There are a lot of little "living ghost towns" in Arizona. They were mining communities at one time that drew people. Sometimes they survived long enough to have a post office and a school. All of them had saloons, honky tonk girls and served pop-skull, tanglefoot, red-eye, and oh-be-joyful. Jimjams (delirium tremens) were said to be a problem.
“Rattlesnake Valley, over yonder, ain't never been good for much exceptin' the finest breed of serpents an' horn-toads a man ever see outside a circus or the jimjams.”- Jackson Gregory.
One of them is in the spotlight on Virtual Mirage today -- Chloride, AZ. The place is far removed from the rush and crush of humanity, being but a fifteen mile or so drive north of Kingman.
Your sermonette for this Sunday is that you need to stop and take in some of the local color when you're rushing down the Interstate, because every place has its story, and it's likely more interesting than the Gulp-and-Guzzle, snooze and stop where you bolt down carbs and stretch your legs.
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| Chloride Today |
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| Chloride about 80 years ago |
Best guess, there are about 250 people living in Chloride today.
It was a more lively place 80 years ago. Yes there were gun fights (usually an ambush), claim jumping, run aways (soiled doves) working their way west to San Francisco, etc. But most of those took place more than 80 years ago.
