Gold in Those Hills!




A-J Mine Entrance, Juneau

A tour took us underground today at the A-J Mine site accessed on the southeast end of Juneau.  Visitors can purchase tickets for the underground mine tour at the Tramway ticket office where a bus provides transportation to the mine site.   

Numbered Name Tags used by the Miners

In the late 1800’s George Pilz hired Joseph Juneau and Richard Harris to conduct additional prospecting along the Gastineau Channel after Chief Kowee of the Auk Tlingit showed him ore samples from the area for which the Chief received a reward for his efforts.  Juneau and Harris found a large gold deposit at the head of “Gold Creek,” which became the A-J Mine; the Treadwell Mine was also developed across the Channel on Douglas Island.  

A-J Mine Tunnels, Juneau

It was the discovery of the A-J and Treadwell gold deposits that eventually led to the location of Alaska’s State Capitol at Juneau.  People were drawn to the mining camp which soon became a small town, the first to be founded after the purchase of Alaska.  The mill that processed the gold from the A-J Mine was begun in 1900 by Joseph Gilbert and Col. W.J. Sutherland under the name of AK Perseverance Mining Co. which was later changed to the AK-Gastineau Mining Co. 

Crystal hints at possible Veins of Gold

In the early 1900’s an average of 900 miners were employed and 4,000 tons of ore were being crushed daily.  Electricity was required to run the multiple mines and mills in the area so the Salmon Creek Dam was constructed bringing hydroelectric power to Juneau.  The Capitol building in downtown was built in 1929 and dedicated as the Federal and Territorial Building in 1931, Alaska did not become a State until 1959.  Our tour bus took us south along the Gastineau Channel before winding up a steep gravel road to the mine site.  We were met by our tour guide, a full-blooded Tlingit Native and recently retired miner who led us into the mine's tunnels.  He described various mining techniques and operated equipment left in the tunnels for demonstration purposes.  

Air-Compressor Drill, A-J Mine (note holes and chalk marks)

Early miners used hammers and iron rods to create holes in the rock for blasting with dynamite.  The dynamite had a 1-foot fuse, giving the miners only a minute to run for their lives.  The ore was carried out of the mine by rail in ore cars and crushed into a powder.  The gold was initially separated using a combination of gravity and centrifuge action.  In later years a form of cyanide treatment was used to sort out the remaining gold while smaller mines used mercury for separation.  

Fresh Air System, A-J Mine

In 1934, all of the Alaska-Gastineau Mining Co. properties and assets were purchased by the Alaska-Juneau Mining Co.  It was in the 1930’s that new innovations and safety procedures were added:  dynamite with 6-foot fuses, air-compressor drills, air-ducts to extract dust and fumes, and a survival room stocked with water and food to last a week.  

Ruins of the Gastineau Mill at A-J Mine Site

After our tour of the underground mine, students guided us around the mill site providing additional information and the opportunity to see more mining equipment and the mill ruins.  Today, there are two active mines near Juneau – Greens Creek Mine, an underground zinc, lead, silver, and gold mine located on Admiralty Island, and the Kensington Gold Mine located about 45 miles northwest of Juneau.  

Archival Photo, Gastineau Mill at A-J Mine Site

Our guide who took us through the mine said he had enjoyed being a miner and the hard work is rewarded with good pay – a miner today earns from $85,000 to $150,000 per year in wages, open to both men and women.

Side-Dump Ore Car