Mining Towns, Jerome, Arizona

Jerome
Jerome is an awesome mining town with a good amount of places to explore. There are tons of ruins and mines throughout the area; most on private property. The town is built on a steep mountain side so be sure to have lots of energy and warm clothes. The few times we visited the wind was blowing extremely hard at around 20-40 mph.

History:
A mining camp named Jerome was established on the side of Cleopatra Hill in 1883. It was named for Eugene Murray Jerome, a New York investor who owned the mineral rights and financed mining there. Eugene Jerome never visited his namesake town. Jerome was incorporated as a town on 8 March 1889. Local merchant and rancher William Munds was the first mayor. The town housed the workers in the nearby United Verde Mine, which was to produce over 1 billion dollars in copper, gold and silver over the next 70 years.

Jerome became a notorious “wild west” town, a hotbed of prostitution, gambling, and vice. On 5 February 1903, the New York Sun proclaimed Jerome to be “the wickedest town in the West”. In 1915 the population of Jerome was estimated at 2,500.

Date: 01.05.2011
Temp: 52°
Elevation: 4,925 ft
Latitude: 34.748903
Longitude: -112.114042