Josephine County Historical Society's "Passport To History" - Golden Townsite, OR

Josephine County Historical Society's "Passport To History" - Golden Townsite, OR 

Another destination on the Josephine County Historical Society's "Passport To History" program is Golden Townsite.

In the ghost town of Golden, ghosts still guard the gate to Grants Pass, Oregon.

Golden, Oregon is Josephine County's ghost town that refuses to die.

Golden Townsite is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Gold was first discovered in Coyote Creek in the 1840's and the area was known as Goldsville.

Golden Townsite lies three miles east of the historic Wolf Creek. William Ruble is known as the founder of the town of Golden, Oregon.

Golden Townsite at one time even had its' own post office from 1896 through 1920.

The church was originally built in 1892 by Campbellites and later it became the Free Methodist Church.

The wooden headstones and crosses next to the church are not actual graves. They are really movie props that were left after an episode of "Gunsmoke" was filmed here.

Golden Townsite still has a general store, originally called "The Bennett Store", and a carriage house. The post office was located in "The Bennett Store."

The church is open and welcomes visitors. Standing inside gives one the feeling that you are not alone. A moment of silence is customary in respect to so many who have passed before.

Golden, Oregon had two churches but no saloon! Unusual for those days. Thirsty miners had to walk or ride horseback to places far away, such as Placer on Grave Creek. To get from Golden Townsite to Placer today takes 25 minutes by car!

Placer mining with wooden sluice boxes were the means of mining in Golden up until the 1870's.

When the miners were lured to the Idaho gold rush, the Chinese miners moved in and worked the area. When the other fields played out, the white miners returned and took back the claims.

The 1880's saw the use of hydraulic mining, and the entire area was blasted with high pressure mining techniques that devastated the land.

Now the ghosts in Golden Townsite can look out upon the beautiful restoration project that has created the Coyote Creek Wetlands and once again returned the countryside to its' former beauty.

Rest in peace oh brave souls who without your adventurous hearts we of today would not enjoy this land of beauty.

We salute you Golden, Oregon.

Please visit the Josephine County Historical Society's website for more information on the Passport To History program.

Below are the links to my earlier Josephine County Historical Society's Passport To History blogs.

Introduction        Caveman        Schmidt House

Blind George's Newsstand        Grants Pass Historic Homes Tour

Historic District Tour        Grants Pass Pharmacy        Rogue Theatre

Hugo Community Church        Haines Apple Tree        Ament Dam

Grants Pass Cemeteries        Pottsville        Sportsman Park

Griffin Park        Lake Selmac        Granite Hill Cemetery

Pleasant Valley Cemetery        Josephine County Bridges

Grants Pass Fire Department        Reinhart Volunteer Park        Wolf Creek Inn

Applegate Trail Interpretive Center