gold rush cemetery

Marliroo

So many tour groups overwhelm this place most of the day, go early or late to wander up the trail to Lower Reid Falls. There is no handout about the local graves, go to skagwaystories dot org for stories. Best known inhabitants are of course Soapy Smith and his fellow shooter who died "defending Skagway's honor" Frank Reid. Lots of babies and women buried here too.

granny2015

So glad we chose this tour. Delightful tour leader dressed in Colonial costume.Did a tour of the township then stopped at the Cemetery, where we were able to walk through and learn the history of some of the people buried there. Most interesting. Then crossed the river and toured some of the outskirts of town and learned more about the past and present.

World-wander-woman

You can walk here from the cruise ship. Just head down the main street and follow the curve in the street and on the right hand side right before the bridge there will be a few train cars. turn right here. There will be a sign. Walk up the gravel road till you get to the cemetery. You can see the grave sights of Frank Reid and Soapy Smith and other very old grave sights. It is a nice small cemetery. From here you can walk to far back corner of the cemetery to get to reid falls. You will go up a few steps and there will be a sign to Reid Falls. it is a short hike and it is easy. htere are bathrooms in the parking lot

DebraH358

Cemetery's are one of the bust places to discover the history of a place and the Skagway cemetary is no different.Strolling around and reading the head stones and markers gives an insite into this pioneer town.It is a good to have some with you who can tell the stories and the early day.Tucked away in the valley it is a very beautiful and peaceful setting.Well worth a visit

711lynnw

There are a couple ways to get here-walk from town or you can drive right up to it. There is a sign that mentions who is buried here. Two of the town's more legendary citizens are buried here-Frank Reid and Jefferson "Soapy" Smith. The cemetery needs some TLC, new headboards, fencing, landscaping. This is a neat little place to visit, especially if you combine it with a short walk to Lower Reid Falls (named after Frank Reid).

chicagoshelly45

a cemetery of the people who lost their lives working on the r.r. and those looking for gold. small but full of history.

lawrence05

Our visit to the cemetery was included in a historic tour of the town that actually continued into Canada and the Yukon Territory. We loved the quaintness of this little town, with storefronts made to look like an authentic mining town. The trip outside of town to "the summit," took us 3,290 feet high and through the treacherous area the gold seekers had to trudge. Many prospectors died & there is a gulch with 3000 horse carcasses. We saw many waterfalls, and stopped at a lake completely decorated with inuksuks.

NorthernWanderlust

This little scenic cemetery is on the way out of town, just off of the Skagway River. If you're on foot, it is maybe 20 minutes from the harbour. What you will find here is a collection of Skagway's founders, be it those that died young or those that lived their lives in Skagway. The head stones are an interesting mix of monuments and wooden headstones, making it worth the visit. The most renowned 'residents' of this cemetery are Frank Reid and Soapy Smith.If you're unfamiliar with the story of these two, I highly recommend getting a tour of the Gold Rush Cemetery. Frank Reid and Soapy Smith famously killed either other in a duel and the guides who will take you to the cemetery are often quite skilled at detailing the events around the fateful gun fight. It's said of Reid that he 'gave his life for the honour of Skagway'.Also, after you finish seeing the cemetery, Lower Reid Falls is located a short walk behind. It is absolutely worth the visit as well. Together, they're two of the most interesting and less-known places in Skagway. I highly recommend them. I have been many times and keep coming back.

ChezmossAustralia

History of the early days!, they were so young the adventurers to the West. Cemetery is well maintained in it's original condition.

miss_jl

This Cemetery is very old, and is set among the forest, the old head stones are legible and the dates are quite old. Serene setting, and worth the trip

Flying4

The gold rush cemetery in Skagway was a stop on our tour of the gold rush era. The cemetery had recently made headstones but I guess that they have to remake them due to the harsh winters. I did enjoy the stores our tour guide provided about each one especially Soapy Smith.

tbone16

My wife and I left our cruise ship early in the morning, walked through downtown Skagway to get a feel for the place with no traffic, and then kept going to the cemetery, not realizing it is a pretty good hike, 15-20 min. each way from downtown. It was worth it, even though it started to rain while we were walking. If you like history you will love the stories they have posted about the grave sites, the walk back seemed to take a lot less time as we chatted about what we had seen. Later others told us that we should have continued for just a few hundred yards to see the scenic waterfall nearby, next time I guess. A nice morning jaunt which still left time for an excursion on the Chilkoot Trail in the afternoon.

jv50

Our bus tour guide told us of some of the people buried at the Gold rush cemetery. Soapy Smith, a gold rush con, the man who finally put him in the ground and many others. I do genealogy and this is truly a cemetery, not a "staged" one which some people think. The markers are mostly wooden and worn. It's interesting to read them. You can also walk back to Reid Falls from the cemetery. I truly enjoyed this stop.

TangoBabsi

It tells the story of how young the people died during the gold rush. Of course we had to see the grave marker of the infamous scoundrel,con-man, Soapy.

BeachcomberMissouri

We decided to hike out to the cemetery while in Skagway. We made a pit stop at the city library which was actually very nice (clean restroom, too). It was a couple miles out to the cemetery,but we needed the exercise and enjoyed seeing the neighborhoods along the way. More people are buried there than are listed, but the markers looked "staged."