William David MacKay
William David MacKay was born in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. Brothers William and Chalmer Mackay brought thirty tons of goods and 140 head of cattle into Dawson in early 1899. They rented a tent for four months at $300 a month and sold their goods for a considerable profit. They attempted a second trip in the autumn of the same year and hired a steamer to tow five scows loaded with cattle and supplies before freezeup. A storm on Lake Bennett forced them to cut the scows adrift and their loss was about $30,000. By the autumn of 1900, William had a retail store in Dawson and was working a mining claim. He and his brother were still in the Yukon in 1901. William was operating a $25,000 mercantile business, and Chalmer was a mine owner working a $25,000 claim.1)