On the brink of St Patrick’s Day, a little history of Irish in Alaska – Over a century ago, following the Klondike gold discovery, approximately 100,000 individuals ventured north, dreaming of rapid wealth. Among them, only a select few achieved this dream, and of those few, just one was a woman. Belinda Mulrooney once hailed as the Queen of Grand Forks and the wealthiest woman in the Klondike, passed away with little to her name in a nursing home near Seattle in 1970. At the height of her fame seventy years prior, she had become a legend, featuring in James Oliver Curwood’s novels and being rumored to own a dog that served as the inspiration for Jack London’s “Call of the Wild,” according to Klondike historian Pierre Berton.

Mulrooney’s path to wealth was unlike that of her fellow fortune-seekers; she chose not to toil in the frozen ground or sift through cold rivers. Born to an Irish coal miner in Scranton, Pennsylvania, she was determined to use her intellect rather than endure the physical labor she grew up around. Her entrepreneurial spirit was evident early on; at 18, she made a significant profit from a restaurant she opened at the Columbian Exposition in Chicago, only to lose it all in a failed business venture in California.

Undeterred by setbacks, Mulrooney found work on the steamship City of Topeka, quickly impressing the captain with her composure and ingenuity by assisting in childbirth on her first voyage. Her resourcefulness led her to a side business of selling luxury goods to Native American women, boosting her savings to $5,000. Upon learning of the gold strike, she invested her savings in supplies and headed for Dawson, marking the beginning of her Klondike success story.

In Dawson, while many failed to strike gold, Mulrooney thrived by providing in-demand goods and services. Her initial investment turned a 600% profit, which she used to fund a series of successful ventures, including a popular lunch counter and a construction business. Despite her success, Mulrooney sought greater challenges and ventured closer to the gold fields, establishing a profitable roadhouse in Grand Forks. There, she capitalized on the miners’ needs, charging exorbitant prices for basic commodities.

Her entrepreneurial spirit led her to construct the Fairview Hotel in Dawson, the finest in town, overcoming numerous obstacles to ensure its completion. However, the hotel’s success was short-lived due to a shift in the gold rush to Nome, Alaska, and the advent of large mining corporations in Dawson.

Seeking new opportunities, Mulrooney managed a mining company back to profitability, instilling discipline and ethical practices. Her personal life saw a twist when she married Charles Eugene Carbonneau, a man with a dubious past but undeniable charm. Despite initial success in their new ventures, World War I devastated their fortunes, and Mulrooney’s later years were marked by financial decline. Belinda Mulrooney’s life, filled with bold ventures, remarkable achievements, and eventual financial hardship, remains a testament to her unyielding spirit and pioneering role as one of the Klondike’s most memorable figures.

Photos courtesy of The National Postal Museum, Irish America, The National Park Reserve, DawsonCity.ca and The Library of Congress.