Discover Atlin and Moore House

_{This website is paid for and maintained by Carolyn Moore, owner/operator of Discover Atlin and Moore House.}

_{All the editorial comments are mine and can be blamed solely on me. Unless stated otherwise, all photos are mine.}

_{Feel free to use my photos if you give the following photo credit ©Carolyn Moore, Atlin BC Canada. Thanks. CM}

  
Atlin is a small isolated community in the NW corner of British Columbia, on the traditional lands of the Taku River Tlingits. Glacial-fed Atlin Lake is 4 miles wide and 85 miles long, in a wide wilderness valley surrounded by snowcapped mountains. Atlin is a 2 to 3 hour drive from Whitehorse Yukon or Skagway Alaska. Current population is up to 500 full-time residents. During the Klondyke Gold Rush of 1898, the population was 10,000! Many buildings from that era still exist. Mining and Tourism are now the industries which underpin this very special little-known community.

 

A Brief History of Transport to Atlin ^{_{(This is all I know. Honestly.)}}

The Taku River Tlingits trekked hundreds of miles in their annual migration from Juneau AK, up the Taku River and over the watershed to the Atlin Valley and back. They visited Atlin, Teslin, Carcross even before these places had these names. When gold was discovered in Atlin in 1898, gold seekers from the south poured into Skagway AK and began the quest northward: north over the White Pass and eastward over the Fantail Trail, on foot and then by boat, to Atlin Lake. By 1901, The White Pass Railway was constructed from Skagway AK to Whitehorse Yukon. It covered about 120 miles, with stops along the way.

 

So... In 1901, if you were seeking Klondyke Gold in Atlin, how would you and your gear get from Vancouver to Atlin?
Take a steamer north to Skagway; take the White Pass Railway north to Carcross, about 60 miles. Then, you'd make your way by boat or on foot, south on Tagish Lake, then east to Atlin Lake. 

 

Over the years, as Atlin became a popular destination with miners and tourists alike, the route evolved to be less of a hardship and more of an adventure. By 1917, you'd board a paddlewheeler at Carcross; sail southward on Tagish Lake to Taku Landing. There, you'd take the Taku Railway, the World's Shortest and Most Expensive Railway ($2 for 2 miles) across to Scotia Bay on Atlin Lake. Then you'd take the MV Tarahne 4 miles across the lake to Atlin. 

 

Check out http://www.britishcolumbia.com/regions/towns/index.asp?townID=3713 for more information. 

 

Atlinites don't do anything by halves.       

By 1926/27, to accommodate the burgeoning tourist trade, the MV Tarahne was cut in half and lengthened. In 2007, with a precipitous drop in Tourism caused by high gas prices, some of us are considering cutting it in half and shortening it again! At least we know this won't be voted down at City Council because:

^{_{Atlin is “unincorporated”.}}

That means it has no local government structure. It is not a village, nor a town, nor a city; it does not have a mayor or a reeve or a councilor… Atlin has no local municipal government, and is not part of a regional district. The Taku River Tlingit First Nation is self-governed, but the Atlin community as a whole, and that includes the TRTFN, is unincorporated. Atlin has once again been asked by the provincial government to undertake a governance study. This has happened several times. Their report should be ready later this year. More later...

 

 

^{So, how do we get things done?}

Much of Atlin is run by volunteers. Volunteers make enormous contributions of time, energy and other donated resources. When Atlin people want something, they give of their limited resources and go after it. Atlin volunteers are persistent. Without our volunteers, Atlin would have no voice with government, and very few basic community services.

There are only 2 elected bodies in Atlin, the AID and the AAPC.

Both are volunteer: The AID (Atlin Improvement District ) receives government money to run streetlights, operate the dump, run the volunteer fire department etc. The AAPC* (Atlin Advisory Planning Commission) receives no government money except to hire a part-time secretary. The AAPC reviews applications for the use of Crown Land within the Atlin area, and makes recommendations to government. These recommendations are not binding. 

*Official Mandate of the Atlin Advisory Planning Commission The purpose of the AAPC is to advise the Ministry of Community, Aboriginal, and Women’s Services on matters relating to the community as a whole. The AAPC has no formal power of approval. Under the present regulations, the official mandate is to forward community opinions and concerns to the Provincial Government on matters relating to Community Planning and Crown Land Disposition within the designated Atlin Planning Area Boundary.

The black and white photo in the uppermost banner is from the BC Archives, Victoria BC. So too, is the halved photo of the Tarahne, with my gratitude and apologies. The sepia photo of the waterfront is from a post card taken 1927 by Taylor, an Atlin photographer.