Eureka was once a bustling Utah Mining Town.
(dedicated to my European friends)
Old Mining Headstock just outside of Eureka
From our house there are two ways to get to Eureka.
We can head for Tooele (Too-i-la) by the Great Salt Lake
or we can head west and take the back roads.
Where you will not see another car for hours and hours.
Where you will see sage brush and tumble weeds
caught along the fence line.
And after three hours you will finally reach Eureka,
a Modern Day Ghost Town where a sign painted on a brick wall proclaims "A NEW PAIR FREE if they RIP"
Where you will find the preserved cabin once belonging to
Porter Rockwell who became the bodyguard of Joseph Smith, founder of the Mormon Church.
Joseph Smith advised Porter Rockwell
'cut not thy hair and no bullet or blade will harm you'.
Eureka was one of the quietest mining towns in the West.
In 1910 it was the 9th largest city in Utah, population 3,500.
Today, less than 200 people live in Eureka.
Of course, it has a saloon, I mean bar,
and possibly, even dancing girls.
And a company store. (Would love to see the old sign underneath)
Unnoticed, old and new, live side by side, harmoniously.
A glass facade but not a roof to protect the interior.
Why the glass wall?
Is someone living behind those curtains?
Didn't see a soul.
Who walked up these stairs?
We call these abandoned homes "Fixer Uppers."
Are you up for the challenge?
Going home, not even a contrail to keep us company.
Take care, be safe.
Gina
Partial Repost
Dear Gina,
ReplyDeleteWell, now we have experienced our Eureka moment!!
Your wonderful photographs capture perfectly an atmosphere of a once bustling town which is now filled with memories and little else. The whole feel of abandonment and decay is in these images of yours and we can just imagine ourselves walking along the empty streets without a soul in sight.
A most fascinating glimpse into American history which we had not known previously.
Dear Jane and dear Lance,
DeleteWe had the feeling, while walking through town, that we were being watched as we made our way up and down main street. Lace curtains seem to move. But maybe, it was just the slight breeze.
Dear Gina - it must be strange to be one of only 200 people left living in Eureka - did the town fall from favour due to the collapse of the mining industry? From my perspective here, it looks and feels as if it must be situated in a very lonely and isolated spot.
ReplyDeleteDear Rosemary,
DeleteThe Eureka mines were some of the most successful mines in that it produced copious amounts of precious metals. The mines were finally abandoned in 1957. Water was flooding the shafts which made it more expensive to retrieve the oar. America's West has many open, isolated and barren landscapes. Friends, visiting from Germany, were so uncomfortable that the wife actually began to hyperventilate. What bothered her most was that no other cars were coming or going in either direction...for hours.
We've loved exploring places such a this when we used to do more US road trips. Ghost towns are exciting though eery!
ReplyDeleteWe loved our Death Valley Junction visit years ago - not the heat of course - and visiting ballerina/artist Marta Becket's Armagosa Opera House and hotel there! Just read that the hotel will re-open this month. "The Opera House continues Marta's legacy of celebrating art in the desert with creative acts in an inspiring venue."
If I can't go international yet I want to do a road trip - somewhere, anywhere SOON!
Hugs - Mary
Dear Mary,
ReplyDeleteThere is much to see out West. You can even come and spend a few days panning for gold...enough gold to pay for your next Ocean voyage.
Hello - found your blog by one of those random Sunday afternoon rabbit holes via HATTAT and then ... What fabulous photos you take. It is the melancholy of these places that I like. Not that I have been to Eureka; but I have to many an abandoned farm house in Wales where I live - there's a beauty in the loss, a grandeur in their crumbling walls and flaking paint. I shall return.
ReplyDeleteHello Biker and Philosopher,
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you found me. You live in a beautiful country...the reason I know that is because we walked with a horse and gypsy wagon through Wales. It was Spring and Daffodils were blooming everywhere. Newly born lambs were cavorting about.
Thank you for your visit and thank you also for your lovely compliment. Yes, please return.