Arthur C. Pillsbury Collection
See photographs of the Klondike Gold Rush, California, Oregon and Washington taken by Arthur C. Pillsbury (1870-1946) between about 1896 and 1900.
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Tenaya Canyon in Yosemite, ca. 1897-1900
No caption is provided for the photograph but it appears to show Tenaya Canyon in Yosemite. Half Dome appears at the right of the photograph. Pillsbury had a lifelong interest in the park and established his own photograph studio there in 1897.
Identifier: spl_ap_00164
Date: 1897?; 1900?
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Prospectors on beach in Nome, Alaska, October 3, 1899
The men in the photo are employing a method known as "cradling." Prospectors would shovel gravel onto the top of a "cradle" or "rocker" box and rock it back and forth to sift through the gravel through to the lower levels and, if they were lucky, reveal gold. One of these boxes can be seen at the right of the photo. Gold was discovered in the area in the summer of 1898. Prospectors rushed to stake claims and Nome's population quickly ballooned to 10,000 people. In 1899, more gold was discovered on beaches near the town and spurred an even greater rush of visitors. By 1900, an estimated 1000 people a day were arriving in Nome. Pillsbury took some of the first available photographs of the city. Following his departure, the winter conditions made it too difficult for others to reach the area. The same photograph appeared in the June 1900 issue of Harper's Weekly. An illustration based on the photograph appeared in the June 1900 of McClure's Magazine.
Identifier: spl_ap_00180
Date: 1899-10-03
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Haines, Alaska and Portage Cove looking SE, ca. 1899
Identifier: spl_ap_00137
Date: 1899?
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Men sitting on train tracks at Index, Washington, ca. 1900
Identifier: spl_ap_00070
Date: 1900?
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Yosemite Valley, ca. 1897-1900
This image shows a view of Yosemite Valley from near the present-day location of the Wawona Tunnel viewpoint. Pillsbury had a lifelong interest in the park and established his own photograph studio there in 1897.
Identifier: spl_ap_00166
Date: 1897?; 1900?
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Practical joke on Chief Maquinna, 1785
Parker McAllister, born in 1903 in Massachusetts, was a Seattle Times artist from 1924 to 1965. McAllister started his career as an illustrator at 14 for a Spokane publication; he joined the art staff at the Seattle Times in 1920. His first Sunday magazine cover was a poster-type illustration celebrating the University of Washington crew races in spring 1924. During McAllister's career, he created illustrations depicting “local color” events and situations now routinely handled by photographers. As the technology improved, he expanded his repertoire - he illustrated articles, drew covers for special sections and the weekly Seattle Sunday Times Magazine, and drew diagrams, comics, cartoons, and portraits for the Times’ editorial page. In 1956, an exhibition of his watercolor and oil paintings of Pacific Northwest scenes and historical incidents - including some paintings from the “Discovery of the Pacific Northwest” series - were exhibited at the Washington State Historical Society Museum in Tacoma. He was also a member of the Puget Sound Group of Men Painters. McAllister retired from the Seattle Times in 1965; he passed away in Arizona in 1970.
Identifier: spl_art_291985_15.141
Date: 1955
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Quimper on Vancouver Island
Parker McAllister, born in 1903 in Massachusetts, was a Seattle Times artist from 1924 to 1965. McAllister started his career as an illustrator at 14 for a Spokane publication; he joined the art staff at the Seattle Times in 1920. His first Sunday magazine cover was a poster-type illustration celebrating the University of Washington crew races in spring 1924. During McAllister's career, he created illustrations depicting “local color” events and situations now routinely handled by photographers. As the technology improved, he expanded his repertoire - he illustrated articles, drew covers for special sections and the weekly Seattle Sunday Times Magazine, and drew diagrams, comics, cartoons, and portraits for the Times’ editorial page. In 1956, an exhibition of his watercolor and oil paintings of Pacific Northwest scenes and historical incidents - including some paintings from the “Discovery of the Pacific Northwest” series - were exhibited at the Washington State Historical Society Museum in Tacoma. He was also a member of the Puget Sound Group of Men Painters. McAllister retired from the Seattle Times in 1965; he passed away in Arizona in 1970.
Identifier: spl_art_291985_16.151
Date: 1955
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White Pass and Yukon Railroad at White Pass, ca. 1899
During the Klondike Gold Rush, the White Pass was one of the routes used by prospectors to travel from Skagway to the Yukon gold fields. In April 1898 the White Pass and Yukon Railroad Company was formed in an effort to establish an easier way through the pass. Construction on the railroad began the following month. Thousands of workers worked around the clock in treacherous conditions to complete the project. The railroad track was completed at White Pass on February 20, 1899 and reached Lake Bennett on July 6, 1899. The final spike on the railroad was placed on July 29, 1900 in Carcross, B.C.
Identifier: spl_ap_00040
Date: 1899?
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