John McIntyre and William Preston Grainger were the true pioneers of the Whitehorse Copper Belt: their mine, the Copper King, was not only the first claim to be staked in the mineral belt, but it was also the first “hardrock” underground mine of any type in the territory. Unfortunately both of these ardent northerners would lose their lives early “breaking trail” so to speak, for others to follow.
John McIntyre was from Pembroke, Ontario and had spent some time in San Bernardino, California (where his sister lived) before embarking in 1895 on an ocean vessel for Saint Michael, Alaska at the mouth of the Yukon River. From there he prospected and worked his way up the river arriving in 1898 at Circle City, Alaska just short of the Klondike. By this time the Klondike Gold Rush was in full swing, though it appeared McIntyre had little interest in gold.
William P. Grainger was from Kentucky and had arrived in the Yukon in 1895 where he prospected in the Wheaton Valley and the Whitehorse Copper Belt. However, it would be McIntyre who would make the first rich discovery calling it the Copper King: the date was July 6, 1898. Shortly thereafter Grainger staked the adjacent Copper Queen Claim and also bought half interest in the Copper King for $1,000.
Using the pioneer method of dynamite and hand steels, the two new partners had shafted 24 feet into a rich deposit of bornite ore. In all they mined and sacked some 8.5 tons for shipment. The White Pass Railway’s first train to rattle out of town in July of 1900 had that ore aboard – the returns were impressive: 46% copper with “Important” gold and silver values. This was in a day when a 10% copper ore was considered rich. Not surprisingly, when word got out the rush was on. By year’s end over 500 claims were recorded and hardly a stone left unturned in a 30-mile (45-km) swath of country that would be known as the Whitehorse Copper Belt.
It should be mentioned that hard rock mining in the early days was a totally different ballgame than placer gold mining was. Hard rock mining was more capital intensive because expensive machinery – boilers, compressors, pumps, drills and dynamite – had to be procured before any mining of consequence could take place. The ore itself was rather cumbersome (to put it mildly). One ton of ore may bring $50, or about the equivalent of 3 ounces in gold. The placer miner simply had to wash enough gold from his pay gravels to buy provisions at the trading post – such was not the case with the hard rock miner. Wrestling the ore from the rock was only the first struggle. After that, many tons of ore had to be hauled or sleighed to the railway station (at great cost) and to the port of Skagway to be transshipped to a smelter on the west coast. Often the mine owner would not receive full financial compensation until 3 months after the shipping date.
Thus, McIntyre and Grainger, like many of the early “copperbelters”, were a rare and resilient breed. Pioneers who were not out to get rich and get out, as were many of the Klondikers, but who were in it for the long run. They were here to etch out an honest living and, at the same time, be contributing members of a budding community – Whitehorse.
Unfortunately John McIntyre didn’t get a chance to pay the contribution he was willing to pay. In the winter of 1902, in hopes to earn some much-needed capital, McIntyre took up work as a mail carrier. In late November on his inaugural journey from Atlin to Bennett, he and his partner Joe Abby failed to arrive at their destination. Alarm was raised and an intensive but fruitless search was carried out for the men and dog teams. It was feared that McIntyre and Abby had fallen through the ice. This fear was substantiated in the spring when the bodies of the men and dogs were discovered in a shallow bay of Lake Tagish.
Following McIntyre’s untimely departure, Grainger continued on at the Copper King taking on local businessman J.P. Whitney as a partner. The Grainger years, although not prosperous, were fruitful: the mine was employing up to 30 people and had shipped over 500 tons of high-grade up until 1907. Still, the mine was plagued with under capitalization. But finally, in April of 1907, the situation took a wide turn towards the better. A Pennsylvania mining syndicate, under the direction of a “Colonel” Thomas, optioned the Copper King for $210,000, ten percent of which went to the owners outright.
Grainger immediately set about taking care of past tabs, including a $3,000 payment to Canon Brothers Insurance Brokers of Vancouver. The next morning Grainger and his new assistant Gilbert Joyce descended the fifty-foot shaft to set fires that would thaw a glacier of ice which had accumulated. When the men had not ascended from the shaft after a reasonable time, an alarm was raised. Deadly carbon monoxide fumes were detected emanating from the shaft and when the shaft was finally pumped free their bodies were found at the bottom. The entire town of Whitehorse was in shock and everybody came to the funeral. White Horse Star editor “Stroller” White touted Grainger as: “A true believer in a greater Whitehorse. A typical Kentuckian, impetuous but generous to a degree that amounted to extravagance in his willingness to aid and assist others.” Grainger was between the age of 46 and 50 years old and had no known relatives.
Mount McIntyre and Mount Grainger, Whitehorse’s two tallest peaks, were named in honour of these two early pioneers, as were two of the city’s largest subdivisions.
