Dawsonites gave the S.S. Casca paddlewheeler an emotional send-off on October 16, 1916. On board was the Yukon Infantry Company, recruited and commanded by Captain George Black. Besides the ship's crew there were 275 men and one woman - Martha Black.
Dawsonites had showered the company with socks, candy, and other gifts. Dawson's Japanese community donated $69 worth of tobacco. Dawson women knitted socks and made "housewives" - small sewing kits with the handworked name of each company member. (The men called them "hussies.")
