Total Wreck, Arizona
Encyclopedia
Total Wreck is a ghost town
in Pima County
in the southeast part of the U.S. state
of Arizona
. The town was populated throughout the 1880s, in what was then the Arizona Territory
.
ledge with large boulders of quartzite strewn all over.
A post office was established on August 12, 1881, and was discontinued on November 1, 1890. The population was around 200 residents in 1883, at which time its structures included five saloons, three general stores, a butcher shop, a shoemaker shop and a half dozen Chinese laundries. By 1884 mines of the area had produced some $500,000 in silver bullion. Mining declined through the 1890s and early 1900s.
Ghost town
A ghost town is an abandoned town or city. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economic activity that supported it has failed, or due to natural or human-caused disasters such as floods, government actions, uncontrolled lawlessness, war, or nuclear disasters...
in Pima County
Pima County, Arizona
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*74.3% White*3.5% Black*3.3% Native American*2.6% Asian*0.2% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*3.7% Two or more races*12.4% Other races*34.6% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
in the southeast part of the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
. The town was populated throughout the 1880s, in what was then the Arizona Territory
Arizona Territory
The Territory of Arizona was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 24, 1863 until February 14, 1912, when it was admitted to the Union as the 48th state....
.
History
Silver was discovered in the Richmond lode of the Empire mining district in the eastern Empire Mountains in 1879. John L. Dillon, the owner of the claims, named the townsite Total Wreck, because he thought that the mine was on a ledge that looked like "a Total Wreck" because it was below a quartziteQuartzite
Quartzite is a hard metamorphic rock which was originally sandstone. Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tectonic compression within orogenic belts. Pure quartzite is usually white to gray, though quartzites often occur in various shades of pink...
ledge with large boulders of quartzite strewn all over.
A post office was established on August 12, 1881, and was discontinued on November 1, 1890. The population was around 200 residents in 1883, at which time its structures included five saloons, three general stores, a butcher shop, a shoemaker shop and a half dozen Chinese laundries. By 1884 mines of the area had produced some $500,000 in silver bullion. Mining declined through the 1890s and early 1900s.