Every railroad has its own colorful beginnings. For the White Pass & Yukon Route, it was gold. Gold was discovered in 1896 by George Carmack, Skookum Jim and Dawson Charlie.The few flakes they found in Bonanza Creek in the Klondike barely filled the spent cartridge of a Winchester rifle, however, it was enough to trigger an incredible stampede for riches: the Klondike Gold Rush.
'Gold! Gold! Gold! - The headline read in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer on July 17, 1897, broadcasting the news of the discovery of gold in the Canadian Klondike. The news spread like wildfire and in the midst of a depression, people went gold crazy. Tens of thousands of gold crazed men and women steamed up the Inside Passage waterway and arrived in Dyea and Skagway to begin the overland trek to the Klondike.
Both the Chilkoot Trail and the White Pass Trail were filled with hazards and harrowing experiences. Men immediately began to think of easier ways to travel to the Klondike and On May 28, 1898, construction began on the narrow gauge railroad. At no time during the construction period were fewer than a thousand men employed. On Jul 21, 1898 the WP&Y operated its first train from Skagway. On July 6, 1899, the first train reached Lake Bennett in British Columbia, and constuction officially completed (joining Whitehorse to Skagway) on July 29, 1900.
The railway closed down on October 7, 1982. but was re-opened shortly after for tourism purposes between Skagway and Whitepass/Bennet/Carcross, with the last train reaching Whitehorse on September 22, 1988. Most of the tracks in downtown Whitehorse have now been torn up, and the line's terminus is six city blocks south of the old train depot at First Avenue and Main Street.
*Important note - the road is only open seasonally. You can still find the cache in the winter but will need to park by the gate on the Alaska Highway and walk in*
Happy caching, but watch out for the Ghost Train!
Source: https://wpyr.com/history/