Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park

Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park is a U.S. National Park Service unit that preserves sites and stories related to the 1897-98 Klondike Gold Rush. The park is a multi-site unit with principal historic resources in Alaska and interpretive locations on the U.S. Pacific Coast.

At the Skagway unit visitors can see preserved turn-of-the-century commercial buildings and interpretive exhibits that explain the role of the port and outfitting services during the gold rush. The park also protects portions of trailheads and access routes used by stampeders traveling to the Yukon, and the Seattle unit provides maritime and shipping context along the Pacific Coast.

The park preserves the material legacy of the late 19th-century gold rush when thousands traveled northwest in hopes of finding gold, transforming ports such as Skagway into supply and departure points. The preserved buildings and trails document that surge in population and commerce and the subsequent decline after the rush.

The park’s main historic townsite is in Skagway, Alaska, on the Inside Passage; additional administrative and interpretive locations are on the U.S. West Coast, including a unit in Seattle, Washington.

• Primary theme: Focuses on the 1897-98 Klondike Gold Rush and the migration routes between the Pacific Coast and the Yukon.

What to See#

• Skagway unit: Multiple locations that preserve buildings, artifacts and trailheads related to the 1897-98 Klondike Gold Rush, including a principal historic townsite in Skagway, Alaska.
• Seattle unit: A unit in Seattle that interprets the Pacific Coast and maritime links to the gold rush, with exhibits and historical materials.

Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park is centered in downtown Skagway, Alaska, with visitor facilities on or near Broadway. The park is within easy walking distance of the Skagway cruise ship terminal, the Alaska Marine Highway ferry dock, and the White Pass & Yukon Route depot. By road, Skagway is reached from Whitehorse via the Klondike Highway - roughly a 110‑mile (≈180 km) drive north (crossing the U.S.-Canada border) - and the town is compact and walkable from parking areas and transit points.

• If you're visiting Skagway during cruise season, go early morning before ships arrive or late afternoon after they depart-the town and park sites become very crowded midday.
• Start at the park's Skagway visitor facilities to get up‑to‑date information and permit requirements; the park includes sites in both Skagway and nearby Dyea, and some trails (notably the Chilkoot Trail) require permits.
• Avoid peak mid‑day by timing short hikes and historic‑site visits around ship schedules; many visitors who arrive on ships spend the busiest hours in town rather than exploring quieter park trails.