Ernest Johnson (~1870 - 1941)
Ernest Johnson came to the Yukon before the gold rush. He spent thirty years prospecting in the Wheaton Valley and lived at the Robinson Roadhouse railroad siding for many years.1) In 1940, Ernie was at least seventy years old and had suffered a stroke that left him partially paralysed. He and Matthew Watson owned the Mascot Mine near the head of the Wheaton River and Ernie set off on a horse trail to visit the site. He tried to cross the river to get to Hugh Bostock’s survey camp and fell off into the water. He would have died but two of Bostock’s men rescued him from the water. The next day, Ernie and Hugh visited Ernie’s cabin at 4476 above sea level. Previous miners had driven tunnels into a cirque and there was an old cabin with walls of stone. Ropes had been used to reach the higher tunnels.2)
J.R. Foster was associated with the Mascot Mining Company in the Wheaton and Watson mining district near Carcross. In July 1927, Foster reported shipping three tons of ore to the American Smelting and Refining Company at Tacoma, and one ton to the Mace Manufacturing Company at Denver. The ore was shipped by train from Robinson.3) When Johnson and Watson owned the mine, Livingston Wernecke had offered to buy the claims but Watson wanted more than Wernecke would pay.4) Ernie suffered another stroke at home in 1941 and was brought to the Whitehorse hospital where he died. 5)