G h o s t T o w n s a n d H i s t o r y P a g e 3 Reynolds City, Montana- As the miners worked farther up Elk creek it finally became necessary for them to have another camp and this new camp became known as Reynolds City. Reynolds City was an exact duplicate of Beartown, with the same happy-go -lucky type of citizens and rustic buildings. As in Beartown, high prices and high wages went hand in hand and the only language spoken was mining talk. Although its pay streaks on an average did not rate as high as those on Elk creek, several of the more prosperous bars were decidedly over average. One claim was reported to have produced $12,000 per running foot. While the gold from both creeks was so similar in color that it was impossible to distinguish gold from one creek from the gold from the other when it became mixed, yet much of the Bear Creek gold was in the form of nuggets, while the majority of the Elk creek gold was represented by small flakes. One of the first nuggets taken from Bear creek territory weighed 32 ounces. Currency was made up almost entirely of gold dust in each camp. Fortunes were quickly made and quickly spent. A few who were satisfied to hang on to their savings were rewarded by being able to retire, but the majority believed in the old adage that "tomorrow takes care of itself" and when the two camps ceased Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz to exist, they found themselves ill-prepared to meet the future financially, with pokes and pockets as empty as when they had first arrived. –Courtesy of The Sanders County Independent Ledger, Nov. 22, 1939, Courtesy of montananewspapers.org All that remains of Reynolds City today is the cemetery. Sauerbier Blacksmith Shop- Virginia City, MT Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz A notorious dance hall was the original occupant of this 1863 building which encompasses a small cabin of V-notched logs, one of the first built in June of that year. Tall French doors and a few dentils clinging to the facade recall its former dance hall elegance. Converted to a blacksmith shop in the 1870s, Charles Sauerbier and his son Karl operated the business until the 1940s. In the early years, Sauerbier repaired stage coaches and shod the ox teams that pulled huge freight wagons of goods. Original tools and machinery are still in place, and various additions chronicle the building's history in boards, nails and labor. Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz
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