Martha attended a school run by the Sisters of the Holy Cross. She finished her academic education in five years. Her brother, George Jr. attended law school in Fredericton, New Brunswick.
Martha met and married Will Purdy. When they heard of the gold strike in Canada’s Klondike, Martha, Will and George Jr. made plans to join the Gold Rush. But Will was offered what he deemed a better offer and decided to go to Hawaii. Martha chose to accompany her brother to Canada’s north. She never saw her husband again.
Martha and George left the United States with a large party of men. Their wealth enabled them to hire their goods delivered to Bennett. They walked the Chilkoot Pass. A comfortable cabin served as lodging upon their arrival in Bennett. Martha’s description of her journey across Chilkoot Pass is vivid:
“Only 10 feet more! Oh, God, what a relief! Then my foot slips! I lose my balance. If I fall only a few feet it will be into a crevice of rocks. The sharp edge of one cuts through my boot and I feel the flesh of my leg throbbing with pain. I can bear it no longer. I sit down and do what every woman does in times of stress. I weep.”
Though the journey was filled with hardship, Martha and her party had it easier than most. Lindeman and Bennett were filled with gold rushers who were struggling to fall trees and cut lumber for boats. The Munger’s financial position allowed them to pay Keng’s Mill $275 dollars to built a boat for them.
The party broke up before they reached Dawson. Martha left for the city for a year. In 1900, she joined a mining syndicate. She returned to Dawson in 1901. Her father arrived in the city a short time later with equipment to establish a stamp mill for assaying are from quartz mines. He also founded a sawmill.
Martha’s made her overseer of both businesses. She hired George Black, a highly recommended lawyer, to protect her interests. George was immediately infatuated and proposed after knowing Martha for only two weeks. Martha kept George at arm’s length. She finally accepted his proposal and they were married in her large home adjacent to the sawmill on August 1, 1904.
