Ophir Utah

Ghostly But Still Alive

Ophir Utah is located 22 miles south of Tooele. Once a silver mining boom town, the town’s population … at one time … eventually peaked at 6,000 people. If you drive through it today, you wouldn’t believe it once was a wild and crazy mining town with:

• saloons
• gambling
• dance halls
• hotels
• brothels
• cafes
• stores
• and boarding houses

Yes, they were all here. They lined the narrow street at the canyon’s base. On our most recent visit, we saw that several of the old buildings had been restored and modernized. The population in 2023 was listed as 26. So, yes, technically alive but definitely on life support.

Photo -Travel Utah

Some Ophir Utah History

When General Patrick Connor arrived in Utah with his California volunteers, they were garrisoned at Camp Douglas in the Salt Lake Valley. They were sent to keep an eye on the local inhabitants – Mormon and Indian. But it almost seems their intent soon changed to that of investigating the mineral deposits throughout the area and profiting from them.

The general’s troops ranged far and wide throughout the territory. While checking on settlements in Rush Valley sometime in the mid-1860’s, they were told that some of the Indians were using rifle slugs and sporting ornaments made of silver and lead.

In 1865, the soldiers tracked the source of these bullets to some crude mines in East Canyon on the western slope of the Oquirrh Mountains. This, of course, is the same mountain range still being mined today at the Bingham Canyon Mine.

There was some initial prospecting and some small-scale mining but in 1870, the big boom hit. The mining district was organized and a town popped up. The population exploded. The name of the town was coined by one of the Bible-reading prospectors. The land of Ophir … home of King Solomon’s mine … inspired the town’s name.

Within weeks, miners had taken more than $1 million in silver from the mine. By the end of the century, more than $13 million of silver had been dug from more than 3,000 claims.

Photo - Utah Historical Society

More Ophir History

The town was crazy while the ore lasted. Thousands of miners flooded the area. Where prospectors and miners went, so did those who made their living off of fleecing them.

• gamblers
• prostitutes
• teamsters
• gunmen
• even legitimate businessmen

It was an exciting time. Many of the strikes were rich ones. Some of the resulting names exhibited this excitement.

• Miner’s Delight
• Silveropolis
• Wild Delirium
• Shamrock

The ore was sent to various smelters - Connor’s smelter in Stockton or to E.T. City on the shores of the Great Salt Lake. From there, it was taken by boat to another one of Connors’ smelters across the lake in Corinne.

As the boom continued, many of the buildings became more permanent with more substantial wood and stone structures being built. The town eventually included:

• the Pioneer Hotel
• several busy livery stables
• drug stores
• general stores
• theaters
• two schools
• a post office
• a combination town hall and fire station

There was even a short-line railway built to link Ophir Utah with the major railroad lines. But eventually … like all such towns … the ore ran out. Lead, silver, and zinc were the main minerals taken from the Ophir Utah mines. Very little gold. Only $329,000 of gold to be exact. But ... by 1880 ... the boom went kaboom.

The Death of a Boomtown

The gold-diggers and those who followed them disappeared almost overnight. They left only about 50 people … some miners, a few families and a couple merchants.

Over the years, this population has continued to rise and fall. But mainly it has fallen. Yet, even in 1918, Ophir Utah still had a post office, a weekly newspaper, a daily stage line, a general store, a railroad, and a population of 560.

In 1970, a census discovered there were still 76 people in the town. Funny thing. Living residents could only come up with 50! As I said above, the last census claimed 26 residents.

In 1971, the Ophir Hill mine was still producing. We know this as there was a fatality … the first one in 25 years … reported as a mining fatality.

You can get to Ophir Utah by heading south from Tooele on Highway 36. Take a left on Highway 73. Follow the signs. You can also get there by taking Highway 73 west from Lehi in Utah County. Lehi is 18 miles south of the I-215/I-15 interchange in Salt Lake City.

So, in the back of my mind, I have always pictured Ophir as being on the south end of the Oquirrhs. It is actually on the west side of the range. I also thought that it was shorter to go the Lehi way than the Tooele way when coming from Salt Lake City.

Wrong. Salt Lake City to Tooele to Ophir is 54 miles. Salt Lake City to Lehi to Ophir is 68 miles. Not even close. The Tooele way is 14 miles less. We usually make a complete circle of the Oquirrhs, though, when we go out that way so it doesn’t really matter which way we start.

Photo - Travel Utah

A True Living Ghost Town

Ophir Utah is a great example of a living ghost town. There are still a few old buildings lining the streets. Some are beautifully restored. Some are shells. There are some new homes. A few new cabins. And quite a few RV’s. I don’t know why. Maybe some of the 26 people live in them. There is even a nice little park.

We drove through it a few years ago. There seemed to be quite a bit more activity … and more restored buildings … than the last time we were there many decades ago. I’ve been there several times.

My wife and I … along with some of her relatives … drove there years ago in our jeep. The roads are paved all the way so you don’t need to worry about that. In the lower parts of the canyon, the road is actually the old railroad bed.

Looking back in retrospect … especially with some of the stories about people being injured and killed in abandoned mines … we did something we wouldn’t do now. We went into one of the abandoned mines. There was nothing to keep us out or to even warn us back then. Not even a sign.

It was a memorable experience. The highlight was my father-in-law gashing his head open on a sharp rock protruding from the low ceiling. We encountered a seemingly bottomless mine shaft and turned around at that point. This was years ago before we “grew up” and became responsible.

I’ve read many of the stories since about the dangers of these mines. I wouldn’t repeat the experience although it ended up being a good memory. While driving home … without a top on our jeep … we got absolutely drenched from a torrential summer thunderstorm. My wife and I still laugh about it.

A Beautiful Canyon in Fall

One memory I have of this canyon is that it is ablaze in the fall with the box elder trees turning a bright yellow along with the usual display of fall colors mixed in. A friend of mine took me hunting up there years ago. I was so awed by the color display that I didn’t even worry about the fact that we didn’t see a single deer.

When I first got to Utah to attend the University of Utah, it was popular among some of my fellow football players to wear “Ophir State” hats and t-shirts. I had no idea what they meant. That is until, a decade later, when I got to visit the place that inspired them.

I would recommend a drive out to Ophir when you get a chance to see what a living ghost town looks like. Maybe check out Camp Floyd/Stagecoach Inn State Park and Museum on the way out or the way back as it is only 20 miles back along Highway 73 towards Lehi.

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