John Gould (1919 - 2011)
John Gould was born at St. Mary's Hospital in Dawson. In 1933, the family moved to Burnaby where John attended school. He returned every spring from 1936 to 1939 to work at the family mine. During the Second World War, in 1941, John was called up and after one month of training was placed on reserve. He joined the Air Force in 1942 as a single engine pilot flying Hurricanes overseas. In April 1943, he met his future wife Madeleine at a dance at the Royal York Hotel in Toronto. After his discharge, they married in Greenfield, Ontario in 1945 and returned to the Klondike to raise a family.1)
John worked for five years on the cat trains bringing supplies to the oil fields for Western Minerals and Secony Mobile starting in 1955. He had a contract to deliver mail to the goldfield creeks for five years. In 1968, he was hired as the only employee for the Klondike National Historic Sites and he hired guides for the Palace Grand and the steamer SS Keno Historic Site.2)
John Gould is the author of Frozen Gold: A Treatise on Early Klondike Mining Technology, Methods and History. He became an active member of the Dawson Museum where he worked many years as a resource person and historical consultant. He was an active trustee of the Klondyke Centennial Society.3) John Gould was the recipient of a 1985 heritage award from the Yukon Historical & Museums Association.4) On Gould’s 90th birthday, Dawson mayor John Steins brought forth a proclamation proclaiming June 22 as John Gould Day in honour of his many services to the town and the preservation of its history.5)