The Jewish Cemetery

The Jewish Cemetery in Dawson City

Bet Chaim Cemetery in 2019

Finding the Cemetery:

This project started in 1997 with research into where the Jewish cemetery was located in Dawson. Arthur Mitchell, Howard Kushner and Rick Karp took the lead in doing that work, went to Dawson, and discovered the cemetery.

Rick Looking through the bush

Arthur and Howard found the Archway Bet Chaim

Clearing the trees and brush, finding the graves, and the start of the restoration

Finding, Restoring, and Re-dedication ceremony of the Jewish Cemetery in Dawson City in 1997:

(9 minutes)

Thank you to all the people that travelled to Whitehorse and then Dawson City for this event.

And a special thank you to Rebbetzin Joan Cohen for leading the Shabbat Services in Whitehorse and the Rededication Services for the Cemetery in Dawson City.

And finally an expression of gratitude from the Jewish Community of Yukon to the Deputy Prime Minister of Canada at the time, The Honorable Herb Gray (May His Memory be a Blessing), for coming all this way to be with us. Minister Gray is the speaker at the end of the video.

The people interred in the cemetery

The only gravestone - Solomon Packer

The entrance from the road

The Bet Chaim Archway

Rededicating the Cemetery

By the summer of 1998 we found the Cemetery, cleaned it up, restored it, and had a re-dedication Ceremony.

Rebbetzin Joan Cohen leading the re-dedication services -1998

Then Deputy Prime Minister Herb Gray addressing the congregation and being taped by CBC Radio and Television - 1998

The First Ever Shabbat Services in Whitehorse - 1998

For the first time in history a Torah was brought to Whitehorse and the RCMP dedicated service members to deliver and watch over the Torah during its stay in Whitehorse, which had never happened in Canada before then.

Lighting the Shabbos Candles

Herman Roodman addressing the Congregation

Creating the Traveling Historical Display:

As we researched the history of the Jewish presence during the Klondike Gold Rush, we discovered that around 200 Jews had arrived in Dawson City during that time. Our curiosity got the better of us as we asked: how did they get to the Gold Rush, what did they do during their stay in Dawson City, and what happened to them after they left. These formed the three focal points of the historical display, which we are happy and proud to share.

The historian Dr. Brent Slobodin conducted extensive research, and created the traveling display. The travelling exhibition is comprised of three panels, shown below, a booklet replete with fascinating stories, and a video of us finding, restoring, and the rededicating ceremony of the cemetery (is available on the Jewish Cemetery page). Once completed the display travelled the country and it got national attention.