John Bremner (1833–1887) was a prospector and early explorer of

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

.Heller, Herbert: ''Sourdough Sagas'', Ballantine Books, 1973.

Early life

John Bremner was born in

Rhynie, Aberdeenshire Rhynie () ( gd, Roinnidh) is a village in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is on the A97 road, northwest of Alford. The Rhynie Chert is named after the village as well as the fossil plant genus ''Rhynia''. The Rhynie Chert is a sediment deposited i ...

, Scotland, and emigrated to

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

. At some point he abandoned his farm and family and probably worked as a sailor.Bremner, J.D.
History of the Bremner Family
accessed June 25, 2011.

Life among the Indians in Alaska

In 1884 he was first recorded as living among on the

Copper River (Alaska) The Copper River or Ahtna River (), Ahtna Athabascan ‘Atna’tuu (), "river of the Ahtnas", Tlingit Eeḵhéeni (), "river of copper", is a 290-mile (470 km) river in south-central Alaska in the United States. It drains a large region of ...

, the only white man living in an area inhabited at the time by the Copper Indians, or

Yellowknives The Yellowknives, Yellow Knives, Copper Indians, Red Knives or T'atsaot'ine (Dogrib language, Dogrib: ''T'satsąot'ınę'') are indigenous peoples of Canada, one of the five main groups of the First Nations in Canada, First Nations Dene who live ...

. In the summers he prospected for gold. In 1884–85 he wrote a diary about his time living through the winter on the Copper River in a cabin with an Indian wife amongst the Copper River Indians (referred to him as "Ma Nuska") which was transcribed into the book ''Shores and Slopes of Alaska'', pp. 200–21.Karr, H. W. Seton: ''Shores and Alps of Alaska'', Sampson, Low, Marston, Seale & Rivington, London, 1887.

Allen expedition

In early 1885 John Bremner joined the expedition of Lt.

Henry Tureman Allen Major General Henry Tureman Allen (April 13, 1859 – August 29, 1930) was a senior United States Army officer known for exploring the Copper River in Alaska in 1885 along with the Tanana and Koyukuk rivers by transversing of wilderness. His tr ...

,Allen, Henry T.: ''Report Of An Expedition To The Copper, Tanana, And Koyukuk Rivers, In The Territory Of Alaska, In The Year 1885, For The Purpose Of Obtaining All Information Which Will Be Valuable And Important, Especially To The Military Branch Of The Government''. Us Government Printing Office, 1887. a West Point graduate, traveling with Lt. Allen, Pvt. Frederick W. Fickett, Sgt. Cody Robertson, and fellow prospector Peder Johnson, through previously unexplored territory along the Copper, Tanana, and Koyukuk Rivers. On March 29, 1885, the party left Taral to ascend the previously unexplored Copper River. After a side trip up the

Chitina River The Chitina River ( Ahtna Athabascan Tsedi Na’ < ''tsedi'' "

copper

" + ''na’'' "

to the head of that river, they continued up the Copper to the

Slana River The Slana River, also known as Slahna, Slakna, or Sla River, is a tributary of the Copper River in southern Alaska in the United States. It begins near Mount Kimball in the Alaska Range and flows generally south to meet the larger river near ...

. They traveled to the source of the Slana and then downstream on the Tetlin and Tanana rivers to the Yukon. In the Fall of 1886 Johnson and Bremner decided to stay in the town of Nuklukyet on the Yukon (today known as Old Station, below the town of Tanana) while the others continued. Lt. Allen and Pvt. Fickett portaged to the Kanuti and Koyukuk rivers upstream, traveled downstream to the Yukon, portaged to the

Unalakleet Unalakleet ( ; ik, Uŋalaqłiq, ; russian: Уналаклит) is a city in Nome Census Area, Alaska, United States, in the western part of the state. At the 2010 census the population was 688, down from 747 in 2000. Unalakleet is known in the ...

and from there went downstream to St. Michael. Their journey was "subsequently praised as one of the greater explorations in the history of North America." Allen Glacier and Mt. Allen, near the head of the Tanana, are named for the party's leader.Oth, Donald J.: ''Dictionary of Alaska Place Names, Geological Survey Professional Paper 567'', US Government Printing Office, 1971.

Work as prospector and end of life

John Bremner and Peder Johnson purchased a prospecting outfit from the men who ran the trading post at Nuklukyet and stayed in the Central Yukon River area during the winter of 1886–87. In the spring of 1887 they prospected on the Koyukuk River and then returned to Nuklukyet. While boating and prospecting on a tributary of the Yukon River called John's River (later named for him) and the Dolby River, he was killed by Indians who stole his rifle and boat. In the summer of 1888 a posse of prospectors took a steamer up the Koyukuk River and Dolby River where a village was discovered the inhabitants were persuaded to give up two native Indians, one of whom was hanged from a tree.

Geographical places named for John Bremner

The Bremner River, part of the Wrangell–St. Elias National Park and Preserve and Wrangell – Saint Elias Wilderness, flows into the

Copper River Copper River may refer to several places: *Copper River (Alaska), in the United States * Copper River (British Columbia), a tributary of the Skeena River The Skeena River is the second-longest river entirely within British Columbia, Canada (afte ...

northwest of Katalla, and the

Chugach Mountains The Chugach Mountains of southern Alaska are the northernmost of the several mountain ranges that make up the Pacific Coast Ranges of the western edge of North America. The range is about long and wide, and extends from the Knik and Turnagain ...

. The North Fork of the Bremner has its headwaters at the Bremner Glacier, which is long. From the junction of the Middle and the North forks of the Bremner the river flows through mountain wilderness southwest to the Copper. The town of Bremner Alaska, on the Copper River, a small settlement with an airstrip, near

Chitina Chitina (Ahtna language, Ahtna Athabascan Tsedi Na < ''tsedi'' "copper" + ''na'' "river") is a census-designated place (CDP) in Copper River Census Area, Alaska, Copper River Census Area, Alaska, United States. At the 2010 ...

is the site of the Bremner Historic Mining District which is on the

National Register of Historic Places listings in Copper River Census Area, Alaska __NOTOC__ This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Copper River Census Area, Alaska. This is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Copper River ...

. The John River is formed from the confluence of the Contact and Inukpasugruk Creeks, and flows south from Anaktuyuk Pass to

Koyukuk River The Koyukuk River (; ''Ooghekuhno' '' in Koyukon, ''Kuuyukaq'' or ''Tagraġvik'' in Iñupiaq) is a tributary of the Yukon River, in the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the last major tributary entering the Yukon before the larger river empties into ...

(which flows into the

Yukon River The Yukon River (Gwichʼin language, Gwich'in: ''Ųųg Han'' or ''Yuk Han'', Central Alaskan Yup'ik language, Yup'ik: ''Kuigpak'', Inupiaq language, Inupiaq: ''Kuukpak'', Deg Xinag language, Deg Xinag: ''Yeqin'', Hän language, Hän: ''Tth'echù' ...

), 1 mile northeast of Bettles, Kanuti Flats 66°55' N, 151°39' W.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bremner, John Scottish explorers of North America Explorers of Alaska 1833 births 1887 deaths Wrangell–St. Elias National Park and Preserve People from Rhynie, Aberdeenshire Scottish emigrants to the United States