You have to take a road less traveled to find the ghost town of Ruby, Ariz. But as you make your way down this rough and winding dirt road, you'll be transported back in time to the old mining town.
But as you make your way down the rough and winding dirt road south of Arivaca, you will be transported back in time to the old mining town of Ruby."People ask me if I see ghosts," said Leslie Cherry, the caretaker and lone resident of Ruby, Ariz."I tell them I'm more afraid of humans than I am of ghosts."At the turn of the last century, in the shadow of Montana Peak in Santa Cruz County, Ruby grew from a small mining camp into a town of 1,200.
The Montana mine became the richest zinc and lead mine in the state. But there was a dark side to Ruby.The most famous, in 1921, bandits robbed and killed the Pearsons, the husband and wife owners of the mercantile.The bandits were eventually caught, after trying to sell Mrs. Perason's gold teeth.Not long after, Ruby became a ghost town, apparently with real ghosts.As the caretaker of Ruby, Leslie is in charge of the 20 buildings still standing.
"So this really was the schoolhouse. These three rooms were the schoolhouse," Patricia Frederick said."They actually had three teachers here at one point.""A lot of people that come here in the winter think of it as a historic place because they're interested in ghost towns and mining," Frederick said."The old history of Arizona is mining, mining, mining. Other people come just to hike. A lot of people come in the summers to camp and swim in the lake.
"The buildings we're falling behind on," Frederick said."The conservation is easier in a way, as long as you have water.""We have over 100,000 bats coming out of that mine," Frederick said."They're Mexican free-tailed bats. That is an experience to see.""As it was going on I was laying back farther and farther until I was finally laying completely on the ground because they were just going right over me," Cherry said.
The gate to Ruby is open Thursday through Sunday for self-guided tours. You must go to the Ruby website and sign up for a permit.Pat Parris is an anchor and reporter for KGUN 9. He is a graduate of Sabino High School where he was the 1982 high school state track champion in the 800 meters. While in high school and college, he worked part-time in the KGUN 9 newsroom. Share your story ideas and important issues with Pat by emailing pat.parris@kgun9.
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