Road-trip to Stanton

This past December, we decided to find the ghost town called Stanton.

It ended up being somewhat of a disappointment, but I'll get into that later.

On the way there, we passed through the town of Yarnell, where we spotted this...

and this...

---- insert screeching car noise here ----

We pulled in and discovered they had lots of goodies for sale.

Car stuff, old appliances, and much more.

via Days of Vintage

via Days of Vintage

Mike, the owner, couldn't have been any nicer and he's willing to deal, even on the cheap stuff.

Here's the website, if you're ever in that part of Arizona.

After drooling all over that, we headed on down the road aways and spotted this...

An old burned down, abandoned house.

Or at least we think it was a house.

We couldn't find any information on it.

I did find some old writing in the cement though.

HAE S-69'

The writing below is confusing.

9.5.3. 1895 - 5.3.82

Dates?

I can't make out the rest, this way or...

this way.

Whatever the building was, it certainly had a beautiful view.

Back on down the road for quite some time, we finally found Stanton.

You can read more about the history of it 'here', but basically it was a stagecoach stop until gold was found nearby on what was to become Rich Hill.

Sounds innocent enough right?

Well, to begin with, it's named after Chuck Stanton, who ended up being a murderer.

Later it was reported that the residents liked to drink blood.

After it was abandoned, the Saturday Evening Post bought it and gave it away in a "jingle contest", but the winners didn't know what to do with it, so it went up for sale.

In the 1960s, hippies lived there and started using the old buildings for firewood.

In the 1970s, a mining association bought it and turned it into a recreational vehicle destination for members only.

And that is where my part of the sad story starts.

You see, we didn't know any of this when we headed out, because we just like to pick a town on the map and go, hoping that there will be some evidence of the people that lived there... buildings, foundations, etc.... So, when we arrived in town, we were surprised to find it surrounded by RVs, and ATVs zooming around in all directions.

You won't see them in my pictures, because I cut them out, but trust me, they were there.

As we got out of the car, my first reaction was to go up to the building you see below.

And I did, only to be accosted by the woman that works there.

Apparently, you have to sign in and listen to her tie-dye wearing husband tell you a lot of false facts about the place first.

It was free, but Good Lord, I would have rather paid a fee.

Finally, we were released to go have a look around.

Another sad fact, is that the buildings, that weren't destroyed, are not being kept up like they should be.

The outsides are in tact, but the insides are just awful.

The only thing that might be original is the wood burning stove, but we couldn't be sure.

There was an old piano though.

One of the other workers there said that the building is haunted by a little girl and once in a while the doll moves.

You can bet every penny that I kept my eye on that creepy doll.

When we took a gander at the back of the building, Mr. tie-dye told us that the holes were from gunshots.

Sorry, but I've seen woodpecker holes before, sir.

Good try though.

Across the way, was the old hotel.

As you can see below, the inside is just disappointing.

Yes, that's plywood covering the ceiling.

sad, sad, sad.

I guess I should just be happy that there's more than foundations left in the little town or that it didn't end up having the same fate as that burned down house we found. It has certainly faired better than a lot of these places we've traveled to. That's for sure.

It's just that this piece of history has survived so much, only to be taken over by a group of people that couldn't really care less about it and use it for a gimmick to get people out there.

It breaks my heart.

I hope one day, someone with a true love of history will rescue it.

Of course I hope that about every old thing, now don't I?

;)

Speaking of history...

On our way home, we came across an old graveyard.

I don't know about you, but I always stop and take a look around when we see one.

I find them sad and fascinating at the same time.

At least someone cares about this piece of history.

So, that was our trip to Stanton.

Even with the disappointment of what it's become, we had a good time, as always.

I hope you did too.

;)

xo

rue