History of Jewish presence in Klondike on display at MacBride Museum - Action News
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History of Jewish presence in Klondike on display at MacBride Museum

A new display at MacBride Museum celebrates and showcases the history of the Jewish community in the Klondike Gold Rush and colourful characters like famed theatre owner Sid Grauman.

Museum exhibit recognizes such colourful characters as Sid Grauman, famed theatre owner

Rick Karp with the exhibit at MacBride Museum. It highlights some of the Jewish people in Dawson City during the Klondike Gold Rush and follows their lives after they left. (Wayne Vallevand/CBC)

When Sid Graumanleft the Klondike in the early1900she moved to California where he eventually became the founder of the famedGrauman's Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles.

He hadlearned how lucrative the entertainment business could be when he helped stageconcerts and boxing matches in Dawson City during the 1898 Klondike Gold Rush.

Grauman was one of roughly 200 Jews who called the Dawson City area home during the Gold Rush.The Jewish Cultural Society of Yukon has spent two decades researching and cataloging their stories.

Sid Grauman is one of the colourful Gold Rush characters highlighted in the exhibit on display at the MacBride Museum. (Wayne Vallevand/CBC)
"It's unique." said society president Rick Karp. "I never thought of a Jewish presence during the Gold Rush. It's a small piece of Yukon history this is very exciting to a lot of people."

The society received $55,000 from the Yukon government's Community Development Fund, last year. Part of that money was used to create a display of three panels that explores and celebrates the role of the Jewish community in the Klondike.It also explores what happened to those people after they left the Yukon.

Jewish groups from as far away as Chicago and Montreal have expressed interest in showcasing the display in their cities, Karp said.

The exhibitis on display at the MacBride Museum in Whitehorse until May 11.