| Biographical Sketch or Administrative History |
|
Ira Van Bibber was born in West Virginia in 1877. He and his brother Theodore came to the Yukon in the Klondike Gold Rush of 1898. They were large men who immediately got jobs carrying supplies over the Ira Van Bibber was born in West Virginia in 1877. He and his brother Theodore came to the Yukon during the Klondike Gold Rush of 1898. They were large men who immediately got jobs carrying supplies over the Chilkoot Pass. After saving enough money for grubstakes, the brothers went to Dawson City, but found all the land was staked and jobs were scarce. Theodore continued on to Alaska, where his wife and daughter joined him, but Ira stayed in the Yukon, settling in the area around Fort Selkirk. He trapped in the winter and explored the waterways in the summer. In the summer of 1907, Ira canoed to Fort Selkirk for supplies and met Eliza Jackson (b. ca. 1885), whom he married. Together they roamed the land, trapping and living off the land. They travelled around the Liard Hot Springs and then on to the Nahanni Valley, Eliza gave birth to their first three children in this time. In 1914, Eliza and Ira built a log home at Mica Creek, near what is now Pelly Crossing. They lived off the land, gardening, fishing, hunting and trapping, to provide for their large family. Ira also ran a big game guiding business.
The Van Bibbers had 16 children: Leta 1908-1999, May 1910-2010, Abraham Lincoln (Abe) 1911-1933, Daniel (Dan) 1913-2002, Archie 1914-2004, Alexsander (Alex) 1916-2014, Helen 1918-1933, JJ (John James) 1920-2012, Patrick William (Pat) 1922-2016, Catherine (Kathleen) 1923-2016, George 1925-1977, Lucy (b. 1926), Malinda Jane (Linch) 1927-2020, and Theodore (Dode) 1930-2001. Two boys, born in 1917 and 1929, died shortly after birth. Ira died in 1965 and Eliza died in 1983.
|
