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Tumble Your Way through Goldfield Ghost Town
Just northeast of the Bluegreen Resort Cibola Vista Resort and Spa in Peoria, Arizona, placed on a hill between the Superstition Mountains and the Goldfield Mountains, lies the spooky ghost town of Goldfield, Arizona. Founded in 1892, during a gold rush to the area, the once abandoned city is now a living commemoration of all John Wayne movies. Its dusty streets make you want to stay on the lookout for tumbleweeds and Old West buildings keep you on your toes for a shootout. And shootout you will get, if you're walkin' the streets at high noon. (Insert cheesy Western movie sound effect).
The town was originally founded on The Lost Dutchman's Goldmine. Originally just the Dutchman's Goldmine (before they lost it), the vein supported 50 working mines. The surrounding city of Goldfield provided 5,000 miners and their families with 3 saloons, boarding houses, a blacksmith shop, a hotel, post office and a general store. It was a bustling city, full of riches, watering holes and hope.
And then the line dried. The Dutchman's Goldmine began to give out just five years after it was tapped. The quality of gold diminished, and miners began to move on out of there. The post office locked its doors on November 2, 1898 and Goldfield became another abandoned city in the West. (Insert lonesome Western movie sound effect).
While some prospectors held onto the idea of re-finding the Lost Dutchman's Goldmine, or discovering another line, their hopes were repeatedly dashed. The town remained desolate until a man by the name of Robert F. Schoose and his wife decided to rebuild the town as their own. Bob and his wife procured a five-acre site around the location of the Goldfield Mill and rebuilt the town.
Today, the ghost town is a lively recreation of the Old West. The tourist town boasts the Superstition Narrow Gauge Railroad, The Mystery Shack (a Ripley's-esque area full of tricks of the eye and unfathomable feats), Goldfield Mine Tours, a museum, a Jeep tour, stables, a reptile exhibit, Lu Lu's Bordello and Gold Panning at Prospector's Palace. And if you think that's all, you're not even close. There is an antique photography studio, coffee cantina, plant shop, gourmet shop, gift shop, art gallery, jewelry gallery and a replica of an 1880's church. Take your time as your browse through the town. Take some pictures and get a souvenir or two. Because how often are you in a real-life ghost town? And every hour, from High Noon until 4 p.m., an action-packed gun show goes down in the street!
The local watering hole, The Mammoth Steakhouse & Saloon will fill you up after a day of exploration, mining and picture taking. We hear the burgers are good. Decorated to fit the Old West motif of the town, The Mammoth Steakhouse displays authentic décor of vintage Old West artifacts and offers a cold glass of sarsaparilla. The restored stagecoach in the building is actually from the historic town of Tombstone, Arizona.
If you're staying at Bluegreen's resort in Peoria, Arizona, Cibola Vista Resort and Spa, you are about 44 miles away from Goldfield Ghost Town. It's a little more than an hour drive that takes you east through Phoenix and toward the Apache Trail, Arizona's first highway. So head on over there if you think you're in the mood for a little gun fighting and ghost hunting!
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