P a g e 2 G h o s t T o w n s a n d H i s t o r y o f M o n t a n a N e w s l e t t e r two mines, Katy Mine and the Hope Mine were founded. More and more mines came into production. At its peak there were dozens of mines operating here. Gold was plentiful and miners were happy. Gradually, the small mining camp was reconstructed into the town of Basin. In 1894, the Mining Companies decided to expand the production and so the town got itself some stores, saloons, and brothels to meet the requirements of the growing population. Flood, Fires, and Mine Closures Then, a setback slowed the town growth. Due to a variety of factors that are all-too common with early mining camps, mainly flooding and the fires that destroyed much of the equipment, the mines closed for a time. Efforts were made to work other mining districts close by for a time, and things were relatively idle during the turn of the century. Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz Photo by Jolene Ewert-Hintz The Decline Basin did not collapse like most of the Gold Rush towns but it did become less popular with the depletion of minerals. In 1909, the richest gold ores started to run out, or, to be more precise, the gold that could be obtained by the technologies available then. For a while, only zinc was mined here and the town became quite small, its post office and drugstore went. Then, it got a second boom for a while. In 1919, the Jib Consolidated Mining Company bought the claims for the mines and made the town the largest gold producer in the whole state. It was, unfortunately, not for long. In 1925, the company split and its property was divided among the creditors so there was no one to oversee the production. Thus, the second boom ended leaving only small-scale mining in the region. In 1905, the works in the Basin Creek Mines resumed. By then, the town had grown into a largesized town with a 1,500 population and a large variety of hotels, stores, saloons, and even its own bank and a post-office. Between 1905 and 1910, a whole 2 railroads were built to ship the minerals and support the many mines in the area between Helena and Butte.
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