Original mining crew at the Silver King MineMining in Calico
In 1881, four prospectors were leaving Grapevine Station (present-day Barstow, California) for a mountain peak to the northeast. After they described the peak as "calico-colored", the peak, the mountain range to which it belonged, and the town that followed were all called Calico.[4]: 51 The four prospectors discovered silver in the mountain and opened the Silver King Mine, which was California's largest silver producer in the mid-1880s.[4]: 51 [5]: 7 John C. King, who had grubstaked the prospectors who discovered the silver vein (the Silver King Mine was thus named after him), was the uncle of Walter Knott founder of Knott's Berry Farm. King was sheriff of San Bernardino County from 1879 to 1882.[6][7]: 154 [8]: 7 [9] A post office at Calico was established in early 1882, and the Calico Print, a weekly newspaper, started publishing. The town soon supported three hotels, five general stores, a meat market, bars, brothels, and three restaurants and boarding houses. The county established a school district and a voting precinct.[10][5]: 11–12 The town also had a deputy sheriff and two constables, two lawyers and a justice of the peace, five commissioners, and two doctors. There was also a Wells Fargo office and a telephone and telegraph service.[4]: 51 At the height of its silver production during 1883 and 1885,[10] Calico had over 500 mines and a population of 1,200 people.[4]: 51 Local badmen were buried in the Boot Hill cemetery.[11][12]
The discovery of the borate mineral colemanite in the Calico mountains a few years after the settlement of the town also helped Calico's fortunes, and in 1890 the estimated population of the town was 3,500, with nationals of China, England, Ireland, Greece, France, and the Netherlands, as well as Americans living there.[4]: 52 In the same year, the Silver Purchase Act was enacted and drove down the price of silver.[4]: 51 By 1896, its value had decreased to $0.57 (~$21.00 in 2023) per troy ounce, and Calico's silver mines were no longer economically viable.[4]: 51 The post office was discontinued in 1898,[13] and the school closed not long after.[10] By the turn of the twentieth century, Calico was all but a ghost town,[4]: 52 and with the end of borax mining in the region in 1907 the town was completely abandoned.[citation needed] Many of the original buildings were moved to Barstow, Daggett and Yermo.[4]: 52
Restoring Calico was one of Walter Knott's efforts to educate the public and honor the pioneers.
An attempt to revive the town was made c. 1915, when a cyanide plant was built to recover silver from the unprocessed Silver King Mine's deposits. Walter Knott and his wife Cordelia, founders of Knott's Berry Farm, were homesteaded at Newberry Springs around this time, and Knott helped build the redwood cyanide tanks for the plant.[4]: 52 [7]: 153–158
The last owner of Calico as a mine was Zenda Mining Company. After building Ghost Town at Knott's Berry Farm in the 1940s, Walter Knott, his son, Russell, and Paul von Klieben, who was Knott's art director, made a road trip to Calico. The three of them came back filled with enthusiasm. Now having experience building a fictional ghost town at Knott's Berry Farm, the group believed that it would be possible to restore a real ghost town. In 1951, Walter Knott purchased the town of Calico from the Zenda Mining Company and put Paul von Klieben in charge of restoring it to its original condition, referencing old photographs.[14]: 102–104 [15][16]
Using the old photos, and Walter's memory and that of some old-timers who still lived in the area, von Klieben was able to not only restore existing structures, but also design and replace missing buildings. Knott spent $700,000 restoring Calico.[14]: 106–108 Knott installed a longtime employee named Freddy "Calico Fred" Noller as resident caretaker and official greeter.[17] In 1966 Walter Knott decided to donate the town to San Bernardino County, and Calico became a County Regional Park.[4]: 52–53
Current status
Entrance to the townCalico & Odessa RailroadCalico in the eveningBlue Star memorial at Calico
Calico has been restored to the look of the silver rush era when it flourished, although many original buildings were removed and replaced instead with gingerbread architecture and false façades that tourists would expect to see in a Western-themed town.[4]: 53 Most of the restored and newly built buildings are made of wood with a simple, rustic architecture and a severely weathered appearance. Some structures still stand dating back to the town's operational years: Lil's Saloon; the town office; the former home of Lucy Lane, which is now the main museum but was originally the town's post office and courthouse; Smitty's Gallery; the general store; and Joe's Saloon. There is also a replica of the schoolhouse on the site of the original building.[4]: 53 The one-time homes of the town's Chinese citizens exist as ruins only; only a portion of one rock wall remains of the former "family" residential area on a nearby bluff.[18]
In November 1962, Calico Ghost Town was registered as a California Historical Landmark (Landmark #782),[2] In 2002, Calico vied with Bodie in Mono County to be recognized as the Official State Ghost Town. In 2005, a compromise was finally reached when the State Senate and State Assembly agreed to list Bodie as the Official State Gold Rush Ghost Town and Calico as the Official State Silver Rush Ghost Town.[19]
Today, the park operates mine tours, gunfight stunt shows, gold panning, several restaurants, the historic[clarification needed]2 ft 6 in (762 mm) narrow gaugeCalico & Odessa Railroad, a Mystery Shack, and a number of trinket stores. It is open every day except Christmas and requires an entrance fee. Additional fees are required for some attractions. Overnight camping is also available. Special events are held throughout the year, including the Civil War Days Historical Reenactment on President's Day weekend, Spring Festival in May, Calico Days in early October, and a Ghost Town haunt in late October.[3]
The Calico Cemetery, which holds between 96 and 130 graves, has had burials in the 20th and 21st centuries.[8]: 68 [20][21]
The Ballad of Calico is the eighth studio album by Kenny Rogers and the First Edition and was issued in February 1972. The entire double album is a country-rock concept album about Calico, California, and was written by Michael Murphey and Larry Cansler; the songs tell the stories of individuals who lived in the town. The album reached No. 118 on Billboard, and produced one single, "School Teacher", which reached No. 91.
^Recorded narration on the Calico and Odessa Railroad ride
^Harvey, Steve (August 3, 2005). "Only in LA; Wild West Ghost Town's Image in California Gains Bit of Polish". Los Angeles Times. p. B.4. ISSN0458-3035.
.jpg)
.jpg)
