Chloride, Arizona
| Chloride, Arizona | |
|---|---|
| Unincorporated community | |
| Chloride, Arizona | |
 | |
  Chloride, Arizona | |
| Coordinates: 35°24′52″N 114°11′58″W / 35.41444°N 114.19944°WCoordinates: 35°24′52″N 114°11′58″W / 35.41444°N 114.19944°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Arizona |
| County | Mohave |
| Founded | 1863 |
| Elevation[1] | 4,022 ft (1,226 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| • Total | 352 |
| Time zone | MST (no DST) (UTC-7) |
| ZIP code | 86431 |
Chloride is a onetime silver mining camp in Mohave County, Arizona, and is considered the oldest continuously inhabited mining town in the state.[2] Chloride has a ZIP Code of 86431; in 2000, the population of the 86431 ZCTA was 352.[3]
History
Prospectors first located mineral resources in the area in the 1840s, including silver, gold, lead, zinc, and turquoise. Chloride was founded about 1863, but mining was not widespread until the 1870s after a treaty was signed with the Hualapai Indians. The railway from Kingman, called the Arizona and Utah Railway, was inaugurated on August 16, 1899 - the last silver spike was driven by Miss May Krider.[4] The town eventually grew to a peak of around 5,000 inhabitants, and at one time Chloride was the county seat. By 1917 the population had fallen to 2,000, and by 1944 it was nearly a ghost town.
American author Louis L'Amour visted Chloride sometime between 1927-1929 after the Weepah, Nevada goldrush, where he had bought, and then sold a claim for $50. During his visit the town of Chloride caught fire. L'amour assisted the town citizens in a bucket brigade that ultimately failed to stop most of the town from burning to the ground.[5]
References
- ↑ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Chloride
- ↑ "Chloride History". Chloride Chamber of Commerce. Retrieved 2007-09-03.
- ↑ "86431 - Population Finder - American FactFinder". Factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2010-08-04.
- ↑ Arizona: Weekly Republican, Aug 17, 1899; Mohave County Miner, Kingman, Aug 19, 1899.
- ↑ Education of a Wandering Man, Bantam Books 1990, ISBN 978-0553286526
External links
- Chloride Chamber of Commerce
- Community website
- Chloride entry from Desert USA
- Photo gallery from Western Mining History
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