Expanded ed. of: Hardrock man: whispers from underground: oral history of mining "the world's greatest gold camp." Cripple Creek, CO: Poverty Gulch Pub., 2006.

This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Mabel Barbee Lee has written a rousing tale of early days in Cripple Creek, Colorado. She speaks with authority because she arrived there as a child in 1892, and with wide-eyed wonder saw the whole place turn to gold. With his divining rod, Mabel's father tapped gold ore on Beacon Hill but missed becoming a millionaire by selling his claim short. Nonetheless, life was rich for young Mabel in a booming town with points of interest like Poverty Gulch, the Continental Hotel, and a fantastic house called Finn's Folly; with characters around like the promoter Windy Joe and (seen from a distance) the madam Pearl De Vere; with something always going on, whether a celebration or a disastrous fire or train wreck or a no-nonsense miners' strike. Mabel Lee's book brings back a time and place with affection. The foreword is by Lowell Thomas, who was her pupil when she was a young schoolmarm in Cripple Creek. "One of the most fascinating accounts of a gold rush town."-Chicago Sunday Tribune. "More entertaining by far than the run of fictional westerns, more authentic, of course, and a great deal more moving."-W. M. Teller, Saturday Review

As one of the last major boomtowns created from gold rushes in Colorado's Rocky Mountains, the Cripple Creek District, located just west of Pikes Peak, became home to thousands of men, women, and children from dozens of nationalities the world over. They struggled to establish homes in the rugged and sometimes inhospitable environment of high-altitude gold camp life. The need for a modicum of civilization's amenities in this roughneck enclave, which eventually became the Teller County seat, was stunted by mining's inherent injuries and illness, the harsh mountain winters, great fires that destroyed many area towns, and debilitating labor strikes. More than a century of pioneer living is represented in this evocative tour through famous and infamous local history, from the early settlers to the descendants and residents who still call the Cripple Creek District home.

Not a poor man's camp -- Staking the claims -- In union there is strength -- Sirs and brothers -- Imperfect unions -- A white man's camp -- Class-conscious lines -- As if we lived in free America -- Look away over Jordan.

Money Mountain, first published in 1953, is the story of the fantastically rich Cripple Creek gold mines of Colorado. Detailed are the discovery of the lode and the first mining claims, the development of the town, the incredible wealth generated by the gold, the inevitable labor strife, disasters such as fires and floods; all well-researched and presented in an entertaining style. Included are 13 pages of maps and photographs. Marshall Sprague (1909-1994) authored a number of books and articles on the American West.

This reprint makes available again Frank Waters' dramatic and colorful 1937 biography of Winfield Scott Stratton, the man who struck it rich at the foot of Pike's Peak and turned Cripple Creek into the greatest gold camp on earth. More than regional history, Midas of the Rockies is a story so fabulously impossible and yet so painfully true that it commends itself to the whole of America, the only earth, the only people who could have created it.