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Yukon Hotel
In the background, a large forested hill, increasing in height to the left, fronts a blue-gray sky. In the foreground, a road with no markings is at the base of the photograph, on the other side of which are four buildings. The leftmost building is obscured by a fence, and both obscured by the building to its right. That two-storey building has wooden steps with a white railing leading to the front door, on either side of which are windows. Above these is another row of windows, and above those the name "The Front St. Inn". The next building has the signage "Yukon Hotel" above two windows flaking a balcony door. The cream-coloured facade of the building matches the balcony railing, which is secured by four burgundy posts. Below the balcony is the front entrance, with cream-coloured doors flanked by large windows. The right side of the log building is visible extending to the background to the right, four equally spaced windows on each floor. The fourth building is partially behind and to the right of the Yukon Hotel.
The cream-coloured Yukon Hotel, adjacent to the Front Street Inn.
Former names Binet Block, Freeman Hotel, Miner's Rest Hotel
General information
Type Hotel
Town or city Dawson City, Yukon
Country Canada
Coordinates 64°03′33″N 139°26′18″W / 64.0591°N 139.4383°W / 64.0591; -139.4383
Completed 1898 (1898)
Owner Eldorado Hotel
Technical details
Floor count 2
Design and construction
Architect J.E. Binet
Official name: Yukon Hotel National Historic Site of Canada
Designated: 12 June 1982

The Yukon Hotel is a very old and important building in Dawson City, Yukon, Canada. It's known as a National Historic Site of Canada, which means it's a special place recognized for its history. It's also part of the Dawson Historical Complex, a group of historic buildings. This hotel is a unique log building with a tall, decorative front wall called a "false facade". You can find it on First Avenue at the corner of Church Street.

Building History

The Yukon Hotel was built in 1898 during the exciting time of the Klondike Gold Rush. A man named J.E. Binet constructed it and first called it the Binet Block. He was a local business owner who also ran other hotels and saloons in the area.

Binet and his workers built the hotel very quickly. They used materials that were easy to find. Only the front of the building was made from cut wood, because that was hard to get. The rest of the building was made from "rough logs" with mud filling the gaps.

At first, the building wasn't a hotel. The Government of Canada rented it for a while. It was used as an office for the Commissioner of Yukon, William Ogilvie, who was like the leader of the territory. Other government offices and staff living quarters were also there. In 1900, the government moved out, and Binet started using the building as a place for people to live.

New Owners and Names

Over the years, the building changed owners many times.

Freeman Hotel in 1922, Dawson City, Yukon
The Freeman Hotel in 1922.
  • In 1909, Henry Freeman bought it and called it the Miner's Rest Hotel.
  • In 1913, Minnie Witmore took over and renamed it the Freeman Hotel.
  • In 1933, a hotel owner named Emma Wilson bought the building. Her old hotel had burned down, so she needed a new place. She decided to call it the Yukon Hotel. This name had been used before for another hotel in Dawson City. Emma Wilson ran the hotel until 1957, when it was closed up.

Saving the Hotel

For many years, the Yukon Hotel sat empty and started to fall apart. Famous Canadian writer Pierre Berton, who grew up in Dawson City, and other locals really wanted to save the building.

In 1975, the Heritage Canada Foundation, a group that helps protect historic places, bought the old hotel for just $1! They spent a lot of money to fix it up and make it new again. By 1980, the renovations were complete.

In 1983, the foundation sold the building. Then, in 1985, Peter Jenkins, who ran the Eldorado Hotel, bought it. He became its new owner and operator.

A National Historic Site

The Yukon Hotel was officially named a National Historic Site of Canada on June 12, 1982. This means it's a very important part of Canada's history. There's a special plaque on a large rock next to the building to mark this honor.

The hotel was chosen because it shows what typical buildings looked like during the Klondike Gold Rush. For example, it sits right on the sidewalk, has a sloped roof, a tall false front, and is built from logs. It's part of the Dawson Historical Complex, which includes other old buildings identified by the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada, like the nearby St. Paul's Anglican Church, the Bank of British North America building, and the Carnegie Library.

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