearby marker testifies, this corner marks the scene of the Reid-Smith Gun Battle. Near here, criminal kingpin Jefferson R. “Soapy” Smith and surveyor Frank Reid shot it out on the evening of July 8, 1898. Just four days earlier, Smith was the undisputed leader of Skagway. He had been chosen as the grand marshal for the July 4th parade, and was cheered by his fellow citizens. On the 8th, however, a stampeder just back from the Klondike had his $2,800 poke of gold stolen in Soapy’s saloon, and the angry victim told one and all about the robbery. Respectable townspeople were jolted into action, and decided to hold a mass meeting on the Juneau Co. wharf to organize against Smith. That wharf began near this street corner, and headed in the direction of the present ferry terminal. Reid and several others were chosen to guard the entrance to the wharf against outsiders. They expected trouble, and soon got it. Smith heard about the meeting, left his saloon and stalked down State Street to the wharf. Shortly after reaching it, however, Reid stopped him. A wild blaze of gunfire ensued, and both men collapsed to the dock. Smith was killed instantly, a bullet through his heart. Reid sustained an agonizing groin injury. He rallied bravely, but died 12 days after the shooting. Smith’s gang was rounded up and sent off to jail. Skagway has enjoyed peace and quiet ever since.