TIMELINES: What discovery on Aug. 16, 1896 drew nearly 50,000 people to the Yukon within two years?

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

THEN

On Aug. 16, 1896, three prospectors—George Carmack, Skookum Jim, and Dawson Charlie—discover gold in the Yukon Territory of Canada. The discovery of gold nuggets in a creek bed near the Klondike River prompts the Klondike Gold Rush in the region, drawing gold miners from the United States and other parts of Canada. Within the first two years of the 1896 discovery, approximately 50,000 miners travel to the Yukon in search of fortune. Even after many amateur gold miners sell their stake in the Klondike area to better equipped professional companies, large-scale gold mining continues in the region up until 1966—yielding about $250 million in gold.

NOW

Last Thursday, as a result of global stock markets plunging, the price of gold reached a record high $1,800 per ounce. Market analysts contend that when stock markets are extremely volatile, investors tend to seek refuge in commodities, such as gold. The United States abandoned the gold standard 40 years ago. On Monday—the first day of trading after Standard & Poor’s downgraded the U.S. credit rating—the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 634 points. Experts believe the ensuing dramatic fluctuations in the markets were the catalyst that sent the price of gold skyrocketing. Jeffrey Nichols, managing director of American Precious Metals Adviser and senior economic adviser to Rosland Capital, told Reuters, “I believe the price of gold will rise irregularly over the next several years, possibly reaching $1,850 an ounce by the end of this year, breaking above $2,000 in 2012, and possibly $3,000, $4,000, and even $5,000 in years to come.”