Porcupine Mining District Discovery

In 1898, prospectors Mix Silva, Edward Findley, and Perry Wiley, who had been grubstaked by Jack Dalton, discovered placer gold on Porcupine Creek north of Haines near the Dalton Trail. Following the discovery, the Porcupine Mining District was formally organized on October 22, 1898.

On November 5, 1898, Dalton and his three prospectors located the Discovery Claim. Additional claims were subsequently located by Dalton and his business partners, E. B. Hanley and John Malony.

The district experienced a stampede in 1899 as prospectors rushed to the area. Gold was discovered in nearby creeks, and additional deposits of gold and copper were found as far as sixty miles away, including in the Rainy Hollow district in Canada. During the first year of mining, gold production was reportedly worth approximately $50,000, of which about $40,000 came from Dalton’s Discovery Claim.

The deposits in the district were rich but fairly deep, requiring significant infrastructure to mine effectively. Miles of ditches and flumes were constructed to supply water for hydraulic lifts, sometimes called gravel elevators, where miners processed the gravel to recover gold.

Commercial support for the new district was supplied by the Porcupine Trading Company, organized by Dalton, Hanley, and Malony on August 1, 1899. The company imported mining equipment and extended liberal credit to other miners operating in the district.

In 1900, Dalton and his partners shipped in approximately 300 tons of equipment and supplies. The mines operated profitably until about 1905, when a major flood destroyed much of the mining infrastructure. Recognizing that most of the easily recovered gold had likely been extracted, Dalton, Hanley, and Malony sold their interests at a profit in 1907.

Source
Alaska Mining Hall of Fame