Please describe the mining boom that swept the West in the late 1800s.

Mining played an important part in the development of the
western U.S. especially during the 1800s. Gold was discovered in California in 1848 and
in Colorado in 1858. The price for gold and silver was quite high, so thousands of
people rushed to these areas to stake a claim and mine their land. Some of the mineral
deposits were in placer mines, meaning that they had been deposited by silt and water
and had to be sifted out to be collected. Although mining is often associated with gold
and silver, coal was also a very important mineral because it was used in
industry.

The Colorado “Gold Rush” is sometimes called “The
Pike’s Peak Gold Rush”. Participants were called “The Fifty-Niners.” The Gold Rush in
Colorado and in other western states created a host of what were called “Boom Towns.”
Usually the Boom Towns were run by the mining companies and often were places of
lawlessness. In some of the mining towns, the gold and silver veins were not very good
and when they were depleted, the towns became “Ghost Towns”. Also, towards the end of
the 1800s, the price of silver plummeted and many people who had become rich were soon
bankrupt. Here in Colorado where I live, we have all sorts of colorful characters that
were involved in the gold and silver mining business such as silver baron Horace Tabor
and his infamous wife Baby Doe Tabor who lived in Leadville, Colorado. Creede, Colorado
is also a famous former mining town.

Mining is a dangerous
endeavor and in order to find good mineral deposits (for gold, silver, coal or whatever)
mines often must be dug deep into the ground. This creates a lot of danger for the
miners and the west is fraught with stories of miners revolting over dangerous
conditions and then being massacred by the mine owners. If you do some research, you can
find out a lot more about this interesting subject.