Archives West Finding Aid

The Alaska Gastineau Mining Company (the operating company of Alaska Gold Mines Co.) was owned by Bartlett L. Thane. The town that the Alaska Gastineau Mining Company was located in, Thane, was named after him. The mine began operations on February 18, 1915. Thane's Alaska Gold Mine Company had expanded to 2,166 acres in 1915 with 275 acres of mills and homesteads. The Alaska Gold Mine Company was composed of four different holdings. These were the Alaska Perseverance, Ground Hog, Silver Bow Basin, Sheep Creek, and the mill site on the Gastineau channel. Operations closed in 1921. The Ebner Mine was run by the California-Nevada Copper Co. The Alaska Juneau Mine began operations in 1840 and was enormously successful in later decades (1930s-40s), but it closed in 1944. Its mill was modeled after the Gastineau Company's innovative tube mill. Treadwell is located in the Douglas region opposite the Thane area across the Gastineau channel. The city of Treadwell, Alaska was incorporated on April 1, 1901. It was named after John Treadwell who founded the Treadwell Gold Mining Co. in 1889 . There were four mines in the Treadwell area including the Ready-Bullion which was the only mine which did not flood on April 21, 1917. The other mines which were destroyed during the flooding were Treadwell mine, 700 Foot, and the Mexican mine.