Miners Cabins: Bottles, Barrels, and Dugouts
While the miners and prospectors that opened the vast American West are known for the log cabins they often used for shelter, some of the more eccentric dwellings they built are lesser known but equally interesting. Desert regions often lacked easy access to the trees needed to build cabins so alternative materials had to be Continue Reading
An Engineering Marvel – Colorado’s Hanging Flume
The hanging flume is is a five mile section of wooden flume that was built on the sheer cliffs of the San Miguel and Dolores Rivers in the canyon country of western Colorado. Built over a three-year period from 1888 to 1891, the flume was 150 feet or more above the canyon floor and was Continue Reading
The Impossible Road: Incredible Photos of the Otto Mears Toll Road
Established in 1876, Ouray, Colorado was positioned at the north end of the rugged San Juan mountains, in a box canyon that served as the gateway to many rich mining districts. The town would have been the ideal commerce and transportation center for a large part of the region of not for one problematic detail. Continue Reading
Where To Find Gold: The Top Ten US Counties
The western states have produced massive amounts of placer gold since the 1848 discovery of gold at Coloma, California. Placer districts throughout the West were heavily mined almost continuously for over a century by a variety of methods. Despite this previous activity, there is still plenty of gold to be discovered. Thousands of gold placer Continue Reading
Home Sweet Home – Miner’s Cabins of the Frontier West
The rugged individuals that opened the frontier West were prospecting, mining, and attempting to survive in what was a vast wilderness at the time. Many of the basics of survival had to be sourced directly from the miner’s immediate surroundings, and shelter was one of the first necessities of life that had to be addressed. Continue Reading
Introducing the WMH Gold Explorer
The Western Mining History Gold Explorer is an interactive map designed to assist in the location of both historic and modern gold districts in the Western United States. Last updated: November 13, 2019 – added mining town and gold district data layers, added buttons to activate and deactivate data layers. The Gold Explorer is available Continue Reading
