Located adjacent to the Idaho ghost town of Bonanza, on a tributary of the Salmon River, is the idle Yankee Fork Gold Dredge. The dredge is described as the largest in Idaho, and one of the best-preserved dredges in the West. Continue Reading
Virginia City, Nevada is one of the most historically significant and best-preserved mining towns in the West. The town is #2 on our list “The Top Ten Historic Mining Towns You Should Visit Today“, and while Butte may have edged it out for historical significance, Virginia City just might be the most fun and interesting Continue Reading
The discovery of gold or silver in the West was usually followed by a rush of people attempting to arrive at the new district first to get established in mining or business. New mining camps were hastily constructed out of materials that could be easily transported over great distances and on difficult terrain. The most Continue Reading
Journigan’s Mill was built in the 1930s at a site in Emigrant Canyon that was near several springs. Water is Death Valley’s most precious resource, and mills were usually located where there was access to springs nearby. During the course of the mills roughly twenty years of operation, water would be piped to the site Continue Reading
The Wildrose Charcoal Kilns, built in 1877, are one of the best preserved and largest examples of historic charcoal kilns in the West. The kilns are located in the western part of Death Valley National Park, in Wildrose Canyon. This part of the park is an excellent destination for camping and hiking so if you Continue Reading
The Mackay Mansion in Virginia City, Nevada is one the Comstock Lode’s oldest and best preserved buildings. Built 1860, the mansion was originally the offices of the Gould and Curry Mining Company, as well as housing for the mine superintendent. Continue Reading
Large underground mines often have important infrastructure and facilities built in underground chambers, hundreds or thousands of feet below the surface. Storage facilities, repair shops, and even modern hoist houses can be found deep within the mines. These facilities weren’t often captured in photographs, so it is a rare treat to be able to see Continue Reading
In January of 1895, a warehouse fire ignited a large store of dynamite resulting in a great explosion that devastated several blocks of Butte, Montana, and killed an estimated 58 people. The following account is partial text from the 1895 publication “The Great Dynamite Explosions at Butte, Montana: January 15, 1895” The Fire and Explosions Continue Reading
For anyone familiar with California in modern times, it is difficult to imagine what the state must have been like during the California Gold Rush. The famous gold discovery at Sutter’s Mill happened in 1848, but it wasn’t until 1849 that news of the discovery reached the East Coast and the rest of the world. Continue Reading
The following article appeared in the Colorado Springs Gazette, September 14, 1878 Gipsying in Colorado 1878 It is often asked, which do you admire most, Silverton or Ouray? It is impossible to make comparisons between places so utterly different. Ouray, as I have described, is in the wildest imaginable spot; just room enough, as it Continue Reading
