Dalton Trail facts for kids
The Dalton Trail is a famous old path that stretches for about 396 kilometers (246 miles). It connects Pyramid Harbor near Haines, Alaska in the United States to Fort Selkirk in the Yukon Territory of Canada. This trail goes through a mountain pass called the Chilkat Pass.
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The Trail's First Users
For a long time, the Tlingit people, especially the Chilkat group, were the main users of this trail. They used it to trade with the Athabascan people who lived further inland. The Tlingit people called it a "grease trail". This was because a very important trade item was oil made from tiny fish called eulachon (or candlefish).
The Tlingit chiefs each had a special trading partner from the Athabascan people. The Tlingit would bring eulachon oil. In return, they would get furs, animal hides, and copper from the Athabascans. These trading trips could last for a month or even longer. Sometimes, as many as 100 men would go on these trips. Each person would carry a heavy load, often around 45 kilograms (100 pounds).
European Traders Arrive
When Europeans first came to the area, the Chilkat Tlingit became important middlemen. They helped trade goods between the new European traders and the Athabascan people. This made the Chilkat Tlingit quite wealthy.
John Dalton and the Gold Rush
The Tlingit's control over the trail changed in 1890. That year, a man named John Dalton and others were hired by a magazine. Their job was to explore the inside of Alaska. While exploring the old "Grease Trail," they saw that it could be a great route for trade.
Dalton came back in 1891 to try using pack horses on the trail. He stayed in the area and set up several trading posts. By 1899, he started charging a fee to use the trail. Prospectors, who were people looking for gold, began calling it "Dalton's Trail." Later, it became known simply as the Dalton Trail.
During the exciting time of the Klondike Gold Rush, many prospectors used this trail. They would walk to Fort Selkirk. From there, they would build rafts from logs. These rafts would carry people, horses, and even cattle downriver to Dawson City, where the gold rush was happening.
The Trail's Decline
In 1900, a new railway called the White Pass and Yukon Route was finished. It went to a nearby town called Skagway. This new railway made it much easier to travel. Because of this, fewer people used the Dalton Trail. Today, a large part of the modern Haines Highway follows a similar path to the old Dalton Trail.
See also
In Spanish: Ruta Dalton para niños
