C
chicken
hicken, Alaska is one of the most interesting towns in the north primarily because of what has not been done versus what has been done. The visitor services infrastructure is good, however, it is still a raw frontier town, which is one of its charms. Chicken is located at mile 66 of the Taylor Highway and is 78 miles from Tok. The history of Chicken is rich and began with the discovery of gold, on Franklin Gulch, in 1886. Ten years later, in 1896, Bob Mathieson made a major discovery on Upper Chicken Creek, staked his claim and built a cabin. 700 miners were thought to be working the area between 1896 and 1898. A post office was established in 1903 to serve a population
100
Connecting Routes
of around 400. In 1906, Harvey Van Hook built the two-story Chicken Creek Hotel. The Historic Town of Chicken was a hub of activity for the southern portion of the Fortymile Mining District. Many of the original buildings still stand including “Tisha’s Schoolhouse” made famous by the book Tisha. The book chronicles Anne Purdy’s life as a teacher in the town of Chicken in 1927. In 1939, the F.E. Company began acquiring claims and built a camp on Nora Bench. In 1953, they bought the town site and turned it into a camp for their dredging operation. The Pedro Dredge was moved from Fairbanks to Chicken in 1959 and it operated until 1967. In 1998, after sitting idle for 31 years, the million pound dredge was moved in one piece to its present location in Chicken. Chicken Gold Camp offers tours of the Pedro Dredge. Chicken Gold Camp, RV Park and Outpost has rooms and cabins. The “Outpost” gift store has Alaska artisan made gifts, clothing, jewelry and more. The cafe serves homemade entrees, fresh-baked pastries, espresso drinks, wood-fired pizza and Alaska craft beers. The camp features gold panning, gold mining outings and historic tours around town. Chicken Gold Camp is a National Historic Site including the Pedro Dredge and mining museum. 1/4 mile south on Airport Road in Chicken. 907-782-4427
Bell’s Travel Guides
