Chloride’s Old Miners’ Day
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We’ve been to the ‘living ghost town’ of Chloride, Arizona, several times since our first visit last March. With a current population hovering ~250 people, this quirky, quaint little town nestled in the Cerbat Mountains is considered the oldest continuously inhabited mining town in Arizona.
When we were here a few weeks ago with Brennan showing him the Purcell murals, we stopped in Yesterday’s Restaurant for an after-hike beer, and we were reminded by our waitress about the upcoming 50th Anniversary of Old Miners’ Day. We enjoy small-town celebrations and thought we’d head back to Chloride to participate in the fete.
We arrived just in time to check out the bake sale before the parade, which started at ‘high noon’. It was a cool, breezy day, but the sun shone brightly, and the parade commenced a bit later than ‘high noon’, but close enough to count. The parade route was lined with locals and visitors alike. We found a bench with a two-butt-wide opening to accommodate us and settled in for the show.
The parade watchers lined up along Tennessee Avenue (Chloride’s main drag) waiting for the parade to begin.
There were no marching bands, no elaborate, colorful floats, no Miss Arizona or beauty pageant queens waving royally to their subjects or politicians soliciting our votes. There were, however, a couple of fire trucks, some street rods and classic cars, a police car, a color guard from the local VFW, several horses, donkeys and mules, and at least three Shetland ponies. The Shriners and their funky little cars buzzed along, throwing candy to the kids who swooped in to gather it all up. It was good, small-town fun and a celebration of their historical past.
Parade over, we headed to Cyanide Springs, the faux-mining town located smack dab in the middle of Chloride, and a 2-minute walk from the parade route. Created in 1997 using lumber from nearby mines and a couple of existing local buildings, the replica Old West town has a wide Main Street lined with several buildings, including a jail, the Sheriff’s Office, the Dead Ass Saloon, a tiny museum, and an Opera House.
Welcome to Cyanide Springs mining town replica
At 1 PM, the Silver Sage Vigilantes were staging a replica gunfight… or two… on Cyanide Springs’ main street. We heard a warning shot fired at 12:55. The gunfight was imminent.
Time for the gunfight!
Folks in Chloride don’t abide by selling bogus mine deeds, jumping claims or stealing horses!
We headed back to Yesterdays Restaurant for lunch. The place was packed, and the two waitstaff were somewhat overwhelmed, but folks were patient. The menu was limited, and we ended up with a beer and splitting an order of fish and chips.
We tried a couple of local brews at Yesterdays.
On a whim, we had decided to stay at Shep’s Miners Inn/Hotel, adjoining the restaurant.
Shep’s Miners’ Inn
Built in the late 1800s, the buildings originally functioned as a repair and stop for the Butterfield Stage Line from 1868 to 1919. The original adobe bricks, tin roof, and covered boardwalks still exist, integrated with modern conveniences like A/C, heat, a TV, a fridge, and a comfy bed.
Our room, #10, has a bit of history. In 1967, young Jack Nicholson, Cameron Mitchell, Bruce Dern, and Diane Ladd filmed a segment of the motorcycle gang film (think ‘Easy Rider’) here in Chloride. According to our host, Nicholson stayed in our very room during the movie shoot. We were suitably impressed!
The restaurant closed shortly after 5pm and the sidewalks were rolled up. We retired to our historic room. Luckily, we’d had the foresight to bring along some dinner and snacks. We plied away the evening with a movie, some reading, and lots of chat.
We breakfasted at Yesterdays, then headed back the 88 miles home. A pleasant, small-town getaway weekend celebrating old miners.