Frontier Spirit

by Jennifer Duncan

She may have been holding a gun, or an axe, or her hiked-up skirts, but she was there, in the Klondike of the Gold Rush. And her decision to venture everything on the dream of northern gold was in every way bolder and riskier than any man#8217;s.pIn bFrontier Spirit/b, Jennifer Duncan celebrates the lives of women who, in defiance of traditional expectations, left their homes, their families, and their professions, to make the arduous journey through a punishing climate and unfamiliar wilderness to seek their fortunes in the Klondike.pThe story of women in the Klondike begins with the strong and knowledgeable women who were there before the race for riches began -- First Nations women like Shaaw Tl#225;a, whose experience and traditional skills were critical to the survival of her white prospector husband, and ultimately, to the discovery that sparked the Gold Rush. The white women who joined the Klondike Stampede came from all walks of life#58; rich and poor, educated and illiterate, single and married. Wealthy socialite Martha Black left her world of comfort to pursue a career as a miner, mill manager, and politician on the northern frontier. Belinda Mulrooney, an Irish farm girl, arrived in Dawson with a quarter to her name but used her business acumen and canny resourcefulness to turn the shantytown into a city and herself into its richest woman. And then there#8217;s Kate Rockwell, a working-class girl from Kansas City, whose thirst for fame and adulation led her over the treacherous waters of the Whitehorse rapids and fired her ascent to the title of Queen of the Klondike.pDuncan has spent the last five years experiencing Dawson City in all its seasons and, like the women who came before her, she has fallen under the spell of the North, coming to love its wilderness, its challenges, and its rugged glory. With remarkable empathy, imagination and personal insight, Duncan creates an engrossing portrait of the splendour of the Yukon, breathing life into the stories of the daring and diverse women of the Klondike and the grandeur of the adventurers who gambled everything to find their fortunes there.piFrom the Hardcover edition./i

Genres: History, Nonfiction, 19th Century, Canada

312 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2003

Reviews

[SouthWestZippy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Highly disappointed in this book. It started off with forty pages of Author talking about herself, a lot, and her quest of finding out more about the area of Yukon, Canada. Next twenty two pages talk about the gold rush.The stories about the women which the book is suppose to be about start on page sixty three. The stories are short and boring. The book is dry,lifeless and just did not hold my interest.

[Mackenzie Sweeney · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book - for me - solid 5 stars because of the understanding it truly gives of the women’s history of the Klondike gold rush. Given there are several moments in each story that feels like a list of timelining, overall it does give a clear picture - related in the author’s personal testimony - of WHY so many women felt this spell of the Yukon.

I say this as a tour guide who focuses on the women’s history of the gold rush of 1898 in Skagway, AK.

Reading the first 40 pages of the author’s testimony of her own experience in the late 90s & early 2000s was incredible and made these women make more sense.

Especially if you already know the story of the gold rush, this book is amazing. Though, I would learn the general history of the gold rush BEFORE reading the book.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I couldn't put this book down. I was enthralled and impressed by the women and their accomplishments, bravery, and adventurous spirits.

I picked this book up in Dawson. Books written by women about women who've been written out of history are so needed.

We spent a couple weeks in the Yukon two summers ago on our way to/from Alaska and truly felt the spell and went back to explore the Yukon this summer for 6 weeks. We went up to Dawson where I loved the nature and people but felt very mixed about the impact of gold rush.

[Sophie Cimon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although it took me a long time to get hooked, the first two chapters were too long and dragging, I’ve enjoyed most stories of the women. Some of them were too short, sometimes a little bit dry. While Ive admired some women and disapprove of others, I guess you could say it’s a good book to make you feel all those feelings.

[Keri Murcray · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a gift from my sister and brother-in-law from their recent Alaskan cruise. It's not a book I normally would have chosen to read, but it was really interesting and I'm glad they thought of me and got it. The women described were tough, fearless, and so ahead of their time and it was great to read their stories.

[Raven · Rating 4 out of 5]

A gift from a Canadian-in-the-making friend, I was surprised by how many ties there were between the women depicted in "Frontier Spirit" (mostly centered in Dawson in the Yukon) and far-flung towns across the west. Seattle and Victoria as transit hubs I expected, but the ties to Bisbee and Tombstone in Arizona were rather a surprise. I appreciated the strong and respectful (AFAICT) inclusion of First Nations women and their contributions to the history of the region, from the earliest known history of settlement to the present day. Lots of character, good and less good, in the women shown, which I also liked -- they are human and imperfect, strong-minded, sometimes foolish, headstrong in love, willing to fight, perservering through hardship. This isn't a story of idealized inspirations, this is a palette of the lives and experiences of unconventional women willing to take risks and make their ways through new experiences. I appreciated the read, I suspect it'll be even more informative if I ever do make it up to the Yukon.

[Kate MacKinnon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book. Clearly a "newer" author but still good. Small biographies on various women from various backgrounds who made a big impact on the Klondike and the gold rush.