The Yukon Territory lies in the northwest corner of Canada's continental mainland, and is a rough triangular shape. It is isolated by rugged mountains. It shares a common border and many characteristics with its American neighbour, Alaska to the west and shares many services with British Columbia to the south and with the NorthWest Territories to the east. Of the ten provinces and two territories, the Yukon is the eighth largest. Mount Logan of the St. Elias Mountains in Kluane Park is the highest point in the Yukon and Canada, with an elevation of 5,959 meters above sea level. The Yukon can be divided into two broad geographical regions: taiga and tundra. Taiga is the boreal forest belt that circles the world in the subarctic zone, including most of the Yukon. Tundra is the vast, rocky plain in the arctic regions, where the extreme climate has stunted vegetation. The Yukon has a subarctic climate. The high altitude of much of the territory and the semi-arid climate provide relatively warm summers with temperatures frequently reaching 25°C or more during the long summer days. In winter the temperature ranges between +4 and -50°C in the south and slightly colder farther north. Above the Arctic Circle (latitude 66° north ), the Yukon is known as "the land of the midnight sun" because for three months in summer, sunlight is almost continuous. In winter, however, darkness sets in, and the light of day is not seen for a quarter of the year. The Yukon River is the fifth-longest in North America.

The Yukon was the first area in Canada to be settled by human beings. Anthropologists believe the ancestors of the Aboriginals may have inhabited the Yukon 10,000 to 25,000 years ago when they migrated from Asia across a Bering Sea land bridge. The first non-aboriginal people to travel to the Yukon Territory were explorers in 1825 (John Franklin) and later the Hudsons Bay Company fur traders arrived in 1840. U.S. traders arrived after the 1867 Russian sale of Alaska to the United States.

Gold was discovered in 1896 on creeks near Dawson City: causing the Klondike Gold Rush considered to be the largest gold rush in the world. Dawson City was an aboriginal summer fish camp at the junction of the Klondike and Yukon Rivers. Overnight this obscure site was turned into a huge bustling gold rush city known as "The Paris of the North". The aboriginal people moved downstream to Moosehide. In 1898, in one month, Dawson City became the largest Canadian city west of Winnipeg (40,000 people) with telephone service, running water and steam heat. Elaborate hotels, theatres and dance halls were erected. During 1899 the stampede for gold came to an end, and 8,000 people left Dawson City that summer. By 1902, the population was down to less than 1,000. The Canadian Encyclopedia (2nd ed.), Hurtig Publishers, Edmonton, 1988. 100,000 people from around the world set out for the gold fields. 40,000 actually reached Dawson City. 20,000 stayed to search for gold. Only 4,000 found it. 300 found enough gold to be considered rich. Only 50 people managed to keep their wealth. By the time the gold rush really got started in 1897, miners were required to have enough provisions for one year before they could enter Canada. The food alone weighed about one ton. No other event can claim as great an impact on the development of the Yukon and the opening of Canada's north. Parks Canada, Klondike National Historic Sites, has undertaken to save, refurbish and maintain many old buildings from this era in Canadian history. These historic parks are open during summer hours.

Mining of silver, gold and lead became the major industry at the end of the gold rush (which declined in 1952 with the closing of the last dredge). Mining accounts for about 30 percent of the Yukon's economy today. Fur trading was a huge industry up to the 1930's and continues to account for about 3 percent of the economy today. Tourism makes up the remainder of the economy of this exciting historical area of Canada and North America.

In 1898, the Yukon Territory was officially established to ensure Canadian jurisdiction; the Yukon Act provided for a commissioner and an elected legislative assembly. Dawson City became the seat of the Territorial Government. With the completion of the Alaska Highway in 1954, the government seat moved from Dawson City to the more accessible Whitehorse. In 1979, the Canadian government opened the Dempster Highway, Canada's first all-weather road to cross the Arctic Circle.

As a territory, the Yukon does not have full provincial status, although it achieved a style of government similar to that of the provinces in 1979. The Canadian government retains administrative control over water, land and forestry, and over the development of all non-renewable resources (i.e. minerals, oil and gas). However, in 1993, the Canada-Yukon Oil and Gas Accord was signed, which will lead to the transfer of authority and control over onshore oil and gas resources from the federal to the Yukon government. The agreement provides a commitment to negotiate shared management of oil and gas resources in the Beaufort Sea and ensures that the Yukon is a beneficiary of onshore and offshore oil and gas revenues. Other agreements have been signed for transfer of authority and control in forestry, fishery and transportation.

The 1970s saw the emergence of the Yukon Indian land claims negotiations. In 1993, the Council for Yukon Indians, the Government of Canada and the Yukon territorial government signed an Umbrella Final Agreement that sets out the terms for final land claim settlements in the Territory. Final land claim agreements were also reached with the Vuntut Gwich'in First Nation, the Champagne and Aishihik First Nation, the Teslin Tlingit Council and the First Nation of Nacho Nyak Dun. These agreements contribute to certainty of land title, and benefits include cash, land and participation in wildlife and other management boards. In addition to their land claim settlements, the four First Nations also negotiated self-government agreements that give them more control over land use on settlement lands and greater authority in areas such as language, health care, social services and education. Way to go Yukon Territory!