Yukon who is who

Thomas Plenderleith Aitken (1871-1953)

Thomas Aitken was born in Fife, Scotland and immigrated to the United States in 1894. He and his brothers were successful miners in Victor, Colorado and Tom travelled north with some money to spend. He travelled to Dyea on the steamer Leah from Seattle in 1897 and placer mined in the Klondike gold fields from 1897 to 1902. He travelled to newly discovered gold fields near Fairbanks in 1903. Aitken was responsible for nine major successful mines over his career including Cleary Creek near Fairbanks, and at Flat Creek in the Iditarod district. Aitken lobbied the Alaska government to upgrade the Ruby-Ophir-Iditarod overland trail route. Sections of this system is now part of the National Iditarod Historic Trail. In 1914, Harry McWhorter bought out his two partners in the Silver King claim in the Mayo district and Aitken agreed to finance a larger operation at the mine. By the spring of 1915, McWhorter had mined and shipped 1,180 tons of ore. In September 1916, Aitken exercised his option and bought the Silver King for $75,000. He employed a larger crew and mined 1,386 tons of high-grade silver in 1916/17. In danger of losing his mine because he forgot to file his claim assessment, he hired a fast dog team to reach the mining recorder’s office in Dawson just hours before his claim would have lapsed. In 1917 Aitken optioned the mine to three Alaskan partners and they abandoned the project in 1918. The claim reverted to Aitken and he leased the property to Sandy McPherson and partners in 1928. Aitken sold the property in 1929. The Silver King mine would become one of the richest silver deposits ever found in the Keno Hill area.¹⁾