Baker, Fred A., 1866-1946 ; Fred A. Baker came to Washington from Maine with his father, brother and sister, when he was 16 years old. The family homesteaded on land five miles north of Arlington, which they made into a dairy farm.

In the Spring of 1896, when Fred was 30 years old, and still unmarried, he and his brother-in-law, Jim McGee, upon hearing of the gold rush in Alaska, took off for the far north. Jim left behind his wife, Della, and two children. Fred's father, D.S. Baker ran the farm.

Fred was in poor health when he left, but by walking long distances with heavy packs on his back, he soon became strong and healthy. He and Jim worked together over five years and never was there a cross word between them. They would share their last crust of bread and their last nickel. They worked in the Klondike and Yukon Territories for over 3 years. They had claims on the Eureka, Last Chance and Bear Creeks, and would have to travel by foot or dog sled to Dawson for food. When they had enough gold for a winter's supply of food, they would buy it. It took a thousand pounds or more and sometimes was hard to get. Of course, the prices were high, too.

After the food was purchased, they would make several trips to a cache about half way to their cabin. Then they would make several more trips to get it home. They shot bear and moose, then dried and smoked the meat.

After three years of just making enough for a grub stake, they became discouraged, and decided to go to Nome. They bought an old boat, repaired it, rigged a sail to it, and started the 1700 miles down the Yukon River. They reached the mouth of the Yukon in a little over a month. There, at the Bering Sea, they set up camp, and began mining on the beach. News of rich strikes of gold on the beach had reached them before they left the Yukon, and many people had traveled on the ice to get there. Fred and Jim found the most gold there on the beach, than anyplace else. But they also endured their greatest hardships because of the treacherous waves, bitter cold and blizzards. When their claims ran out of gold, they decided to come home. They went to Nome and took the Steamship Oregon, bound for Seattle in September 1901.

Life was extremely hard and riches eluded them, but the health he acquired through all the hardships was worth more than gold to Fred.

In 1904, Fred married Hattie Forbes. She died in 1905, giving birth to their son, George. In 1906, Fred married Elva Meeker, and they had one daughter Elizabeth. The family moved to California in the 1930's. Fred died in Pasadena, California at the age of 80.

This introduction was prepared by Elizabeth M. Baker of Yucaipa, California, daughter of Fred Baker, who loaned the Baker manuscripts to the library for copying in October 1978.