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A place where humans have tread lightly, and nature remains in its purest form. Humans inhabit only around 20% of the Yukon, although evidence suggests they have been on the land as long as 20,000 years.
The Yukon territory is home to fourteen First Nations, currently a quarter of the population. The first Europeans to make contact were the Russians in the 1740s, when a fur trade was established and spread to include the British and Americans. In 1896, gold was discovered by a small party whose leader, known as Skookum Jim, was a member of the Tagish First Nation. The Klondike Gold Rush began, and the rising population led to creation of Yukon Territory in 1898.
The territory was administered by a federal commissioner until 1979, when a territorial legislature was formed and party politics were introduced. The Progressive Conservatives won the first election but were defeated by the Yukon New Democrats in 1985. The New Democrats governed for most of the 1990s, with an interruption from
1992 until 1996 by the Yukon party (formerly the Conservatives). Pat Duncan's Liberals held power from 2000 to 2003, when current premier Dennis Fentie of the Yukon Party took office. Most of Yukon's First Nations are self-governing, and can enact laws and administer programs social services for their citizens. |
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