One of the most picturesque 'ghost towns' I have ever visited. To walk through the streets and in between the homes leaves a creepy feeling. Tours of the mine are a must. The price reasonable in these economic times, and the payoff is not disappointing. Take the time, investigate and feel the physical history.
As a historian of the 19th century I cannot get past the visions of Rough It melded with the Gilded Age by Mark Twain, as some homes are ornate, papered and adorned, others are breathlessly bare. Of course much I am sure has be staged throughout the park. Yet the juxtaposition is true nonetheless as that was the nature of silver boom towns of the intermountain west.
Several things strike my interest. How the elites of Bodie lived atop the laboring gyre of miners and peddlers leads me into all sorts of ideations. To those atop the froth, Bodie likely was little different but scenery from where they might otherwise invest their time and capital. However to those whom sojourned with a gamble in the mountain desert, a very disjointed life most certainly ensued; one more silent, isolated, and imprisoning than those above. To hear of regional and national news, as opposed to reading it in print is a very different connection to the outer world.
Thoughts:
Closer to my own work, what affiliation if any did those in Bodie give to San Francisco or California as a region or state?
As a historian of the 19th century I cannot get past the visions of Rough It melded with the Gilded Age by Mark Twain, as some homes are ornate, papered and adorned, others are breathlessly bare. Of course much I am sure has be staged throughout the park. Yet the juxtaposition is true nonetheless as that was the nature of silver boom towns of the intermountain west.
Several things strike my interest. How the elites of Bodie lived atop the laboring gyre of miners and peddlers leads me into all sorts of ideations. To those atop the froth, Bodie likely was little different but scenery from where they might otherwise invest their time and capital. However to those whom sojourned with a gamble in the mountain desert, a very disjointed life most certainly ensued; one more silent, isolated, and imprisoning than those above. To hear of regional and national news, as opposed to reading it in print is a very different connection to the outer world.
Thoughts:
Closer to my own work, what affiliation if any did those in Bodie give to San Francisco or California as a region or state?
Interestingly this comment is more for my own interest than the cloud. It seems that this may be an easy way for me to make notes linked to my own posts without the hassle of logging in.
ReplyDeleteWhat does the geography of our identities look like.
mr