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Quiz about Mining and Ghost Towns of California

Mining and Ghost Towns of California Quiz

This quiz is about old mining towns of California (some abandoned, but others still inhabited, if just barely). It includes well-known towns as well as some more obscure ones. How well do you know California's mining history? Find out!

A multiple-choice quiz by caribdevist. Estimated time: 5 mins.

Author
caribdevist

Time
5 mins

Type
Multiple Choice

Quiz #
348,142

Updated
Dec 03 21

# Qns
10

Difficulty
Tough

Avg Score
5 / 10

Plays
311

One at a Time - Single Page - Timed Game

Question 1 of 10

1. This gold-mining town in Mono County, which lasted from 1876 to around 1912, is now preserved as a California State Park. Hint

State Line

Dog Town

Bodie

Mono Mills

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Question 2 of 10

2. Named after a mining town in Slovenia, this rural San Benito County town saw its mercury mines close in the 1970s, and has since fallen in extreme decay. It has been considered for listing as an EPA Superfund site in the years since. Hint

New Idria

Panoche

Coalinga

San Benito

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Question 3 of 10

3. Like New Idria, this town in Panamint Valley was named after a prosperous mining town (this one in Australia). It flourished briefly in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, then quickly declined as the gold mines in the surrounding hills played out. There is still an active mine, the Briggs Mine, south of the town, run by Atna Resources, Ltd. Hint

Ballarat

Millspaugh

Trona

Barker Ranch

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Question 4 of 10

4. This mining town in the Inyo Mountains produced silver, which was then shipped southward across the now-dry Owens Lake. Hint

Cerro Gordo

Olancha

Keeler

Lone Pine

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Question 5 of 10

5. One of the two towns on our list that still supports a significant population, this Kern County town, just off Highway 58, is named after the element that is mined there. It is also the site of the largest open-pit mine in California. Hint

Rhyolite

Boron

Silver Peak

Quicksilver

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Question 6 of 10

6. After a group of Confederate sympathizers named the Alabama Hills after the Confederate warship, a group of Union sympathizers named their settlement after this Union ship that sank it. Hint

Manzanar

Reward

Beveridge

Kearsarge

NEXT>

Question 7 of 10

7. The second of our two still-inhabited towns, this town straddles San Bernadino and Inyo Counties, and is situated on the dry Searles Lake. It is named after a mineral that is mined from the lake bed. Hint

Gypsum

Benitoite

Trona

Quartz

NEXT>

Question 8 of 10

8. This former silver-mining town, situated in the mountains for which it is named, is just inside the western border of Death Valley National Park. After an investment by Nevada Senators John Jones and William Stewart, it enjoyed its boom years in the early-mid 1870s. It had a reputation as a particularly lawless town, so much so that Wells Fargo refused to open an office there. Hint

Wildrose

Funeral City

Owlshead

Panamint City

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Question 9 of 10

9. This gold-mining town in Death Valley is said to have taken its name from a slang in the early twentieth century. Hint

Ashford

Kasson

Skidoo

Jay

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Question 10 of 10

10. This Santa Clara County Ghost town is at the bottom of a reservoir for which it is named. The foundations of some of the buildings can be seen when the reservoir falls low enough in drought years. Hint

Coyote

Lexington

Anderson

Alma

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Quiz Answer Key and Fun Facts

1. This gold-mining town in Mono County, which lasted from 1876 to around 1912, is now preserved as a California State Park.

Answer: Bodie

Bodie,widely rated one of the best preserved ghost towns in the US, is also known for its somewhat extreme weather. Winter temperatures regularly drop below freezing, and the local topography frequently produces wind gusts that top 100 mph.

Answer: New Idria

Vandalism has resulted in heavy loss to the historic buildings in the town, which does not enjoy any protection, despite its being listed as a California Historical Landmark. The ownership of the land that the town is situated on is unclear, and some of the descendents of the former mine workers still imagine they have some claim to the property and are known to chase off visitors.

Answer: Ballarat

Ballarat obviously did not enjoy the same success and staying-power of its Australian namesake. Today there are a couple old decrepit buildings from the original town, a graveyard, and a handful of buildings from the failed revival of the town in the 1970s, including a gas station where one of the remaining full-time residents, Rock Novac, maintains a shop and an improvised museum.

4. This mining town in the Inyo Mountains produced silver, which was then shipped southward across the now-dry Owens Lake.

Answer: Cerro Gordo

There are several remarkably intact buildings at Cerro Gordo, though one must obtain permission from the current owners to visit the town site. Make sure you have a vehicle that can handle offroad conditions!

Answer: Boron

Owned by Rio Tinto Group, the mine at Boron supports a population of just over 2,000 (2011).

6. After a group of Confederate sympathizers named the Alabama Hills after the Confederate warship, a group of Union sympathizers named their settlement after this Union ship that sank it.

Answer: Kearsarge

Little remains of this ghost town save some building foundations. Locating the town is somewhat problematic, as different maps have the town placed as different locations.

Answer: Trona

Trona supports a modest population, though since c. 2000 many people have moved to nearby Ridgecrest. The Trona Pinnacles, a series of tufa spires to the south of the town, are recognizable from assorted movies and television commercials, like Star Trek V and a recent Taco Bell commercial.

Answer: Panamint City

Panamint City boomed and busted in a remarkably short period, thanks in no small part to the recession of 1876, but also because speculative fever created expectations that the mines failed to live up to. Owing to the lawless nature of the area, William Stewart had the silver fashioned into cannon- balls, which were transported out of the city without guard.

9. This gold-mining town in Death Valley is said to have taken its name from a slang in the early twentieth century.

Answer: Skidoo

Although ghost town enthusiasts will seek the town site out, they are often disappointed by what they find, as there is nothing to indicate that any settlement had ever existed there. But, for about 11 years in the early 20th century, Skidoo did produce a respectable amount of gold.

Answer: Lexington

Lexington is in Santa Clara county, not far from San Francisco. Little else to say about this one. :)

Source: Author caribdevist

This quiz was reviewed by FunTrivia editor bloomsby before going online.
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