Clear Creek Co., CO
By
From
Do you want to buy an old out-of-print book on
Do you want to shop for antique clothing and period
furniture? Do you want to stay in
romantic B & B's? Do you like
elegant candle-lit dinners? Just
ask. You'll find.
However,
Back in 1859 George Griffith discovered a gold vein in a beautiful
mountain ringed valley. He had gone to
the placer mines in Gregory Gulch (later called Central City), and all the good
spots were taken, so he headed up the mountain.
He staked a claim, and headed back to Gregory Gulch to fetch his brother
David and three other men. They
returned, staked out claims and commenced mining.
The following spring they returned, followed by a few others, and
George's Town was born. Word got out,
and a rag-tag canvas mining camp popped up in the canyon. The deposits were not rich, and within two
years the camp had fizzled.
1864 was the big year.
Silver was discovered five miles to the northwest, and the old camp at
In 1868,
It even had the county offices, courthouse, and a railroad.
Those who didn't have jobs in town labored in the mines and mills
that provided the economic bonanza that fueled the city's life.
In 1878 when the big silver strike was made in Leadville,
It remained a shell until the 1950s and early 1960s when it showed
some growth. During the late 1960s and
early 1970s many disenchanted hippies and other urban folk looking for their
roots, and a life uncluttered with urban trappings headed out into the
mountains of Colorado (among other areas), and discovered this gem. In 1968, when the community officially
celebrated its Centennial, the population was about 500.
Today, respectable, and colorful
Outside of town are many hidden mountain valleys, some with old
ghost towns sites hidden away. Places
like Waldorf, Santiago Mine, Bakerville, Sidneyville, and Greenlake. Most are small mining camps, some have no remains, and all are much harder to find than the big ones.
No matter how your tastes in ghost towns run,
It's even FREE!
This was our GHOST TOWN OF THE MONTH for October 2001.
LOCATION:
·
S½
Sec 8, N½ Sec 17, T4S, R74W, Sixth Principal Meridian
·
Latitude: 39.7060984 / 39°
42' 22" N
·
Longitude: -105.6975041 /
105° 41' 51" W
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THIS
PAGE
FIRST
POSTED: October
01, 2001
LAST
UPDATED: September 22, 2009
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