The Golden Pen Mine is located just north of the Blue Sphinx. Silver and gold ore was first discovered here in 1908. Originally the ore was taken to Rawhide for processing, but in 1919 the owners of the Golden Pen built their own mill with a capacity of 20 tons.

The last recorded production from the mine was in 1939. Sometime in the 1970s or 80s, some bulldozing and exploration work was done at the site but nothing came of it.

The mine itself is an adit. I didn’t attempt to explore the interior, but merely shot a couple photos from the entrance. Some kind of structure was built near the mine, across a long, narrow ledge, but it has completely fallen apart. A washout or landslide cut off the trail from the mine to these ruins.

A newer route goes above the ruins, and across the ridge to the site of the bunkhouse. These are are the most interesting structures in the area, consisting of a house which still stands, an enclosed water tank, two dugouts, and the ruins of the two-story bunkhouse.

On the way to the Golden Pen Mine, one encounters the ruins of a small mill (above, right). I’ve created a separate page for the mill and a few other ruins in the canyon:  Golden Pen Mine - The Mill

Posted August 2013.

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