Iditarod, Alaska
Encyclopedia
Iditarod is an abandoned town
in the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area
in the U.S. state
of Alaska
.
, 11 km (6.8 mi) northwest of Flat
, ultimately flowing into the Yukon river
.
On Christmas Day 1908, prospectors John Beaton and W.A. "Bill" Dikeman found gold on Otter Creek, a tributary to the Iditarod River. News of the find spread and in the summer of 1909 miners arrived in the gold fields and built a small camp that was later known as Flat
. People and supplies traveled to the gold fields by boat from the Yukon River
, up the Innoko River
, and up the Iditarod River
to the current town site, a short walk from Flat.
More gold was discovered and a massive stampede headed for Flat
in 1910. The steamboat Tanana arrived June 1, 1910, and the city of Iditarod was founded as a head of navigation for all the surrounding gold fields, including Flat, Discovery, Otter, Dikeman, Dikeman, and Willow Creek. Iditarod quickly became a bustling boomtown, with hotels, cafés, brothels, three newspapers (only one would last the year), a Miners and Merchants Bank, a mercantile store, electricity, telephones, automobiles, and a light railway to Flat.
By 1930 the gold was gone and most of the miners had moved to Flat, taking many of the buildings with them. Iditarod is now a ghost town
. Only one cabin and a handful of ruins remain, including the concrete bank vault from the Miners and Merchants Bank. There is no remnant of the bank structure.
The Iditarod Trail
winter supply route and the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race were named after the Iditarod mining district. Iditarod is considered the halfway point for the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race on the southern route.
Ghost town
A ghost town is an abandoned town or city. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economic activity that supported it has failed, or due to natural or human-caused disasters such as floods, government actions, uncontrolled lawlessness, war, or nuclear disasters...
in the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area
Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska
Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area is a census area located in the state of Alaska, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 5,588. It is part of the unorganized borough and therefore has no borough seat...
in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
.
Geography
It is on a horseshoe lake that was once a bend in the Iditarod RiverIditarod River
The Iditarod River is a river in western Alaska. The river begins north of Chuathbaluk and flows northeast and then west to the Innoko River, and ultimately into the Yukon River....
, 11 km (6.8 mi) northwest of Flat
Flat, Alaska
Flat is a census-designated place in Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska, United States. As of the 2010 Census, the population of the CDP was 0.- History :...
, ultimately flowing into the Yukon river
Yukon River
The Yukon River is a major watercourse of northwestern North America. The source of the river is located in British Columbia, Canada. The next portion lies in, and gives its name to Yukon Territory. The lower half of the river lies in the U.S. state of Alaska. The river is long and empties into...
.
History
The town of Iditarod was named after the Iditarod River. Iditarod comes from the Athabascan word Haidilatna.On Christmas Day 1908, prospectors John Beaton and W.A. "Bill" Dikeman found gold on Otter Creek, a tributary to the Iditarod River. News of the find spread and in the summer of 1909 miners arrived in the gold fields and built a small camp that was later known as Flat
Flat, Alaska
Flat is a census-designated place in Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska, United States. As of the 2010 Census, the population of the CDP was 0.- History :...
. People and supplies traveled to the gold fields by boat from the Yukon River
Yukon River
The Yukon River is a major watercourse of northwestern North America. The source of the river is located in British Columbia, Canada. The next portion lies in, and gives its name to Yukon Territory. The lower half of the river lies in the U.S. state of Alaska. The river is long and empties into...
, up the Innoko River
Innoko River
The Innoko River is a river in western Alaska. It flows north from its origin south of Cloudy Mountain in the Kuskoswim Mountains and then flows southwest to its end at the Yukon River, across from Holy Cross, Alaska....
, and up the Iditarod River
Iditarod River
The Iditarod River is a river in western Alaska. The river begins north of Chuathbaluk and flows northeast and then west to the Innoko River, and ultimately into the Yukon River....
to the current town site, a short walk from Flat.
More gold was discovered and a massive stampede headed for Flat
Flat, Alaska
Flat is a census-designated place in Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska, United States. As of the 2010 Census, the population of the CDP was 0.- History :...
in 1910. The steamboat Tanana arrived June 1, 1910, and the city of Iditarod was founded as a head of navigation for all the surrounding gold fields, including Flat, Discovery, Otter, Dikeman, Dikeman, and Willow Creek. Iditarod quickly became a bustling boomtown, with hotels, cafés, brothels, three newspapers (only one would last the year), a Miners and Merchants Bank, a mercantile store, electricity, telephones, automobiles, and a light railway to Flat.
By 1930 the gold was gone and most of the miners had moved to Flat, taking many of the buildings with them. Iditarod is now a ghost town
Ghost town
A ghost town is an abandoned town or city. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economic activity that supported it has failed, or due to natural or human-caused disasters such as floods, government actions, uncontrolled lawlessness, war, or nuclear disasters...
. Only one cabin and a handful of ruins remain, including the concrete bank vault from the Miners and Merchants Bank. There is no remnant of the bank structure.
The Iditarod Trail
Iditarod Trail
The Iditarod Trail, also known historically as the Seward-to-Nome Mail Trail, refers to a thousand-plus mile historic and contemporary trail system in the U.S...
winter supply route and the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race were named after the Iditarod mining district. Iditarod is considered the halfway point for the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race on the southern route.