Monday dawned beautiful! Of course, our last day here... We headed to Mogollon and to the Catwalk.
Mogollon is described as a ghost town but there are some residents and local shops - of course none of the shops open until the following weekend but we did get to walk Main Street. Anyway - Mogollon (pronounced muggy-own) is located in Silver Creek Canyon. You have to follow a winding road (that has been improved since my childhood visit) without guard rails to get there.
Mogollon is an old mining town established in the 1880's to help support the local silver and gold mines. The Little Fannie mine became the largest employer for the town. A jail and post office opened in 1890 and a school in 1892. The Little Fannie Mine was so dusty that most miners only last 2-3 years. The mines owners eventually started spraying water to help control the dust - this did help with the 'miners consumption' and relieved the patient load on the town's three doctors.
The town was plagued by fires and floods throughout its life. In 1930 the population dropped to 200 and never recovered. The Little Fannie closed in 1952 and the town deteriorated.
In 1973 a movie, My Name Is Nobody, starring Henry Fonda was filmed in Mogollon.
According to a local my Mom met there, Mogollon is being bought and destroyed by a Texas cardiologist. The doctor is allegedly buying the buildings and tearing them down and turning it into his personal playground for rich Texans... I personally think he was just disgruntled and bitter but...
Below are some photos from the town.
Mining door in the side of the mountain
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