Roman “Jake” Chaykowsky (1920 – 1995)
Jake Chaykowsky was born in the Ukraine. He moved to Canada and worked at various jobs including being a cabinet maker in Vancouver.1) He met his wife in Thunder Bay, Ontario.2)
In 1950, Jake worked at a gold mine in Atlin, British Columbia and was involved in an industrial accident. He left for the south and at Judas Creek, after a fifteen-minute negotiation, found himself the proud owner of a highway lodge.3) The Pines lodge burned in 1962 and Jake built a new lodge at the junction of the Alaska Highway and the Atlin/Tagish road.4) He planned a small place, but it grew into Jake’s Crystal Palace hotel with luxurious décor and an indoor swimming pool.5) Jake was sensitive to the needs of those less fortunate and, in the 1970s built a cabin across the road to provide penniless travellers with a free place to stay.6)