An attempt to revive the town was made around 1915 when a cyanide plant was built to recover silver from the unprocessed Silver King Mine's deposits, but Calico largely remained a ghost town. But by around 1896, down on their luck miners and store merchants began loading their mules and moving on. As was typical, the town had a wide variety of businesses and shops, hotels, a jail, 22 saloons, a Chinatown, and a redlight district. All the silver from Calico was sent to San Francisco to make coins.įounded in 1881, the population of Calico peaked to 3,500 hardy souls in 1886. The Calico Mining District was the richest in the state and produced about $86 million in silver and $45 million in borax (used in soap-making) between 18. The Bismark, Oriental, Odessa, Waterloo, Garfield, and the famous Silver King Mine that started the silver strike, generated the most wealth. In its heyday, more than 500 mines were dug in and around Calico and about 30 miles of tunnels honeycombed the hills. The town takes its name from the surrounding Calico Mountains, named for their multi-colored rocks and minerals. Gunfighters are known to appear from time to time, and camping is available if you want to stay a while.
Thousands visit this regional park every year to wander the western-themed streets, tour the underground Maggie Mine, ride the narrow-gauge Calico & Odessa Railroad, pan for gold, shop, and attend special events. Calico is officially a ghost town now, but it is anything but deserted.
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Like many mining boomtowns gone bust, Calico, California was full of life in the 1880s, but within about 15 years it met its demise when the price of silver sunk to 63 cents per ounce from $1.31.