Tours

In mining communities, it was often the enterprising people of the time who struck it rich. They became wealthy not by swinging a pick or hefting a shovel but by providing services to the miners.  Shovels could cost $50, and bartenders often made hundreds or even thousands of dollars profit on a single barrel of whiskey.

In 1869, several men built the first road into Bullion Canyon and then set up a toll station.  At this time there were several rich claims being worked in the canyon and it was now possible to haul ore by wagon. To the dismay of the toll road operators, the miners built a second road into the canyon to avoid paying a toll their teamsters considered unreasonable.

This second road closely follows the same route we drive today.  The remains of the toll road are visible on the right side of the road (north) and lie 25 feet above this stop.  Look for short, graded sections of roadbed now overgrown with oak.  The course of this old road can be seen from this spot for a distance of about 150 feet up and down the canyon.  All of these early roads were built by pick, shovel and dynamite.

In the late 1800's, the flat, open area on the right side of the road (north) was occupied by stables which housed the mules of the Dalton Mill.  Located about a mile up the road, the mill used mules to pull cars full of gold ore from mines still further up the canyon.  Although the sleepers and rails have long since been removed, the bed of this narrow-gauge railroad can still be found along the north-facing slopes of the canyon. (Stop 7)

Life in the gold mines of Bullion Canyon was tough for man and beast alike.  Mules worked long and hard, but they did enjoy corrals open to the sky and fresh water from a spring against the hillside.  In California gold country, many mules spent their entire lives underground in mines which were indescribably dark, cold and wet.  In the early 1900's, mules were replaced with "motors" (locomotives) powered by batteries or Model T gasoline engines.

Stop 3 is 1.5 miles past the trailhead

The log buildings on both sides of the road were built by a prospector named Witt Tate sometime around 1920.  Tate constructed the cabin and out-buildings to support his mining operation in the rocky ledges on the north side of the canyon.

Tate raised a one-room log cabin, a barn with a hayloft, a storage shed, an outhouse and log fences.  trails and a wagon road, which led to the "workings" can be seen behind the cabin.

Tate was intrigued by this area of the canyon because he had found small traces of lead and silver in layers of sandstone and quartz in the cliffs above the road.

Gold is almost always associated with lead and silver and this alloy or combination of metals is always found with quartz.  Millions of years ago, volcanic magma and mineralized fluids pushed up through the layers of the earth.  Pockets of gold, lead and silver were left behind with quartz in the sandstone of Bullion Canyon.

Witt Tate has been described as a successful miner.

Stop 4 is 1.75 miles past the trailhead

The clearing on the right side of the road (north) is where the main Boarding house is said to have stood.  Little remains of the one-story, wood-frames buildings except for a few scattered artifacts.  The clientele of the boarding hose were mostly single men who sought employment in the gold fields.  In the late 1800's, the cost of staying in an accommodations like this could have been as high as $11 a week with meals priced from $0.50 to $1.00.  With wages ranging between $2.00 and $4.00 a day for laborers, muckers (shovelers), timbermen, carmen and blacksmiths, most made only enough to provide the bare essentials.

On the opposite side of the road, to the south and across the creek are the remains of the Dalton Mill (later renamed the Sylvester-Soderberg Mill).  Built sometime before 1900, the only reminders of the mill are the concrete foundations, a large flat pile of tan-colored tailings and rusted equipment which can be seen through the trees.  When in operation the mill received ore from a narrow-gauge railroad that entered the top of the building about 250 feet up the slope of the canyon.  Fed by gravity, ore moved downhill where it was mechanically crushed and pulverized along the way.  At the bottom of the plant, gold ore was concentrated and shipped to Great Britain, and later to Salt Lake City, where a smelter would create pure bars of gold bullion.  Mines using the mill included The Wedge, Bully Boy, and Dalton.

Stop 5 is 1.8 miles past the trailhead

From the traffic turnout, a narrow trail leads down the bank towards the stream.  On the very edge of the creek and partially in the water there is a large block of stone about 10 feet long.  A circular depression 34 inches in diameter has been cut into the top of the stone.

According to local lore, the first American miners to enter Bullion Canyon in the 1860's found rotted sacks of ore against this boulder.  Perhaps earlier miners had milled high grade ore on this device which is called an arrastra.

Arrastras were first introduced into the New World by the Spanish in the 1500's.  To use the arrastra, ore was broken into walnut-sized chunks with a sledgehammer and placed into the circular milling area.  Three drag stones, chained to a post in the center of the milling area, were rotated by hand or mule.  The drag stones crushed the ore into a fine powder and water was added until a thick slurry was produced.  Mercury (quicksilver) was then introduced to the mixture which removed and amalgamated any gold found in the ore.

Does the presence of this arrastra tell us that Spanish Conquistadors were in this canyon mining gold two or three hundred years ago?  The answer is neither a simple yes or no because archeologists have no way to "date" the arrastra.

If we turn to written history for a clue, we are told that the Spanish were insatiable in their quest for riches.  During the 1600's and 1700's this appetite had driven them to explore most of what was to become the southern half of the United States.

Because they had established a nearby stronghold in New Mexico (1598), it is possible that there were Conquistadors in Utah and maybe even in Bullion Canyon long before the first "official" expedition by the Spanish in 1776.

Stop 6 is 2.15 miles past the trailhead

At this stop, you can look across the bridge and upstream to the site of what was once the center of Bullion City.  During its heyday, the camp had dozens of buildings and over a thousand inhabitants on both sides of the creek.  The 1881 census shows the pop. of the town as 1,651 souls but 10 years later, this figure had declined to 259.

Life in gold camps like Bullion City was hard.  Health conditions were poor and often there was no medicine.  Lodgings were primitive, most miners lived in tents or crude shelters with walls of canvas, hides or rough-hewn planks.  Mining for gold was hard, monotonous labor.  It was frequently necessary to work long hours while knee-deep in mud or icy water.  Mining laborers generally worked 10-hour shifts, 6 days a week with Saturdays off.

Mining camps could also be dangerous places.  Consider this account from a nearby mining camp by Merril Utley in The Ghosts of Gold Mountain 1992:

[Two miners by the names of R.J. Gibson and J. Jacobs] had been imbibing rather freely of the flowering bowl and got into a dispute over a gold claim... they mutually agreed to retire to the street and settle their differences... As they got into the street, they began pumping away at each other [with pistols] only a few feet apart.  (They both missed).

Fire was another danger and could easily devastate a town made of wood and canvas.  It is said that a fire storm raged up the dirt road by the bridge on the right side of the creek (north) destroying a number of shacks and cabins. Look across the bridge and up the north-facing slopes of the canyon.  As you drive up the road beneath these slopes, look for islands of aspen surrounded by spruce and fir trees.  These aspen trees, recognized by their light green leaves in summer, are what grew back after a 1923 fire that started at a mine.

Stop 7 is 2.2 miles past the trailhead

In Front of you on the right side of the road (north) are the charred remains of a log cabin that served as Bullion City's school and meeting house.  Josiah Gibbs, a noted Utah journalist, is said to have lodged here around 1900.  It was in this cabin that Gibbs wrote a controversial book called the Lights and Shadows of Mormonism.

In the spring of 1994, the building was found to have burned to the ground.  Evidence found in the ashes suggests that the burning of the cabin was person-caused either by intention or carelessness.

Turn to your left and look across the road.  These foundations are said to have supported an ore bin belonging to the Deseret Mine.  From the walls continue to turn to your left until you are facing slightly downhill.  Look closely and in the grass just above the road, you will see a graded surface that was the bed for the railroad that carried gold ore from the mines in the area to the Dalton Mill.  The sleepers and rails are gone but the grade can be followed to the mill site (stop 4) One of the cars that ran along this grade is on display at the Miners' Park (stop 9).

Stop 8 is 2.25 miles past the trailhead

*During the Silver King fire in July 2024, Bully Boy Mill burned down despite firefighters' efforts to save it.

One of the most impressive reminders of the vitality and industry that once thrived in Bullion City is the Bully Boy Mill.  Constructed in 1922, the mill received raw ore from the Wedge, Dalton, Great Western, Deseret, Cascade, Shamrock and Morning Star mines.  The ruins of the mill measure over 238 feet long and 45 feet wide.

The mill was a technological wonder for the time.  Ore came to the mill in mine cars which dumped their loads at the top of the building.

As ore moved downhill through the mill, it was mechanically ground into sand by crushers and stamps.  Water was added to the crushed ore and the slurry mixture was moved to "concentrators" where vibrating machines separated the gold bearing ore from the worthless rock scrap.  The final step in milling ore involved passing the concentrated slurry mixture over large copper plates coated with mercury.   Mercury is used because it attracts gold like a magnet attracts iron.

In 1938, the mill closed because the cost of milling an ounce of gold exceeded the market value for an ounce of gold.

Today, the Bully Boy Mill is privately owned by Fehrprop Inc.  Please respect their property.

 DO NOT ENTER THE MILL. IT IS UNSAFE.

Stop 9 is 2.5 miles past the trailhead

The Miners' Park Trail begins 50 feet beyond the wooden Miners' Park sign and in front of the Sylvester-Soderberg Mill railroad car. 

When you have completed the walk around Miners' Park, you might want to picnic in the area across the road.  All 3 of the units have tables and fire rings.  Please pack out all that you bring.

Acknowledgments for those who made it all possible

Read more about Gold and the Gold Rush days

If you are in the mood for a scenic walk, a 2-mile roundtrip trail begins at the bridge below the Bully Boy Mill.  The trail will take you on the north side of the creek to an overlook above the Bullion Canyon waterfalls.  These 50-foot falls are especially spectacular in the early summer when runoff swells the volume of the creek.

For those who enjoy touring by auto, turn right onto Forest Road 126 by the Bully Boy Mill.  This 10-mile journey will take you near the 11,500-foot summit of Mt. Brigham and down through Cottonwood Canyon to U.S. Highway 89 just south of Marysvale.  Be assured, the scenery is breathtaking.  The road to Cottonwood Canyon is generally free of snow from mid-June to mid-October.  The road tends to be rough in spots and higher clearance vehicles are recommended.

The Following individuals and organizations have given of their time, expertise, labor, or antiques to make the Miners' Park a reality.

Piute County:

Jim & Joan Anderson
Sarah & Rebecca Archer
Mayor Ron Bushman
Sherm Cristensen
Fehrprop Inc.
Dean Frederick
Rell Frederick
Staci Gass
Josiah F. Gibbs
H. Spencer Gibbs
Cliff Gordon
Delone Jensen
Joel & Lane Johnson
Commissioner Don Julander
Anita Kennedy
Dale Morril & Family
John Olson
Piute County Road Dept.
(Art & Bill)
Commissioner Lindon Romine
Gary Segmiller
Sam Steed
Jerry Baker
The Reverend Jonathan Edwards

Sevier County:

Theone & Marge Dalton
Fremont Indian State Park
Bill McClure & Richfield Reaper
Nothing New Antiques
Bob Wohlforth
George Chappell

Forest Service:

Beaver District Ranger Ben Black
Bob Leonard
Cindy Mackelprang
Recreational Staff Officer Max Reid
Steve Winslow
Kevin Greenhalgh

Passport-in-Time Crew: 1993

RuJean Brunson (Salt Lake)
Jesse Flowers (Illinois)
David Grubb (Oregon)
Julie Meyers (New Mexico)
T. J. Roberts (Monroe)
David & Susan Ross (Salt Lake)
Audrey Wann (Nebraska)

Passport-in-Time Crew: 1994

RuJean Brunson (Salt Lake)
Noelle Busk (Richfield)
Keith & Janet & Kristi Cartwright (Monroe)
Sharon Glenn (Monroe)
G. David Hunt (Roosevelt)
Delma Jukes (Marysvale)
Chuck Murphy (Nevada)
Rosalie Peterson (Marysvale)
T. J. Roberts (Monroe)
Jarryd Sorenson (Richfield)
Bob & Loraine Yusten (Nebraska)

Others:

Shane Baker (West Valley)
Cortec Design Service (Price)
Kaye's Antiques (Gunnison)
Office of Public Archeology (BYU)
Newt Fehr (Texas)
Lane Richens (Orem)
Bill Stoddard (Colorado)

Before 1974, the price of gold was $35/oz.  Now it's about $380 (at the time this article was written.)

The world leader in gold production was the old USSR with about 300 metric tons produced annually. (USA - 134 metric tons annually)

One cubic foot of gold weighs about 1,206 lbs.

There are an estimated 9 billion metric tons of gold in the oceans of the world.

Gold melts at 1,945.4 degrees Fahrenheit and boils at 2,966.0 degrees Fahrenheit.

Gold ore with as little as 1 part gold to 300,000 parts of worthless material can be mined at a profit.

One of the largest gold nuggets ever found was turned up by a wagon wheel in Australia (1869) and weighed 159 lbs. ($966,720 current value).

About 1 oz of gold can be drawn into a wire 0.000005 inch thick and 62 miles long.

References:

The following books will add much detail about Spanish exploration and gold mining in southern Utah.

Non-Fiction

Herring, Dean F.
1989 From Lode to Dust, 2nd edition
Herring Publishers. Eugene, Oregon

Thompson, George A.
1992 Lost Treasures on the Old Spanish Trail, 3rd edition.
Western Epics.
Salt Lake City, Utah

Utley, Merill G. (Doe)
1992 The Ghosts of Gold Mountain.
Published by author. Sevier, Utah

Fiction

Nelson, Lee
1994 Storm Gold
Council Press, Mapleton, Utah.