TIN"    DEPOSITS    OF    THE    YOKE    KEGION,    ALASKA. 
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The  York  Mountains,  comprising  an  area  of  rugged  land  forms, 
occupy  the  southeastern  part  of  the  triangle  and  culminate  in  Brooks 
Mountain,  2,900  feet  in  altitude,  the  highest  point  in  this  part  of  the 
peninsula.  Northward  and  westward  from  this  mountain  group 
stretches  the  so-called  York  Plateau,  a  comparatively  smooth  upland 
which  stands  at  200  to  600  feet  above  sea  level  and  comprises  the  greater 
part  of  the  region  under  discussion.  On  the  south  this  plateau  presents 
an  escarpment  to  Bering  Sea,  but  on  the  north  it  slopes  off  gently  to 
the  coastal  plain. 
The  chief  settlement  of  the  region  is  York,  situated  at  the  mouth  of 
Anikovik  River,  about  12  miles  southeast  of  Cape  Prince  of  Wales 
and  8  miles  northwest  of  Cape  York.     This  town  is  on  the  open  coast 
Fig.  6. — Map  of  the  York  tin  region,  Alaska. 
of  Bering  Sea  and  landings  are  made  through  the  surf,  as  at  Nome. 
The  nearest  harbor  for  seagoing  vessels  is  Port  Clarence,  20  miles 
eastward. 
After  the  discovery  of  gold  at  Nome,  in  1898,  prospectors  rapidly 
extended  their  search  to  all  parts  of  Seward  Peninsula,  and  as  early  as 
the  fall  of  1899  placer  gold  had  been  found  in  Anikovik  River.  In 
1900,  Mr.  Alfred  H.  Brooks,  of  the  United  States  Geological  Survey, 
visited  the  York  region  and  found  in  the  placers  of  Anikovik  River 
and  Buhner  Creek,  one  of  its  tributaries,  some  specimens  of  stream 
tin.  Early  in  1901  an  account  of  these  discoveries  was  published 
by  Mr.  Brooks,  and  the  general  interest  in  the  tin  deposits  of  the 
York  region   dates  from  (hat  publication.     Since  that  time  tin  ore 
