The craziness of the Klondike Gold Rush gave birth to many fantastic schemes to make people rich - both the people who joined the rush to the Yukon gold fields, and those who preferred to stay home and invest in those who did. This prospectus from 1898 is typical in many ways. The text from a couple of pages shows the incredible though largely unfounded optimism. Click on each scanned page below to enlarge it in a new window - have a look especially at the page showing and describing "the most wonderful Placer Mining Machine in the world", which is going to make all of their investors rich.

The "magnificent steamer, Fortune Hunter", was actually built. She was a wooden sternwheeler; 62.0 feet long, with 16.0 foot beam and 3.0 foot hold; gross tonnage 83, registered as 49 tons; and powered by steam engines rated at 28 IHP. Prefabricated at Chicago, she was assembled at St. Michael, and as late as 1905 was working on the Chena River.

The Alaska Bonanza Mining-Trading Co. intends to acquire and develop mines in the new and rich Gold Fields, to send prospectors to acquire new and rich claims, to contract with the holders of claims already discovered, to put in new and powerful machinery so as to increase the output of these mines a hundred fold, thus making the output of a mine that will pay $200 to $500 a day by hand work, pay $10,000 or $20,000 per day, and if this company can acquire 100 separate claims the daily output would run into the hundreds of thousands of dollars daily. Seventy-five per cent of the net profits will go to the bond holders and on such a basis the holder of a single $5.00 bond might expect to get $2,000 to $5,000 or more profit in a single year, and the holder of $50 or $100 worth of these bonds become rich in a single year.

These Profits seem like talk from fairyland instead of real possibilities, yet greater profits were made from as small investments in the days of old in California, and again in the 60's, in Nevada, in the days of Consolidated Virginia. What has been done may be done again. The chance comes but once in a lifetime - don't let it pass. Send your order, enclosing $2.50 for each bond you desire, to

KLONDIKE PROMOTION CO.,
Dexter Building, CHICAGO, ILL., U.S.A.

---

How the Company

PROPOSES TO OPERATE.

This Company has already located several rich Alaskan gold mines, and contracted for the surveys, preliminary development work and other requisites to establish its absolute ownership and title. In addition to this, some of the richest strikes in the Klondike are owned by prospectors who have no means to develop them except their two hands, and negotiations are on the way for this Company to put in modern machinery and power to push the products of these mines of ascertained richness to their limit of production, allowing the owners of them a percentage of what is produced.

Competent experts are considering the production of machinery of great capacity, but the lightest weight possible, to operate with on an extensive scale.

The magnificent steamer, Fortune Hunter, is now under construction in the ship yards of The Marine Iron Works, at Chicago, to be delivered at St. Michaels at the opening of navigation.

Negotiations looking toward the establishment of exclusive transportation, trading and supply facilities are under way, and it is believed with the opening of the season this Company can commence business on a. scale and with facilities heretofore unknown in the Klondike. In addition to this, it is proposed to send a number of men to be selected from the bond holders of the Company, with all transportation and full supplies furnished them, to explore and prospect certain portions of Alaska and locate claims for the Company, thus being continually ahead in the new Gold Fields which the new season is sure to uncover to the world.