Jawbone Flats is a

ghost town Ghost Town(s) or Ghosttown may refer to: * Ghost town, a town that has been abandoned Film and television * Ghost Town (1936 film), ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * Ghost Town (1956 film), ''Ghost Town'' ...

Marion County, Oregon Marion County is one of the 36 counties in the U.S. state of Oregon. The population was 345,920 at the 2020 census, making it the fifth-most populous county in Oregon. The county seat is Salem, which is also the state capital of Oregon. The ...

, United States. It is located along Opal Creek, approximately from

Salem Salem may refer to: Places Canada Ontario * Bruce County ** Salem, Arran–Elderslie, Ontario, in the municipality of Arran–Elderslie ** Salem, South Bruce, Ontario, in the municipality of South Bruce * Salem, Dufferin County, Ontario, part ...

, the state capitol, and is accessible via the Opal Pool Loop trail. Established in 1931, Jawbone Flats was a mining camp founded after miners discovered gold in the region in 1859.

History

Jawbone Flats was established in 1931 by James Hewitt of the Amalgamated Mining Company, after miners had struck

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

in the region in 1859. The company processed various metals found in the region, including

lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...

zinc Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodi ...

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...

, and

silver Silver is a chemical element with the Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European wikt:Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/h₂erǵ-, ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, whi ...

. Some of the roads built in the area, including the Gold Creek Bridge, were constructed under President Roosevelt's

New Deal The New Deal was a series of programs, public work projects, financial reforms, and regulations enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1939. Major federal programs agencies included the Civilian Cons ...

in 1939. The town population began to dwindle in the 1950s after snow damaged the buildings, and the mining operations proved unprofitable. In 1992, after all mining operations had ceased in the region, the Shiny Rock Mining Company gifted of oldgrowth forest, including Jawbone Flats, to the Friends of Opal Creek, a non-profit historical society. Contemporarily Jawbone Flats is accessible to the public, and hosts educational field trips for schools, as well as other events. Jawbone Flats was largely destroyed by the

Beachie Creek Fire The Santiam Fire was a very large wildfire that burned in Marion County, Oregon, Marion, Jefferson County, Oregon, Jefferson, Linn County, Oregon, Linn, and Clackamas County, Oregon, Clackamas Counties, in northwest Oregon, United States. Havin ...

in 2020.

References

{{authority control Company towns in Oregon Ghost towns in Oregon Former populated places in Marion County, Oregon 1931 establishments in Oregon

History

See also

References