Judge, Father William, S. J. National Historic Person
Dawson, Yukon Territory
Location of plaque
© Parks Canada / Parcs Canada, 1993
Address :
Dawson, Yukon Territory
Recognition Statute:
Historic Sites and Monuments Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. H-4)
Designation Date:
1987-11-01
Life Date:
1850 to 1899
Other Name(s):
-
Judge, Father William, S. J.
(Designation Name)
-
Saint of Dawson
(Other Name)
Research Report Number:
1987-44
Importance:
Missionary in Dawson during Klondike Gold Rush (1897-98)
Plaque(s)
Existing plaque: On the site of the former St. Mary's hospital, Dawson, Yukon Territory
Father William Judge is remembered as the "Saint of Dawson." An American Jesuit missionary, he went to Alaska in 1890 to work among the Indians of the lower Yukon. He moved to Forty Mile in 1895, and when gold was discovered near Dawson he followed his parishioners there in 1897. Judge devoted himself totally to the physical and spiritual well-being of the miners. He built Dawson's first hospital, St. Mary's, and for one year single-handedly ran both it and his church. He was well-loved by the local people and his death caused widespread mourning throughout the community.