Skookum Jim, an Indian of the Tagish tribe, has been recognized as one of the discoverers of gold in the Yukon. It was he who first put his pan down in Rabbit Creek. His discovery made him a rich man, but even though his annual royalties were in excess of $90,000 a year, he continued to search for gold until his death in 1916.
Until his Rabbit Creek discovery, a prospector felt rewarded by as little as 10 cents worth of gold in his pan. When the gold rush was in full swing, prospectors could expect to obtain hundreds of dollars in gold per pan. One sourdough was astounded to find $1000 worth of gold in one panning, including three large nuggets worth $100 apiece. Keep in mind that the price of gold was a small fraction of what it is today.
