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La
Paz
County Ghost Towns
Beckman's Well-On March 2,
1909 Ned White, a pospector, last Saturday committed suicide
in his tent at Beckman's Well in Cunningham Pass, by shooting
himself in the lft temple with a 38 Colt revolver. The roof
of his mouth was blown out by th explosion. His body was found
by a young man by the mname of Mayer, who had been prospecting
with him.
the shot was heard b Mayer and John Agard but
no attention was paid to it as htere were several prospectors
in the vicinity and a grat del of hunting and target-shooting
had been going on.
Coroner Briggs, accompanied by a jury, composed
of William Wilkinson, thomas Reed, W.B. Capman, A. Furrer,
Raphael Navarez, Frank Graham and Charles Fleming, viewed
th boy on sunday morning and brought in a verdict of suicide
casud by despondency.
White was abut 45 years old and a native of
Texas. He had been in this locality for a year having formrly
lived in Kingman. Very little is known about him but it is
believed that he had a brother by the name of Pete White.
White was a hard drinker and had been heard to say that he
intended to comit suicide sometime. the funeral will take
place at 4 o'clock tomorrow afternoon. the interment will
be in the Wendendale Cemetery. The Kingman papers are requested
to copy.
Bouse- An interesting site,
not far from Swansea. Current residents there with many old
buildings and antiques. Bouse was originally a rail station
for nearby Swansea. Its original name was Brayton, named for
John C. Brayton, who operated the Brayton Commercial Company.
In 1907, they changed the name to Bouse in honor of the Bouse
family. There is a unique museum run by R.L. Lyman
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Brayton- See Bouse
Above
Bouse
Courtesy Sharlott Hall Museum
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Brenda- East of Quartzite,
8 miles and north with only a large winch as a footprint.
Nothing more found on the site.
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Camp Bouse -
Top Secret WWII Tank training base. Midway between Swansea
and Alamo Lake in the Butler valley, North of Blouse. Established
in 1942 by Gen George Patton as one of the eleven bases of
his " Desert Training Center". Nine thousand GI's
lived where they conducted training with the secret "Canal
Defense Light". They dismantled and abandoned it in 1945.
A few foundations, Roads, rock foot- paths, rock decorations
and the Division insignia laid out in rock are all that remain
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Camp Colorado- No footprints-
Camp Colorado is one of the Colorado River towns with the
most interesting history. Indians were constantly attacking
wagon trains heading east, and the settlers decided to take
action. One night, the settlers surrounded a band of Indians,
outside the town of La Paz. When it was over, there were ten
dead Indians. The only problem was this was
a band of peaceful Indians who were on their way to town to
buy supplies. Tension rose in the area and the government
sent in troops and established Camp Colorado for protection
of the settlers. When peace reigned, they
abandoned Camp Colorado. Today it is farming land
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Cibola- Many farms and ranches
in the area with three roads to get to Cibola, two dirt roads
in AZ and 1 paved road in CA. Numerous buildings are scattered
throughout the area.
Cibola is a legendary piece of land thought
to be the reason European explorers first came to the Southwest.
They called the fertile lands just off the Colorado
River Cibola after the legendary land. A town was formed in
Cibola valley in 1898 and construction began on a 16 mile
canal to bring water from the river to the town. A post office
operated here for 20 years, 1903 to 1933, serving the farms
but the irrigation project failed. Today there are many farms
and ranches in the area. All the remnants are located on private
property and permission is required to visit
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Clip- Just north of Silent
and essentially impassable to all vehicles. Nothing remains
of this little town whose post office, established in 1884
left in1888. The Silver Clip mine was located in the early
1880's and a 10- stamp mill was erected on the nearby Colorado
River.. The town had about 200 residents by 1882 and had a
mill, general merchandise store, and more. When the mine played
out the town survived a little while longer on tailings but
finally died.
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Ehrenberg- Just two miles north
of present day Ehrenberg but the "haunted" cemetery
is all that they left behind. Ehrenberg’s
post office, established in 1869. The post office, named after
Herman Ehrenberg discontinued in 1913.
This town was the principal town on the Colorado
river during the "old west" days. By the mid 1870's,
Ehrenberg had a population of about 500 people. By the early
1900's, the railroads had taken place of the steamboats and
most of the population of Ehrenberg had moved elsewhere. Today,
the present town of Ehrenberg still remains
Ehrenberg circa 1890
Courtesy Arizona Historical Society
The Sunlit Cave treasure which consists of
tons of Spanish old bullion is located on the Arizona side
of the Colorado River about fifteen to twenty miles South
of Ehrenberg
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Harqua Hala- Mining operations
continue here today so watch for no trespassing signs among
the few buildings and mining equipment on private property.
Harqua Hala's post office was established March 5, 1891 and
discontinued December 31, 1932. The Bonanza and Gold Eagle
veins that were responsible for Harqua Hala's existence were
discovered in November 1888. Harqua Hala sprang into existence
immediately and even sported its own newspaper, the "Harqua
Hala Miner". A 20 stamp mill was erected and gold was
cast into 400 lb ingots. This proved to be a problem as they
sometimes broke through the transport wagon's floor unbeknownst
to the drivers. There was rumored to be a lot of high grading
in Harqua Hala. Children would sing loudly while their fathers
scrapped the arrastra beds for residual gold. Today there
are only a few ruins left.
Colonel Grey was one of the early owners of
the Harqua Hala Mine which he, Frank Kirkland and A.G. Hubbard
bought for about $40,000. He and Kirlkand sold their interest
to Hubbard and a subsequent partner, George Bowers, to an
English syndicate for$1,000,000.
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Harrisburg-The cemetery marker
is all that is left. Harrisburg's post office was established
February 9, 1887 and discontinued September 29, 1906. Like
most towns, harrisburg lived and died with the mines. Discovered
in 1886 by Captain Charles Harrisburg and founded by Charles
and Governor Trittle of Arizona, Harrisburg was thought to
be on the road to being one of the biggest towns in Arizona.
That dream was never realized, though, as the mines played
out and the town died. The cemetery was rediscovered in 1936
after being forgotten and the Arizona State Highway Department
erected a monument
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La Paz circa 1891
Courtesy Arizona Historical Society
La Paz-
An important placer strike occurred in 1862
when the ex-mountain man, Paulino Weaver, led a group of prospectors
to the Colorado River above Yuma and discovered the La Paz
placer deposits. A major camp quickly developed. By year's
end La Paz had 5,000 residents, was important enough to be
the first capital of Yuma County, and was believed by many
to be the logical choice for the territorial capital. As had
happened with Gila City, however, the river shifted leaving
the placer deposits high and dry about 12 miles from water.
When the deposits played out, La Paz was abandoned, and today,
little remains of what was once Arizona's largest city.
Near the Colorado River. 5.8 miles north of
I-10 along S.R. 1. Located on C.R.I.T tribal lands with the
foundations of one stone structure (repaired) and one well.
Small hillocks of adobe material. Fenced, entry not encouraged.
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Norton Landing- Just
Northwest of Martinez Lake with a few foundations, mining
trash and slag . Established as the port for nearby mines
and named for G.W. Norton, Norton Landing was the location
of the first bridge across the Colorado River. Its post office
operated from 1883 to 1894
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Olive City-: Worthwhile to
read the story of Olive Oatman for whom the town is supposedly
named. No footprints to find. Nineteen residents, all males,
consisting of a carpenter, surveyor, mine superintendent,
farmer, laborer, and more. Also known as Bradshaw's Ferry,
Olive City was located near a Ferry landing on the Colorado
River. Olive Cities main existence was from transporting people
across the Colorado River.
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Orville- 5.5 miles southeast
of Salome. 1879 marked the layout of Orville and the erection
of a 5 stamp mill at the Socorro mine. The town only had about
30 residents, one saloon, and one store. The town, which was
renamed Centennial, didn't last long after a winter flood
washed away the town
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Pacific City- Easy to get too
but nothing to see. Pacific City was a short-lived stage stop
on the Yuma- Ehrenburg run which opened shortly after a post
office opened in Silent. The post office department decided
two post offices so near each other was superfluous so the
residents picked up and moved to nearby Silent. The post office
was open only from November to December 1880.
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Planet -To get to Planet take
Osborne Well Road, just before mile 143, before you reach
Parker from Quartzsite, or take Swansea Rd from Bouse (on
SR72) and drive to Four Corners. Here continue strait on Swansea
Cutoof Rd and take Planet Ranch Rd on the right. Drive until
you reach gate. On the right side are remains of Planet and
Planet mine. Planet's post office came in 1902 and stayed
only nineteen years closing in 1921. The
Planet copper mine, the mainstay of Planet and the second
copper mine in Arizona worked by Americans, was discovered
in 1863. Slowly a town grew around the mine and finally got
a post office in 1902. When the mines played out in 1921,
Planet succumbed to financial ruin as miners went elsewhere
for work.
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Plomosa- Sits seven and one
half miles Souteast of Quartzsite. One Old
Stone Building that has been rein habited with one small steel
head frame. Plomosa began as a lead mining operation in the
latte 19th century. Its post office opened in 1880 and closed?
The site today extends over many acres with new mining claims
everywhere. Visitors are not encouraged
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Poston
Courtesy U of A Library WRC Exhibi
Poston (Poston 1, 2 and 3)
Poston was the site of three War Relocation Authority camps;
of the three camps, the only one with significant remnants
today is Poston I (the main one), located about 0.1 mile west
of the main intersection of Poston (on AZ 1 on the C.R.I.T.
Reservation). Only a concrete platform remains of Camp III
(visible from AZ1), and only the main cistern of Camp II (also
visible from AZ1). In Poston I, there are several barracks
buildings, the gymnasium, and other buildings still standing
(some inhabited by poor members of the C.R.I.T.).
The government chose Poston as the site of
three "War Relocation Authority Camps" for Japanese
Americans interned under President Roosevelt's Executive Order
9006. The Colorado River Relocation Center, which operated
from April 1942 to March 1946, housed about 18,000 individuals,
and was the third largest city in Arizona at the time.
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Silent- Silent's post office
was established November 8, 1880 and was discontinued March
13, 1884. Silent's citizens lived in dugouts rather than wood
houses. The lack of water and scarcity of lumber made this
a necessity. There were three general merchandise stores,
a hotel, a saloon, and a dance hall. Silent was the major
town for a number of mines located inland along the stretch
of the Colorado River. Its post office lasted from 1880 to
1884. The Red Cloud mine, the successor to Silent, is today
the primary supplier of a mineral known as Wulfenite. Silent
has a watchman on duty.
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Swansea -Many buildings left,
a railroad station, mining equipment. The large smelter walls
pictured below have since blown down.Riddle has been coming
to Swansea - pronounced SWAN-zee and named for a city in Mitchell's
native Wales - for a decade. The architectural bones of a
mining town that once boasted a population of almost 1,000
people and 30 buildings, then expired in the 1930s.
Metal roofs cover the old miners' quarters.
The buildings at Swansea were made of adobe, which over time
erodes in the rain and the wind that sweep across this valley.
Despite the site's formidable access road, people come to
Swansea from around the world to see the miners' barracks,
slag heaps and smelter ruins. An iron fence surrounds the
main shaft, which is 1,200 feet deep.
In its heyday, Swansea was self-sufficient. It had a general
store, a hospital and a post office until the 1920s, an auto
dealer, a tennis court, a dairy (hay came from Chandler),
a barber, and electricity and indoor plumbing. Riddle has
found evidence of the cesspool that collected waste. Nothing
remains of the buildings except the miners' barracks.
In the 1930s, when Swansea fell one short of the number of
children (10) needed to form a school, a 5-year-old was admitted
to the first grade to reach the goal. The town built a wooden
schoolhouse and hired a teacher.
Swansea even had a newspaper. The Swansea Times was published
in Wickenburg by Angela Hutchinson Hammer, who had come to
Arizona from Nevada in 1879 and founded a string of papers
that served Arizona mining towns.
The easiest way into the campsite was by rail. The Arizona
& wansea Railroad ran from Bouse northeast across the
desert into town. Nothing remains of the tracks. When the
mine finally closed in the mid- to late 1930s,all the iron
was broken up and sold.
It's a favorite destination for winter visitors camping
at Quartzsite, about 25 miles southwest.
Swansea circa 1910
Courtesy Sharlot Hall Museum, Prescott
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Winchester- Located three
miles North of Vicksburg with a few remaining buildings. Dick
Wick Hall discovered a mine in 1909 by Dick Wick Hall. A town
of 2,000 sprang up shortly thereafter. The mine closed down.
Only a month later extraction was $30,000 in gold.
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