The Gold Rush Town of Yale

Lesson # 5 You be the Judge...

Back in the 1850's and 1860's one of the few ways people had of keeping track of history was to write it down. People would keep diaries, write letters, or if they were a merchant they would keep a "ledger" -a written method of keeping track of items sold and brought into inventory. All these pieces of history, when brought together, give us a picture or idea of what the time was like so long ago.

One such collection appears below. The British Columbia Archives were scoured to provide you with many sources of information on the famous "Ned (or Edward) McGowan War" which occurred in Yale, BC.

This event, has been retold by several sources. The challenge is yours to 'sleuth' through the retellings and letters to:

figure out the biases of each source about the 'war',
who's telling the entire story,
and what really happened in this British Columbia 'war'.

Print out the notetaking guide to help you keep track of the many versions.

Same Stories or are they?
The Incident at Hill's Bar (3 pages)	Rumour of a Disturbance at Yale (3 pages)	The Ned McGowan War (3 pages)
Begbie Letters (6 pages)		Whannel letters (2 pages)
Perrier's Letters (2 pages)	Moody Letters (1 page)	Hicks Letters (12 pages)

Don't forget to print out a copy of the notetaking guide for each section you'll read!

Last updated 31 August 1998.
This digital collection was produced under contract to the SchoolNet DigitalCollections Program, Industry Canada.
Produced by Schoolnet Digital Collections Team.