The Jewish Cultural Society of Yukon

The Jewish Historical Society of Yukon was originally formed in 1997, in response to the discovery of the Jewish Cemetery in Dawson City, Yukon, Canada. The mandate of the Historical Society was to clean, restore, and rededicate the cemetery, to which was added the task of researching who was buried in the cemetery. After celebrating the completion of this task, we thought our work was done. However, 15 years later our community in Whitehorse grew in numbers and interest in the research was reignited.

The Jewish Cultural Society was created in 2012, with an expanded mandate to bring together the Jewish community to share our culture, to celebrate the High Holidays and Passover together, and to hold social gatherings. From the get-go, the society also dedicated efforts to discover more information about the Jews of the Gold Rush. The stories we unearthed were indeed enthralling, and we decided to create a travelling historical display (see below) to share them. That display travelled the country, and then in 2024 we published a book titled “The Jewish Presence in the Yukon - Before, During, and After the Klondike Gold Rush.”

The book has been distributed to Jewish Archives, Libraries, Jewish Historical Associations, JCC’s, Museums, and others throughout the country. If you would like a copy of the book please go to the Contact Us page and send us a message by filling out the form at the bottom of the page. The cost of a book is $20.00 plus shipping.

Our Gatherings: 

A Visit by Two “Roving Rabbis” from New York in July 2026!

It was a wonderful surprise to be contacted by two Rabbis from a Yeshivah in New York City who wanted to visit Whitehorse - wow! 

They explained that they are part of a program as they are finishing their studies at the Yeshiva called "Roving Rabbis.” 

They had plans to visit communities in Alberta, then come to Whitehorse and Yellowknife before returning to New York. It was more than a pleasure to welcome them … it was also a very positive learning experience.

Everywhere we went, people would yell out in a questioning tone “Rabbis”?? And they would come up to us and were unbelievably supportive and complimentary and so happy just to meet Rabbis - it was amazing! In the picture with the person in front of his red camper van we learned that he and his wife were Jewish people from California. Oh my they kept us there for a ‘long’ time just talking and saying how happy, 

and surprised they were to actually meet Rabbis in Whitehorse.

As a Jewish Community in Northern Canada, in Whitehorse, we so enjoy getting together to celebrate special occasions and the holidays on the Jewish Calendar. 

We get to gather to celebrate Purim, Passover, Rosh Hashanah, and Chanukah every year and have brought up Kosher foods from Vancouver for some of the events to enjoy during the holiday season. We also share the weekly Torah Readings for some of our membership thanks to the help of the Chabad community in Calgary. 

We have also celebrated special occasions such as Bat Mitzvahs, a Bar Mitzvah, and the finding and restoring of the Jewish Cemetery in Dawson City, which you can see on the page titled The Jewish Cemetery in Dawson City.

Enjoy reviewing the rest of the website and if you have any questions you can submit them on the ‘Contact Us’ page.

Thank you, 

The Jewish Cultural Society of Yukon.

Read about us in the Canadian Jewish News:

As we develop our website, we will continue to share the weekly Parsha, as we have been doing, and provide links to National Associations for those who want to keep up-to-date, or just explore what is going on across the country.