PLACERS OF THE RAMPART REGION. 65 
some Creek group the only diggings known are on the west side of 
the creek, on branches flowing from the left arm of the Y. The ex- 
treme length of the area containing known gold-bearing localities is 
about 30 miles and its greatest width is about 12 miles, the total area 
being probably less than 350 square miles. 
Winter prospecting is being done on Squaw Creek, a tributary of 
the Yukon about the size of Minook Creek, which enters the river 
nearly opposite Rampart. 
The first placer claim in the Rampart region was located and 
worked in 1896 on Little Minook Creek by F. S. Langford, though 
gold had been previously discovered by John Minook, a Russian half- 
breed, who seems to have sluiced out a small amount of gold, and for 
whom the creek was named. Some prospecting had probably been 
clone along Minook Creek a number of years before. Since the first 
systematic work in 1896 the region has been a constantly productive 
one. Though the amounts taken out have not been so large as those 
mined at places in the Klondike district or at a few of the claims near 
Nome, yet a number of creeks in this region produce a fair amount of 
gold. At first Little Minook and Hunter creeks were the only produc- 
ers, and during 1897 no new ground seems to have been found, but in 
1898 a small amount was taken out of Quail Creek. Afterwards gold 
was discovered upon Little Minook Junior, Hoosier, Ruby, and Slate 
creeks of Minook Creek Valley. In the meantime prospecting was 
carried on over the divide on the south, and deposits along Baker 
Flats were discovered. In fact, each year has shown some new source 
of production, and it seems likely that more may still be found. The 
output to the fall of 1904, from the best available data, was $1,112,000, 
and that for the year ending at the same time was about $232,900. 
As Rampart lies only about 1 degree south of the Arctic Circle, the 
cold of winter is severe and the open season is comparatively short. 
During the early part of June thawing is generally so far advanced 
that some preliminary work and sluicing can be done. Cold snaps are 
likely to make the work intermittent at first, but the latter part of 
June and all of July and August can be depended upon for outside 
operations. Frosts are likely to occur the first part of September, 
though mining can sometimes be carried on during practically the 
whole month. In 1904 the sluice boxes froze up on the 5th of Septem- 
ber, and after that date there were only a few days on which sluicing 
could be done. 
The surficial deposits are always frozen, and the limit of the frozen 
ground has not yet been reached, but there are channels in the frozen 
gravels through which water circulates freely at all seasons. Large 
masses of ground ice often occur in the muck, though none are found 
24304— Bull. 337—08 5 
