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On the north bank of Chathenda Creek, 1.7 miles east of its junction
with the Chisana River about 30 miles southeast of Nabesna. Chisana
is located in the Chitina Recording District.
Site of Alaska's last significant gold rush. In 1913, Billy James,
Andy Taylor, Fred Best, and Matilda Wales staked the first mining
claims on the Bonanza, Little Eldorado, and Big Eldorado creeks.
As many as 8,000 people joined the Chisana rush. Other townsites
were developed in the area: Woodrow, Johnson City, Reliance City,
and Gasoline City. By 1924, mining had dwindled, and, according
to Milton B. Medary, a member of a Smithsonian expedition, Chisana
consisted of "452 log cabins in which one man lives alone."
The Chisana Post Office operated from 1913 to 1938. Mining continued
in the district but declined until World War II.
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