In Nome, anyone could, in actuality, find gold just lying on the ground. In sand, actually. Stampeders like these men packed the steamships coming north so they could pan the beach sands of Nome. It was federal land so you could not own it but you could keep every ounce of gold you found on it. If you found any. But, as you can see from this photograph, the lure of ‘easy money’ will always draw a stampede.
[From THE HUMAN FACE OF THE ALASKA GOLD RUSH.]