“Gold, gold, gold! Gold in the Klondike,” the headlines screamed in 1896 when Skookum Jim Mason, Dawson Charlie and George Washington Carmack found gold in a tributary of the Klondike River in Canada’s Yukon Territory. And, not surprisingly it set off one of the greatest gold rushes in history.

Over 100,000 men and around 10,000 women risked their lives trekking the Northwest Passage to Dyea, Alaska then tramping through the wilderness to Chilkoot Pass, avoiding avalanches, fording dangerous white water rapids while transporting over a ton of supplies and suffering from scurvy all for the chance to get rich. Makes buying a lotto ticket seem insignificant, doesn’t it?

Pend Oreille Arts Council is enthusiastic about the production “Living Voices: The Last Adventure”.

An historic dramatic presentation that recounts the struggles and challenges faced by a young woman whose husband has caught “Klondike Fever” and takes her on an incredible journey.

The presentation will be held at the Heartwood Center on Friday, January 26 at 7 p.m.

Tickets are available at the door a half hour before curtain, $15 for adults, $5 for youth 18 and under.

On December 31, 1897, a woman named Annie Hall Strong wrote an article that was published in the Skagway News advising women who “have made up their minds to go to the Klondike.” This is an excerpt reprinted on the National Parks Service’s website:

“There are a few things a woman should carefully consider before starting out on this really perilous journey. Delicate women have no right attempting the trip. It means utter collapse. Those who love luxury, comfort and ease would better remain at home. It takes strong, healthy, courageous women to stand the terrible hardships that must necessarily be endured.”

POAC Arts Administrator, Hannah Combs said that she was astounded that as many as ten percent of the 100,000 prospectors were women.

“Whether they were actually panning for gold, running laundry services, or restaurants or brothels, or being a prospector’s wife, they all went through the brutal journey to get there,” Combs said.

Our heroine, Eliza, is a fictitious, but historically accurate character who tells her tale of fortitude, perseverance and about the social influences of the times.

Climbing mountain peaks in a skirt, this talented seamstress will describe how, after her husband runs back home, she starts a business and finds loyal companionship with a Husky named Beau.

You won’t want to miss this enlightening and entertaining performance. For more information contact the POAC office at 208-263-6139 or stop by our new offices in the Cedar Street Bridge, 334 N. First Avenue, Sandpoint.