Charles Howard Gates (known as Swiftwater Bill; April 7, 1854 – February 13, 1933) was an American
frontiersman
A frontier is the political and geographical area near or beyond a boundary. A frontier can also be referred to as a "front". The term came from French in the 15th century, with the meaning "borderland"—the region of a country that fronts ...
and fortune hunter, and a fixture in stories of the
Klondike Gold Rush.
In one famous Klondike story he presented Dawson dance hall girl Gussie Lamore her weight in gold.
Gates was married briefly to Grace Lamore in 1898; he later married Bera Beebe, with whom he fathered two sons, Fredrick and Clifford. Gates subsequently abandoned her for 15-year-old Kitty Brandon, his niece. His biography ''The True Life Story of Swiftwater Bill Gates'' (c. 1908) was authored by Iola Beebe, his mother-in-law.
Gates was known to be at the gold fields of
Nome, Alaska at the same time as William H Gates I, grandfather of the Microsoft founder. However, despite the similarity in name and coincidences of gold, there is no apparent family relationship between "Swiftwater Bill" and
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washin ...
founder
Bill Gates
William Henry Gates III (born October 28, 1955) is an American business magnate and philanthropist. He is a co-founder of Microsoft, along with his late childhood friend Paul Allen. During his career at Microsoft, Gates held the positions ...
.
In fiction, he has been portrayed by
Gordon Pinsent
Gordon Edward Pinsent (born July 12, 1930) is a Canadian actor, writer, director, and singer. He is known for his roles in numerous productions, including ''Away from Her'', '' The Rowdyman'', '' John and the Missus'', ''A Gift to Last'', ''Due S ...
in the 1985 film ''
Klondike Fever
''Klondike Fever'' is a 1980 Canadian adventure film, based on the writings of Jack London. It follows London's journey from San Francisco to the Klondike gold fields of the Yukon Territory, Canada in 1898.
Cast
* Jeff East as Jack London
* R ...
'' and
Colin Cunningham
Colin Alexander Cunningham (born 1966) is an American television and film actor. Cunningham is best known for his roles as John Pope in the TNT science fiction series ''Falling Skies'' and as Major Paul Davis on ''Stargate SG-1''.
Career
Cun ...
in the 2014 miniseries ''
Klondike''.
References
External links
*
*
1854 births
1933 deaths
American businesspeople
People of the Klondike Gold Rush
{{US-business-bio-1860s-stub