Carmack, George W. (George Washington), 1860-1922

Gold miner whose discovery claim at Bonanza Creek on August 17, 1896, started the Klondike Gold Rush.

George Washington Carmack (1860-1922) was a miner whose discovery claim at Bonanza Creek on August 17, 1896, started the Klondike Gold Rush. After deserting the U.S. Marine Corps in 1882, George Carmack lived among the Tagish Indians in the Yukon Valley with his common law wife, Kate Carmack, and their daughter, Graphie. Kate's brother, Skookum Jim, and Jim's nephew, Tagish Charlie, also made their fortunes mining for gold as Carmack's partners. George and Kate Carmack later moved to California, but George eventually parted ways with Kate as well as his former partners. In 1900 George married Marguerite Laimee in Olympia, Washington. The marriage led to several court cases involving Kate Carmack, and later George Carmack's daughter Graphie and sister Rose, but the cases ultimately were either dropped or settled out of court. Kate Carmack died in Alaska in 1920, and George Carmack died in 1922. In 1990, James A. Johnson published a biography entitled Carmack of the Klondike.

From the description of George W. Carmack papers, 1869-1994 (bulk 1881-1990). (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 56520662

George Washington Carmack (1860-1922) was a miner whose discovery claim at Bonanza Creek on August 17, 1896, started the Klondike Gold Rush.

After deserting the United States Marine Corps in 1882, George Carmack lived among the Tagish Indians in the Yukon Valley along with his common law wife, Kate Carmack, and their daughter, Graphie. Kate's brother, Skookum Jim, and Jim's nephew, Tagish Charlie, also made their fortunes mining for gold as partners of Carmack.

George and Kate later moved to a ranch near Hollister, California, and lived with George's sister, Rose Watson (later Rose Curtis). George eventually left California, parting ways with Kate as well as his former partners. He left Kate and Graphie with Rose, and in 1900 George married Marguerite Laimee in Olympia, Washington. Kate, illiterate and nearly destitute, began a difficult legal battle to prove she was George's wife and entitled to alimony. She eventually dropped the case in hopes of winning back her husband. When this attempt failed, she settled in Carcross, Alaska, where she died in 1920. After Carmack's death in 1922, Graphie, now married to Marguerite's brother, and Rose challenged Marguerite's appointment as administratrix of Carmack's estate. The case was settled out of court.

In 1990, James A. Johnson published Carmack of the Klondike . The book was republished in 2001 as George Carmack: The Man of Mystery Who Set Off the Klondike Gold Rush .

From the guide to the George W. Carmack Papers, 1869-1994, 1881-1990, (University of Washington Libraries Special Collections)