...known as Cleator since 1925. I passed through this ghost town in mid-June on the
Crown King trek with the Sson. However, what brought up the subject was a sighting of a teeny 1" diameter baby horned toad that I flushed out in my garden today. I hadn't seen one of these lizards at my house in over 15 years! My mind just naturally turned to the desert. Cleator, in this case.
The town got its start in 1903 as a station on the railroad between the smelters in Mayer and the mines up 5000 feet higher in the mountains near Crown King.
James Cleator, a gold miner born on the Isle of Man, bought a partnership in the town in 1905 and became sole owner in 1915, renaming it after himself in 1925. Though he tried to peddle the town (to no avail) in 1949, he turned it over to his son Tommy who ran it until his death in the early 1990s.
The bar is currently open, with "the best beer in 20 miles." Not to mention the
only beer in 20 miles.
In 2006, there were reported to be six persons living in greater Cleator, though it looked like more occupied places than that when we went through.
If you'd like to know more about Cleator,
here,
here and
here are sites you might explore. Incidentally, Cleator even rates an entry in the Wikipedia. Below are more pictures of the local real estate.
The town got its start in 1903 as a station on the railroad between the smelters in Mayer and the mines up 5000 feet higher in the mountains near Crown King.
James Cleator, a gold miner born on the Isle of Man, bought a partnership in the town in 1905 and became sole owner in 1915, renaming it after himself in 1925. Though he tried to peddle the town (to no avail) in 1949, he turned it over to his son Tommy who ran it until his death in the early 1990s.
The bar is currently open, with "the best beer in 20 miles." Not to mention the only beer in 20 miles.
In 2006, there were reported to be six persons living in greater Cleator, though it looked like more occupied places than that when we went through.
If you'd like to know more about Cleator, here, here and here are sites you might explore. Incidentally, Cleator even rates an entry in the Wikipedia. Below are more pictures of the local real estate.
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