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1890s
- Gold mining in the district began in the 1890s, mostly as underground operations, chasing high grade veins. Over 23 million ounces of gold have been recovered from the district since 1890.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cripple_Creek_&_Victor_Gold_Mine
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History. Gold mining in the district began in the 1890s, mostly as underground operations, chasing high grade veins. Over 23 million ounces of gold have been recovered from the district since 1890. [8] . At 2012 prices ($1600 per troy ounce [14]), [15] this would be worth around US$37 billion.
The first discovery of gold in the Pikes Peak region was made in 1874 when a man named T.H Lowe picked up some rich ore in a meadow near the present site of Cripple Creek. Excited, he quickly organized a prospecting party to search the nearby gulches.
In 1994 the Cripple Creek & Victor Gold Mine started large-scale pit operations, and by the 2000s it was producing hundreds of thousands of ounces of gold and silver per year. The massive mine, which employs more than 500 workers, was expanded in the mid-2010s and acquired by mining giant Newmont.
Within a few years of the 1890 gold discovery at Cripple Creek, the area had transformed into one of the world's fastest growing gold districts. Thieves, bandits and buncos were attracted to the towns of new district by the hundreds, and Cripple Creek became known for its lawlessness.
Quick Facts About Cripple Creek. Cripple Creek is home to a wild donkey herd, the ancestors of the donkeys who accompanied miners all over the mountains. A little over 1,000 people live in Cripple Creek. Large gold deposits still exist in the region. Cripple Creek was nearly a ghost town until the early 1990s.
Winfield Scott Stratton stakes a mining claim on July 4, 1891. Stratton names his mine the Independence and it becomes one of the largest gold strikes in history. He becomes the first Cripple Creek millionaire. He sells the Independence in 1899 for 11 million dollars.
The town of Cripple Creek developed along the small creek winding its way from the mountains where gold was found by ranch hand Bob Womack. By 1894, what had been a quiet, serene cattle ranch was a booming gold camp of about 50,000. The camp was to become the fifth richest gold strike in the world.
