Yankee Fork Story:
Ghosts of Gold & Glory
Two men struck gold in 1870 in a remote part of the Idaho
Territory called Yankee Fork. Sylvester Jordan and Dudley
B. Varney might have danced a jig that day on Jordan Creek.
A few years later, a prospector by the name of William
Norton really hit pay dirt at what became known as the
Charles Dickens Mine. Miners raced to Yankee Fork like
bees to a field of clover.
Within six years, 600 people battled in the fast-growing
towns of Bonanza and Custer. Next, a toll road connecting
Custer to Challis fueled the construction of the General
Custer Mill. Yet, by 1911, a ghostly silence reigned. The
story of boom and bust mining played out once more.
What has lasted? Idaho owes its statehood on July 3, 1890
to the national attention resulting from gold rushes like
this one. The Land of the Yankee Fork Historic Area owes
its creation to a cooperative effort of the Idaho Department
of Parks and Recreation, Salmon-Challis National Forest,
and the Challis Resource Area Bureau of Land Management.
Together, these agencies strive to preserve, honor, and
interpret the history of the Yankee Fork.
[Picture Captions]
Tollgate Station
Stop! A century ago you had to pay our toll before heading to
the land of riches. In 1879, the construction of the toll road
from Challis to the mining towns of Custer and Bonanza
spurred even greater activity in the Yankee Fork. Today the
road’s a free access to Idaho history.
Custer City
A little over a century ago, the roar of the General Custer
Mill drowned out the rush of the Yankee Fork. From the
1880s through the close of the century, Custer City thrived.
By the end of 1903, most local mines turned up only lower
grade ore and by 1911, only ghosts whispered through the
abandoned buildings here.
Yankee Fork Gold Dredge
Take a tour of the only remaining floating dredge in
Idaho. From 1940 to 1952, this 988-ton barge used 72
buckets to dredge the Yankee Fork. The Silas Mason
Company unearthed $11 million in placer gold. Today,
the dredge rests in its lasting legacy of gravel tailings.
Bonanza Cemetery
Wander among the graves of people who followed
their dreams of riches to this place. Miners of many
nationalities sought gold and silver here. By the 1880s
women and children joined the community too. For a
while, the first settlement of Yankee Fork lived up to
its name—Bonanza means prosperity in Spanish.
