Treasures of
Gold King Mine
By Roger Naylor
Jerome may be the only ghost town in America that has its own ghost suburb.
Sitting a mile north of Jerome, the Gold King Mine and Ghost Town is one of the most fascinating attractions in the region. Visitors will find a rustic assortment of ramshackle buildings, the gash of an old mine shaft and a sprawling array of rusted machinery that forever teeters between ruin and redemption.
At first glance, the casual ease of the place might be mistaken for neglect but nothing could be further from the truth. This living museum is lovingly tended by a man who looks like he was sent from Central Casting to play the part: Don Robertson.
With bushy beard and slouched hat, Robertson is the very picture of a grizzled prospector. But there’s no play-acting going on here. Some people just seem to find their place in the world, where their skills and passion mesh perfectly with their surroundings. Robertson is one of the fortunate few, even if he was born a century late.
“This was what I was meant to do,” says Robertson. “I was put on this earth to save this beautiful old machinery. This is the stuff that America was built with there’s no reason for it to be tossed aside or forgotten.”
The location of the Gold King Mine was originally the community of Haynes, a suburb of Jerome in 1890. Astride one of the richest copper deposits in history, the Haynes Copper Company sank a shaft 1200 feet into the mountain and…whiffed! But don’t feel too sorry for them. Although they missed the copper boom, they did discover gold.
Unfortunately, like all mines in the area, the ore eventually played out and the residents moved on. While Jerome’s population dwindled to a few dozen, Haynes emptied out completely. Today, the population has rebounded, all the way to seven.
Several of the two dozen or so structures on the property were built by Robertson. Others he moved there, including a one-room schoolhouse transported from Flagstaff. The clapboard house on the hill is an original building from 1890 Haynes. It was primarily a boarding house but did serve a short stint as a bordello.
Allow plenty of time to wander the grounds because treasures are stashed everywhere. If you’re traveling with a photographer, expect them to vanish until their camera runs out of memory. Gearheads will never want to leave. Trucks, cars and every other manner of conveyances line the pathways, including a 1902 Studebaker electric carriage, the only one of its kind. Some notable specimens are marked with signs, others hunker in obscurity but all have fascinating stories attached. Like the Studebaker Drivable Buzzsaw from the early 20s. It looks as terrifying as it sounds, a toothy beast on wheels that was used to clear orange groves outside of Los Angeles to make way for new homes.
And yes, as hard as it is to believe in this era of disposable technology, most of the ancient and rusty equipment still runs, including the carriage and buzzsaw.
“I only collect stuff that’s rare, that you can’t find anywhere else,” says Robertson. “People tell me all the time I could sell everything and get rich. But I’m already rich. This is what I want my fortune to be. What good is having money in the stock market or real estate? There’s no fun in that. I get to play with my fortune every day. I’m living my dream.”
Visitors to Gold King Mine can witness the daily operation of a 1914 sawmill that still fills lumber orders, both commercial grade and for artisans handcrafting furniture. A world renowned smithy and knife maker can usually be found giving demonstrations on Fridays and Saturdays in the blacksmith shop. There are buildings brimming with exhibits, the world’s largest gas engines and a menagerie of friendly animals to pet and feed. Pedro the mule is likely to repay anyone who feeds him with a smooch.
Gold King Mine and Ghost Town opens at 9 a.m. (10 a.m. in winter) and closes at 5 p.m. every day except Christmas. Admission charged. It is located on the Perkinsville Rd. one mile north of Jerome. Follow the signs starting at the road next to the Jerome Fire Station. 928-634-0053, goldkingmineghosttown.com.
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