The Gold

Rush

Guided

Writing

• Directions: This is a guided writing assignment that requires you to write in the first person. You are about to take part in the great Klondike Gold Rush.” After each prompt, respond in writing, using your imagination and creative skills. Your response after each prompt should be at least one paragraph. There are five prompts for each session or chapter. We will complete one session a day. There are a total of five sessions or chapters in the entire guided writing assignment, and we should complete the assignment in one or two weeks. When we are finished with all five sessions, you will compile your writing into a Gold Rush book, complete with pictures and title page.

Prompt 1

It is mid-July 1897 and you are a reporter in Seattle.

Your editor tells you to go to the dock to cover a story

about miners returning from a place called the Yukon.

The ship is about 200 yards away. The crowd is

anxious. Describe the scene and what people talking

about.

Prompt 2

The ship Excelsior docks. It is

a short, stubby ship with a

lone black smokestack and

two masts. Down the plank

come miners with broad

brimmed miners’ hats, their

lined faces almost burned

black. They are gaunt and

weary with eyes on fire. Each

of them is hauling a heavy

suitcase. Describe the scene,

what the miners are saying,

and the spectators’ responses.

Prompt 3

Miners with names like Lippy, Hestwood and Joe

Ladue come forward. Some have $30,000 to

$40,000 in gold. In 1897, a square meal cost 25

cents, a quart of whiskey went for 40 cents, and

rent for an apartment was about a $1.25 a week.

Describe what is going through your mind as you

see all of this gold coming down the gangplank.

Prompt 4

You go to Selby Smelting Works on Montgomery

Street. Clerks weigh the gold and pay for it. It is then

shoveled into a great melting pot. You talk to one of

the miners, Joe Ladue, and ask him about the place

called the Klondike. What does he say to you?

Prompt 5

Later that day you get the fever: Klondicitus. You

can think of nothing else but Gold, Gold, Gold.

You go to the bank and withdraw all of your life’s

savings, $500. Next, you run to purchase a ticket

North on the steamer, the Al-Ki. It leaves in two

days. You call your editor, quit your job, and rush

to the general supply store. What supplies do you

buy for your trip up North?

The Gold Rush: Guided Writing

Session #2

Prompt 1

You are aboard the ship called the Al-ki. On board are

110 passengers, 350 tons of miners’ supplies, 900

sheep, 65 cattle and 50 horses. Your ship is only 201

feet long. The crowd is cheering and waving good bye

to you as your ship leaves the harbor. Describe what

you are thinking at this moment.

Prompt 2

Two weeks later you meet up with another person on

board. He or she seems very likable. You have a

conversation that convinces you that this person would

be a good partner. What do you say to each other that

leads you to this conclusion. Be sure to describe the

person who will be your partner. .

Prompt 3

Six weeks from the day you left Seattle, you land in

Skagway. You get off the ship and wander through the

streets. Describe the hustle and bustle of Skagway, and

the kind of people who are attracted North for the

Great Gold Rush.

Prompt 4

Two men named Fatty Green and Jefferson Randolph

Smith come up to you and ask if you would like to

send a telegram to your loved ones in Seattle. Describe

the men’s appearance, demeanor and how you react to

their proposition.

Prompt 5

You and your partner decide you do not want to spend

much time in Skagway. You decide to take a boat over

to Dyea at the foot of Chilkoot Pass. You land on

shore and two Chilkat Indians come over to talk to you

about working as professional packers. What do you

say to each other?

The Gold

Rush:

Guided

Writing

Prompt 1

You are at the start of Chilkoot trail. It is a 33-mile

trail. You will need to carry 100 pounds of supplies on

your back. It is late August. You can feel winter in the

air. Describe your thoughts as you walk the first few

miles of this trail.

Prompt 2

You encounter a frozen waterfall, and the going is very

slippery. Some people use a ladder to pull their loads

across. Describe how you cross this very precarious

place.

Prompt 3

You arrive near the foot of Chilkoot Pass called the

Golden Stairs. There are many men and women with

their supply caches at the foot of the Golden Stairs.

One man is sitting in the snow weeping. You approach

him and talk to him. What does he say?

Prompt 4

You make your way up the Golden Stairs. It will take

you six hours to climb the 1500 agonizing steps to the

top. Describe the pain you feel as you grunt your way

up the most difficult part of Chilkoot Pass. Describe

the smells and sounds of those above and below you.

Prompt 5

It has taken you three months and 40 trips for you and

your partner to shuttle all of your supplies to the top of

Chilkoot Pass. As you look back down at the

thousands of stampeders below you, you reflect on

how far you have come. You have learned something

about yourself. Describe how you are feeling about

your accomplishments.

The Gold

Rush:

Guided

Writing

Prompt 1

You arrive at Lake Bennett in February after pulling

your supplies on sleds from the top of Chilkoot Pass.

As you enter the tent city of 30,000 along the shores of

the lake, you can hear the sounds of axes and saws as

men chop trees down for boats they will make to take

them down the Yukon River. Describe the setting.

Prompt 2

You have collected enough trees to build your boat.

Your partner is in a pit below you, and you are on top

handling the whipsaw that will cut the planks for your

boat. You two are getting angry at each other. Describe

the scene and your complaints.

Prompt 3

You have completed your boat. You have finished

tarring and caulking it so it will not leak. All you have

to do is wait for the ice to go out. Around an evening

fire, you and your partner talk about what you will do

once you reach Dawson. What do you say to each

other?

Prompt 4

On May 29, the ice goes out on Lake Bennett. More

than 7,000 boats depart for the 550 mile voyage down

the Yukon. Several days down the river you enter a

section called White Horse Rapids; it is full of

foaming water and whirlpools. Describe your ordeal in

this rapid.

Prompt 5

A week later you reach Dawson. It is clogged with

30,000 people. There is almost no land available for

pitching a tent. The streets are full of mud. Many men

say all the gold claims have been staked. Your

exuberance has turned into disappointment. Describe

your thoughts and what you say to your partner at this

moment.

The Gold

Rush:

Guided

Writing

Prompt 1

You are in Dawson, and you can’t believe the prices.

Milk sells for $20 a gallon, watermelons sell for $25

each. Nails sell for $8 a pound. You and your partner

shuffle up and down main street. A man talks to you

about taking a job to make ends meet. Describe the

conversation, and your decision.

Prompt 2

After two weeks, you get tired of working for others.

You and your partner come up with what you consider

a brilliant idea to make money. You have come up

with a business that fills a special need the miners

have. Describe the idea, and how you plan to make it

happen.

Prompt 3

You have established your own business. It is about

two months later. Describe how successful or not you

have become. What are your hopes and fears for the

future? How do people treat you when they pass by on

the streets of Dawson?

Prompt 4

It is a year later, and you have decided to leave

Dawson. You get on board the steamer that will take

you down the Yukon and home to Seattle. Describe

your departure and what you take with you.

Prompt 5

Two months later, you arrive back in Seattle. Family

and friends greet you. It becomes apparent that you

have changed. You reflect back on the hard times. You

realize you have changed. Describe your feelings at

this point, and end your story.