Cerro Gordo Mine Pump House machinery - 1977
Cerro Gordo Mines Sign
I've never actually visited Cerro Gordo, but did view it from the road at the end of a 1977 trip to the Saline Valley Salt Tram. We saw the pump station remains that was an early source of water from the Cerro Gordo Spring.
Evening light on Cerro Gordo Mine - 1977
Cerro Gordo Mine Pump House - 1977
Cerro Gordo is a privately owned Mining Town located on the western slope of the Inyo Mountains about seven miles east of Keeler and thirty miles south of Independence in Inyo County, California. It was the first major silver strike in Owens Valley.
Long before the area was developed, Mexicans had been crawling the mountain they called Cerro Gordo, meaning "Fat Hill," looking for silver. However, an early group was attacked by Indians and three of the five prospectors were killed. Two were held captive and when they were released, were required to promise never to return. However, after Fort Independence was established and the Indian activity subsided, the Mexicans came back in 1862.
The town was the silver thread to Los Angeles, being partially responsible for Los Angeles growth and economic development.
It features original buildings and artifacts relevant to the town and is open for guided tours, photography groups, mineral and rock groups, schools and historical groups.
Cerro Gordo location map by Nathan Barry
The Cerro Gordo lead-silver-zinc district comprises an area surrounding Cerro Gordo Peak (elevation 9,188 feet) in the southern Inyo Mountains of west-central Inyo County, California, 5½ miles by air and 8 miles by a steep mountain road from Keeler, on the shore of Owens Lake. Originally, the peak was called Buena Vista Peak, before later being renamed Cerro Gordo (Fat Hill) peak.
The Inyo Mountains mark a portion of the western edge of the Basin and Range geoprovince and are surrounded by the Saline Valley to the east, Owens Valley to the west, the White Mountains to the north, and the Darwin Plateau and the Coso Range to the south.
Discovered by Mexican prospectors in the early 1860's. Mines in the district were operated from 1865 until 1949. The Cerro Gordo District was California's preeminent silver and lead producing area during the decade following the Civil War. Total recorded production was on the order of 4.4 million ounces silver and 37,000 tons of lead. Zinc production, which commenced in 1911, totaled approximately 12,000 tons. Gold and copper production, important byproducts from the siliceous quartz vein ores, totaled about 2,000 ounces and 300 tons respectively. In dollar terms, the total value of the Cerro Gordo District is estimated at $17 million of which the Cerro Gordo Mine produced $15 million.
While there were a number of mines and prospects within the Cerro Gordo District, almost 90% of the production came from independent mines and workings localized in an area of less than 1 square mile below Cerro Gordo Peak and which later became collectively known as the Cerro Gordo Mines. These included the Union Mine, Santa Maria Mine, and San Filipe Mine. During its peak years, the Cerro Gordo silver-lead bullion contained about 140 ounces of silver per ton. Average value of the bullion was $300/ton at $0.06/pound for lead and $1.29/ounce silver. Net profit after all costs of refining and transport often exceeded $150/ton.
A detailed analysis of the ore bodies will be found in these reports.
Since the early 1990s, portions of the Cerro Gordo mining camp have been undergoing restoration by private individuals as a historical and recreational destination. Remaining buildings include the American Hotel, the oldest standing hotel in California east of the Sierra Nevada, the main mine building that houses the lift for the main shaft, the large Union Mine dump above the town, various waste rock piles, the remains of an original smelter furnace, and at least 25 various openings. Details about the years after mining ceased in 1949 will be found here.
Cerro Gordo ... The Townsite
Text/identifications from the brochure, "Welcome to Cerro Gordo: A Walking Tour," by the property owners.
1. The Crapo House: William "Billy" Crapo (pronounced Cray-Poe) was a well educated French Canadian. He was well respected as a civil engineer, and had spent many years working in the mines. Crapo was one of the oldest residents of Cerro Gordo. In December of 1892 there was an election that he was not happy with. On December 29, 1892 he stepped out his front door and took aim at the back of Postmaster Harry Boland and a friend, John Thomas, killing Mr. Boland instantly. Crapo disappeared from Cerro Gordo. A warrant was issued for his arrest, but the posse never caught up with him.
Crapo House about 1950 before restoration
Crapo House after restoration
Antique Store inside Crapo House 2018 (Bishop Real Estate Photo)
Crapo House (left) after restoration, American Hotel (right)
Crapo House (left) after restoration, American Hotel (right)
Crapo House Antique Store 2018 (Bishop Real Estate Photo)
2. The Gordon House: Built in 1909 by Louis D. Gordon, who began the "zinc era" of Cerro Gordo. Jody Stewart-Patterson and husband Mike Patterson lived in this house.
At top just right of center is Lola's dance hall with the girl's cribs below and the roof of the Assay Building just visible. The building below is gone. Slightly below is the Belshaw House with a white tent next to it where the Gordon House was later built. Center left is the American Hotel. At the bottom right is the Hunter House.
Gordon House in center, American Hotel lower right, garage before conversion to church lower left
Gordon House
Worker in front of almost finished Gordon House about 1909
Doug Gordon at Gordon House 1987
Gordon House with barn and corral, Crapo House and American Hotel at bottom 2010
3. The Chinese Cook's Shack: Believed to be where the cook for Mortimer Belshaw lived.
Belshaw House, Chinese Cook's Shack, Gordon House 2010
Chinese Cook's Shack 2014
Chinese Cook's Shack about 2017
Chinese Cooks Shack (left), Gordon House (right) 2018
Inside Chinese Cook's Shack about 2017
4. The Belshaw House: Mortimer Belshaw had this house built around 1868. He developed the Belshaw Blast Furnace, which design is still used to this day.
Cerro Gordo early 1900s; at top just right of center is Lola's dance hall with the girl's cribs below and the roof of the Assay Building just visible. The building below is gone. Slightly below is the Belshaw House with a white tent next to it where the Gordon House was later built. Center left is the American Hotel. At the bottom right is the Hunter House.
Belshaw House (front left), Gordon House (rear right)
Belshaw House
Belshaw House Master Bedroom (Bishop Real Estate Photo 2018)
Click for more about the Belshaw House
5. Site of Lois Travis' Dance Hall, the "House of Pleasure"; and 6. Believed to be the Cribs of Lola's Girls. Only one of the cribs still stands.
Lola Travis, the brothel madam in later life (Friends of Cerro Gordo Collection)
Cerro Gordo about 1916; at top just right of center is Lola's dance hall with the girl's cribs below next to the Assay Office. The large building to the left below the tram station and the building below the Assay Office are both gone. Next, to the left, the white building is Belshaw's Store, then the Belshaw House partly behind the Gordon House. Bottom left is the Mule Barn, then the American Hotel with the cooler room and ice house in front and the Crapo House behind (Friends of Cerro Gordo Collection)
Assay Office, Lola Girls Cribs, Dance Hall (now gone) about 1960-70 (Friends of Cerro Gordo collection)
Click to read more about The Women of Cerro Gordo.
The dance hall was on the flat above the brothel cribs and assay office.
The dance hall is gone and only one of the cribs still stands.
Cerro Gordo's infamous Lola Travis was well known for her shrewd business sense, and her Dance Hall and Palace of Pleasure where the lonely miner's needs were taken care of.
She made the headlines often and was noted as a beautiful woman, who wore the finest fashions of the day.
There were no pictures of her, until Robin Flinchum started digging into her history. Robin found living relatives who had this picture of Lola as an elderly woman, married and leading a respectable life in Bakersfield. This is the only known picture of her.
She owned the "Palace of Pleasure" on the top of the hill and her competitor, Maggie Moore, owned the "Waterfall" at the bottom of town. Both women's establishbents were often the subject of the headlines of the day.
Snow blankets Cerro Gordo's Leschen Tram terminal and other buildings in this photograph from the L.D. Gordon Collection taken approximately 1915. House in front is gone. On the right edge is Lola's girls cribs and her dance hall just barely in the picture
7. An Assay Office: Restored by a volunteer, it gives you a peek into the past. Jody and Mike Patterson thought it interesting that it was located next to the cribs.
At center is the assay office. Behind it to the left is the tramway structure at the Union Mine. At far left is a modern outhouse. At right is one of the cribs from Lola's brothel.
This is the view from the assay office, looking west-southwest past the back end of the general store (now museum) at left, toward Owens dry lake bed — a difference in elevation of 5,000 feet
Interior of the assay office, which has been restored by a volunteer and filled with artifacts found around Cerro Gordo
Office - Bishop Real Estate Photo 2018
Click for more about the Assay Office
8. General Store: Owned by Belshaw, now museum.
Cerro Gordo's resident caretaker/historian Robert Desmarais at Mortimer Belshaw's general store, now used as a museum.
Mortimer Belshaw's general store now serves as Cerro Gordo's museum
Click for more about the Store/Museum
9. Another Assay Office?: Crucibles and buttons from heating ore were found here to indicate that this was another assay office.
Belshaw store now museum (left), possible 2nd Assay Office (right) 2014
Possible second Assay Office 2014
10. The Bunk House: Built in 1904 during the zinc era to house the miners. It is said to have a ghost that appears as a glowing mass in the last room on the left. Main kitchen has ghost/lights and there are photos on display of this.
Back of Reddy's Garage before conversion to church (left), Bunk House (right) 2002
Bunkhouse 2018
Bunkhouse bedroom 2017
Bunkhouse kitchen 2018
Bunkhouse and church
Bunkhouse dining room 2018
Bunkhouse cook stove 2018
11. Church and Theatre: Originally built as Ned Reddy's Garage, it became Cerro Gordo's first Church in 2009. The conversion to a Church and Movie Theatre was begun by Mike Patterson as a memorial to his wife Jody. Volunteers completed it after Mike's death as a memorial to the late Mike and Jody Patterson.
Cerro Gordo early 1900's shows Ned Reddy's Garage (left of tram tower) that was converted to church. Mule Barn behind the tram tower. (L.D. Gordon Collection)
Church and Theatre (Bishop Real Estate Photo 2018)
Stained glass window in Church
Stained glass window in Church 2019
Seats in the Church/Theatre 2019
Excerpts from The Many Faces of Ned Reddy By Cecile Page Vargo (PDF) from Friends of Cerro Gordo Facebook page.
Ned Reddy
(Friends of Cerro Gordo Collection)
It was in Cerro Gordo, on Christmas Day, 1870, that Ned Reddy sealed his reputation as gunfighter. According to an article that appeared in the January 14, 1871 Inyo Independent, Ned Reddy stepped in to keep the peace between James Cock and Mart Sullivan at the saloon owned by John Hughes. The two men fought, with the crowd taking sides both encouraging and discouraging the fracas. Ned got into a clinch with Tom Dunn and knocked him to the ground near the billiard table.
As Ned turned his back and went towards the water barrel, Dunn pulled a gun and shouted "Clear the road! Fair play!" A shout, "Look out Reddy!" and Ned quickly turned to shoot Dunn through the right breast. Ned surrendered himself to the Deputy Sheriff Joseph Duignan, later to be acquitted by Justice Moore at the inquest.
Ned was involved in a few other incidents, details of which are clouded by hazy reporting of local papers of the time. In Bill O’Neal's "Encyclopedia of Gunfighters" documented gunfights and confirmed skills of gunfighters are tabled, with Ned Reddy's six incidents over his life time earning him a place in the same ranks with Doc Holiday, Pat Garret and Luke Short, and ahead of Wyatt Earp, Bat Masterson, Jesse James, John Ringo and the Sundance Kid.
His saloon in Cerro Gordo was known simply as Ned Reddy's Saloon.
In Cerro Gordo, the home of the first church in the towns history was formerly known as Ned Reddy’s garage, and stories of he and brother Pat are told over the saloon in the restored American Hotel.
12. The Mule Barn: The mules are long gone and the roof has disappeared of what was once the mule barn.
Mule pack train in front of Mule Barn
Mule pack train in front of Mule Barn
At top just right of center is Lola's dance hall with the girl's cribs below and the roof of the Assay Office just visible. The building below is gone. Slightly below is the Belshaw House with a white tent next to it where the Gordon House was later built in 1909. Center left is the American Hotel with the mule barn to its left. At the bottom right is the Hunter House
Mule Barn foundation stones next to Reddy's Garage converted to Church 2014
Cerro Gordo about 1916; at top just right of center is Lola's dance hall with the girl's cribs below next to the Assay Office. The large building to the left below the tram station and the building below the Assay Office are both gone. Next, to the left, the white building is Belshaw's Store, then the Belshaw House partly behind the Gordon House. Bottom left is the Mule Barn, then the American Hotel with the cooler room and ice house in front and the Crapo House behind (Friends of Cerro Gordo Collection)
Mules and freight wagons can be seen outside of the original mule barn. Remi Nadeau's teams and drivers were the primary freighters of the silver and trade that went back and forth from Cerro Gordo and Los Angeles (Friends of Cerro Gordo Collection)
Mule Barn foundation stones next to Reddy's Garage converted to Church 2014
Mule Barn foundation stones next to Reddy's Garage converted to Church 2018
13. Victor Beaudry's Smelter: Remnants of Victor Beaudry's smelter (furnace) on the west side of the Cerro Gordo mining camp. Beaudry's smelter ran 24/7, and while it might not have been quite as robust as Belshaw's smelter up the hill, part of Beaudry's smelter survives, while Belshaw's doesn't.
Beaudry's Smelter remains
Remnants of Victor Beaudry's smelter (furnace) on the west side of the Cerro Gordo mining camp
Remnants of Victor Beaudry's smelter (furnace) on the west side of the Cerro Gordo mining camp
Remnants of Victor Beaudry's smelter (furnace) on the west side of the Cerro Gordo mining camp
Remnants of Victor Beaudry's smelter (furnace) on the west side of the Cerro Gordo mining camp
Remnants of Victor Beaudry's smelter (furnace) on the west side of the Cerro Gordo mining camp
14. The Hunter House: The Hunter family still resides in the Olancha area. Now the caretaker's residence.
At top just right of center is Lola's dance hall with the girl's cribs below and the roof of the Assay Building just visible. The building below is gone. Slightly below is the Belshaw House with a white tent next to it where the Gordon House was later built. Center left is the American Hotel. At the bottom right is the Hunter House.
Hunter House before restoration 2002
Restored Hunter House in 2011, caretaker residence
Hunter House in 1970 before restoration
Restored Hunter House now caretaker residence 2010
Cooler Room and Ice House next to American Hotel, Hunter House on right 2014
15. Ice House: Built about 1916, Inyo County's first ice house where ammonia was used in the process. Once the frozen ice was out of the forms, it was then stored in the straw-filled walls of the room attached.
Ice House (left) and American Hotel (right) in early stages of restoration Nov 1991
American Hotel (left) and Ice House (right)
American Hotel (left), Cooler Room (center), Ice House (right) 2018
(Bishop Real Estate Photo)
Ice House next to American Hotel
Refrigeration plumbing in the Ice House 2018
16. The Cooler Room: A system of ducting around the edge of the building, water was dripped down the cloth that covered the windows, and with the wind blowing through, cooled whatever was put inside.
Cooler Room (left), Ice House (right) 2014
American Hotel (left), Cooler Room (center), Ice House (right) 2014
Cooler Room next to American Hotel 2017
Cooler Room next to American Hotel 2017
Cooler Room behind American Hotel 2018
American Hotel (left), Cooler Room (center), Ice House (right) 2018
(Bishop Real Estate Photo)
17. The American Hotel: Built in 1871 by John Simpson, it is the oldest standing hotel in California on the east side of the Sierra.
American Hotel and view of Owens Lake
American Hotel in 1991 before restoration
Front reception area of the American Hotel
Restored American Hotel
American Hotel bar and dinning room
Click for more about the American Hotel
18 & 19. Barn and Corral: Built in the late 1980s for housing Mike and Jody Patterson's horses and burros.
Gordon House, Mike and Jody Patterson's Barn and Corral, (Belshaw Store, Belshaw House, Chinese Cook Shack above)
Gordon House with barn and corral, Crapo House and American Hotel at bottom 2010
20. The Hoist House: Standing above town on towering tailing piles, the hoist is at the "0" level of the Union Mine. This area from the county road is off limits unless there is a guide with you.
Restored Union Mine Hoist House
Historical picture of Union Mine Hoist House
Union Mine Hoist House after restoration by Metabolic Studios 2013
(Friends of Cerro Gordo Collection)
Historic picture of the Union Mine Hoist House
The Union Mine Hoist House (Underground Explorers Oct 2018)
Click for more about the Union Mine Hoist House
21. The Change Building: Miners coming out of the mines would take off their dirty mine clothes, shower, and dress before going home, or to the hotel, or the dance halls.
Change Building (left), Union Mine Hoist Building (center), Power Plant (right) 2002
Overview of Cerro Gordo about 1988. Upper left is the Change Building next to the Union Mine Hoist House; Store, Belshaw House, Chinese Cook's Shack, Gordon House next; Crapo House and American Hotel at bottom. (Friends of Cerro Gordo Collection)
The Union Mine Hoist House - Change Building at left end
(Underground Explorers Oct 2018)
Explore Cerro Gordo Townsite on Google Maps
Brent Underwood's Introduction To Cerro Gordo
2018 Drone View of Cerro Gordo
Exploring the Ghost Town of Cerro Gordo 2017
Cerro Gordo Ghost Town 2017
Cerro Gordo Ghost Town 2017 edited (original here)
includes a lot of caretaker Robert Damarais tour narrative
2022 Cerro Gordo update by owner
3 Years living in an abandoned Ghost Town (2023)
3.5 Years living in an abandoned Ghost Town (2023)
Overview of Cerro Gordo (Friends of Cerro Gordo Collection)
Starting at the top, below right of the tramway is the Assay Office and the remaining Lola girls crib; then the Belshaw Store (now museum) and the Gordon House. Barely visible behind the Gordon house on the left is the Belshaw House and on the right the Chinese Cook's Shack; then the American Hotel with the Ice House; at the bottom is the Hunter House (now caretaker residence).
Cerro Gordo about 1871-1879 with Beaudry's Smelter smoking away on the right (Bob Likes Collection)
Assay Office, Lola girls crib, tramway - Bishop Real Estate Photo 2018
Overview of Cerro Gordo; Belshaw store/museum (left) with Belshaw house just behind it and the China Cook hut above; Gordon House upper center; Crapo House and American Hotel right; Church/Theatre lower center; Bunkhouse bottom (Friends of Cerro Gordo Collection)
Site of Cerro Gordo Cemetery where about 300 people are buried. All the old wood markers are gone (Friends of Cerro Gordon Collection)
Burial marker in Cerro Gordo Cemetery
At top just right of center is Lola's dance hall with the girl's cribs below and the roof of the Assay Office just visible. The building below is gone. Slightly below is the Belshaw House with a white tent next to it where the Gordon House was later built in 1909. Center left is the American Hotel with the mule barn to its left. At the bottom right is the Hunter House
Cerro Gordo about 1916; at top just right of center is Lola's dance hall with the girl's cribs below next to the Assay Office. The large building to the left below the tram station and the building below the Assay Office are both gone. Next, to the left, the white building is Belshaw's Store, then the Belshaw House partly behind the Gordon House. Bottom left is the Mule Barn, then the American Hotel with the cooler room and ice house in front and the Crapo House behind (Friends of Cerro Gordo Collection)
Overview of Cerro Gordo about 1988. Upper left is the Change Building next to the Union Mine Hoist House; Store, Belshaw House, China Cook Shack, Gordon House next; Crapo House and American Hotel at bottom. (Friends of Cerro Gordo Collection)>
Overview of Cerro Gordo town - Bishop Real Estate Photo 2018
Jody Steward-Patterson grave in Cerro Gordo Cemetery
Click for Mining History of Cerro Gordo
Here are some websites with a lot of information and pictures about Cerro Gordo: