Colorado Great Depression Gold Rush
The Oliver Twist Tunnel
by
V. Larry Frank Jr.
Saturday, July 23, 2022
3:00pm
PCHS Heritage Center
39 CR 68
Bailey, CO 80421
The year was 1931. The Great Depression was settling in for a prolonged stay while Leadville's mining district struggled to stay afloat. A few courageous local investors saw a ray of hope in the old gold mines high atop Mosquito Pass, and bet that they could make the old workings pay. George and Robert Elder were two of those investors, and this is the story of their role in Colorado's Great Depression gold rush. The father and son team put their savings and their sweat into the London Mountain Gold Mining Company, working devotedly to coax a bonanza from the old Oliver Twist Tunnel. They, and the men who worked for them, endured violence, bank closures, mine accidents, and the forbidding conditions of 13,185-foot-high Mosquito Pass. Robert Elder's original photographs bring the story of a small, hard-working mining company in the Great Depression to life.
This will be our first presentation of our new Heritage Center. We are very proud of the new facility and look forward to showing it off. However, we are only able to seat about 45 guests. So, please try to arrive early to reserve your seat.
Admission $10 Snacks and deserts provided