The Stewart River (
Hän: ''Nä`chòo ndek'') is a tributary of
Yukon River in the
Yukon Territory
Yukon (; ; formerly called Yukon Territory and also referred to as the Yukon) is the smallest and westernmost of Canada's three territories. It also is the second-least populated province or territory in Canada, with a population of 43,964 as ...
of
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...
. It originates in the
Selwyn Mountains, which stand on the border between the Northwest Territories and the Yukon Territory. From there, the Stewart flows west, past the village of
Mayo. The river is crossed by the
Klondike Highway at the village of
Stewart Crossing, and the highway parallels the river westward for about . After leaving the highway, the river travels southwest until it intersects the Yukon River south of
Dawson City. The mostly abandoned village of
Stewart River is located at the mouth of the river.
The Stewart River was explored by
Robert Campbell of the
Hudson's Bay Company
The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business di ...
in 1850. He named the river after a close friend and assistant in the company, James Green Stewart. Stewart was instrumental in helping Campbell build and supply Fort Selkirk at the junction of the Pelly and Yukon rivers. It lay undeveloped until the
Klondike Gold Rush opened the area to prospecting and mining. Because the Stewart River was located away from the
Klondike River and the best-known gold fields, it did not receive as much attention from big mining companies. Individual miners and smaller companies explored gold prospects along the river, and in 1914, a large silver
lode was found on a tributary of the Stewart. This spurred mining, and in 1918, an even bigger silver source was found at the present-day site of
Keno City
Keno City is a small community in Yukon, Canada at the end of the Silver Trail highway. Keno City was the site of a former silver- lead mining area proximal to Keno Hill. Keno City is 13 kilometres away from Elsa, Yukon, which is owned by Hecl ...
.
Mining operations increased and, by 1923, the value of silver mined from the Stewart River area surpassed that of the gold taken from the Klondike. Because the Stewart is shallower than the Yukon River, ordinary steamboats could not be used on the river. Special models had to be built, and these operated on the Stewart River until they were replaced by a road network after
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
. The
S.S. Keno, a Stewart River steamer, has been preserved as a Canadian historic monument in Dawson City.
[Parks Canada]
"S.S. Keno National Historic Site of Canada"
Pc.gc.ca. November 28, 2008. Accessed May 13, 2009.
See also
*
List of longest rivers of Canada
*
List of rivers of Yukon
References
{{authority control
Rivers of Yukon
Tributaries of the Yukon River