There's No Looking Back

Vince Montalbano (autofocus)
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There's No Looking Back
There's No Looking Back

Virginia City, Montana
In 1863, life could not have been very easy in Virginia City, Montana, but when gold was discovered in Alder Gulch the lure of new found wealth brought as many as 10,000 folks in to participate in their share of the wealth. They came from far and wide, and it seemed no distance was too far to travel! And Virginia City became the center of one of America's richest gold mining areas. "The mining districts of Alder Gulch produced and estimated $50 million in gold, although some historians believe that number is too low, and place the total value at around $150 million." Make shift housing was built by the hundreds, and were barely enough to keep one dry in the summer, and warm in the winter, but they became home for the most hardy. And along with those who worked the rivers and streams and the mines lusting for their share of the windfall there came the bandits and the highwaymen who chose the less legal and less physical way to garner "their share of the wealth." Stagecoach robberies were common, and the risk was high for the travelers who chose that means of transportation, often with their pockets and bags bulging with the newly found precious metal. Fights, brawls, lootings, and even murders were common, and it finally took a dedicated group of vigilantes to quell the crime rate. And when the suspected criminals and thieves were found and captured there'd often be a short path to the gallows with no trial or lawyers to intervene.
Mining and exploration in Virginia City remained somewhat active for nearly a century after the initial find, but over time the yields became less and less. With time, the once booming area population of nearly 10,000 dwindled to what it is today. As of the 2021 count, the population of Virginia City had shrunk to 223 people. And with those few remaining folks lies the remnants and machines and surviving buildings from those boom times. Albeit considered still an active city, most today would considered it a ghost town, and by most standards, it is just that.

Vince M

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Taken on: September 6, 2021
Tags: Everybody's photos tagged with Virginia City, Montana Virginia City, Montana Everybody's photos tagged with gold gold Everybody's photos tagged with old old more » Everybody's photos tagged with ghost town ghost town Everybody's photos tagged with Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM Canon EF 24-105mm f/4L IS USM Everybody's photos tagged with Canon 50D Canon 50D Everybody's photos tagged with Montana Montana Everybody's photos tagged with buildings and vehicles buildings and vehicles Everybody's photos tagged with International truck International truck Everybody's photos tagged with rusty rusty Everybody's photos tagged with window window Everybody's photos tagged with cracked cracked « less
Sets appears in:   • Bozeman Montana    • Cars, Cars, Cars   
Groups appears in:   • Canon EF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM    • Automotive Art    more » • Trucks & Pickups ETC.    • Creative Car and Truck Photography    • Topaz Adjust    • Canon EF 24-105 1:4 L IS USM    • Car Art - Wheeled Art opted out of 30/60    • Orphaned Marques    • Canon 24-105 4.0 Lens    • Photoshopped Cars, Trucks & Bikes    • Great Captions    « less
Camera: Canon EOS 50D, f/4.0, 1/320 sec, 55mm, ISO 100 (more info) (hide info)
Camera: Canon EOS 50D
Lens: EF24-105mm f/4L IS USM
Aperture: f/4.0
Exposure Time: 0.003 sec (1/320)
Focal Length: 55mm
ISO: 100
Exposure Bias: 0 EV
Flash: Off, Did not fire
Exposure Program: Manual
Exposure Mode: Manual
Metering Mode: Multi-segment
White Balance: Auto
Color Space: Uncalibrated
Software: Adobe Photoshop 24.6 (Windows)
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