Thomas Edison's Stunning Footage of the Klondike Gold Rush 

Watching the clip is amazing, but there is something more amazing, the coloring feels so natural.

Just clarifying since it seems it didn’t come across in the video but the Klondike Gold Rush occurred in Yukon Territory (not Alaska) which is in Canada. The steam ships from Seattle went to Skagway, Alaska which borders the south of the Yukon where prospectors then hiked 33 miles over the Chilkoot Pass to Lake Bennett, Canada. They than travelled by boat through Lake Bennett and the 350 mile Yukon River to Dawson City, Canada. Dawson City is a great visit if you’re ever this far north. Rich history and still has the Klondike flair going for it.

They are wearing the original Levis...

I appreciate the muted color added to the film.

Edison pioneered so much I see he pioneered video journalism. I notice there was a so called “rough rider” with a rifle in Edison’s last video clip (in this vignette) covering the mining. Interesting stuff thanks for sharing Smithsonian.

Outstanding footage! Absolutely phenomenal

My father when he was a kid met Thomas Edison in new Jersey near his lab in a park he said he was a frendley old man who like to talk to kids, I guess it tells you how old I am....huh...

Visit the Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park to learn more! It's the only National Park with two superintendents, one for each unit: Seattle and Skagway. That's right, there are two parks to visit!! If you come to Seattle say Dan says hi. That's me. I work there.

America is a great country today because of brilliant visionaries like Thomas Edison. Thank you Thomas Edison!

I'm born and raised in Alaska. I love finding videos that talk about my amazing state.

Amazing footage!

Wow! This restored footage is AMAZING! 🤯 When we were young, if we had seen this, it would have been all grainy and blurry and in black and white. Very difficult to make anything out and not much fun to watch. But THIS is WOW! ✌❤🙏🦋🌈🍄🐛🔥😱

Most return empty handed 🙌🙀

How cool to see a moving picture from 1896 by Thomas Edison of all people. I didn't know that he went to Alaska.

The Klondike is in Canada the Yukon not Alaska

🎼 What would you do 🎵 (would you do), 🎶 for a Klondike bar!?

He also shot some early footage of the White Pass and Yukon route just after it was completed

Hello! I am curious where the source of the footage can be found? I am looking to license a few seconds of it for non-broadcast needs, or if it is free archival footage to use within branded content. Thank you in advance!

Skagway is a bit further north than the red dot.

1:49 "most return home, empty handed" that line made me inspirational, they travel to Alaska, risked everything and returned with nothing

1:45 none of these people are claim owners ... note the guy with the rifle.

Does anyone know where I can find the smithsonian channel video about aloha airlines flight 243 because I can't find it on RU-vid and on their website I can't watch it because I'm outside of the US

very short clip indeed....

In the late 40s early 50s my father used to pan for gold in Sonora California.

who writes this??? sophomores?? "America in color, Alaska" ACTUALLY is "Canad in COLOUR, the Yukon"!!!!!!!!

Power to the original dwellers of these lands ✊🏽E’O

I imagine all these men returning home empty-handed after years searching for gold, trying to explain that “THIS ROOTIN-TOOTIN VARMIT DOUBLE CROSSED ME IN THEM THERE HILLS!!” and their families looking at them like ?????? bro why do you sound like that

I was looking for something like this....to understanden my chapter easily

Fascinating!!

That's wild!

Cool man

I would love to travel back in time

This is the actual video?! This was filmed in 1896?! WHOA!!!!

Where can I get the full video

Beautiful thanks 🥃

Kya baat hai

SO COOL!

Everytime that i hear "Thomas Edinson" i just think about him stealing the idea of electricity from Nicolas Tesla.

Superb.

Smithsonian, you have the technology to 4k 60fps all these beautiful images! Please do soo!! I beg you!!!! In the name of all the Incan artifacts you keep in dark cabinets!

For a brief moment I feel like I held a window into time.

Starts at 1:06

......for that movie " Way up north " I've always wondered which hotel they're staying in ,, Stewart Grainger and the French wife to be .I think it's a hotel in Juneau.

Are we sure it was REALLY Edison who took this?

Impressive early footage. But I always wondered why Canada allowed foreigners to just waltz in and help themselves to the gold. I can imagine any country today allowing anyone to just take their mineral wealth.

I was buying gold in the 1970's when It was illegel to own it for 36-42 dollars an ounce. I bought over 600 south african krugerrands while in the military. I paid roughly 25000 dollars for them over 7yrs today they have a value of over 1.5 million dollars. I still have them all.

Please stabilize, correct the frame rate, motion interpolate, and AI upscale the footage.

Was it really Edison footage, or stolen from someone else and his name slapped on it like so much else

The buildings in Seattle looked ancient. I thought they were recently built at that date.

If its Edison, It was probably taken from someone else.... Why don't you tell us about Tesla... Much more interesting.... Edison prayed on people like him and took credit for their ideas.....

So does this mean Thomas Edison was in Alaska, or just his cameras?

💜

I would enjoy the film more if it was not recently colorized.

I could not do with fake sound effects

Best place to set up a general store, with a doctor’s office attached.

Why Edison there?

🤯👌

im watching this for school smh

If 100k ppl depart to Alaska, and only 30k ppl arrive...may I ask where the other 70k went and why?

Different Edison?

Go North, to Alaska, they're going North, the rush is on...

I can't see those pictures clearly. Why did you uploaded in b&w? Why didn't you put them coloured? It's 2020.

Where there is gold there is a way

QUOTE: "Most return home empty handed". Nope: "Most return home DEAD Handed"!

Back when there was coke in Coke. They moved fast back then.

1:17 trudging through the snow ... not one with a pair of gloves or mitts on. Like anti-maskers, we know how this ends.

I spotted what may be a time-traveler with a cell phone.

Gold! Hehehehe!

These dudes ever heard of gloves

What would you do for a klondike bar

Given Edison's record of theft and plagiasm I bet Edison was nowhere near when this was filmed.

It was a better world back then with way less contamination than we have today.

Seems like it was a scam for the most part. How gullible people are to short cuts to success.

Baby boomers. Next time simply upload the clips without the narration

And to think, black people built all of this.

fraud edison .tesla he is the genius

Were black people apart of this? Uhm... No wonder they're poorer

First like 😁✨

Amazing! BTW, Edison wan't a good person & lots of people were either died or killed there, mostly by their own greedy people, we shouldn't forget it. Thanks for sharing... (Great Britain, Thu 16 July 2020 2203)

Why not just get a real job?

GREED!