Mining Hall of Fame inducts two women in newest class
Emma Grace Lowe Born in Seattle, Wash., in 1903, Grace Lowe has the distinction of being one of the very few women that operated profitable gold mines in Alaska in the Tolovana Mining District and later a less profitable operation in the Rampart District. She was fiercely independent and had an aggressive reputation when crossed, but she was a quick learn- er with a strong work ethic that led to successful stints in the mining business. Soon after her arriving in Fairbanks, Grace had become part owner of the Black Rapids Road- house along the Richardson High- way. She married Ira Warren Mor- gridge in Fairbanks on July 15, 1926, but that relationship was short lived. In 1934, she teamed up with oth- ers on Gertrude Creek in the Liven- good district and later with Luther Hess on Wilbur Creek. Subsequently she mined elsewhere but was nev- er as successful as she had been in the Livengood area. After her gold mining activities declined due to the fixed price of gold and the effects of several costly lawsuits, Lowe spent much of the rest of her life in Fair- banks and California, and quietly passed away at the Denali Center in Fairbanks in 1990.
Frederick James Currier Frederick James Currier was one of those persistent early Tanana Basin miners that preceded Felix Pedro’s discovery of the Fairbanks district. He was born in River Falls, Wisc., in 1860 just before the onset of the Civil War. In 1894, he got the gold bug after meeting with miners in a hotel in Victoria, British Columbia, and subsequently traveled first to Juneau, later to Dyea, where he and partners climbed Chilkoot Pass, and eventually traveled via river boat way to the 40 Mile region two years before the Klondike discovery. He mined on Mastodon Creek in the Circle district in 1895-1896 but returned to Wisconsin, only to come back to Alaska with his own stern- wheeler in 1898 and a new team of partners. Currier’s focus was the Chena River basin in the then un- known Fairbanks district. He and partners spent years prospecting the entire length of the stream, building cabins along the way, but he eventually ended up managing a placer mine in Dawson. In 1904, he moved his family to California and would spend the rest of his life managing orchards, pass- ing away at age 75.
Bridget Mannion Aylward Bridget Mannion Aylward emi- grated from her home in Turlough, Ros Muc, County Galaway, Ireland to the United States in 1886 seeking a better life. She first settled in St. Paul, Minn., and later moved to Seattle, Wash., where she became the cook of a wealthy family. In 1891, Captain John Healy persuaded investors to build a trading post on the 40-Mile River and Aylward signed on with this north country adventure. When Fort Cudahy was built in 1893, she became the first non-na - tive women in the Yukon River Ba- sin. She married miner Edward Ayl- ward in 1894, which was the first non-native marriage in the 40 Mile Area. Bridget and Edward success- fully mined gold side by side on Na- poleon Creek and she was dubbed ‘The Queen of Alaska’ due to her work ethic and kindness. She moved to the States in the early 1900s and eventually returned to Ireland in 1948. Prior to her death in 1958, the Bridget Aylward Trust Fund was es- tablished to educate children in Ros Muc, Ireland, funded by gold that Bridget and Edward mined in Alas- ka. That Trust is active to this day.
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The Alaska Miner
Spring 2023
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