Bennett, British Columbia

Bennett
Ghost Town
Bennett, 1 June 1898, during the Klondike Gold Rush
Location of Bennett within British Columbia
Coordinates: 59°51′N 135°00′W / 59.850°N 135.000°W / 59.850; -135.000Coordinates: 59°51′N 135°00′W / 59.850°N 135.000°W / 59.850; -135.000[1]
Country	Canada
Province	British Columbia
Location	Bennett Lake at border between British Columbia and Yukon, Canada
Tent camp for klondikers	1897–1899

Bennett, British Columbia, Canada is an abandoned town next to Bennett Lake.^[1] It was built during the Klondike Gold Rush of 1897–99 at the end of the White Pass and Chilkoot Trails from the nearby ports of Skagway and Dyea in Alaska. Gold prospectors would pack their supplies over the Coast Mountains from the ports and then build or purchase rafts to take them down the Yukon River to the gold fields around Dawson City, Yukon. When the White Pass and Yukon Route Railroad was completed in 1900 it went right to Whitehorse, passing the port town. This led the entire economy of Bennett, based on stampeders and river travelers, to collapse.^[2]

One of the establishments in Bennett was the Arctic Hotel, a combination saloon, restaurant, hotel and brothel^[3] set up by Friedrich "Fred" Trump and Ernest Levin. Trump's grandson Donald Trump also engaged in hospitality and real estate ventures, before becoming the 45th President of the United States.^[2]

Today, the historic Bennett townsite is part of the Chilkoot Trail National Historic Site of Canada and managed by Parks Canada.^[4] Bennett is also a stop on the White Pass and Yukon Route Railroad during the summer months.

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