A Brief Crown King, Arizona History

The town of Crown King and the surrounding Bradshaw Mountains was one of the toughest mineral rich mining areas in Arizona. The first claims were found in the desert west of the area in 1863. Soon after, large gold and silver discoveries were made in the mountains. Even though the conditions were very rough with unforgiving terrain, several mines with boom towns were born. Among them was the Crowned King Mine. In 1904 a railroad was built that carved thru the mountains into Crown King. The railroad was known as “Murphy’s Impossible Railroad”. Although roughly $2,000,000 in gold was removed from the Crowned King Mine alone, the region never lived up to its massive expectations. The mines have been closed since the 1950’s. The little red one room school house that was built in 1917 is still open and serves kindergarten thru 8 th grade. There is lots of history surrounding this great little town and surrounding area. Dig around and do some reading before you visit. You will get more out of your visit if you do!