There was a real Goldfield....it was located on top of a small hill between the Superstition Mountains and the Goldfield Mountains. The little settlement got its start in 1892 when rich, high grade gold ore was found in the area. On 7 October 1893 the little town got its first official post office.
The legend of the Lost Dutchman Mine which had been circulating for years plus this official find led plenty of new miners to the area. Before too long the town had three saloons, a boarding house, a general store, a brewery, blacksmith shop, butcher shop, as well as a school. The town boomed with 1500 residents. The boom didn't last when the gold ore vein petered out and the grade of the ore dropped. Within 5 years, the town was dying and the miners moved on. The post office closed in 1898 and the town was soon a ghost town.
New equipment brought the town back to life in 1921 but, again, it lasted only 5 years.
In 1966, Bob Schoose moved to Mesa and fell in love with ghost towns. He found the old town of Goldfield but there was nothing left but some rubble so he bought 5 acres and recreated the town. Soooo.....the buildings aren't original but it's a great recreation and lots of fun.
The train station with the only narrow gauge railroad in Arizona.
The Superstition Mountains.
The shoppes...
The museum with lots of interesting information.
And history.
The Saloon where we had a great lunch.
The Bordellow which really isn't.
The church....
Another mountain view.
A very precarious water tower (with a metal insert).
Here is the inside of the Saloon. It was a popular place.
All western towns had a jail and a gallows.
Lots of little shops.
We took the mine tour which didn't take long. It wasn't real but we got lots of information that was real.
Our only disappointment was that the train broke down earlier in the day and we didn't get a train ride. We had a great day.
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