by Sharon Hall | Mar 19, 2014 | Digging History Magazine, Wild West Wednesday
She was born under less than “normal” circumstances. Her birth mother had fallen in love with someone who promised to marry her upon his return from a trip to Kentucky. When his trip was extended, she despaired and thought that she had been betrayed. ...
by Sharon Hall | Mar 12, 2014 | Digging History Magazine, Ghost Town Wednesday
This ghost town was originally named “Rock Island” but was later changed by the Rock Island and Pacific Railroad to “Glenrio” or “Glen Rio”. The name was a curious choice, however, since “glen” means...
by Sharon Hall | Feb 26, 2014 | Digging History Magazine, Wild West Wednesday
Charles H. Utter, a.k.a. “Colorado Charlie”, according to most sources was born around 1838 in New York state, near the Niagara Falls region. One individual in this past week’s Surname Saturday article, Abraham Utter, lived in New York state, so perhaps they were...
by Sharon Hall | Feb 19, 2014 | Digging History Magazine, Ghost Town Wednesday
The Elkhorn-Coolidge Historic District is located in the northern part of Beaverhead County, Montana and south of Butte. In 1872 silver was first discovered by Preston Sheldon, and his first shipment of ore yielded 300 ounces per ton. He supposedly named the mine...
by Sharon Hall | Feb 5, 2014 | Digging History Magazine, Ghost Town Wednesday
On September 4, 1848, a forty-acre tract of land in Newton County, Missouri was sold by Frederick Hisaw to John and Thomas D. Isbell for $300. Upon this land the Isbells built a distillery and grist mill (Jolly Mill), perhaps with slave labor, according to local...
by Sharon Hall | Jan 29, 2014 | Digging History Magazine, Ghost Town Wednesday
The American West has hundreds of abandoned ghost towns, but east of the Rockies some refer to towns that may still have a few residents as “quiet towns”. These towns have diminished over the years as residents moved away to bigger cities, post offices and schools...
