Fannie Quigley (1870 – August 25, 1944) was an American

pioneer Pioneer commonly refers to a person who is among the first at something that is new to a community. A pioneer as a settler is among the first settling at a place that is new to the settler community. A historic example are American pioneers, perso ...

and

prospector Prospector may refer to: Space exploration * Prospector (spacecraft), a planned lunar probe, canceled in 1962 * ''Lunar Prospector'', a NASA spacecraft Trains * Prospector (train), a passenger train operated by the Denver & Rio Grande Western ra ...

and cook who became involved in mining operations during the Klondike Gold Rush. Living in the wilderness of what is now

Denali National Park and Preserve Denali National Park and Preserve, formerly known as Mount McKinley National Park, is a List of national parks of the United States, United States national park and National preserve, preserve located in Interior Alaska, centered on Denali (feder ...

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

, she was known for her hunting, trapping, and cooking skills.

Biography

Quigley was born Frances Sedlacek in

Wahoo, Nebraska Wahoo (; from Dakota language, Dakota meaning "Euonymus atropurpureus, arrow wood") is a city and the county seat of Saunders County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 4,818 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. History Wah ...

, in 1870. She left home and headed west at age 16, finding employment at work camps along the growing

Union Pacific Railroad The Union Pacific Railroad is a Railroad classes, Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United Stat ...

. She continued her travels north during the Klondike Gold Rush, arriving in

Dawson City Dawson City is a town in the Canadian territory of Yukon. It is inseparably linked to the Klondike Gold Rush (1896–1899). Its population was 1,577 as of the 2021 census, making it the second-largest municipality in Yukon. History Prior t ...

, Yukon, in 1897. Quigley earned a living by cooking for prospectors; she would load up a sled with a

portable stove A portable stove is a cooking stove specially designed to be portable and lightweight, used in camping (recreation), camping, picnicking, backpacking (wilderness), backpacking, or other use in remote locations where an easily transportable means ...

and provisions, hike out to remote creeks where prospectors were often ill-prepared, and sell her meals from out of a tent. This work earned Quigley the nickname "Fannie the Hike". Quigley also began mining herself, and staked her first claim in Clear Creek in 1900. Quigley married her first husband, Angus McKenzie, in 1900. Together, they operated a roadhouse on Hunker Creek, near Gold Bottom. After a turbulent few years together, Quigley left her husband and hiked to Rampart, Alaska. In 1906, Quigley traveled to Kantishna, Alaska, which people had recently begun mining. She staked 26 claims between 1907 and 1919. Quigley married her second husband, Joe Quigley, in 1918, and they ran a mining operation together, leasing out their claims to miners. Fannie Quigley provided for the mining camp by hunting, trapping, and growing food in her garden, and became known as an extraordinary backcountry cook. Because the Quigleys' cabin was located en route for mountaineering expeditions to Mount McKinley (now

Denali Denali (), federally designated as Mount McKinley, is the highest mountain peak in North America, with a summit elevation of above sea level. It is the tallest mountain in the world from base to peak on land, measuring . On p. 20 of Helm ...

), they hosted many visitors, including writer

Jack London John Griffith London (; January 12, 1876 – November 22, 1916), better known as Jack London, was an American novelist, journalist and activist. A pioneer of commercial fiction and American magazines, he was one of the first American authors t ...

. A practicing naturalist and nurse, Quigley went to work at the Nenana Hospital in

Nenana, Alaska Nenana () is a home rule city in the Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area of the Unorganized Borough in Interior Alaska. Nenana developed as a Lower Tanana community at the confluence where the tributary Nenana River enters the Tanana. The populatio ...

, in 1920, during the

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. In 1937, the Quigleys' mining claims were leased to the Red Top Mining Company; the Quigleys split the income as part of their divorce settlement. After the divorce, Joe Quigley moved to Seattle and Fannie remained in Kantishna. Her cabin was now accessible by a road through Mount McKinley Park (previously, one could only access it by

dog sled A dog sled or dog sleigh is a sled pulled by one or more sled dogs used to travel over ice and through snow, a practice known as mushing. Numerous types of sleds are used, depending on their function. They can be used for Sled dog racing, dog sl ...

or on foot), and she hosted park personnel and dignitaries in her home.

Death and legacy

Quigley died in her cabin in 1944 at age 73. Today, visitors can visit the remnants of her homestead, located in what is now Denali National Park and Preserve. Quigley was inducted into the Alaska Mining Hall of Fame in 2000. A biography by Jane G. Haigh, ''Searching for Fannie Quigley: A Wilderness Life in the Shadow of Mount McKinley,'' was published in 2007.

Biography

Death and legacy

References

Further reading