Featured Images
Placer miners at Auburn Ravine ca. 1852 (colorized)
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This iconic mining scene depicts placer miners at Auburn Ravine, California circa 1852. In a rarely photographed scene, American and Chinese miners work side by side at a sluice.
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Deadwood 1877 Gold Rush Scene (colorized)
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This iconic scene from Deadwood, South Dakota has been restored and colorized by Western Mining History. Depicted is a gold rush scene at the newly settled town of Deadwood, in what was Dakota Territory in 1877.
This photo has appeared in the following articles:
Best Historical Photos: Colorized Mining Scenes
Deadwood 1877 Gold Rush Scene
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This iconic scene from Deadwood, South Dakota has been restored by Western Mining History. Depicted is a gold rush scene at the newly settled town of Deadwood, in what was Dakota Territory in 1877.
This photo has appeared in the following articles:
Main Street Deadwood, Dakota Territory 1877
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Depicted is Main Street - Deadwood, Dakota Territory in 1877. A banner for Adam Bros. Banner Grocery hangs across the road. The Delmonico Hotel and Restaurant can be seen on the left.
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Wall (Lee?) Street - Deadwood 1877
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The image has been identified by different sources as either Wall Street or Lee Street, each of which is perpendicular to Main Street and are important parts of the commercial district at Deadwood, Dakota Territory in 1877. This was the year of the great gold rush to the Black Hills.
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Detailed View of Main Street Deadwood 1877
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This iconic western mining scene has been optimized by Western Mining History. This detailed view of Deadwood, Dakota Territory shows the many businesses on Main Street in 1877.
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Curtis shaft of the Savage mine ca. 1868 (colorized)
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This iconic western mining scene has been colorized and enhanced by Western Mining History. Depicted are miners at the top of the Curtis shaft of the Savage Mine in Virginia City, Nevada in 1868.
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Detailed View of Main Street Deadwood 1877 (colorized)
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This iconic western mining scene has been colorized by Western Mining History. This detailed view of Deadwood, Dakota Territory shows the many businesses on Main Street in 1877.
This photo has appeared in the following articles:
Cabin of S. J. Roberts, Cripple Creek Colorado 1893
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Depicted is the "Cabin of S.J. Roberts" at Cripple Creek, Colorado in 1893. One miner poses with tools while the other two play musical instruments. Note the illustration of a small bird on the stump, which was apparently drawn on the photo by the photographer.
The gold rush at Cripple Creek had just started a year before this photo was taken, and was one of the West's most significant historical events.
This photo has appeared in the following articles:
Classic Western Prospector Scene (colorized)
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This iconic mining scene has been colorized and enhanced by Western Mining History. Various sources claim that this photo was taken in California, Colorado, and even in Arizona Territory, with years ranging from 1850 to 1900. Although the exact origin of the photo is unknown, it remains one of the most famous images of a western prospector.
This photo has appeared in the following article:
High bridge on the Ouray Stage Line
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This iconic ca. 1890s photo shows an elaborate log-cribbed bridge built over a deep gulch on the Ouray Stage Line between the mining towns of Ouray and Silverton in southwest Colorado. This was originally known as the "Otto Mears Toll Road" after the man who built the road - which for years was thought to be impossible.
This photo has appeared in the following articles:
High bridge on the Ouray Stage Line (colorized)
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This colorized version of the iconic ca. 1890s photo shows an elaborate log-cribbed bridge built over a deep gulch on the Ouray Stage Line between the mining towns of Ouray and Silverton in southwest Colorado. This was originally known as the "Otto Mears Toll Road" after the man who built the road - which for years was thought to be impossible.
This photo has appeared in the following articles:
Buena Vista Mine at Altman ca. 1893
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Depicted in this photo are men, likely the mine owners, at the Buena Vista mine at Altman, Colorado circa 1893. Altman was one of the many towns founded in the early 1890s after rich gold discoveries in the Cripple Creek district.
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Silver City, Idaho stage office 1868 (colorized)
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This iconic western mining scene has been colorized and enhanced by Western Mining History. 1868 was the year of the “Owyhee War”, when armed gangs fought bloody battles, some underground, for control of one of the district’s richest mines.
This photo has appeared in the following articles:
Illustration of the underground works of the Gould and Curry Mine 1862
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Depicted is an illustration of the interior works of the Gould & Curry mine at Virginia City, Nevada 1862. The illustration demonstrates how square set timbering was used to stabilize the massive stopes of the Comstock mines.
This photo has appeared in the following article:
Placer miners at Auburn Ravine ca. 1852 (colorized)


This iconic mining scene depicts placer miners at Auburn Ravine, California circa 1852. In a rarely photographed scene, American and Chinese miners work side by side at a sluice.
This photo has appeared in the following article:
Deadwood 1877 Gold Rush Scene (colorized)


This iconic scene from Deadwood, South Dakota has been restored and colorized by Western Mining History. Depicted is a gold rush scene at the newly settled town of Deadwood, in what was Dakota Territory in 1877.
This photo has appeared in the following articles:
Best Historical Photos: Colorized Mining Scenes
Deadwood 1877 Gold Rush Scene


This iconic scene from Deadwood, South Dakota has been restored by Western Mining History. Depicted is a gold rush scene at the newly settled town of Deadwood, in what was Dakota Territory in 1877.
This photo has appeared in the following articles:
Main Street Deadwood, Dakota Territory 1877


Depicted is Main Street - Deadwood, Dakota Territory in 1877. A banner for Adam Bros. Banner Grocery hangs across the road. The Delmonico Hotel and Restaurant can be seen on the left.
This photo has appeared in the following articles:
Wall (Lee?) Street - Deadwood 1877


The image has been identified by different sources as either Wall Street or Lee Street, each of which is perpendicular to Main Street and are important parts of the commercial district at Deadwood, Dakota Territory in 1877. This was the year of the great gold rush to the Black Hills.
This photo has appeared in the following articles:
Detailed View of Main Street Deadwood 1877


This iconic western mining scene has been optimized by Western Mining History. This detailed view of Deadwood, Dakota Territory shows the many businesses on Main Street in 1877.
This photo has appeared in the following articles:
Curtis shaft of the Savage mine ca. 1868 (colorized)


This iconic western mining scene has been colorized and enhanced by Western Mining History. Depicted are miners at the top of the Curtis shaft of the Savage Mine in Virginia City, Nevada in 1868.
This photo has appeared in the following article:
Detailed View of Main Street Deadwood 1877 (colorized)


This iconic western mining scene has been colorized by Western Mining History. This detailed view of Deadwood, Dakota Territory shows the many businesses on Main Street in 1877.
This photo has appeared in the following articles:
Cabin of S. J. Roberts, Cripple Creek Colorado 1893


Depicted is the "Cabin of S.J. Roberts" at Cripple Creek, Colorado in 1893. One miner poses with tools while the other two play musical instruments. Note the illustration of a small bird on the stump, which was apparently drawn on the photo by the photographer.
The gold rush at Cripple Creek had just started a year before this photo was taken, and was one of the West's most significant historical events.
This photo has appeared in the following articles:
Classic Western Prospector Scene (colorized)


This iconic mining scene has been colorized and enhanced by Western Mining History. Various sources claim that this photo was taken in California, Colorado, and even in Arizona Territory, with years ranging from 1850 to 1900. Although the exact origin of the photo is unknown, it remains one of the most famous images of a western prospector.
This photo has appeared in the following article:
High bridge on the Ouray Stage Line


This iconic ca. 1890s photo shows an elaborate log-cribbed bridge built over a deep gulch on the Ouray Stage Line between the mining towns of Ouray and Silverton in southwest Colorado. This was originally known as the "Otto Mears Toll Road" after the man who built the road - which for years was thought to be impossible.
This photo has appeared in the following articles:
High bridge on the Ouray Stage Line (colorized)


This colorized version of the iconic ca. 1890s photo shows an elaborate log-cribbed bridge built over a deep gulch on the Ouray Stage Line between the mining towns of Ouray and Silverton in southwest Colorado. This was originally known as the "Otto Mears Toll Road" after the man who built the road - which for years was thought to be impossible.
This photo has appeared in the following articles:
Buena Vista Mine at Altman ca. 1893


Depicted in this photo are men, likely the mine owners, at the Buena Vista mine at Altman, Colorado circa 1893. Altman was one of the many towns founded in the early 1890s after rich gold discoveries in the Cripple Creek district.
This photo has appeared in the following article:
Silver City, Idaho stage office 1868 (colorized)


This iconic western mining scene has been colorized and enhanced by Western Mining History. 1868 was the year of the “Owyhee War”, when armed gangs fought bloody battles, some underground, for control of one of the district’s richest mines.
This photo has appeared in the following articles:
Illustration of the underground works of the Gould and Curry Mine 1862


Depicted is an illustration of the interior works of the Gould & Curry mine at Virginia City, Nevada 1862. The illustration demonstrates how square set timbering was used to stabilize the massive stopes of the Comstock mines.
This photo has appeared in the following article: