Principal values lie in the architect and the architecture. The Klondike Gold Rush was an international event that created the Yukon as a distinct territory of Canada. Tens of thousands of men and women, mostly from the United States, travelled north to strike it rich. Federal bureaucrats joined the North West Mounted Police in the Yukon to maintain order, collect taxes, and to ensure Canadian sovereignty. One of these government officials was Thomas W. Fuller, of the Architects Branch of the Department of Public Works in Ottawa. His father, Thomas Fuller, was Chief Architect for the Dominion of Canada from 1867 to 1896. Prior to this, his company designed the Centre Block of the Parliament Buildings in 1859. T.W. Fuller continued with the Architects Branch after he left Dawson City and became Chief Architect from 1927 to 1933.

Fuller was given the task of designing and overseeing the construction of six public buildings in Dawson City - the Commissioners Residence, Courthouse, Public School, Post Office, Territorial Administration Building and the Telegraph Office. Fuller apprenticed with the Telegraph Office; the first project in which he had full responsibility for design and construction. It was also his first experience dealing with permafrost, sub-zero temperatures, and the difficulty of obtaining building materials and furnishings. He designed his five most prominent buildings in the Neoclassical Revival style, similar to many other federal buildings of that period in Canada, and this style is also referenced in a smaller scale Telegraph Office. Classical forms such as the central axis of design, the symmetry of the primary facade, a large expanse of walls, and the use of columns near the main entrance are common to these buildings.

The Telegraph Office was the first and only architecturally designed telegraph office in the Yukon. Constructed in 1899, this building illustrates the presence of the Canadian government in the north and its confidence in the continuing prosperity of Dawson City.

The Telegraph Office represents a major communications system connecting Yukon to the south and the extraordinary development of the historic 2700 km Dawson-Ashcroft Telegraph Line; an effort that is recognized as nationally significant.

After its time serving as a public building, the Telegraph Office was moved to a new location in 1908 and continued as an upper-scale family residence for nearly 75 years of continuous occupancy. The lawn and birch plantings along the front elevation lend to its presence on the street while providing some privacy and separation, and add a maturity and permanence to the neighbourhood. The building and landscaping contribute to the quiet and sheltered ambiance of this residential area on Seventh Ave.

Character Defining Elements

- Orientation of the building to the street

- Form and materials

- Entrances, exterior cladding and trims, roof, and windows including storms

- Tree plantings

- Interior finishes, including the matchboard panelling on ceiling and walls

- Wrought iron heating grates

Description of Boundaries

Lot 2, Block E,

Plan 28743,

Menzies Addition

Dawson City, Yukon

Historical Sources Location

Dominion Land Titles

Territorial Land Titles

Dawson Municipal Records. Assessment and Tax Rolls.

Dawson City Directories for 1903, 1905-6 and 1915-16.

Historical Photographs:

University of Alaska, Bassoc Collection 64 92-792

#1/9, Parks Canada, Klondike National Historic Sites

Renovation Information

Permit issued in August 1997 to repair foundation and stabilize building. No final date

Interior restoration on east wing, first and second floor

Kitchen and storage area on north side rehabilitated, 2005

Roof repaired 2002

Stairs, handrails, planters, installed south side 2005

Cultural History

The alternate name for the building is the Millen House. It was likely named after Leslie Millen who was resident in the 1950s and 1960s. The house at this time was owned by the Canadian government and used as housing for federal employees.

Leslie J. Millen moved to Dawson from Vancouver in 1927. He worked various jobs on the dredges, rural mail delivery, department store, and as a photographic processor. In 1953, began work for Canada Customs as the agent at the Alaska border on what is now the Top of the World Highway. One of his main jobs was to handle duties on gold coming out of Little Gold Creek. His hobby was photography and he is noted for processing over 400 glass plate—an early and delicate photographic medium—from E.C. Adams and E.A. Hegg which he donated to the National Archives. [10]

Citations:

10: Edmonton Journal, 30 September 1959

Documentation Location

Dawson Telegraph Office file No. 3630 32 07 Heritage Resources Unit, Cultural Services Branch, Government of Yukon

Building Style

The Dawson City Telegraph Office is wood framed construction with a one and a half story central bay balloon framed with a hipped metal clad roof. The bay is flanked by two one-story wings platform framed with hipped metal clad roofs. The building has architectural features such as a simple moulded cornice, ship lap siding and corner boards. There are two entrances on the main facade reflecting the earlier public use of the building. Each has an open porch, pilasters and columns.