YUKON-CHARLEY RIVERS The World Turned Upside Down: A History of Mining on Coal Creek and Woodchopper Creek, Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve, Alaska

1 The following figures represent the total yardage dredged on Coal Creek: (1947) 394,000 cubic yards (cy), (1948) 325,000 cy, (1949) did not work, (1950) 401,400 cy, and (1951) 292,100 cy.

2 Patty, "Gold Placers Inc., Operating Report, 1951," 1, 3.

3 The "working face" is the area that the dredge is actually cutting as it advances forwards. It is measured from the left and right limits as the digging ladder is moved side to side.

4 This figure is calculated as follows: (292,100 yd³ x 27 ft)/(500 ft. X 1450 ft.) = 10.878 ft. Patty, "Gold Placers Inc., Operating Report, 1951," 3, 1.

5 Ibid., 4.

6 Ibid., 5.

7 Ibid., 3.

8 Ibid., 5.

9 Patty, "Alluvial Golds Inc., Operating Report, 1952," 1.

10 Ibid. According to Patty, the WP&YR Co. notified him that in 1951 the company (YP&YR) suffered rather heavy losses on freighting below Dawson. They planned on operating a single river boat between Whitehorse and Dawson in 1953 and abandoning all traffic in 1954.

11 Ibid.

12 Ibid., 3.

13 Ibid.

14 Ibid., 4.

15 Ibid.

16 Patty, "Gold Placers Inc., Operating Report, 1952," 1.

17 Ibid.

18 As shown in the table, the average increase amounted to 15.8%. When the anomoly of a 39.8% increase in silver production is factored out, which may account for an unusually rich deposit being processed, the average increase drops to 11.8% which is more representative.

19 Patty, "Alluvial Golds Incorporated, Operating Report, 1953," 3.

20 Total production includes silver produced (1952: $238.58, 1953: $333.43). This amounts to such a minimal amount in comparison to the amount of gold produced that it is not considered in these factors.

21 By this time, both companies had switched entirely over to natural thawing processes combined with flooding the area ahead of the dredges to create an insulating layer of ice.

22 Patty, "Gold Placers Incorporated, Operating Report, 1953," 1.

23 Ibid.

24 Patty, "Solar Thawing," 28.

25 Patty, "Gold Placers Incorporated, Operating Report, 1953," 1.

26 Dale Patty, personal communication to the author, June 25, 1998.

27 Ernest Patty, "Alluvial Golds Incorporated, Operating Report, 1953," 2.