Photography Now and Then #8
Today’s photo1: SilverSneakers – January 8, 2018. Class was in progress while I was walking the elevated track at the gym (taken with my iPhone).
SilverSneakers is a free fitness program for seniors that’s helping millions of people on Medicare.
Photo Favorite2: Old ghost town building, Bonanza City, Idaho, September 26, 2011
Bonanza City, Idaho
Like many boomtowns gone bust, Bonanza City sprang to life almost instantly when gold was discovered, then died just as quickly after the gold ran out. Located along the Yankee Fork, a large tributary of Idaho’s upper Salmon River, Bonanza City is well worth a stop when traveling through scenic central Idaho. And while you’re here, also explore the nearby gold mining ghost town of Custer, as well as the Yankee Fork Gold Dredge.
Established in 1876, the town’s name of Bonanza represented the optimism felt by early miners—which paid off richly for a great many of them. By 1881, the population of Bonanza peaked at 600 and the town boasted a dentist, a tin shop, a watchmaker, hotels, saloons, boarding houses, a post office, and even the first newspaper in Custer County, The Yankee Herald. Bonanza City prospered for over 30 years, until its glory days of gold mining faded around 1910.3
- Today’s Photo is a photo that is almost always taken the day of the blog post. In some instances, posts may be backdated if internet access is not available on the day of the photo or other reasons prevent posting Now and Then.
- Photo Favorite is a randomly selected older photograph from a batch of photos specifically “curated” for Now and Then.
- Bonanza City, Idaho – Gold Rush Trading Post
Note: Reference links were accessed on the date the blog post was published, unless otherwise stated.
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That gym looks great!
And I have such mixed feelings about ghost towns. They’re the opposite of that “optimism” that built them in the first place, aren’t they? Just dried up husks of a storied past. 🙁
I love the history, but they really are ghosts, aren’t they?
We’ve been going to this gym since shortly after it opened in the early 1990s.
We’ve been to quite a few ghost towns in the Rocky Mountains. Some are better preserved than others. Even where preservation efforts are in place, though, the harsh winters can really take a toll on them. Often the settings of these towns are absolutely awesome.