"At one point in time, there were four fire companies for Bodie! At one point, a fire broke out at the Central Market, and all four companies came to the rescue. There wasn’t a problem until they all tried to hook up their hoses to the hydrant. Who had the authority!? Who was going to be the one to put the fire out!? Luckily for Bodie, shortly thereafter, all four companies were combined into one and fire districts were laid out for them to serve.
On the night of August 10, 1941, the bronze bell from the firehouse belfry was stolen. Soon after, on September 28, 1941, it was returned to Bodie and is still on display today."-https://www.bodie.com/history/structures/bodie-firehouse/
The Standard Mill-
Here’s the Standard mill, which processed ore from the Standard Mine. (The mine was originally named the Bunker Hill mine when it was first registered in 1861.) Most of the inner workings are still in tact. During the summer months Park Aides conduct a history talk and guided tour (for a fee) where you can see some of the interior of the mill. There is a limit on the number of people per tour, and they only do a few tours a day, so make sure the Museum is your first stop when you get in town to get your tickets, as they do sell out. You can also book private group tours if you contact the Park.
In its heyday, the mill processed more than $14 million worth of gold and silver over 25 years. On
October 6, 1898 the original mill burned down, as it was built of mostly wood. In the dead of winter, at nearly 9,000 feet elevation and likely with 20 feet of snow, they immediately began rebuilding the mill. On February 1, 1899 – just a few months later, the Standard Mill re-opened. The new mill is also wood framed, but mostly covered with sheets of corrugated steel.
In the enlarged 2001 picture of the mill (above,) you can barely see a pole at the top of the hill. It is from that point on the hill that
Andrew Hallidie (
inventor of the San Francisco cable railway,) designed and built an ingenious gondola system that was used to carry ore from the mine directly to the mill. This saved dozens of horses and men literally hours of work for each load of ore that was to be delivered for processing. Gondolas would be loaded at the top of the hill, and run down a “never ending cable” to the mill, where the bottom would automatically open to drop the ore into a bin.
Also to note, according to State experts, the Standard Mill is the “most in tact” mill in California!-
In the enlarged 2001 picture of the mill (above,) you can barely see a pole at the top of the hill. It is from that point on the hill that
Andrew Hallidie (
inventor of the San Francisco cable railway,) designed and built an ingenious gondola system that was used to carry ore from the mine directly to the mill. This saved dozens of horses and men literally hours of work for each load of ore that was to be delivered for processing. Gondolas would be loaded at the top of the hill, and run down a “never ending cable” to the mill, where the bottom would automatically open to drop the ore into a bin.
Also to note, according to State experts, the Standard Mill is the “most in tact” mill in California!-
https://www.bodie.com/history/structures/the-standard-mill/
"The schoolhouse is one of the better looking buildings in town. It was originally the Bon Ton Lodging House in 1879, but was later converted to the school house, after the first one was burned down.
The first school house was burned down by a small boy who had gotten in trouble, and was sent home. He went to the backside of the school and began setting fire to the dry brush for fun. It spread to the building and burnt it to the ground. I guess the teacher learned a lesson that time…
A view from inside the schoolhouse, gives you the feeling that the children are just out at play during a break. The town was abandoned so abruptly, that thousands and thousands of artifacts were simply left behind because they were too heavy, or too much to haul from one place to another.
Of the many books, desks and toys left behind, only a portion are seen here. Hundreds more are in a back room of the school being used as an archive of sorts." -
https://www.bodie.com/history/structures/bodie-schoolhouse/
"This brick building, attached to the
Wheaton and Hollis Hotel, helped bring Bodie into the 20th century. It houses transformers once used for powering the
Standard Mill. You can see what is left of the white paint that covered the walls.
Originally, the mill was run by steam power, but wood was a costly resource that was expensive and eventually became more and more scarce. Prior to November 1892, Tom Legget convinced
James Cain to invest in his idea of transmitting power over a long distance. The power was to be used to in the mill, which would reduce the amount of wood needed. Cain agreed and work began. The mill had new electric equipment installed, this power substation was built, and lines were run from the mill to the substation, and from the substation to Green Creek, where the Hydroelectric Power Plant was built. In fact, the lines were run 13 miles in a straight line! At the time, engineers were afraid the power running through the lines would not be able to turn sharp corners and that it would ‘jump out of the line and into the ground’.
Local newspapers and residents thought the whole idea was crazy and wouldn’t work. They had been calling the whole operation “Legget’s Follie” and expected the worst. Thousands and thousands of dollars had were being spent to build buildings, run lines, purchase, and install equipment at the mill. It was a big deal in Bodie.
So, November 1892 a large group of people met at the mill for the magical moment. A signal was sent via telephone line to Green Creek, and the switch was thrown. Nothing happened. People began laughing and chattering, believing that they had been right all along. Several minutes passed, and suddenly the motors at the mill began to hum! What an exciting moment!!
Bodie became the first town (in the world?) to have an electric stamp mill! A huge party was thrown that night and everyone celebrated this new technology and the further success of Bodie." -
https://www.bodie.com/history/structures/hydro-electric-power-substation/
I'm glad we made the effort to see a bit more before we had to leave too. 
Next chapter!
With the humidity, heat, and my drug-induced stupor, we pooped out pretty quickly. But WHOA! That's a bit scary! We did make it to one (San Juan) and spent at least an hour there wandering the grounds. That was super fun!
It'll all fall into place, but is going to take time. Needing a bit more pixie dust in the real life zone right now.
I thought you were joking - good one
) so will assume that’s acceptable. Let’s journey on, heading south of course, leaving Virginia City, NV and taking some time to visit Bodie, CA. Bodie saw its heyday in 1880 with a Main Street that was over a mile long and whose population was more than 10,000. By 1940, however, it was declared a ghost town. It was abandoned so quickly that many, many artifacts were left behind intact. Now, the California State Park system keeps it in a state of suspended decay where visitors can see a glimpse of what life may have been like for those who flocked to this mining town during its boom.
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