Idaho Silver Strikes

Although the Wood River area first attracted attention during the gold rush in Boise Basin in 1862, miners largely disregarded the area. Indians discouraged development until the end of the Bannock War in 1878. This interval saw the creation of more effective means of smelting lead and silver in Nevada and Colorado. Furthermore, the railroads now almost reached Wood River, making the development of the area's lead deposits profitable. Prospectors returned to the area by 1879, and thousands rushed to Wood River the following year. Miners organized new towns such as Galena, and Bellevue showed great potential due to the discovery of the Minnie Moore Mine in the vicinity. Galena reached a peak of about 800 residents, but by 1890, it had become a ghost town.

Capital from Philadelphia placed a smelter in Ketchum for the 1882 mining season. However, companies still shipped their ore to Denver, Kansas City, Omaha, or Salt Lake City, prompting the Philadelphia Company to lower prices and double the size of the plant. In 1883, the Oregon Short Line reached Hailey, and the following year, it reached Ketchum, enabling mines to reach their maximum production. Until the arrival of the railroads, the mines deliberately held back production due to the higher transportation costs of shipping ore by wagon. Ketchum would contain two thousand residents by 1889. However, some of the mines, such as the Minnie Moore, eventually shut down after the drop in the price of silver pushed production costs higher than potential profits. Unlike other boom-towns, Ketchum survived due to the sheep industry.

By 1867, more than a thousand Chinese worked in the mines of the Boise Basin. The Chinese started coming to Idaho in large numbers after the completion of the transcontinental railroad released thousands of Chinese workers into the West in search of employment. The additional competition from the Chinese contributed to driving prospectors to either Montana or British Columbia, but some made their way to the Owyhee Basin.

Prospectors found gold on Jordan Creek in 1863, but the deposits did not last long. The silver-bearing quartz ledges found in fall 1863 did create excitement, as assays hinted at wealth to dwarf the Comstock. Investors created several mines by the end of the following year, with the Orofino and Morningstar mines being the most prominent. The mines launched the cities of Silver City and Ruby City. Promoters encouraged the further growth of these cities with the construction of the Silver-Ruby wagon road. Silver City eventually eclipsed Ruby City and attracted most of its inhabitants due to its proximity to important mines. For similar reasons, Silver City had the largest Chinese population in the Owyhees, although Irish, Australian, and Cornish immigrants could also be found in the region. In 1870, 118 of Silver City's 599 residents were Chinese. The Irish made up about 25 percent of southern Idaho's miners in the 1870s. During the 1860s, a depression in Cornish mines drove many workers to the United States, where they expected to earn more money. From 1860 to 1880, [Page 314]approximately one third of Cornish mine workers left their country. Although the Silver City mines continued their operations after the failure of the Bank of California in 1875, the operations started to fade as companies depleted the mines. Silver City itself remained the county seat of Owyhee County until 1935, when Murphy took this distinction for itself. Silver City continued its decline until it became a ghost town.

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