Goodsprings District- Azurite Mine

Clark County

AKA: Boss Mine (you decide); Yellow Pine District

This mine seems to be the subject of some contention amongst Goodsprings Mining District enthusiasts. I am not going to pretend that I know more than them. I have also read that regardless of which name you pick for this mine (Azurite or Boss) you are not wrong. I am going to leave that up to you. The following is an excerpt from a pretty good website on the Goodsprings area called vegasunderworld: "There is some confusion as to the proper name of this mine. Some are referring to this mine as the Boss Mine. Some are referring to it as the Azurite Mine. Call it whatever you'd like. It's the same mine. Nobody is saying you are wrong if you call it "Boss Mine" and nobody is telling you to call it something else..."

The Boss Mine was originally a copper prospect back in 1886. It was also worked for gold and platinum prior to 1900. In 1914, H.C. Riddall discovered further platinum and paladium here. From the way the history is written, it sounds like they intentionally had some higher-grade samples assayed to give the impression that this mine was better than it was. Ownership of the mine changed hands between different companies over the next year, before sitting idle until 1936. In 1936, a man named Myers shipped 261 tons of ore and found that this ore was worth barely more than $19.00 a ton.

Warning: I hiked up to this mine, which was pretty steep. Once I was there, I found out that going back down was going to be harder than going up, especially with all the loose rock and dirt. Just keep it in mind. There is a trail that wraps around the mountain and lets you out about a 1/2 mile farther up the road. It’s a little bit out of the way to take the trail back, but it surely beats tumbling down a mountain. The last few photos show the trail, as well as what looks like a small dugout cabin or powder house.